From the Backlist - Taking a Break from it All

Art byYao Yao Ma Van As - Tax Season

Here at the Supernatural Underground, we are enjoying another insightful read from our back-list, posted  by Nicole Murphy. It's called, Taking a Break from it All. 

In this post, Nicole offers tips and tricks from her own well of resources, with other Sup authors adding their thoughts to the comments. 

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There's been lots of ideas coming from the Supernatural hivemind on things we do to get creative. Kim makes space - I've gotten into that a bit more as well, ensuring that nothing else is going on except me and the words. Terri reads (I can read when I'm editing, or between books, but when I'm drafting - no can do). Pamela and Jocelynn both listen to music (I need complete silence). Amanda uses images - the real estate website is a great idea and I know other people who are made for images but that doesn't work for me. Helen's three pages in the morning sound wonderful.

For me, however, the thing that really works is taking a break.

It probably sounds counter-intuitive - that taking time off the computer helps me when I'm on it. But the thing is, I find I dry up if I spend too long at it. I can pound out some great wordage, sure, but then my brain gets overloaded. Push it too far, and it will come to a standstill.

But taking a break doesn't mean a break from the story. Far from it - it's a break from that act of sitting and fingers moving on keyboard, but I'm still working, things ticking away in the background....

Read the entire post here ...

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You can check out Nicole Murphy's complete works on Goodreads. Wonderful books!

 

Choose Your Weapon - The Unarmed

 

One Puch Man by Yusuke Murata, ONE - Seinen Manga

The Unarmed

Perhaps the original fighting technique in Fantasy Fiction, and human history, is the unarmed. Used for offence and defence, this is a melee style that sports the punch, kick, head-butt, or similar forceful blow. Not as elegant as the sword, ranged weapon or magic, it can be quite effective, in the right hands. :)

History 

image - Sam Steiner (CC BY-NC-SA)

Hand-to-hand combat was common in gladiator matches in ancient Rome and in medieval sports including jousting after one was unhorsed. 

As early as 1022 BCE, Chinese soldiers of the Zhou Dynasty were trained in close-quarter unarmed combat.

Contemporary martial arts also have unarmed attacks at their core. For example, Karate, originating in Okinawa, teaches students to use their hands and feet to deliver blocks and strikes against an attacker. 

But what about the pure power of a punch or kick? Is it enough? 

Quotes 

Bruce Lee himself said Muhammad Ali would kill him in a fight. Bruce also said, Take any professional boxer against a black belt of any traditional martial art and the boxer would win.

But in Fantasy Fiction, that might be a different story.

Brandon Sanderson's Steeheart is a great example of Fantasy fiction that packs a punch. And check out this quote:

“Never throw the first punch. If you have to throw the second, try to make sure they don't get up for a third.”― Brandon Sanderson, Steelheart

This reminds me of Lee Child's Jack Reacher character who makes up for the lack of Fantasy with an extra scoop of BRAWL power! His basic philosophy is to "Hit them fast. Hit them hard, and hit them often." 

But does one have to be a giant man to win a fistfight?

No, not at all.

Denice Zamboanga: Filipina bantamweight Champion

Take Ava Sykes in The Blood in the Beginning. 

Who is Ava Sykes?

Undergraduate by day, bouncer by night, Ava Sykes works hard to build her life in New LA, a city experiencing the Aftermath of a seismic disaster. Her prospects improve until she stumbles upon an evil no sane person would want to confront. 

Suddenly, her life, her city and everyone she cares about is in danger. Pushed to the edge, Ava taps a power she never knew she had . . . and uses it. 

...I clocked him in the head with a roundhouse kick, my steel-toed boots hitting home. He staggered, weaving from side to side before he toppled over backward, crashing onto the ground. I wiped sweat from my forehead as, incredibly, he stood back up and came at me like a wrecking ball. What’s this guy made of? I dropped to a crouch and swept my right leg around to trip him up. He leapt over it and landed, fists swinging, pounding me into the ground. As my head found the pavement, I rolled onto my back and caught him with a kick to the crotch. He fell forward. I followed with a punch to the throat. It choked him back for a second, long enough for me to squirm away, find my feet and run...  - Falconer, Kim. The Blood In The Beginning. Mira. Kindle Edition. 

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Do you have a favourite fantasy fiction, fist-fighting character or series? I'd love to hear about it in the comments. 

Choose Your Weapon Series 2024

Poison

The Perfect Storm

The Sword

Firearms

Ranged

Spells

Unarmed

Curses

Time Travel

Invisibility

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About Kim Falconer

Kim Falconer, currently writing as AK Wilder, has released Crown of Bones, a YA Epic Fantasy with Curse of Shadows as book 2 in the series. Currently, she is working on the third book, out in 2024.

