Hey everyone, I know it's been awhile since I posted anything of import on here but I wanted to take a little time to talk about a few things.

First and foremost, A HUGE thank you to everyone for their well wishes and thoughts on May 6th for the anniversary of my son's passing. Your kind words mean so much to me and have touched me to no end. It has been a really difficult year and while I am trying my best to keep pushing forward sometimes I get caught up in everything around me.

Similarly, I have been working on Faedlands alot lately and although things have been fairly quiet on here please know that I am still around and trying to write the story as I have imagined it. I'm taking extra time to go back and edit things, flesh things out and make sure that this story is the one I want people to hear since it is so important to me that this is done my way.

In this also I must say that I may not be online as often as I have been, I want to take more time to write and I tend to get distracted fairly easily promoting my work and talking about it and while I absolutely love to talk with everyone about it I really should focus more on writing so that I can, in turn, have more to talk about :)

So in this, I'm not going to be on as much but I will continue to post probably once a week.

Anyhow, that's just to let everyone know that I'm still here and that you can write me on twitter, FB page, comments on here or ever send me an email at [email protected] and I'll do my best to respond to you.

Finally to let everyone know about upcoming events, Sometime soon I should be receiving the artwork that I had commissioned and I will be posting it up here. I'm really excited about it. The concept art that may be used for the cover is that of a "World Tree" featuring a large tree that is half in bloom and half dead and covered in snow. The tree's roots are entwined around the world which also shows half displayed brightly while the other remains in shadow.

I don't know exactly at what phase this is in right at this moment but as soon as it is in I will post it up here for your feedback.


And as always, if you'd like to subscribe to this blog you can do so by entering your email in the box provided to the top right of this post.

Hope to hear from you all soon!

-Ryan

For the duration of today (May 6th, 2012) I'm not going to be online or have my phone turned on.

Please click HERE for an explanation.

Thanks for your support during this most trying of times.

So this is kind of a random post but I wanted to speak on education for a bit. I recently read an article stating that funding for schools should be prioritized by academic achievement rather then by the number of staff.

While this idea sounds good in theory...

I think we need to look at the issue a bit closer.

Here is the article, As posted in the Seattle Times:

http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/opinion/2018135510_guest04goding.html

While I think that the article makes some very relevant facts, I feel that there are numerous other concerns that should be addressed.

From a technical standpoint, "Grading" a school based off of it's academic reach is a bit short sighted. Our country is made up of a diverse group ethically and many of our students do not speak english as their first language. I believe in areas that have a higher concentration of diverse ethnicity are going to suffer greatly due to their school not being in a higher percentile due to language barriers that teacher would have to learn to overcome or adapt to. Additional time to overcome these barriers could very well hurt a schools overall grade as well. Teachers put in more work to give these children the best education possible and while that sounds so great... that extra time (according to the statistically driven) would be better spent helping those who need less excel in order to boost their schools rank. (You know, because everything is image.)

We must also think of what this would do to teachers. While this report seems to state that the number of teachers far surpasses what is needed to keep the school systems running while in fact, there is constant news of teacher shortages, not only in the US but around the world as well. Layoffs due to cutting beneficial programs, budget cuts and lower salaries mean fewer teachers overall.

I think that we should be helping the underprivileged and needy before anything else. I believe that if we want to see a substantial change to the way our education system works then we have to help out the underdog and put our eyes towards schools that are below the academic level and give them the resources to bring them up to a comfortable level. (At the very least give these kids a chance to do something important with their lives rather then forget about the minorities.

We need more teachers, we need a better and more secure structure to ensure that our next generation is well suited to excel.

Anyhow, just my rant for the day :)

-Ryan

PS: As always feel free to leave a comment in the section below with your thoughts on education and where it is headed not only locally, but internationally as well. 

So today I've decided that it would be a fair time to go through and answer alot of the questions I've been receiving about Faedlands. First and foremost I am so humbled and at times overwhelmed by the support that everyone has shown for this project and I thank you all for the continued feedback and well wishes.

If you haven't had a chance to read the chapter 1 draft I have posted you may read it by clicking HERE.

So let's get to it then.


'I've read the first chapter that you put up and I want to know more of what happens. Will you be posting more up in the future?"

Me: Well, yes and no to be honest. In many of my previous projects I would post up to about the 5th chapter of a book so that people could get a feel for it. This book however, Has much longer chapters then I have previously done (An upwards of 5000+ for several) and so if I were to do the same with Faedlands, I think that it would be a bit too much to do comfortably.

