Before 2015, I only had two series in publication: Fortune’s Wing and Valentine. I finally decided to publish the idea I had been thinking about for years. Our Lady of … Continue reading To Censor or Not Censor: The Difference Between The Two Versions of “Our Lady”
The young heroes of Fortune’s Wing have a lot on their plate. They have to battle monsters and sorcerers, protect one another from harm, and save the world. But they’re still in high … Continue reading Teenagers Saving the World…and doing teenage stuff
Some writers feel the first line is the most difficult line to write. Personally, I think it’s the last line. The ending. The finale. Once you get started writing a story, sometimes, the flow is so effortless the story seems to write itself. Then, you reach the conclusion, and everything that has occurred has to be tied up nice and neat with a little bow. Or not. You can do that, too.
How should your story end? With a twist? An explosion? A murder? Should it be happy or sad? Idealistic or realistic? Will the story end with a statement, or a line of dialogue? Some writers will say you should never end with dialogue. My suggestion? Do whatever you feel is best for your story. One of my personal favorite ‘last lines’ comes from F. Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby: So we beat on, boats against the current, borne back ceaselessly into the past.
Here’s a few of my ‘last lines’.
The two of them began to laugh, as the morning continued.
The Witch of Fulton Lane seems to have a happy ending, right? I’m not going to give the ending away here, but this last line comes across as a pleasant one.
We will be okay.”
It seems fitting that Fortune Oyama, the main character in the Fortune’s Wing series, gets to have the last line in Fortune’s Wing: Flies Again. I’m including this line because it doesn’t indicate how the story ended. This could be a positive ending or a negative one. Maybe he saved the world, and maybe he didn’t. Or, maybe he changed it. The only way to know, is to read the story!
And as Nick and I harmonized the opening verse to Come For the Wake, Stay for the Funeral, I thought, this is our moment; this is our time, and nothing can stop us now…
Yes, it’s long, but it’s a fitting end to a great story (and I’m not just saying that because I wrote it). There are many elements in Our Lady of Righteous Rage. The story deals with a group of friends growing up and starting a band and a business together. They deal with crossing the line between childhood and adulthood, divorce, uncertainty, self-esteem (and a lack of it). The last line is a reflection of a long struggle to achieve a much desired goal.
As a writer, you don’t want to leave your reader with a disappointing ending. But the ending needs to fit the story. So if it needs to be sad, make it sad. If you want to end with dialogue, do it. Give your story the ending you feel it needs.
Ah, the opening line of a book or short story. The attention-getter. It’s the line that sets the tone. It can draw you in, or leave you feeling completely uninterested. Every first line I have ever written, have terrified me. Why? Because I know they will either be good, or awful. I mean, who can top It was the best of times, it was the worst of times? Sheesh.
As a writer, you want your first line to have enough impact so your reader will not only be drawn into the story, but have an idea of what kind of story they’re about to get into. But you don’t want to give away too much. It’s like watching a movie you’ve never seen before, and being able to guess what’s going to happen from the very beginning. It’s not easy to do, but sometimes, you get it right. Below are the first lines of some of my books.
Was it a dream or was it reality?
Fortune’s Wing begins with a reoccurring dream it’s protagonist Fortune Oyama has been haunted by. He has visions of a ruined world; a world he couldn’t save. The heart of the story concerns the fate of the world: will it be destroyed or will it be saved? Will things carry on the way they always have or will there be dramatic changes? All of these questions can only be answered by the one who possesses The Wings.
It was early; around six in the morning.
Not my strongest line. But the rest of the paragraph makes up for it: Veronica Entienne watches her cousin Val pack a few last minute items into her bag. This much is clear: she’s going somewhere. And that’s the most important factor in Valentine: Va’s road trip to L.A. to save her father.
When I was twelve years old, I fell in love with rock n roll.
There are a few things you can take away from the first line in Our Lady of Righteous Rage. One, this is going to be a story with musical elements. Two, it’s a coming-of-age tale (the narrator makes a statement about something that happened when she was twelve, giving the impression she’s older now). Three, music is very important to this person, especially rock n roll.