Kim can be found on  AKWilder Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

Throw the bones, read your horoscopes or Raise Your Phantom on the AKWilder.com site

From The Backlist: "Interview With A Witch"

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We loved this interview, between author, Kim Falconer, and her Quantum Enchantment witch, Kreshkali, when it first posted -- and think it's just as fun today. 

Enjoy!

Interview With A Witch

I had the chance to catch up with one of my favourite people from the Quantum Enchantment series, Kreshkali Richter. She’s not an easy woman to pin down so I took the opportunity, with her consent, to record our conversation.

Quantum Enchantment series

KIM Kreshkali, it’s an honour to have you here in my home.

KRESHKALI Not a problem. You checked out.

KIM *clears throat* Many of our readers have asked me about your relationship to the Earth’s underground. In the first three books, you seem to be a loner, yet . . .

KRESHKALI *interrupting* It’s all about illusion. A glamour. To ASSIST, I look like a streetwise whore, scratching out a living on the edge of a ruined city. That’s the mask. After the underground was infiltrated by ASSIST, our leaders were killed. It was up to me. Pecking order, you know? I was next in line.

KIM And you’ve held it together very well indeed. But what about the magic? Did you really learn that on your own? From your mother’s grimoire?

KRESHKALI Not alone. I had Nell with me. Most of the time as kids, we studied together. Then there was the night in the sewer. Things went dark for sometime after that. But between Nell, and my mother’s books, ya, I learned the craft.

Kreshkali's cards

KIM And now you teach, of course. Can I ask who’s been your most challenging student?

KRESHKALI *chuckles* That would be Teg.

KIM Can you tell us a bit about him?

KRESHKALI Teg’s a Lupin. You know the term? Of course you do. He’s got wolf DNA merged with his own. A powerful shape-shifter, as all Lupins are, but Teg’s got something else. He’s a brilliant student. Drives me crazy sometimes . . .

KIM Because . . . ?

KRESHKALI *Surprised* If you met him, you wouldn’t have to ask! It’s like there’s no air in the room when he looks my way. Those eyes . . . He’s my apprentice though, so I keep it together.

KIM How do you cope with that?

KRESHKALI We train hard, fight dirty, study, debate, elude, detect and travel the many-worlds at the speed of light. It keeps me focused on the task at hand.

Train hard, fight...

KIM Which is?

KRESHKALI Saving Earth and Gaela, what else?

KIM Ah yes, Gaela. How did you feel when you first woke up there?

KRESHKALI #%^@ing blown away! You can’t appreciate it, because your Earth is still healthy, but for me, waking up to see the sun shine, to see stars overhead at night and not a muddy vault, to drink water fresh from a stream and walk among trees was like opening my eyes for the first time. Fresh air that doesn’t smell like death, rain that doesn’t sting like demon’s piss, people who live and train and practice magic in the open . . . seeing that did it for me. I knew then and there. . .

KIM Knew what, Kali?

KRESHKALI I would do anything to bring Earth back to life.

KIM Beautiful. Thank you. 

...

To read the full post, including some great questions for Kreshkali, click here.

About Kim Falconer

Kim Falconer, currently writing as AK Wilder, has released Crown of Bones, a YA Epic Fantasy with Curse of Shadows as book 2 in the series. Currently, she is working on the third book, out in 2024.

Kim can be found on  AKWilder Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

Throw the bones, read your horoscopes or Raise Your Phantom on the AKWilder.com site

The Year of the Villain #7 -- The Evilest of Them All!

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Ya can't talk villains in Fantasy fiction without talking A Game of Thrones (GoT) -- and for quite some time now I've thought Peter Baelish, aka Littlefinger, is among the most evil. And maybe, just maybe, the evilest of them all.

Petyr Baelish, aka Littlefinger

Spoiler Alert
It' s impossible to tell you why I think this without revelations, aka spoilers, about the GoT story, but after five books and an eight-season TV show, I think the plot is well known enough to survive it. If, however, you have not yet experienced either but intend doing so, then you may prefer not to read on. 

Returning to the matter at hand, you may be thinking, "What's Helen sipping in her tea lately, to think Littlefinger's the worst villain? What about Joffrey and Cersei, Roose and Ramsay Bolton, and that ultimate in brutality, Gregor Clegane, The Mountain That Rides"? Aren't they far more evil?"

