Sunday, January 12, 2020

Still Learning - a Series Twelve Years in the Making

Hello!
Welcome to 2020. I'm working on something I started earlier in this millennium, the craft of writing a novel.

These days I am revising the fifth book in my first novel series, Journey to Chaos. This is the second rewrite of the fourth draft. If I were to fully disclose, then it would be the second rewrite of the fourth draft of the third version. I started the first version maybe eight years ago, before publishing even book #1 but then I decided to rewrite book #2 which then spilled over all the way to this one, book #5. What I'm working on now has been a long time in coming, and I am still learning.

That is both good and bad. Obviously, it is good to always learn. To always learn is to always improve, and to perpetually expand one's knowledge and skills. However, it is also bad because it is frustrating. After twelve years I feel that I should be beyond the basics. When I learn something new I reflect "duh! that's obvious". Except it wasn't, and isn't, or I would already know it.

The most recent thing I learned is about narrative concentration, and that is why it is frustrating. Like in formal, academic writing, one needs to be focused on what one is writing about. To find a clear subject and write exclusively on that subject so that it can be developed over the course of the work, sounds like something that should be obvious. But I wasn't doing it.  As a result, my most recent book (Transcending Limitations) did not live up to its full potential. Its themes were shallow, its events lacked build-up, and its magical mechanics were confusing (to someone other than me, anyway).

I thought this was because a novel is not formal academic writing. I did not want to follow the rules of formal academic writing because I was not writing an essay. I was writing a novel. There are different rules for writing a novel.

Characters are not rational. They do not make clear and logical arguments. They do not always act based on reasonable premise or a concise thesis statement. They certainly don't talk like an essay (unless, of course, a character's personality is based on being formal and academic). That is why what now appears to be obvious now was most hidden from me indeed.

Now I understand that writing a novel is more similar to writing an essay than I thought (or perhaps wanted to think). One has to write formally for the structure and build up of the story itself, but also informally to catch the emotion and life of characters and for reasons that I likely do not know yet.

  This is the seventh paragraph,but it was the fourth one in my first draft of this article. I added more content during the revision process because I realized a need to concentrate its themes. So now it is no longer the last paragraph before the conclusion in a standard essay.

I realized this when I was wondering where to end this post, or if it was too long. TL;DR, you know? That phrase would never appear in a formal piece, not without a paragraph defining it and its purpose, and within an essay where it would be relevant. As there, and here and in a novel, a writer should only include what is relevant. This aids the quest of subject clarity because there is less clutter.

I'm working on that. It's an on-going process of learning. I want to continue learning and improving as I continue writing for the next twelve years and beyond (ideally, it would be more like ten thousand years, but I'll take what I can get).

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration). His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.

Wednesday, January 1, 2020

Monster Manual for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition (D&D review)

Monster Manual for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition

Disclaimer: I read the Monster Manual for 3.5 E but never played it so my basis for comparison is minor at best.

A LOT of monsters are in this manual, 315 pages of them plus a pair of appendixes for creatures and possible foes. Thus there is a variety available for a dungeon master to throw at their players. Be it straight-up and uncomplicated brawlers such as hill giants, the cunning and numerous smaller creatures like kobolds and goblins, the paranoia caused by the classic mimic or spell-casting creatures like hags, this book has it all.

Except for celestial creatures. Demons, devils, dragons and giants all get large sections for their sub-species and society but the upper planes get less attention. There are three varieties of angels listed and some others like the unicorn but those are all high Challenge Rating creatures; mid-game at the earliest, and there is little more lore for them than other creatures. I understand the reasoning for this, at least, I think I do.
Players are encouraged to fight creatures that are generally evil or threatening. These are feral monsters, devious demons, and rampaging orcs. The number of situations where they would fight angels or unicorns is far more limited. Including them as allies runs the risk of making the players irrelevant. So why waste time on them?
Being a guy who likes lore and world building, I find this disappointing. Although, there is enough to homebrew something, and that can be fun too.

That is also something fun with this book. It's not something that I can get from other books, which tell a story. This one gives the actors for such a story. After a certain creature's entry, it is fun to imagine a small little scenario featuring them which makes use of the lore: their habits and diets and such. Also, I like to consider some way to effectively use their stats and features against potential players.

This is another book with gorgeous artwork. Every monster gets their profile picture. The celestials look majestic, the fiends look dangerous and some of the aberrations are just creepy, like the gibbering mouther. This is great for the theater of the imagination.

Trickster Eric Novels gives "Monster Manual for Dungeons and Dragons 5th Edition" an A+

Click here for my next book review: Xanthar's Guide to Everything

Click here for my previous book review: Dungeons and Dragons Player's Handbook for 5th Edition (D&D book review)

Brian Wilkerson is a independent novelist, freelance book reviewer, and writing advice blogger. He studied at the University of Minnesota and came away with bachelor degrees in English Literature and History (Classical Mediterranean Period concentration). His fantasy series, Journey to Chaos, is currently available on Amazon as an ebook or paperback.