However, I will be posting periodic excerpts and updates as the project moves forward. Many of the excerpts will be posted to my FB page HERE

"You said that in your story the world was split into 2 parts resembling night and day?"

Me: Yes, Due to an event long ago in the timeline of our world something took place that caused the planet's timeline to cease. Leaving one half of the world stuck in endless night while the other is stuck in endless daylight. This also has happened with the seasons, the world of the night represents winter as the light side represents summer.

To add a bit to this, Each part of the world has it's own rules and in some cases races that reside within it. Each being very different from each other but sadly I cannot give too much of the details behind that away at this point.


"Is Vex considered to be the main character of this story? I know you've pushed Reia's backstory as well."

Me: Umm... That's a hard question to answer lol. but for the sake of simplicity I will say yes, Vex is the primary focus of this book. But besides him there are several other "focal" characters that come into play. But yes this is Vex's story.

I started the Faedlands with no actual protagonist in mind. The idea of the world is what drew me in and from there the locations and timeline of events actually dictated where I went for the story. Traci and Myself sat down one night and wrote out a list of 30+ possible characters to use for the initial story. Vex and Reia obviously fell into that part the best although as I began writing Vex began to really take control of the story.

Amongst Vex and Reia there was also an idea of having a werewolf character that headed an "assassin's guild" within the dark realm. That story really stood out but in the end we wanted something a bit more flexible to introduce readers into this world.


"I read Reia's part that you had up for a few days. Can you explain the last line of it a bit in detail?"


Me: this question is one that I wasn't sure that I wanted to post up lol. But yes the line in question is where Tirys states that Vex did not exist in the past.

All I can honestly say to this is that obviously the point of posting Reia's story was to delve a bit into her own backstory and show people that she has quite a bit more depth then initially believed. All I will say directly is that when the "event" that caused the world to change happened. Reia played a part in it. As for Vex? I think it's safe to say that the quote was pretty self explanitory. Vex is a "New Soul" that has never existed before his birth in this age. There is a reason for this but I cannot give those details out at this time :)

Also just to mention since this is a question involving Reia's Story, Within the next few days I will be posting the Chapter 1 Draft in it's entirety to replace the current copy that is posted so be sure to check back in often or subscribe to the updates :)


"Where did you get the idea for writing this book?"

Me: Well, the official story to that can be found HERE


"When is your book going to be released?"

Me: Well, Honestly I have no idea. This is my first book that I am actually pushing to get published and I have little knowledge of how to really go about doing so. I will probably go the route of self publishing if I cannot find a publishing offer that seems to be a good fit for me by the time that I am ready for release but everything is still up in the air at this point. I am always up for advice on the subject and/or suggestions.

As a personal goal I am hoping to be completely done with this current book by october of this year.


"Are there any spoilers that you can give us to hold us over until the next update?"

Me: Ummm... Let's see, there's a few I guess.

I was also asked a question about whether Vex would find his affinity during the book but I think i can address that question along with this. the answer is yes, Vex himself was not born with an affinity but in that you can almost call him a blank slate if you will. Something drastic happens in the story during the 5th chapter that changes everything with Vex, And yes he does gain immense power in the process.

Since we're on the subject of spoilers I'll also say that while everything I have released so far takes place in the realm of summer, The Winter Court will also be visited in the book and will give you an idea of the other side of this world and just how different it really is.

Lastly I will reveal something that may get your attention, Every fantasy story needs a villain. And this book obviously has it's share of them but all I will say is that the biggest one of them all will be Vex himself.


So! That's all the questions I'm going to answer for now, If you have a question of your own about the story feel free to send me an email at

[email protected]

Be sure to set the subject as "Faedlands Question"

you can also post any questions/comments in the section below if you would like to do so.

And as always, If you'd like to stay up to date with this blog feel free to subscribe by entering your email in the box to the upper right of this post. This information will not be publicly available to anyone.

Talk to you all soon!

-Ryan

Hey everyone, Big post for you in a small package.

So in one of the earlier blogs I mentioned that I was re-working Nocturne a bit and trying some different approaches. While I can't share exactly what's in store for it here's a small sample that I hope you guys will like.

In the beginning…

There was light…


Often I find myself wondering what a statement such as this could mean. What was this light that our father saw through the abyss that compelled him to create us in his image?

I have watched for many millennia, waiting for an answer to this question.

I was there as this Earth was created, watched as the first human being walked upon it's surface. We all watched, waiting for something to happen.

I waited upon a sign, to see this "light of creation" and bear witness to the inspiration that created all things.

