After a day of getting absolutely nothing accomplished, I focused almost entirely on research and fleshing out the peripheral materials, but did at least make a token effort and wrote some dialog for Chapter 18 of TSoA1. Now, I realize that’s a big jump from where I was at, but I just happened to be doing some research work around that point in the story at the time. Anyway, I’m going to switch over to TTWC3 and hopefully wrap it up this time. I’d really like to move on to TBP, so here’s to making things happen. Stay tuned.

I managed to make up for the previous day’s shortfall with the dialog I wrote for Chapters 4 and 5 of TSoA1. Yes, I know I’m going all over the place, but I can only write isolated chunks at work, so I just pick a scene and work on that. Did some changing up of the storyline. I figured it was a little too much of a stretch for both Constantine III and Constans to survive their historical deaths, so I left Constantine to his fate and pushed back the birth of Ambrosius and Uther by ten years. Now they’re not so young when Vortigern takes over, but maybe I’ll make some changes there too. After all, he doesn’t seem the type to wait 13 years before playing his hand. I’ll figure it out. Stay tuned.

I only made half quota adding more dialog to Chapter 2 of TSoA1, but progress is progress. Hopefully I can make up for lost time come Sunday. Stay tuned.

I did just under par on Chapter 1 of TSoA1, but I more than made up for it with the time spent on research. Resources have improved since my initial work two years ago, but I’m still stuck with a lot of contradictory information that I have to synthesize with a predetermined timeline. It’s loads of fun. All I really have to do is have the principal characters and events squared away, but I always like to go the extra mile. More to come. Stay tuned.

I wrote a little dialog for Chapter 2 of TSoA1, but most of my time was spent reviewing my research into the historical situation where the story takes place. It’s all part of the fun of mixing history, myth and legend into a coherent story. Needless to say, I’m going to need a preface to clarify things. The first book alone covers a span of 92 years, so I worry about the twin perils of overloading the narrative and giving too brief of coverage to give any real depth. I’m sure I’ll figure it out, though. Hopefully I can get more actual writing done. Stay tuned.

I made a little progress on Chapter 1 of TSoA1, well under par, but what time I devoted to the story I was mostly puzzling over the flow of the plotline. Most of the events are mapped out, but I need to figure out what to show and what to leave out. I’m sure I’ll figure something out. Stay tuned.

In my previous post, I mentioned pulling TCotSL from the schedule and replacing it with something else. I may have found my candidate. Following a burst of inspiration, I did some writing on the prologue of Volume I of The Seeds of Avalon, my take on the Arthurian mythos. I think I’ll put it in the development queue and see where it takes me. I know my focus this week is supposed to be on wrapping TTWC3, but I may not have gotten anything else written if I hadn’t taken this side track. I may end up doing a bit of both throughout the rest of the week. Stay tuned.

I’ve just posted the teasers for my Arthurian Cycle and it’s been a while since my last commentary post, so now’s as good a time as any to address the question: Why Arthur? Arthurian legend has been tackled countless times, so what exactly do I think I can bring to the table? Well, it’s not so much a matter of me doing anything particularly newer and better than it is the fact that my work has always been tied to the various myths and legends of the world. Raiding the public domain for ideas isn’t a bad thing, mind you. That’s what it’s there for, a big communal pot of ideas you can freely draw from.

Specifically, the backstory of The Brothers Pendragon was tied to Arthurian legend from the beginning and I steadily began to expand on those ties to the wider Tellus Arc. It eventually reached the point where I wanted to detail this backstory in full. This led me on a grand journey, blending the English, Welsh and French traditions of the Arthurian legend with real-world history and the overarching plot of the Tellus Arc. I’ve only just begun, but there’s a lot to tell and I’m eager to tell it.

Will my own twist on Arthurian legend appeal to everyone? Of course not, but for the people who already like my work and are invested in the lore of my stories, I think it should do well. When I actually start serializing these stories is anyone’s guess, but it’s something to look forward to.

Well, I’ve had my fill of early medieval British history for a while. There’s still plenty to sort out, but I need a break. I’ve switched over to TTWC1 and got a little writing done on Ionathas’ Chapter 4. I hope to get it and Chapter 5 done over the course of the week and then I’ll switch over to Tico3.

I need to get this week’s update out. Maybe after I get back from work. Stay tuned.

You know the drill. At this point it’s mostly cleanup and refinement. There are a lot of dates to set and with the fuzzy historical record, I have to make all the pieces fit as best I can. I take some liberties, but ever since I got a more complete record, a lot of those liberties have been scaled back. Adoptions, fosterings, co-kings, and identically named children are among my techniques to sort out the contradictions. I’ve insanely extended my timeline out to the 9th Century just because that’s around the time a lot of the kingdoms I’m working with finally fall out. (For reference, I set the Battle of Camlann at 537 and start the main narrative with Constantine III’s claim to Rome in 407.)

I believe I’m starting to lose steam, though (I say coming back from a half-hour detour chronicling the rulers of Strathclyde). Probably about time I switch over to something else for a while and recharge my batteries. We’ll see what I hop on next. Stay tuned.