In which I discuss my ongoing problem with staying focused. I’ll be lucky if I get through half of these.
Active:
- Ember King’s Inheritance 2: I am currently working on this one and am maybe a quarter-ish through a first draft. Progress slowed somewhat since my 0.5 draft had to be reset for various reasons. Plot centers around continuing where Nocturne of Fog left off as our heroes travel to meet with the Order of the Eagle and hijinks ensue in Nypheos. And by ‘hijinks’, I mean dead people.
- Currently Untitled Ancient-folk Centered Adventure: A somewhat problematic (for me) project that’s consuming a good deal of my time. It’s intended to be written as a ‘oneshot’, but I think it’ll probably be split in three when considering length and time constraints. I am maybe a third of the way through a first draft of part one, but, uh, ‘length and time constraints’. For a plot teaser: think ‘how could a JRPG be novelized’?
- The Baron of Chevaladin: A shorter oneshot I meant to get done while waiting on certain things with Nocturne of Fog to get done. But then I got distracted by the above and progress kind of stagnated. Intended to be a kind of ‘phantom thief’ not-exactly-mystery where the protagonist is an inspector trying to capture a famous magical thief, the titular ‘Baron of Chevaladin’.
- Dreamtide: I suppose I have to list this one since I am kind of working on it. Reworking what I am now determining is a 0.5 draft into something more competent. Morningstar is a silly place. Let’s not go there.
Backburner:
- A Tycortuan Fairy Tale: This is a shorter novel I worked on while waiting for edits on Nocturne of Fog. And a first draft is completed. I just haven’t touched it since then for a couple of reasons. Waiting for me to send to an editor (ish). A story based around the idea of the wrong child of a changeling pair growing up with the fairies (kind of).
- Travelogue of the Seven Timeless Cities (Working title): A series I started on that I have complicated feelings about. I do definitely want to get to it at some point, and the first book is close to 50% done on a first draft, it’s just that I ran into a bit of a block there when I started my third(ish) draft of Nocturne of Fog. Currently languishing until I feel like picking it up again. About the knight of a fallen order searching for one of his companions when he stumbles upon a city where it’s always winter, controlled by an army of mechanical(ish) puppets. Hijinks ensue.
- Tales of the Wanderer: One I’ve thought about, but I haven’t started really because I think I need to actually finish some stuff before I start on this. A story about a young swordsmen in the midst of a war between humans and dragons and his quest to escort a little girl home. Through the middle of draconic territory. After abandoning his post at knight school. It’ll probably be fine. Somewhat intended as a story from the perspective of the hero’s generic ‘I must become a master swordsman’ rival.
- Priestesses of the Dawn: Another fairly high investment series that I’ve had on my mind since about when I started the first bits of Ember King’s Inheritance. Probably too high investment to work on until EKI is done. Especially since some of the concept has undergone a pretty massive rework since the initial concept. You know, just minor stuff like the main protagonists and antagonists. In any case, deals more with the actual Realms part of the Eleven Realms. About an amnesiac knight embarking on a quest across the Realms to find the six titular Priestesses of the Dawn and acquire their aid in foiling a plot to destroy he world.
- A Lacalban Fairy Tale: One that spawned from me having a particular kick of a certain game while pondering ‘A Tycortuan Fairy Tale’ above. It’s supposed to be a oneshot, and therefore theoretically low investment, but I just haven’t found the right time yet. Somewhat meant as a partial retelling of a few legends crossing wires in the setting of the Eleven Realms.
Tabled:
Just assume all these titles are tentative at best. And that instead of when, these are more if. And by ‘if’ I mean maybe.
- The Frost Empress’ Blessing: A ‘sequel’ series to EKI. I use sequel loosely, because the story is completely separate and it takes place on the other side of the Lataoccas super-continent. But it’s twenty(ish) years after EKI and two of the protagonists are the children of some characters from it, so I kinda want to make sure that things are done there before starting here. Quick summary? A league of seven kingdoms is betrayed by one of their members. Mysterious circumstances and other-worldly monsters abound. You shut up about the moon.
- Knight of Dusk: A oneshot that takes place in the same part of the world as Priestesses of the Dawn. Mostly tabled because I’m just not sure how I want to play it and at this point some of the stuff I was focusing on here got absorbed into other stories. I may come back to it some day. Summay: A disgraced mercenary is mistaken for a legendary hero by a deposed princess seeking to free her captured father. Hijinks ensue.
- Lost Blade, Moonlit Blade: A duology that kinda falls into the same place as FEB. Actually a kind of interquel between the two. But since it directly involves a character who would spoil stuff for EKi, I don’t really want to work on it right now. And it’s the connective tissue between events in another part of the Realms that… Would complicate things. Might happen eventually some day. Summary: Local sword boy goes on a life changing field trip across the Other-worlds.
- Forests of Night: The events in another part of the Realms I talked about above. Based on another project I messed around with a while ago, it just really needs a lot of ironing out and focus that I cannot give it at the moment. I’d like to come back to it some day, but today is not that day. Involves the last holdout kingdoms against an ever-encroaching eldritch apocalypse doing their best.
- Eternal Light: A thing that I have considered. So you might have noticed that there’s something of a trend in the titles where each is kind of reflected in another (EKI to FEB, PoD to KoD, etc). This is the reflection of Forests of Night. And the short version of why it’s here is that I just have no place for it right now. It has plot ties to Forests of Night and acts as an interquel of PoD, so I just have no interest in working on it right now. Summary: Realm where it’s always day. Dinosaur jungles. Eldritch threats. Merchants probably?
- Magical Murder Mystery: Exactly what it says on the tin. A potential oneshot where a traveling inspector gets roped into trying to solve a mysterious murder of a local noble. I have something of a plot structured for this and characters set up, but there’s definitely stuff to work out and I kinda think I’m probably just not good at the whole ‘mystery’ writing thing. So we’ll see if I ever get around to it.
- Citadel of Souls: A thing that’s been brewing in the back of my mind since… high school? Probably high school. Requires too much investment to take seriously right now. Takes place in the Realm of Magic though, so that’s cool. Summary: Warring states. Mission – defend the capital. Ancient evil says hi.
- Gideon and Friends: See above. It’s an idea from the back of my mind since high school. Very low priority (as I’m sure you can tell by the title) because of this and actually probably won’t take place in the Eleven Realms maybe. Broadly about a group of companions traveling through Other-worlds for kicks. Has Levi Proto and (in a very loose sense) Erica Proto though, so that’s kinda why it still persists.
- Task Force 0D1N: A weird little idea I had about a story set in the modern(ish) world, overrun by mystical monsters. With so many things that conventional weaponry just doesn’t work against, the governments of the world started developing weapons incorporating mystical crystals and such. And thus, armed with magic guns and motorized swords, the task forces embarks to try and protect the last bastions of civilization in an increasingly hostile world.
- Arthurian adaptation: Quite frankly, I’d really love to this some day. I really love the King Arthur stories and would love to do my own telling of them sometime. But I don’t think I’m nearly good enough in a lot of ways to do that right now.