But the only light I saw come from your arrival was that of the flames of war. You thirst for all but water; you seek what cannot be found, your existence, a mystery, even to us.

I lost everything in the aftermath of your coming, My mind and heart broken as I was seperated from everything I have ever known. I blamed it all on you.

And now as the final hours approach I have come to understand what it is that makes you special. For I have seen the power of your light shining unlike nothing I could have imagined.

It is in this that I write to you, hoping that you will come to understand in time that I never wanted things to end this way, but I fear it is too late for apologies now. If you are reading this please bear with me for I want you to know who I am and… More importantly, what it is I have done.

I am Azriel, an angel of the lord.

And the one who ended your world.



So, what did you all think of this little excerpt?

Post your comments in the section below,
Remember you can subscribe to this blog by posting your Email in the box to the upper right (No one can see it) if you'd like to stay up to date with all of my projects and posts.

And as always, hope to hear from you all soon :)

-Ryan

So this morning (Morning for me anyways, Afternoon for most people) I had a "Meeting" with an old friend of mine who happens to be a wonderful artist herself.

Honestly, Lately I've been having doubts about my writing and have taken a break to process and review my work. It's getting closer to May 6th and I want so desperately to keep moving forward on this but my own self doubt is really getting in the way of progress.

But little by little I have been forcing myself to move forward even if just a little at a time. I think a good distraction from a lot of this has been in working to find a good and fitting cover and I also feel like if nothing else I am still staying productive on the project. I tried my hand at photoshop for the first time (As you can see from examples 4 and 5 of the previous blog post but I'm not really satisfied enough with my own skill to really know what I wanted out of a cover.

The previous post also contained 3 modified versions of a Stock photo that I thought was a good reference point. Credit for the Text goes to Patti Roberts of the Paradox series. Check out her work HERE if you haven't yet.

While I like the Photo, I want something a bit more...personal I guess you can say. i wanted something unique and something original. I figured that if I could find an artist that could "Get" the concept of my book and really bring it to life it could be beneficial to both of us in the long run.

So I met with Stephanie (The Aforementioned artist friend) and went out for coffee and talked a bit about what the story was about, some behind the scenes aspects that I haven't released publicly yet to give her a feel for the story and some character descriptions that Traci has in a notebook.

The more I talked about the story and the characters and getting the reaction from someone who hasn't been read in on the story sparked something in me and while I'm not saying that I'm just going to jump in and start writing it again right away it has given me much more hope that this will be something that people will be interested in.

Several concepts for art were discussed, from a picture of Vex holding a sword that would reflect both aspects of the world (night/day summer/winter) I liked the idea but it's a hard one to wrap my head around without visually seeing it.

Another one is the idea of a "World Tree" Concept similar to that of Norse mythology. Where half of the tree would be dead and barren while the other half bloomed and would be very much alive. The roots of the tree would be wrapped around the planet in which you would be able to see that half the world was bright and colorful while half was shadowed in perpetual twilight.

I'm sure we'll continue to discuss various concepts but I am so happy to have gotten ahold of her and to share a bit of the world with someone that grasped the concept so easily and really added to it.

Hopefully soon I'll have more to share about this and I really hope that you all will love it :)

-Ryan

Hey everyone!

It's been a little while since I posted up on here so I figured that I'd stop in and post some updates.

First of all (And it's a bit late) But The first addition to the Cover Art is being processed.

The first addition is this:

This is the current selection. Please vote by making a comment in the section below as to which one is your favorite out of these images.

Later I will post some more for you to vote on and again after that.

I will be taking the winning picture of each selection (There will be three) and will post them up for a final vote in which the cover art will be decided.

I hope that wasn't too confusing...

Anyhow, Hope everyone is having a great weekend!

Talk to you later,

-Ryan

PS- And as always you can subscribe to this Blog via Email in the subscription box to the right of this post. Make a comment about which of these covers you think best deserves to get a spot for the final vote.

Much thanks to Patti Roberts (@PattiRoberts7) For her help and Contribution of the Text.

I just thought everyone might be interested in this one. I was doing my daily "free writing" to get the juices flowing and this is one of the odd little stories that played out. I think it's funny because it's about that feeling you get when you have to go...well, pretty much anywhere in a dark room (For me anyways)

I came awake in my room, alone all but for the thoughts that kept me company on these dark, moonless nights. The darkness seemed palpable as it wormed its way under my skin and began to devour my nerves.

My eyes slowly adjusted, little things slowly began to appear. Outlined in shadow but soon revealing their shapes while I waited for that mental click that would tell me what these images were that seemed so foreign to me now.

