How far would you go...

One of the trickiest aspects of writing a good story is finding ways for it to be relate-able to the people reading it. This is especially true when writing about things that don't exist in the real world, as is the case in most aspects of fantasy and science fiction. Obviously, in my case, it's not realistic for me to expect readers to be able to relate with a genetically-evolved superhuman (unless, of course, they're one of them....out there...watching us... O.O), so the onus falls on the more human, real world elements of the story to provide depth and provoke empathy. This means conveying real pain, real conflict, real emotion. This means getting into the minds of the characters and learning what makes them the way they are. In the case of this particular story, that meant trying to imagine what would drive a man with limitless power to his breaking point. What better catalyst than love?

How far would you go for someone you loved? Ask yourself that honestly. Now imagine if you had the power to keep them forever, to protect them, to heal their every wound. Wouldn't that change things a little bit? We as humans are infinitely in tune with our limitations. When we lose people we love, we find comfort in knowing there was nothing we could do. Even in cases where we are partially responsible, we eventually come to grips with the fact that we can't take it back, no matter how much we wish we could. Now imagine if there was something you could do. Imagine you could take it back. And imagine you still lost them. I'd think that'd be enough to break any man.

Trying to convey what this would be like wasn't easy, and I hope I was able to get it across in some form or another. Growing up the way I did didn't exactly lend itself to a whole lot of real loss. I mean, I had a guinea pig that died, and my dog killed a couple turtles I had brought home from a lake once (accidentally though, she was just trying to play with them!), but nothing that would ever make me understand what it was like to lose someone I loved more than life itself. I had to find my inspiration elsewhere, to really try and put myself in the mindset of someone who'd lost it all. Music helped in a lot of cases (more on that later), and reading was useful as well. But I think more than anything it was using my imagination to conjure up the worst possible thing that could ever happen to me: losing my friends and family. A blow to my psyche, I'm sure, and not the most healthy practice, but necessary to try and make this story as human and empathetic as possible. I honestly hope you're all able to enjoy it.

Journey of THE DARKENER: Post-Announcement Week 1

It has been almost a week now since I announced a November 2014 release for my novel THE DARKENER and I'm very pleased with how things have progressed so far. Obviously, I can't say enough about how important all your support and outreach has been. I'm only as good as the people around me, and my book will only be as successful as you all help it to become. So once again, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for every single Like, Comment, Share, Follow, or whatever other ridiculous social media thing I've asked of you. We still have a long road ahead, and we're not nearly at a point where we can relax just yet, but I don't want you to think for a moment that I'm not eternally grateful for all you've already done.

The contest came about as a way to try and repay that good faith, as well as a way to maintain engagement going into the next few months. The idea is to have this snowball, to have a strong start by all of you grow into something larger week by week. And you, my loyal Army of Champions (points to those who understand The Office reference, lol) will remain a vital part of that. Even a single Like over the next 13 weeks will get you into the contest raffle, and even just remaining a fan or follower will get you into the weekly drawing. Any amount you are able/willing to do to spread the word over the next few months is greatly appreciate, and hopefully mutually beneficial. Let's keep this thing rolling to and through the November launch, and try to have some fun along the way!

As for my impressions of the first week? Besides, again, being blown away by all your support, my most sincere comment would probably be that this is definitely harder than I expected. By nature, I'm not much of a social media person, or maybe even really a social person, which is why I guess writers typically hire agents or third parties to handle this type of thing. At the same time there is something rewarding about doing the promotional stuff myself, about being in control of my own destiny so to speak. I have to work hard if I want to succeed, at something I'm not particularly good at, and I think things like that help to build character (or at least I hope they do!). At times, it may mean I need to push all of you a little harder, throw out content a little more frequently, or search out even more avenues of potential interest. But if together we can make this something that touches even a fraction of the lives it possibly could, it would be completely worth it to me.

So once again, thank you all, and let's keep up the good work! One more day and we're on to Week 2!

On Duality and Perception

I touched on the topics of duality and perception in my Humble Beginnings and Central Theme post when discussing the juxtaposition of darkness and light. Obviously the contrast between light and dark, life and death, and things of that nature plays a huge role in the book, but the idea of duality takes it a step further by examining the synergy between these seemingly conflicting ideas, I.E. cases where they're both attributed to the same person or situation. The example I used before was how fighting for what you believe in, from your point of view, can look a whole lot more like bringing chaos to the world from someone else's. One of these views is considered positive or "light" while the other is considered negative or "dark". So which is correct?

This comes down to perspective. Neither view can necessarily be considered the "true" view because both perceptions exist, and as individuals our perception is our reality. What's true for you may not be what's true for me, and vice-versa. Without getting too philosophical or confusing or whatever, I'll just get to the point: Sometimes things can be two things at once, and it comes down to our perspective to decide which we see and which we don't.

Take the picture above. This is a quote from one of my favorite scenes from the book. Within the context of the book, it's clear how it's intended to be perceived, but placing the quote by itself made me notice how it could be taken two different ways. Is the character trying to say that he is too mournful to have any hope? Or is he trying to say that he has too much hope to be mournful? I'm curious to hear what people's initial interpretation was. Which light did you cast it in, a mournful one or a hopeful one? Feel free to comment in the section below.