Gregor Clegane, The Mountain That Rides

On the surface, the answer appears to be yes -- although even if we stay only on that surface, Littlefinger betrays Ned Stark to his death, seeks to seduce the barely-more-than-a-child Sansa Stark while still married, then murders his wife. Still, arguably nowhere near as sadistic and brutal as many others in the books* -- but let's look beneath that surface.

Littlefinger Betrays Ned Stark

One of the things I love most about the A Game of Thrones series (officially titled "A Song of Ice and Fire", or ASOIAF) is its multilayered storytelling, in which a multiplicity of characters have indepth backstories, often with nefarious motivations concealed.

As I read, I gradually became aware there was considerably more to Littlefinger than met the eye. In particular, that his unrequited love for Catelyn Stark, nee Tully, almost certainly led him to engineer the brutal deaths of her fiance, Brandon Stark, and his father, Lord Rickard. As a result she marries Ned Stark, whom Littlefinger also later betrays, resulting in his execution. 

Catelyn Stark

It's a tale of entitlement and vengeance, as well as ambition, all manipulated and masterminded from the shadows -- because Littlefinger is not an enemy his opponents will see coming. He's certainly not one to confront his enemies, and victims, openly. Yet if it stopped there, we might agree that he's a villain, sure, but maybe not the worst of them all.

Here's the thing, though. In both cases where Littlefinger pursues his personal vengeance against the Starks, the consequence of their deaths is civil war in Westeros. The first of these is the Usurper's War, which ends Targaryen rule and sees Robert Baratheon become king. 

The young Robert Baratheon

The second is the War of the Five Kings that dangerously weakens Westeros, rendering it vulnerable to the Night King, and very nearly bringing its destruction. In both cases, the civil war also gives free rein to the extremities of those like the Boltons and Gregor Clegane, resulting in widespread misery and terror.

Robb Stark - 1 of the 5 contending kings

Plus, on a far more personal level, although Littlefinger's vengeance motivation is supposedly driven by unrequited love for Catelyn, he's completely comfortable switching his "affections" (heavy use of quote marks, here) to her daughter, Sansa. "Welp, a man's gotta change with the times": that's one explanation. The other is: "What a scumbag."

Sansa Stark

All of which, weighing deeds and their consequences, is why I consider Littlefinger to be one of the greatest villains in Fantasy fiction. Feel free, though, to let me know I've gotten it completely wrong. :D

*Note: I have only read the books, not seen the HBO series, so this post is books-centric.;-)

© Helen Lowe

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About the Author

Helen Lowe is an award-winning novelist, poet, and lover of story. With four books published to date, she is currently completing the final instalment in The Wall Of Night series.
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Helen posts regularly on her “…on Anything, Really” blog, monthly on the Supernatural Underground, and tweets @helenl0we.

~*~

Previous “Year of the Villain” Posts:

January:      Ushering in 2024 -- & the Year of the Villain

February:    The Year of the Villain #1: The Lord of The Rings Pantheon

March: The Year of the Villain #2: Ursula Le Guin & “Earthsea”

April: The Year of the Villain #3: Tigana and Brandin of Ygrath

May: The Year of the Villain #4: Elidor and Formless Evil 

June: The Year of the Villain #5: When the Hero Is Really A Villain

July: The Year of the Villain #6: When the Author Messes With Your Mind

From the Back-List - Explaining the Unreal

Cover art from the Song of Scarabaeus on Pinterest

Here at the Supernatural Underground, we are enjoying another awesome read from our back-list, posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 by the Philip K. Dick and Aurealis Award nominee, Sara Creasy. 

In this post, she talks about the difference between paranormal and SF. 

You can check out Sara Creasy's current work, The Wynter Wild Series on her Website. Join Wynter and her brothers on a heartrending and humorous journey through elementary particles, power chords, and the many meanings of love.

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Explaining the Unreal by Sara Creasy

Goodreads Choice Nominee

As writers and readers, how do we define the difference between the science fiction and paranormal genres? Both are “unreal” (in that they are fictional) and “speculative” (in that they extrapolate from existing ideas). The paranormal by definition breaks the laws of physics, but science fiction often does too (warp speed, anyone?).


I think the difference comes in what each genre needs to explain. For example, classic vampires can’t be exposed to sunlight without terrible consequences. Readers of paranormal fiction know this fact about vampires. If the writer chooses to contradict the convention by having her vampires run around the sunny beaches of Santa Barbara, readers expect a (paranormal) explanation: that old sunlight thing is a myth, the vampire has a magic ring, or this is a tribe of new improved vampires.

