Tag: independent author

Shout out for a great tool for independent, self-published authors… Book Brush!

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I want to give a shout-out to a new tool I discovered that helps an independent, self-published author like me to create imagery for advertising and social media posts. I recently discovered Book Brush, an online tool for creating digital ads for books.

According to their website, “Book Brush was created specifically for authors. We offer options for ad sizes that authors need to help you create marketing images with just a few clicks of your mouse. We focused on developing options to help authors create professional-looking images quickly while keeping things simple and easy for authors to use!”

I found the program relatively easy to use and it gives me a variety of options for size, backgrounds, different patterns for your books, text tools and even some stamps for various book-related websites. They’re specifically designed to support authors.

“Book Brush has been custom designed so authors find it easy to use and speedy, too. Because our focus is the author community, you will find features that you need & want! That means, our ad sizes include options for things like BookBub, FaceBook and Amazon ads and our stamp options focus on what authors use to advertise like kindle unlimited, nook and audible to name a few! We developed steps to keep your time spent on image creation to a minimum – you can create your marketing images and get right back to writing!”

The cost of using Book Brush is also relatively low. For $8 per month, you can create as many images as you need to create a campaign. That’s a boon for any self-published author. There are a lot of services out there offering to promote independent authors that can cost anywhere from $30-$50 for a year or even just a few months. Those kind of expenses add up with little to no result.

A lot of times, you are forced to do things on your own. I run my own social media, so being able to design my own versatile posts promoting my books. It gives you the option to use your own art or theirs. Once you use their Custom Creator a few times, you get the hang of it really fast. I’ve used PowerPoint to create my ads before, but this has everything right there, easy to use, and more options for the author. I haven’t tried the video creator yet, but that’s my next step.

Book Brush is a great tool for any independent author looking to establish themselves and find an audience. Be creative, be quirky, but make a statement! I highly recommend you check out Book Brush!

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniversepublishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.

I cry when I write, okay? It doesn’t make me any less of a man, but it does make me a better writer!

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Like most authors, I consider the characters in my novels like they are part of my family. I live, laugh, and love them with every word I write. And yes, when I have to kill someone off to move the story along, I cry. It has happened to me on numerous occasions, when I write, edit, and even when I read that part of my story again. The emotion is still with me, even after all that time.

I don’t cry over the villains. I mean, they’re villains… They need to die. But sometimes, the villains win and that’s when it gets hard. These wonderful characters you cultivate and grow through you words also have to die by your hand. It’s not easy.

I know what you’re thinking… “They’re not real! You’re such a wuss! Why do you care about imaginary people?” Well, they are real to me. I breathed life into those characters with every word typed or written down. I’m not going to compare it to motherhood, or giving birth, because that’s an insult to women. It’s not like that. I just see it as a parent-child relationship between a writer and its characters.

But when you think about it, it’s all about the story. You don’t just kill someone or hurt someone for no reason. It has to go with the flow of the story and make sense. Think about the “Red Wedding” in the Game of Thrones series. That was a horrific death scene for a number of characters, but when you think about it, it moved the story along. It gave a purpose, resolve and motivation to characters like Arya and others. As bad as it was, as unexpected as it was, it was necessary.

Crying when I write makes me feel my humanity. It bridges that fine line of fantasy and reality, of what’s real and imaginary as it relates to my characters, but I’ve dealt with that all my life. I played Role Playing Games (RPGs) my whole life. Characters could easily live, or die, in these games. When you’ve played a character for so long, you form an emotional connection. It’s especially strong when said character dies because of a stupid mistake or bad decision.

Here’s an excerpt from THE DARK TIDES to make my point. I can’t read this page, even now, without a tear welling up in my eye. I guess I am an old softie at heart.

FYI to anyone reading this excerpt who hasn’t read my novel yet… Yes, I named the Shield Maidens after Disney Princesses. I have two daughters, it was inevitable.

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Sarafina and her Shield Maidens fought their way down through the keep toward the dungeon. Lord Baldrid was happy to loan her an airship and company of Elves to rescue the Gil-Gamesh. Even Usage was with them, showing the quickest route to the dungeon, bashing a few goblin
heads along the way.