Description and Three Chapter Sample

Excited to officially share with you all the back cover description of THE DARKENER, as well as a three-chapter sample or "teaser" to give you a taste of the story. I hope you enjoy! And as always, share with your friends!

Description:
A man with a mysterious gift makes his presence known to the world through the destruction of a major American city, setting forth a twisting tale of romance, remembrance, and revenge.

As a member of a rare and powerful race of genetically-evolved humans known as variants, Cael has the unique ability to manipulate the very fabric of the world around him. Yet, outside of his beloved fiancée Summer Ayers, the only thing he has to show for all his strength is a lifetime’s worth of loss and letdown.

His parents and closest friends have all been dead for years, and the only people with whom he could ever hope to relate—his fellow variants—are nonexistent in his life. Only Summer has remained constant. So when an incident in New York City threatens to take her away as well, Cael finds he simply can’t let go, turning in desperation to the allure of his power if only to keep her a moment longer. He loses control, and in a single instant the very life of the city is snatched away forever.

Lost and broken, Cael is left to face the fallout of his actions. The world brands him a monster and rightfully so. The government seeks to have him destroyed. Even his own mind begins to turn against him, as a ghostly choir of the lives he’s stolen rises up to test his sanity. Still, through it all, the memory of Summer continues to burn in his heart, a memory he refuses to relinquish until the day he can finally set things right.  


Three-chapter sample included after the jump....

Journey of THE DARKENER: Humble Beginnings and Central Theme

THE DARKENER, as a project, began back in my sophomore year of college. At the time, it was more of an interesting concept than a planned novel, a curiosity for me to toy with while I went through my day-to-day life. I certainly never expected it to result in anything of value, let alone a hundred-thousand word book.

Back then, it was a simple idea: What if you took the most powerful being on the planet, the most physically imposing force there was, and broke him mentally and emotionally? What use would all his strength be if he couldn't even control his own mind? The concept was fascinating to me. It would give me a chance to explore what it would take to push such a being to that point, as well as how he would handle it once he got there. It would allow me to create a complex and interesting antihero, and in turn a complex and interesting story. My sincerest hope is that I succeeded in doing so.

The book, thematically, is very dark as a result of that original idea, and, at times, very in keeping with the "gritty and real" movement that seems to be sweeping through modern media. A lot of the time, the world isn't a particularly happy place. People lose loved ones. People hurt other people. People do whatever they have to to get ahead. These are the realities of the world we live in. Bringing them to light is nothing new. What's interesting, however, is examining how the darker side of the world can become intertwined with the lighter side at times, how the very thing that brings you hope and joy can be the thing that brings out the monster within you. It's fun to flip perspectives, to show how fighting for what you believe in, from your point of view, can look a whole lot more like bringing chaos to the world from someone else's. As it says in the book, oftentimes light and dark are simply two sides of the same coin.

This concept, this juxtaposition of darkness and light, sits at the very heart of the story. It's the fuel that drives the narrative, and undoubtedly it'll be the thing that leaves readers most torn. Which side do you take? Do you hate a man for his actions, or do you try to understand his intentions? Do you see things as black and white, or do you acknowledge that most of life exists somewhere in the gray? Is the hero a monster or is the monster a hero, or are they two sides of the same coin again?

These are the kinds of questions that drove me, that helped bring complexity to what I was trying to create. I hope that all of you are able to find them just as compelling as I was.

Thanks again for all the support!
-Nate

Welcome to THE DARKENER Blogspot!

Welcome all!

As you probably know by now (unless you've stumbled here mistakenly), my first novel THE DARKENER is scheduled to be released in November of this year. I've already promised all sorts of fun and interesting marketing materials in the time up to and through the release date, and to do that I needed a place I could post things a little longer than I can on Facebook/Twitter. Hence this blogspot. Anything I post here will be linked to both Facebook and Twitter, so don't feel pressured to be constantly checking for new posts here, but definitely come by every now and then to see if there was anything you missed.

Some topics I hope to touch on are:
-How this book came to be/the general writing process for me (I'll try to make it less boring than it sounds).
-Sample chapters and segments as we get closer to the release.
-Links to music, poems, media, and works of art that inspired me, and specifically how they influenced the story.
-Any other free flowing comments I'd like to make.

As always, please spread the word and share any posts you find particularly interesting with your friends. The more you guys support me the better chance I have of getting people to read my book, and that's really what matters to me. So thanks again for all your support!

I will leave you with a brief blurb from the very first post of my personal blog, where I touched on THE DARKENER and what it meant to me:

"The Darkener began as a sort of stress relief exercise for me, a way to basically express myself metaphorically since I’m not always able to do it literally, and in time it grew into a story that I felt needed to be shared with the world. What makes the book so special to me is the fact that it’s so personal, that it contains so much of my life, spun and exaggerated in different ways so that even the people closest to me wouldn’t catch on to it all. And that’s just the beauty of it: I get to share myself with others without them even realizing it. Literary espionage. Subliminal Nizz. No awkward introductions, no “so tell me about yourself” conversations, just me suddenly up inside of you (minds out of the gutter people…okay, you’re right, that was clearly intentional)."


Thanks again all!
-Nate