On the other hand, readers of science fiction base their expectations on the natural world. If a certain creature explodes into flames in sunlight, which contradicts what we know about the natural world, the writer needs to provide a (natural) explanation: the “vampire” has a medical condition such as a total lack of melanin, or, more exotically, the vamp’s unstable atoms are prone to decay when exposed to photons of a particular wavelength.

As readers we bring a stack of wonderful knowledge with us, drawn from mythology and the real world, saving the writer from having to describe and explain everything. But when a story contradicts that knowledge, often for interesting reasons of course, we want to know why...

 

 

To read the full post, including insightful comments, click here. 

To find out more about what Sara's doing now, visit her Website.

Choose Your Weapon: Spells

 

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Spells as Weapons

In today's issue of Choose Your Weapon, we will consider a category of magic that includes ritual, sacrifice and invocation. In other words, magic spells. Touched on in The Perfect Storm, this form of weapon is as old as sticks, or rocks!

Delving into how magic is hardwired into our brains, Melissa Burkley writes in Psychology Today:

"If there is one thing psychologists can learn from the Harry Potter phenomenon, it is that people love magic." 

Although we associate this form of magic with witchcraft, it was originally used by prehistoric humans who made sacrifices to the powers to ensure a good hunt, calm weather, healthy children and other necessities of survival. Not of a personal nature, these cave-day spells were cast for the good of the clan.

Limited edition The Grimoire of Heaven and Hell by Travis McHenry

As time went on, the clan's shaman--a member of the community with links to the spiritual world (populated by benevolent or malevolent entities)--would use animal guides, divination, medicinal plants, ritual words/prayers and later written spells to heal, promote, protect and ensure the wellbeing of the clan as a whole and specific, usually high-ranking members. They may also cast spells that gave them the upper hand with neighbouring enemies.

Later, as we are all aware, the use of magic spells became outlawed. Practitioners were hunted down, burned alive and their families severely marginalized. But for today's exercise, the takeaway is most people still, even if on an unconscious level, believe in the power of spells, be they thought forms, incantations or ritual magic. 

And you can be sure that the Fantasy genre has tapped into this powerful vein in the human mind.

Fantasy Books with Spells

Across all subgenres, magic spells are alive and well! Consider these titles and how their use of magic fuels the readers' imagination.

General Fantasy Even with the author's controversial exclamations on social media, the Harry Potter Series brought a modernized version of ancient spells, making them familiar to an entire generation of the Western world. For example, we learn the Shield Charm was typically used in duelling along with Stunning Spells, the Impediment Jinx, the Full Body-Bind Curse, and the Dancing Feet Spell. In a way, the idea of 'wizard-craft' (note how the word 'witchcraft' is avoided...hmm) was pulled out of the dark, inqusitioner's dungeon into a normal but consequential everyday life for young Harry Potter.

The much loved David Eddings series, both the Bellgariad and the Mallorean, have characters who weave spells. ... known as the Will and the Word, sorcery is a magic power that lets some individuals manipulate the universe around them.

Anime Girl Alchemist Wallpaper

Anime Fullmetal Alchemist is a strong example of spells in Anime. "...Edward Elric practices magic in the form of alchemy. Unlike most of Amestris, Edward can transmute things without using a transmutation circle. While this power is derived because he performed one of the greatest taboos known, his skill is nevertheless impressive.

Blood Like Magic Duology

Young Adult   My Favorite to date YA contemporary spell crafting is in the Blood Like Magic series by Lissell Sambury. She's a wonderful writer who combines her Trinidadian-Canadian background into a perfect weave of 'black girl magic' we can all relate to.

I'm also looking forward to a new book by Sarah Beth Durst. She is always engaging, creative and insightful, no matter what 'age' she is writing for. This is next on my TBR:

A new release from Sarah Beth Durst!

Perfect for fans of Travis Baldree and TJ Klune, The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst is a cosy fantasy tale full of stolen spellbooks, unexpected friendships, sweet jams and even sweeter romance.

'Sarah Beth Durst is the hidden gem of the fantasy world' — Book Riot

Every home needs a little magic . . .

Kiela has always had trouble dealing with people, and as librarian at the Great Library of Alyssium, she hasn’t had to... until now?

Urban Fantasy Books 

Why not try this anthology to see which author you love the most? Many of my favourites are here.

"...magic spells, witchcraft, wizardry, fairies, devilry, and more. Urban living, at least in fantasy fiction, is full of both magical wonder and dark enchantment. Street kids may have supernatural beings to protect them or have such powers themselves. Brujeria may be part of your way of life. Crimes can be caused (and solved) with occult arts and even a losing sports team's ""curse"" can be lifted with wizardry. And be careful of what cab you call - it might take you on a journey beyond belief! Some of the best stories of urban enchantment from the last few years gathered in one volume full of hex appeal and arcane arts..."