Merida led the way, clearing a path with her bow. Sarafina and Aurora followed close behind, slashing at the ones still standing with their swords. Usage directed them where to go while Ariel and Snow covered them from behind, keeping the Brood at bay with their pole arms. The Elves, led by Eonis, scattered the remaining Brood and goblins outside the keep from their airship Aerdrie Faenya. The airship rained down explosive volleys from their cannons, sending goblins flying off the keep’s defenses. Archers brought down the ones still standing in an
attempt to make the keep safe for landing.

Within minutes, Sarafina and her Shield Maidens made their way to the dungeon. They found the Gil-Gamesh hanging by the chains while Caleb Guoyle lay prone on the ground. Sarafina rushed to Bryan, checking if he’s still alive.

“Ariel, get him down!” Sarafina ordered as she and Merida held him up. Ariel pointed her trident at the locks around his wrists.

“Excido Portas!” she chanted as magical energy sparks from the tips of her weapon, opening the locks. Bryan’s body went limp as they eased him down to the ground.

“This one’s dead,” Snow exclaimed after checking on Caleb Guoyle, “though I doubt the Gil-Gamesh was able to do it.”

“It doesn’t matter who killed him. The Gil-Gamesh is dying,” Sarafina said as she checked his wounds. “We need to get him to the healers quickly.”

Bryan began to stir at the sound of Sarafina’s voice. He opened his eyes and saw her hovering over him as he smiled. “Hey you …” he moaned. “I knew you’d be the one to find me.”

“Of course I would,” Sarafina said, tears welling in his eyes. “You wouldn’t stop looking for me; I wasn’t going to stop until I found you.” Bryan smiled again as he closed his eyes and fell unconscious. “Father!” Sarafina screamed, trying to wake him up. “Father! Don’t leave me… Father!”

“Come on,” Aurora said motioning for Merida to help. “We have to get him back to the ship now.” Sarafina didn’t move, she just stared at the Gil-Gamesh.

“Sarafina! We’ve got to go now!” Merida shouted at her. Sarafina nodded her head, then stepped back as the two Shield Maidens lifted the Gil-Gamesh and started moving up the stairs. Snow and Ariel followed close behind.

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniversepublishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.

Seeing your words come to life tells you… Yes, I’m a writer!

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Can you see the words in your head as you write? Do you watch the action play out like an episode of “Game of Thrones” as you write them down? Do you wake up in the middle of the night because a new idea popped in your head and you can’t go back to sleep? Congratulations… You’re a writer!

Sleepless nights, check! Frustrating time staring at your computer screen, check! Searching Google for baby names, not for your own kids but for your characters, double check! This is just part of the fascinating life that awaits you as a writer.

Then there’s the garbled thoughts as you confuse real life with the fantasy world as you try to do your job or eat a simple meal. You can’t even enjoy a vacation without using it to scout out locations for a scene in your novel. The same goes for meeting new people. Just remember, never “piss off” an author or you may wind up as a character earning a swift death in their next novel.

Then there’s the never ending expenses. Like any artist, starving is the appropriate word. As a self-published author, you spend money on editing, artwork, inventory, marketing, etc. And, unlike an author with a literary agent or publishing house, you spend more money than you receive from sales. It is a constant drain on your pocketbook until you get recognized or find your audience.

So, after all that, what’s the reward? The reward, for any author, is telling your stories. Instead of you living in them, all by yourself, you get to share them with others. I think that, like other artists, getting to share your creativity is a reward all in itself. It makes us who we are, fulfills that inner spark, and gives all of a chance to let loose and be who we are.

We all want to be successful, as in any career, but this is our passion. Writing makes us who we are as writers, no matter what the obstacles before us.

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse publishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.

“Authors supporting Authors” is the real deal

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I saw this great meme on Instagram the other day. It said, “Other authors are not my competition! I stand with them, not against them!” Among the independent authors I have engaged with regularly on social media, that is absolutely true.

Believe it or not, we are a rather enlightened community. We give advice, like posts, share ideas and creative criticism to make us better writers. We might not be the most social bunch in public, which makes sense since most of us rarely see the light of day except for the soft glow of our laptop. But we are stronger together.