I worked up the courage to move from the bed. My body rustling the covers as I slid across the silken sheets and let my feet dangle from the edge, slowly releasing my weight downward until the floor reached up to catch me.

I looked around to see what was clearly my room though the shadows now corrupted its shape, twisting and contorting it from my view. The floorboards creaked as I took my first tentative steps forward, trying not to overestimate my ability to see in this darkness.

I felt my body grow cold as fear began to fill my body at the thought of my vulnerable state.

Somewhere in the darkness, silent shrieks filled my mind and played tricks with me. Whispers from those long passed flickered from my view. The haunting of the mind in this night engulfed realm took its toll on me.

I found myself walking quickly as if to outrun the shadow that would not abide my longing to flee its grasp. My heart quickened and my breathing became taxed as I rushed down the hallway, my bare feet sticking ever so slightly to the hard wood floors. I came to the corner and turned it swiftly, my hand reaching out, searching for the light switch that would bring me a sense of comfort.

Within moments of its blinding glare dispelling the darkness from the room my body began to relax, My muscles began to ache from the stress that my short journey had put them through but as I reclined back in my office chair I laughed in spite of myself.

I survived to see another day I thought to myself as the sky began to lighten outside of my balcony window, the darkness could touch me no more.

Until I go to bed anyways.

The End.

-Ryan Smith

This is in some ways a follow up to the last post but at the same time is diverse enough to be considered it's own blog as well.


First and foremost, If you look to the right of your screen you will see that I added an Email Subscription widget. So now you can always see when something new is posted on this blog. Please feel free to subscribe if you're interested.

In Faedlands News,

Things are coming along pretty smoothly for the most part, Through editing and discussion I have decided to shift a bit of the story a little for pacing and to flesh things out a bit further then they already are. I can't say too much about it openly but please feel free to ask any questions/comments about the story and I will tell you as much as possible.

Nocturne,

As stated before, the story is about to go through a major overhaul and I'm not entirely sure where that will put us. There is no time frame on this so I will continue to work on it at leisure while maintaining progress on Faedlands.

Poetry, I am about to release a new poem from my collection onto the site, I know I'm a few days late but It will be up later tonight.

Now for the SITE NEWS!

With the changes to Nocturne happening I thought that it would be only fitting that I begin to revamp the site a bit to reflect the changes to these stories. Over the next few weeks I will be on here fixing and updating/upgrading this site. It will have some new features as well (Email subscription being the first)

Also, as some of you may know, I am also an avid gamer and to this end have began a Gamer Blog for all of you gamers out there.

It is not finished yet but will become live within the next few days.

That's about it for now, Short and sweet but full of news.

Feel free to sound off in the comments below about your take on these changes

Hello everyone

I figured that it was time to shift gears a bit and talk about Nocturne a bit and the overall fate of the series.

If you haven't had a chance to read the draft of Nocturne do so by clicking HERE.

For the time being, Faedlands has been on my highest priority level but I have had many emails/comments referring to Azriel's story. I have loved to hear all of your feedback about the faedlands as well as nocturne and wanted you all to know that I don't take those comments lightly. So here you go.

So while I was building this site I had created a page specifically for Nocturne that featured the first 5 chapters of the story. (I believe it was five anyway) On top of these draft chapters I was about halfway done with the story as a whole, had several pieces and alternate versions of what would have become Lexia's story which was to be a book all in itself. And finally, I had written many scenes with regard to an Origin Story, much of which would have revolved around Azriel's place within the story of the fall of the Angels.

Yes, I am using the past tense for this for a reason.

While writing the Faedlands, Talking and meeting wonderful people on Twitter and honing my production skills more I have evolved much of my style, this also includes not only the way I write but also the structure of the project itself.

In this the work I have already done on Nocturne is going to be altered in some form. I cannot say exactly how it will evolve but I truly hope that many of you will enjoy the changes that I am making with it.

One of the notable things that I am changing has much to do with the depth of the story, While still holding onto the style that I have projected in many aspects, this new course will set the book to a much darker tone then it is currently. Matching much more to the first chapter in terms of style.

Due to the change in pacing and structure expect many known elements to take a shift. Cypher will remain mostly unchanged in persona although his actions will be portrayed differently, Lexia will change in many aspects to fit into the narrative and overall style.

As for Azriel himself. His story is going to be a rough road with twists and turns at every side. I think that we'll all be surprised to see what becomes of our Antihero.

So that's our Nocturne Update, Sound off in the comments section below to give your feedback as to how you feel this change will affect your overall interest in the story.

Til next time,

-Ryan