A New Beginning
I love to write.... my stories. Until July of 2019, I had never written a blog. Almost 2 years later, I might still not be doing it right. As I build a brand new website, I'm reviewing my writer's journey so far. I have come a long way, but there is an endless road ahead. We'll continue to see how this goes.
Bear with me if you read this post and wonder if I lost my mind. (Maybe I never knew where it was to begin with.) Rest assured that I'll get this figured out. Or I'll simply journey forward, blissfully unaware of all the facts, as I continue to use the creative side of my mind because I'm having fun.
I figured out how to publish as an independent author so blogging can't be that hard. Right? Books are out. I keep writing. My author's walk continues. Come join me on my author's walk. If you enjoy paranormal romance, I hope my stories will interest you. If you want to know more about how I write, publish, and market my stories, you've landed in the right place. Welcome to the dream...
I try to be a good writer and post all the news to all my readers. I have to be honest, sometimes the story presses me to write it, and I get lost in that instead of other stuff. I work a full-time day job so finding time for everything isn't easy. When the scenes are flowing in my mind, what I want to do is write. If there is no time for other things like marketing, publishing, or blogging, I just have to accept that maybe the time for that will eventually come.
Cut Scenes
When I first began this blog, I asked for forgiveness in advance for all the stuff I'd mess up and my total lack of time. I now have a better day job and have learned enough to be able to juggle some of the writing stuff a bit better. I still don't know it all, and I likely will never figure it all out.
That's okay. Time is money and the only currency I have to pay with, so I've decided that I'm in this game for the long haul. As I did when I began the blog, I'll reissue the promise I made to speak the truth about my author's walk so that others might glean what they will from my journey. I'm not any kind of expert. I'm just offering what I learn freely as part of the backstory to writing the books and in the hopes that other authors might find something useful here.
I would love to make money selling my books. Marketing is hard and I'm afraid of losing my hard-earned day job money. So instead, I've decided to take the time to unravel the secrets of the self-publishing world on my own. I usually do this one tiny epiphany at a time.
That's good. Writing isn't a get-rich-quick scheme. It's rather a creative outlet and an escape. If you are joining me on the ride, I'm glad you stopped by no matter whether it be to learn about writing in general or my writing in particular.
my journey, but few of the cut scenes have been published on the blog. So I wish to change that and meet the standard I proposed. Here's a part of one deleted scene that wound up on the cutting room floor. I didn't want the villain revealed all at once. So, meet a Villain.
Deleted Scene From A Pack Forms
1 Frank Grimes
The job with Luke Mendez was good solid money. He had all his guys on every crew but one working on the Mendez site. He'd even expanded his operation and hired more guys and subcontracted the fencing. Mendez kept adding shit that hot little blonde bitch wanted, but Frank wasn't complaining. All the changes only lined his pockets.
The gripe came with Javier MacGuire. That guy was a total pain in the ass. He watched the crew like a damn hawk. Always demanded that the site stay clean and lost his mind if anyone looked like they might touch his precious lake. The man needed to loosen up. How the guy was so uptight with the amount of weed he smoked was just impressive.
It was a construction site for crying out loud. His guys were men who used power tools, not merry maids who came to work with mops, brooms, and dusters. Having an onsite manager made the job drag out which ate into his profit margin a little.
His dream of making money without doing the work himself though looked as if it might be coming true. He had hardly lifted a finger to do anything but to sign for the extra money he was making adjusting the contract to accommodate the changes.
Luke Mendez had the money to burn, and Eli Miller was ensuring that he spent it on everything she wanted. What the hell she needed with half the crap Luke added to the original plan, Frank just could not see. But what made the little lady happy lined Frank’s pockets.
He inspected the foundation pour. The guys had it under control. Everything looked good. He was happy that there had been no changes to that aspect of the contract. Getting the concrete mixers on-site without leaving the area that was designated the construction zone had not been easy. Adding anything to that would have eaten into his profits for sure.
Frank’s phone rang. He nodded at his crew and stepped away to answer it. He would probably have to turn down another job. He just could not get to all the work without hiring a whole new crew. He might have to consider that.
“Hello. Frank Grimes of Grimes Construction. What can I do for you?” He answered the call.
“Mr. Grimes, this is Roger Dunbar. I am a private investigator working for a wealthy client. He is seeking personal information on one Lucas Mendez. I was hoping that you might be able to help me.” The man on the other end of the line didn't want his construction crew.
If you want to read more, You can find the rest of the deleted scenes from A Pack Forms at the end of Synner and Sainte.
Admissions from the Author
I know it's a saga. It's a series of interrelated stories. In my mind, however, I'm still writing my story. Everything in Draoithe is one story. Laugh because at 34 published titles there's no way that's true.
I think most readers see the sections of a book as chapters. I want to make an admission here. I don't write chapters. I write scenes. (Which is why the saga feels like it's all just one story. It's kind of like how all the episodes of a televised miniseries feel like one big story.)
The scenes that play out on the 'movie screen' in my mind are the scenes that are written into the story. I write in scenes. Then I put them to the side and read again later. When the scene I read doesn't reproduce the images I originally saw, I add more details until I see it again. The rewrite is serious and sometimes doubles the size of the original scene. When it's finished, I see the scene in my mind each time I read it and I know it's right. (The cut scene above went through that same process, but it simply didn't fit in the original first book.)
I never have an outline guide because I don't know what the story is about or what the characters will do next. The kind term for this is discovery writing. Mostly it feels like writing by the seat of one's pants, so pantser might be more appropriate. It was the term I learned first. Either way, I freely admit to having no formal training to write my saga at all.
I say this as an inspiration and an explanation. I'm not suggesting that others should write this way. I'm not even sure if this method would work for other writers. I just want the truth out there so that others know that, however they write, that's okay. Also, if you read, and like to understand the author's thought process, here it is.
I'm a high school social studies teacher. I was trained to write non-fiction arguments, essays, and social science research papers. I've designed various curriculums, lesson plans, and written programs of study. Writing to entertain is different, personal, and far more creative and rewarding.
I truly hope that readers enjoy my stories. I am humbled that you would read my stories. I use writing them to aid my escape from reality. I hope that in some sense, my stories might give that same escape to readers.
When you read, please be kind and leave your reviews. I need to get some sleep, my students need me at my best tomorrow. Until the next sojourn into the dream...
Be Careful!
Happy Reading,
Ophelia Kee
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