We all have the same problems… Writer’s block, manuscript editing (take 11), finding a publisher, getting reviews, book sales, etc. We share that common bond through our love of writing, and being a storyteller. And its through that bond that we reach out to one another for help, advice, and support.

I’ve edited manuscripts, swapped books for a review, promoted other authors books, all for free. Why? Because I know that someone will see what I’m doing and will maybe do the same for me. That’s what we do.

We all have the same goals and same aspirations. We want to achieve the same thing… Recognition for the thousands of hours of work, sleepless nights, and spending vacation money on marketing, publishing, and artwork.

Working together helps our community of independent authors grow, learn, and become a force to be reckoned with. We may not be signed up with a publisher, agent, or publicist, but we have each other. That’s what makes us unstoppable.

So let’s help each other out. If you need a book review, message me and we’ll do an exchange for reviews. I am here for my fellow authors.

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse publishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.

Social media is the easiest, and cheapest, marketing tool for Independent Authors

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marketing through social media

Independent authors are just that, INDEPENDENT! We don’t have a publisher, marketing team, agent or publicist working for us to sell our book. They have to rely on friends, family, and word of mouth. In this day and age, that means social media.

According to Statista, 70% of the U.S. population has at least one social media profile. By 2018, the number of worldwide social media users is expected to reach about 2.5 billion people. With so many consumers using social media every day, this presents a great opportunity for independent authors to reach their online audience.

Social media platforms offer a fun and creative platform to promote you book through videos, GIFs, and creative JPEGs for a broad audience. In fact, according to MarketingSherpa, 95% of online adults ages 18 to 34 are likely to follow a brand on social media. However, when users engage with their social media profiles, it is because they find the content and information valuable. Whether they are looking for deals, enjoy entertaining content, or just want to learn more about a certain brand, social media users are open to engaging on social media channels.

That’s where independent authors can find their niche in marketing their novels. Your social media profiles provide yet another way to get more inbound traffic to your website. This makes marketing through social media an excellent strategy to complement your search engine optimization efforts. Each piece of content that you post to your social media profiles is another opportunity to bring new visitors to your site.

There are different platforms that can provide access for a variety of users. Facebook is one of the best social media platforms, with nearly two million monthly active users. Facebook is the world’s largest social media platform with the most diverse audience. When it comes to age, users of all ages are logging onto Facebook, with the largest demographic being those ages 25-to-34. Owned by Facebook, Instagram is another popular channel that promises to be one of the best social media platforms for small business and entrepreneurs. Instagram has more than 700 million active users who log onto the app to enjoy photos and video posts from their friends, family, celebrities, and yes, even certain brands. In fact, according to BrandWatch, 50% of users follow brands on Instagram.

With an average of about 328 million active Twitter users worldwide, this channel is yet another one of the best social media platforms for your 2018 social media marketing strategy. As one of the top 10 websites in the United States, Twitter is the go-to place for the latest news and trends on a variety of topics. The audience on Twitter also tends to be a bit younger with 36% of users between the ages of 18 to 29. Then there’s YouTube. Founded in 2005 and acquired by Google in late 2006, YouTube has quickly become the second largest search engine in the world, right behind Google. What’s more is that YouTube users are watching a billion hours of video each day and generating just as many views. This makes YouTube an excellent channel for reaching and engaging target consumers by creating and publishing compelling video content.

I have one other recommendation for you. If you plan to cross multiple social media platforms with your posts, I would suggest checking out Hootsuite. With this online program, you can put one post on all your social media platforms simultaneously. It also allows you to plan out your posts days in advance. You can find more, in depth information on the best social media platforms for brand marketing at Lyfe Marketing Blog.

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse publishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.

My writing interferes with my sleep, but in a good way

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Image result for dreamingMost of us get things stuck in their head, from time-to-time. After watching the new Aladdin trailer the other night, for some odd reason the “Prince Ali” song was rolling around in my head the next morning. I couldn’t get rid of it, not even in the shower (which is another whole level of embarrassing) until I put my headphones on, started the Guardians of the Galaxy, Vol. 2, soundtrack and got on the metro.