“If you take this much, you’ll feel better, but if you take this much, you’ll see God.”
This is the opening line to a book I’m working on, titled Barrin Heights. I’m not one hundred percent sure of where this story is headed, but I can tell you it’s going to be supernatural.
First lines: as writers, we don’t always nail them. But you can’t expect success every time. You can’t learn from success; you can only learn from failure.
December 2019 marked the tenth anniversary of the first book I ever published: Fortune’s Wing. Originally written in 2002, it became the first of a three-book series about a young … Continue reading 10 Years of Fortune’s Wing
Little Women by Louisa May Alcott
Releasing a new book is always exciting and special. Something that you have created and worked very hard on, is now available to the rest of the world. One of … Continue reading The 5th Anniversary of “Our Lady of Righteous Rage”
March 27, 2010: it was a wonderful time. My second published book, Valentine, had just been released. It was a proud moment for me, because Valentine was a book I had written just a … Continue reading Valentine’s 10th Anniversary
I’d like to create a harmonious balance between the use of male and female characters in my books. However, try as I might, I seem to lean towards the female characters more. Maybe it’s my inner feminist. One of my goals for 2020 is to write stories that focus more on the male characters. As a society, it seems our mission is empower women and young girls. I fear the men and young boys are being left out in the cold, and that isn’t good. The last thing I want to see, is a generation of males being made to feel like their feelings and thoughts don’t matter, because they’re not females. But, I digress…
For the Woolaston Entertainment books, this has been the year of HER.
Rock N Role Model
Amy Edwards of the Our Lady of Righteous Rage series shows off her tender, motherly side in this first companion book of Phase Two of the series. She discovers a young fan named Stephanie (Step for short) and takes her under her wing. The two of them begin to spend time together, bonding almost as if they were mother and daughter. It’s an opportunity for readers to see Amy isn’t all punk rock and guitars; off of the stage and away from the studio, she’s a mother.
Lucia and the Saints
The woman who created John Rafferty and gave The Syndicate it’s name is a force to be reckoned with. She’s the reason Valentine, Jo Fuentes, Lola Vencent, Mac Avery and Kelly McCormick each have a place in the Syndicate. Lucia carries a gun, and she knows how to use it. She has no problem standing up to anyone, be they a man or a woman. But she’s not the only strong woman in the series: the young girls she takes in, The Lady Saints are each pretty badass in their own right. They’ll pick up a gun and join Lucia in a fight if necessary. Lucia is their role model, and they want to learn as much from her as they possibly can.
Jo Fuentes: Project Sleep
Jo already proved her worth in the Valentine series and in Jo Fuentes: The Black Queen. In Project Sleep, Jo works through her PTSD in order to discover the true origins of her dangerous skills. She could just worry about her own safety, but Jo is still a soldier, and the welfare of the other members of Project Sleep is a major concern for her.
Rock N Role Model and Lucia and the Saints are both available on Amazon. Jo Fuentes: Project Sleep will be available by the end of December 2019.
Everything has a beginning and an ending. The same is true for my novella series, Lucia and the Saints. I can’t believe I’m saying this, but here it goes: the sixth and final volume of the series will be available next week. Yes, folks. The series is coming to an end.
The first volume was released on July 5, 2019. Readers were introduced to a young John Rafferty, when he was attempting to become a business man. This is not the John Rafferty we know (and potentially hate) from the Valentine series. Older Rafferty is cruel, vicious and uncaring. Younger Rafferty can be a bit of a wuss.
But forget Rafferty for a moment. The main character is Lucia. Everything that happens, and every character in the world of Valentine can be traced back to Lucia. She’s bold and outspoken, and thirty times braver than Rafferty. Truthfully, between the two of them, she should be running the Syndicate.
I used to think prequels were useless. However, writing this series has given me a deeper appreciation for prequels. It’s interesting to find the connections between characters and events from the other series. With Lucia and the Saints: Volume Six, there’s a pivatol moment in which Lucia makes a decision that affects the lives of every other character in both the Valentine series and the Valentine Apart series.
The entire series is available in ebook form. I will release the paperback versions by the end of the year.
