The Writing Begins In Earnest #amwriting

I was battling some kind of crazy sickness at the end of last week, so I didn't do Paranormal Romance Friday. Now I'm back and ready to go. :) I had planned on beginning Blood Prophecy at least a week ago, but I wasn't there, even before the two lost days from whatever that was. I have it plotted out, but that feeling I have when I'm ready to begin a book just wasn't there.

Well, it's there now. I woke up this morning from a very vivid dream about Ramiel and that's my sign that it's time. Anyone who knows me would tell you that I'm more logic than anything else, but in my writing, I wait for the sign.  It could be called the Muse, I guess. I call it that sometimes, but unlike other authors, it isn't a he or she. It's just a feeling that I should be writing.

Ramiel's book will be a turning point in the series, so that might have been the reason my brain was spending more time than I'd planned mulling it over. Also, each Son is different, so each book is different. Vasilije is pure sensuality and hedonism. Saint is darkness and brooding. Terek is mystical and seductive yet strong. Since I'm still so close to Terek and Blood Spirit, that might have made getting into Ramiel mode a bit of a challenge. For as much as Terek is a warrior, he was made that and his motivation for fighting comes from what he believes in his heart. Ramiel is the violent Son, and much of who he is comes from that violence that made up his world before he was turned vampire. A Visigoth barbarian in the late Roman Empire, Ramiel was a fighting machine. To be honest, the change from Terek to Ramiel is the most extreme I've done yet in the series.

If you've read the first two books, you know that the tone of each book is a reflection of the Son showcased. Vasilije's is pure pleasure, whereas Saint's is pleasure colored by a brooding about the past. The tone of Blood Spirit is all Terek--seductive, thoughtful, mystical. Although I say the books take a long time to write because I hand write everything, the real reason they take a while is that the tone has to be consistent with the hero. That means I have to be very careful, especially with the words I choose and the way I structure the dialogue. Each Son is different, so each book sounds completely different. To move from the tone I used with Terek to the tone I have to use with Ramiel is a 180 degree change.

But it's time, so writing will begin in earnest.

Typing is done on Blood Spirit, and my initial edits are complete. Now it's off at the editor's for the red pen treatment.  And the release date has been set:  September 17!

I'm off to get the day moving. It's a bit overcast here, so it seems to be a perfect day to write. Hope you have a great one too!