Beyond that, dreams put things in my head that helps me in my writing. The problem I have is that it’s usually four-to-five different things at once. I’ve started the outlines for three different novels in the past month, and on top of that, I had a distinct dream last night that gave me an idea for another project. I love it when the “creative juices” start to flow (it’s better than writer’s block) but it can also be considered on overload.

My dreams have always been a big part of the inspiration I draw on for my novels. I think it’s a culmination of years of playing Dungeons & Dragons and video games, reading comic books and various sci-fi/fantasy novels, and watching anime, Saturday Morning cartoons, and everything from Star Trek to Game of Thrones. All that “input” has to go somewhere and it’s usually into my dreams.

It’s amazing how this play acts out in my head, but it can also be quite frustrating. I CAN’T GO BACK TO SLEEP! When I wake up from this incredible dream with a story playing out right before me, it’s so damn hard to get back to sleep. That’s especially difficult when I have to work the next day.

How can you compartmentalize your sleep so you can (a) you can put those wonderful dreams to good use, and (b) you can still get a good night’s sleep. Some people suggest keeping a tablet next to the bed. I tried that but I can never wake up enough to write anything down. I’m also afraid that, if I would get up to start doing that, I would never get back to sleep.

I think that’s why I am working toward being a writer, so I can wake up and start writing without having to worry about making the metro on time. It would be great to be able to write whenever these crazy ideas pop into my head. I don’t want to lose what could be a great idea to sleep.

The last time I had a dream like this was this past year. Back in June 2018, I had a simple dream–waking up on a crossroads, nearly dying, and studying magic from a hermit-like caster to become a bad-ass warrior/caster. This led me to the book I just finished writing, The Last Magus. From the original dream, six months later, I had a manuscript of more than 180,000 words. That’s the power of dreams.

I usually get my best ideas from recurring dreams, like my last one, and it sticks with me until I finish writing. So, then I know it was meant to be. I haven’t had a repeat of my dream from the other night, so I’m not sure if that’s one to go with just yet. Even still, when I close my eyes tonight, I will wait and see if another new idea hits me.

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse publishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.

Why can’t they leave great franchises alone?

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Why is it that there are no more original ideas? Instead of coming up with something new, people–and by people I mean comic book editors, movie and television executives–decide to reinvent or re-imagine a classic instead of making an original idea. There are so many original ideas out there from the many independent, self-published authors, why do they have to mess with success?

A great, more recent, example is the Ghostbusters franchise. Now, I may get in trouble for this but hear me out. Instead of going with a third movie in the trilogy, they decided to re-imagine it with an all-female cast. Yes, it had some very funny moments and some of the cast were great (Leslie Jones and Kate McKinnon were my favorites) but it failed to grab the spirit of the original. Now, Jason Reitman is working to make a third movie with some of the original cast for 2020. That is getting praise from the fans of the original movies, and panned by some who think we didn’t give the reboot a chance. We gave it a chance and we didn’t care for it, enough said.

Another example is Star Trek. It was great to see Star Trek go from the original series, to The Next Generation, Deep Space Nine, etc. I was even a fan of the Enterprise prequel. Then we got the reboot with Chris Pine, which was okay but it seemed to be more about bring the “millennial edginess” instead of a way of telling a new story. Even the new TV series Discovery has redefined Klingons different from the original premise. And now, there’s word the Quentin Tarantino will be given a chance to put his mark on Star Trek. Why? Why mess with something that already has a deep-rooted fan base.

Look at the movie 2015 Max Max: Fury Road. Because it was written, directed, and produced by George Miller, the creator of Mad Max, it had the same feel as the original movies. It was visually awesome, great cast, and a decent story. It even won some Oscars, a first for the franchise. You see, they didn’t need to update it because it was good as it is. You don’t need to make wholesale changes to a franchise just to make it interesting.

Image result for the mandalorianAnother great example is Star Wars. Now, there have been hits and misses with the franchise since the end of Return of the Jedi. The animated series have been top notch, the Rogue One prequel was OUT OF BOUNDS! However, they have not found the original magic from these successes in later projects. The Force Awakens was good, The Last Jedi not so much. Solo was, in my opinion, better than I expected it to be, but it had too many plot holes. I am looking forward to the Mandalorian Netflix series as well as future releases after Episode 9 (which I am patiently holding my breath for) because they will be original movies separate from the Skywalker saga. That’s where they need to go. We don’t need a reboot of the same characters with new actors, but rather, let’s go to another part of the vast universe.