Magic City

Film and Gaming with Magic Spells

Films - Wheel Of Time, The Witcher,  Shadow and Bone, Wu Assassin

Gaming - Diablo, Elder Scrolls, Witcher, Path of Exile, Baldur's Gate, Magika, Divinity, Magic the Gathering... so many more I have yet to play.

What are your favourite spellcasters in the Fantasy genre? 

I'd love to hear about them.

***

Choose Your Weapon Series 2024

Poison

The Perfect Storm

The Sword

Firearms

Ranged

Spells

Unarmed

Curses

Time Travel

Invisibility

***

About Kim Falconer

Kim Falconer, currently writing as AK Wilder, has released Crown of Bones, a YA Epic Fantasy with Curse of Shadows as book 2 in the series. Currently, she is working on the third book, out in 2024.

Kim can be found on  AKWilder Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

Throw the bones, read your horoscopes or Raise Your Phantom on the AKWilder.com site

From The Backlist: "Reasons Why You Never Want to Make an Author Mad*" by Karina Cooper

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We love our awesome Supernatural Underground backlist -- and this post by Karina Cooper, now writing as KC Alexander, is a lot of fun. Enjoy!

Reasons Why You Never Want to Make an Author Mad*

KC Alexander

by Karina Cooper

Come on, you've seen us. We're all very lovely people, us authors. We smile at the cameras, sign books, hug fans, and so on. Surely, making an author mad must be akin to swatting at a dust bunny, right? I mean, what are we going to do? Cry into our keyboards?

Well. Sort of.

See, yesterday I found myself in the middle of a task that I do actually need for this current run of books I'm plotting. And as I scrolled through pages and pages of data, I thought to myself, Karina, it's a damn good thing your profession is what it is.

Because how else am I to explain why my internet history is full of information on modern day torture techniques?

That's right. Let's talk about reason number one: We know how make you scream. We've researched it down to the last details—certainly not for ourselves, oh, no, but what out characters know, we know. And if we're carrying around a character who is an inquisitor, or a character who was tortured, or worse, we know.

Would we use it? Oh, of course not, officer! We'd never use this information for evil. We're entertainers, not in the business of making the things we know actually happen. Right?

Heh. Heh heh. Right.

Reason number two to avoid making us angry? We know how to hide the body. We've thoroughly researched it. Currents, erosion, garbage truck route details, you name it, we know it. We're a little obsessive when it comes to details, you might have noticed. After all, how else can we guarantee that the extra we offed in chapter 4 doesn't come to light until chapter 15?

The devil is, in fact, in the details.

And speaking of details, let's talk about reason number three: we know things about weapons even the movies get wrong. In that obsession with details, we'll travel all over the information highway to get the facts. Which means we know what kind of weapons a SEAL carries, we know which weapons jam underwater and which can fire in below freezing temperatures. We know which bullets will turn your brain into so much pink mist and which will leave a neat little exit wound, and which sniper rifle will make this easy.

We know about ninja stars, and the different kinds of knives. We know which guns have suppressors and which can be made to have suppressors, and that the potato suppressor doesn't actually work.

Oh, and I certainly don't mean we'd use these tidbits of terminal information on you! I mean characters, of course! We know how to kill characters. As I said, we're in the habit of making up stories, not in shaping reality. Rest easy, dear reader.

Unless, of course, you'd like to make us mad...?

Which brings us to reason number four: Odds are, we have fans in the police department. No joke! If it's not the boys in blue who love us, it's the women. Or the wives. Regardless of who or how, the reality is, we have people who would love to give us alibis.

Wouldn't any of you give me an alibi if I rang you up one day? "Hey, listen, I'll make a character of your choice and thank you in the acknowledgements if you just tell these nice people where I was yesterday. You know, at your house. Watching Friends. And eating cheddar cheese."

Then there's reason number five: You remember school, when there'd be this rumor going around about "that girl" who did this one horribly embarrassing thing, and you knew—just knew—that everyone was talking about you?

Imagine having a character based on you. A character who reveals all your secrets—or makes them up. A character who is murdered in the most grisly way. Or a character who survives, but gets exactly what he or she deserves?

Yeah. In our worlds, baby, we're the gods. And we will talk about you in our godly land of godliness.

You don't want that, do you?

So there you are. Five very good reasons not to piss off your favorite authors. Or even your not so favorite authors. 

...

To read the full post, including comments, click here. 

To find out more about what Karina's doing now, visit her on kcalexander.com