I really didn't like the name "Grace" for the new book. I like the word, or course, but not for my new book. It didn't fit, it didn't feel right. In fact, it was too nice, too neat, too tidy, and the book will be anything but those things. I am hoping to use AI in a new way, giving it ideas and concepts to see what it spits at me. If I like it, I'll write around it, and if I don't, I'll excuse it. I thought about it, and "Grace" wasn't the word to use.
If you know me, you know I love Scotland, its history, wealth of stories, etc. I couldn't see myself keeping the title "Grace" when very few of the characters demonstrate the concept of the word. No, I chose another word, a Scots Gaelic word that means to defend, to protect; the word is "Dion." The new title of the book is "Dion". I'm having fun researching it so that I may use it more intimately from one character to the next.
I've written three full chapters of the book so far, and while I won't publish them here one chapter at a time, you can read the first chapter and get a hint of what to expect; it won't be your typical romance, and it won't be your typical dramatic story. I've decided to use edgy people, secrets, taboos, and other means to get my point(s) across in this one. The lead character herself isn't necessarily interested in much more than proving a point, so her dogmatic behavior, though irritating, will eventually win out, and because I love a good twist, there will be one or two of those as well.
While the woman isn't a Scorpio or a witch, she will prove to be formidable, someone who should not be crossed. Revenge isn't always served cold. There are times when a good burn will suffice; you'll have to wait and see what she (Elle) can come up with for those who try to stop her from taking what is rightfully hers. (Hint: the words "scorched earth" could be a reality.) In military jargon, the term means to leave nothing of the enemy behind. Elle Finlay never actually served in combat, but she reads well enough to know her way around a good comeuppance.
Chapters 4-7 will be written next weekend, and I will likely set the pattern at four chapters a week. At that rate, the book will be finished by the end of March and be reread-tweaked and prepped by April 7-10. I'll send it up around that time and have a copy sent back to myself so I can read it as a book. That will take another week, so around April 22 or so, I'll send it up for the final presentation. When I have it published for printing, I'll also pay for the Kindle edition. They take another 3 weeks to prepare, but they're worth it.
I sell more Kindle editions now than print books. At $4.99 a pop, it's so much cheaper! I always buy a copy of my own books to keep digitally as well. That way, I can meet with, converse with, and discuss life with the very people I know well enough to say that they'll agree with me if I need them to. What good is a character if you can't commune with them for years to come? One of the things I love about "Dion" is that it takes place in and around Stirlingshire, Scotland - actually between Stirlingshire and Glasgow. So much history. So much to see and so much to explore.
The cities are every bit of what constitutes a character in the book. I could no more rewrite their history than be the proverbial Man on the Moon, but there's simply no way I would ever want to rewrite the stories of those places when their reality becomes the needed truth behind my fictional story. Every good story has to have a little truth to carry it! Don't you agree?
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