With all these examples, I just want to make the point that there are stories out there that haven’t been told yet, but they need to be done right. Look at Stephen King’s The Dark Tower and how badly it was done. These editors, producers, and directors need to keep the writers in mind to keep the story true to the original intent. Granted, some things may be out of the budgetary range of some movies (though not impossible with today’s CGI technology) but it is from the writer that it even exists in the first place.

Even in comic books, story lines are now being rewritten to accommodate the way they were done in the movies. Really? So, the original stories aren’t good enough anymore? Sorry, but that’s just being too damn lazy to be creative and original.

I have had the great opportunity to meet, talk to, and read the books of other independent authors like me through our connections on social media. There are a lot of great stories out there, worthy of a movie or series. That’s where the inspiration for the next big TV series or blockbuster movie should come from, not someone’s idea of the next reboot should be. Quit re-imagining things and let’s be original for a change.

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniversepublishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.

Forever Avalon’s 2nd Edition is now LIVE as a paperback and ebook!

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This is going to be short and sweet today. I am happy to announce that Forever Avalon has been rereleased as a 2nd Edition via Amazon. My first publisher, James A. Rock & Company Publishers, went out of business after the death of the publisher and owner a few years ago. Since I retained the rights to my work, I did a rework on the story and published a 2nd Edition via Amazon Createspace online program (now a part of Kindle Direct Publishing) as both a paperback and an ebook. As a reminder, here’s a quick summary:

“Stephanie Drake and her three children were glad to be alive after a sudden storm slammed their boat onto an uncharted island, but it’s not where they think. They found themselves in another world, frozen in time. For more than 3,000 years, the magical island of Avalon remained hidden from the outside world. It was a place of eternal magic, where the descendants of King Arthur ruled over a land filled with magical creatures, wizards, Elves, Dwarves and dragons. On Avalon, Stephanie and her children were being hunted by bounty hunters, thieves and brigands. They found themselves caught in a power struggle between Lord Kraven Darkholm, a powerful wizard descended from the sorceress Morgana le Fay, and Lord Bryan MoonDrake, the Gil-Gamesh of Avalon. The people of this magical isle have been protected for centuries by the Gil-Gamesh, a descendant of Sir Percival Peredyr, the last Knight of the Round Table. But who is Lord MoonDrake and how does he know so much about Stephanie and her children? Now, it’s a race against time as the Gil-Gamesh must protect these Outlanders—as they are called—and get them home to the outside world. All the while, Kraven Darkholm continued his schemes against the people of Avalon, vying to achieve his ultimate goal of becoming ruler of this enchanted island.”

First off, I want to praise Createspace for being easy to use, a helpful staff, and quick action on everything from my queries and questions to shipping proofs. They are great to work with and, to be honest, a Godsend for independent authors like me.

Second, I want to thank artist Dennis Supatra. Dennis did some great character drawings to represent the characters in my first book. He followed that up with a redesign of the cover and interior artwork for the 2nd edition. Check out his work!

This is a big addition to the series, even though it’s my first book republished. It allows people to get into the series again from the beginning. And, as a writer, I’m happy to go through it and correct my mistakes from before. It’s easy to miss a spelling error here and there. Word of advice to any budding authors out there… Spellcheck is not your friend! It doesn’t catch everything and, when you don’t have the money for a professional book editor, you have to do things on your own.

When I first published Forever Avalon in 2009, I sent copies of it out to my entire family. Within a month, I received an email from my mother with two pages detailing spelling and grammer errors she found. That was quite a humbling experience. It also cost me an additional $75 to make the corrections. For a self-published author, that’s adds to the financial burden when you’re just starting out.

So, if you’re interested to start at the beginning (and I hope you are) I hope you’ll pick up a copy of Forever Avalon. And, if you do, help out an author and leave a review! That’s an independent author’s bread and butter! Thanks!

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a paperback/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse publishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.

 

What language does one use when casting spells?

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Magic spells are the “bread and butter” of any fantasy author. There isn’t a person out there doesn’t know words like “Expecto Patronum” or “Avada Kedavra” and what they can do. The power behind d the magic is in the words. The question is, what words do you use to enchant those spells.

When I first started writing Forever Avalon, I had to come up with a plan since, in my world, everyone could use magic in some form or another. The world of Avalon came from our world, so the easiest think to use was one of the oldest languages of man… Latin.

It made sense to me to use. It is one of the oldest languages in human used, known across multiple cultures. Why not make it a source for magic. Besides, between Google translate and a great online program through the University of Notre Dame, it was easy to use.

Unfortunately, my new story is taking me in a whole new direction. After I finished book four of the Forever Avalon series, I started planning book five, when I got an idea for another series. This would take place in a whole new fantasy world, completely original. So now, I needed another language for magic.

I’m not a linguist, so it’s hard enough doing Elf, Dwarf and other verbiage in my stories. For example, I use Norwegian and German for the Dwarf language, since those countries are where the legends come from. But to create something new for magic, I used a shortcut again. Hello Google Translate.

This time I went on a different direction… to Corsica. According to Wikipedia, “Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean Sea and one of the 18 regions of France. It is located southeast of the French mainland and west of the Italian Peninsula, with the nearest land mass being the Italian island of Sardinia to the immediate south. A single chain of mountains makes up two-thirds of the island.”

I picked Corsican for the language of magic in my new story because it seemed to flow properly, especially for single word spells. It’s closely related to a the medieval language of Tuscan (Toscano) which fits with a medieval fantasy world. In addition, I created a whole new style of magic casting along with it. You see, I figured spells could be cast using long, drawn out phrases as well as single words of power. This gives the magic caster options for how powerful they want their spell to be. For single words, I use Corsican for the spells. I have to be a little creative in the long phrase spells, mixing a little bit of poetry with my magic. For example, this is a concealment spell in my new story:

“Whispers in the darkness, silent as the wind, bend the light to my will; Cast your shadow around me, hide me from my enemy, conceal me while I remain still.”

It’s not my best prose, but magic is coming from a different plane. You are talking about something of complete fantasy and trying to make it real is what a writer is supposed to do. It’s times like this I wish I had the linguistic skills of a J.R.R. Tolkien.

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a book/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a book/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse publishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.

How does a married, over-50 man write a love scene between 20-somethings?

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When I was a young Sailor, deployed overseas for more than six months as a time, I wrote the occasional dirty letter to my wife. It was a release to, shall we say, “keep the home fires burning” while I was gone. Trust me, she wrote some sizzling ones back to me, which made for plenty off cold showers in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean.

Now, as a 55-year-old man, I am writing fantasy stories that include love scenes between young men and women, half my age. The problem is, it’s difficult for me to put that same fire into my stories that I once wrote to my wife.

You envision your love scenes like you would see in the movies or a romance novel, but it’s not the same when you’re doing it yourself. It’s like being a voyeur or cheating on my wife with someone else. I know that sounds wierd, but true.

As a writer, you have to imagine the situation you’re writing about to make it real for the reader. To be honest, I don’t think of myself as a sexy man anymore (although my wife says I still am). That’s what makes this hard (ignore the pun) for me. Sure, I could watch porn or read a dirty magazine for inspiration, but it’s not the same. I want the romance, the seduction, the lovemaking, not graphic sex, in my stories.

It’s especially difficult when you have daughters the same age as the characters your writing about. It makes me feel like a dirty old man watching girls at the beach behind mirrored sunglasses. So how do you do it?

For someone like me, it involves lots of sleepless nights. When I’m writing, the story I’m working on occupies my dreams. I’ve been working on this love scene for more than a week now. I replay it in my head at night, re-read it on my computer screen several times to make sure it feels right. Like I said, sleepless nights.

Unless romance is the backbone of your writing style, it’s not easy to pick up on. The best advice I can give is to trust your instincts and give into your own feelings of love, passion, and romance. You can’t go wrong.

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Mark Piggott is the author of the Forever Avalon book series. Forever Avalon is available for purchase as a book/ebook at Amazon. The Dark Tides is available for purchase as a book/ebook at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and iUniverse publishing. The Outlander War, Book Three of the Forever Avalon series is coming soon from Austin Macauley Publishing.