Thoughts of a Shaytonian

Podcast

2007-04-19T04:54:00.000-07:00

Hi all,

I am going to try a podcast.

That basically means reading the books over the internet, a section at a time.

See what you thinkhttp://shayton.podomatic.com/

Book 3 - The Children of Tamal

2007-02-25T05:59:00.000-08:00

Well campers, book 3 is finally done.

I decided to call it The Children of Tamal instead of Wolf and Man as it went in a whole different direction. But it answers a lot of the questions about Shaytonian history and I think you'll find it well worth the read.

It has just left for the editors, so it will not be available for a little while yet. But it is on its way.

Book 3

2007-02-10T17:23:00.000-08:00

Book 3 is still struggling through the birth canal, but it is coming.

I would like ot know though if anyone thinks it is time ot try hard copy for these books rather than just ebooks

Please let me know whixh you prefer.

Famous Last Words

2007-01-18T23:46:00.000-08:00

So much for 'almost finished'.

The ending for Book 3 is still eluding me, but after ignoring many of the more outrageous comments of my friends, I do have some ideas, so it should be out soon.

One weird thing - while reading Devil's Food, Kerry Greenwood's latest in the Corinna Chapman series (well worth the read) - I realised that the name for a place where gays could meet in an atmosphere of refined entertainment was called a Mollyhouse.

Now when I named Molly, there was no conscious awareness of that, but it is a delicious irony that Talkar of all people should help fund a meeting place that could have been called Molly's house :)

Book 3

2006-11-30T03:16:00.000-08:00

Well, it was nothing like I thought it would be, but Book 3 is almost here.

Each year I do the nanowrimo challenge of 50,000 words. And I just finished the 50,000. Together with the writing I have been doing throughout the year, book 3 is almost complete. Except for the editing and proofing and more editing.

But still, it's on the page.

Look for it soon.

Book 3 - 18,000 words

2006-11-18T01:56:00.000-08:00

Well 18,000 words in and I haven't even started on anything that I was going to do for this book. it has completely run away on me, but for those Lisa fans out there, she is actually going to be getting some decent air time in this one.

At least so far she is. Kalib is butting in a lot :)

Wolf and Man???

2006-11-03T16:11:00.000-08:00

Well, as it gets written, Wolf and Man is changing quite a bit. Parts of Man is a monster are making and appearance and more, so we shall see what happens.

Remember, if you would like to see an idea, character or anything else in the Chronicles, send in your ideas. i make no promises except to read them.

Other Web Stuff

2006-10-28T17:34:00.000-07:00

I relaised last night (or early this morning) that I had linked the website to this blog and to the mail list, but not back the other way.

So here it is http://au.groups.yahoo.com/group/shayton/ is the mail list.

The website is http://shayton.net

And both are there for viewing and comments at anytime. Drop on by.

November Approaching Fast

2006-10-06T16:15:00.000-07:00

Well, the Writing Month is almost upon us. I will be trying to get Wolf and Man out on to the shelves. Any ideas for what you would love to see would be a godsend.

This one is really fighting me, though they always seem to until I get down to the nitty gritty of pen to paper.

As always, comments, ideas, ctriques, feel free to drop me a line.

Tamal's Journeys

2006-09-28T16:07:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone,

Tamal's Journeys is now... finally ... available through the Writer's Exchange http://www.writers-exchange.com

Buy six copies for all your friends :)

Fan fic

2006-08-24T03:56:00.000-07:00

After reading the first chapter of Destiny Sets, a friend wrote

wow - let me guess - Lisa rips the throat out of an unsuspecting nerd? and then
finds she is far more accessible because she now has an external style
sheet, this in turn means that the nerd race can effect gloabal changes and
the shaytonin have to use a WYSIWYG ship to escape?

Can you guess we have a website based assignment due?

Q14 Why don't you have more Lisa in Destiny Sets?

2006-08-18T17:15:00.000-07:00

Q14 Why don't you have more Lisa in Destiny Sets?
To be honest, I don't know. Although I have written Lisa stories since I was 12, these books always vere off when I try to make them about her.

I strongly suspect that when I force myself to finish Wolf and Man, we will soon see why. I have the feeling there is something about her she doesn't want me to know.

Sell Destiny Sets Yourself

2006-07-08T17:37:00.000-07:00

So, you've bought the book, read it, raved about it to all your friends, but you want to do more.

Now you can sell it on your own website and pick up a little cash besides.

Visit
http://store.payloadz.com/detail.asp?c=13&s=27&i=21285&m=35507

and click on the link to

Sell this product on your site:
You can earn affilaite fees by referring sales for this product. It is simple to do, anyone with a web site can begin selling this item instantly. Click here to begin. Affiliate Fee: $1.00

How Do You Get the Ideas Down onto Paper

2006-06-23T17:15:00.000-07:00

Getting the ideas out of your head and onto the page is one of the hardest things in writing. There is so much to get down, and so much blank space.

Then you start writing and you hit the wall and there is nothing but blanks space in your head as well as on the page.

So how do you get a novel written? There are a dozen ways, so I would try everything until you find the one that works for you, or even the one that works for you that day.

For me, it is deadlines. I take part in the http://www.nanowrimo.org/ challenge and that gets it done for me.

Tamal's Journeys

2006-06-17T18:10:00.000-07:00

Tamal's Journey has just been sent back for the third edit, so keep watching this space, it should be out there soon.

RELEASE DATE - DESTINY SETS

2006-06-08T06:24:00.000-07:00

Yes, Destiny Sets is finally out there.

Visit http://http://www.writers-exchange.com/ and check out Fainges in the Authors :)

Why are the previews no longer on your site?

2006-06-05T02:38:00.000-07:00

The previews have been removed from the site until my editor has approved the changes.

Then they will be right back up there.

Question 13: Where from here?

2006-05-18T01:54:00.000-07:00

Question 13: So where does the story go from here?

Wolf and Man is set well in the future. Imagine the world of Mad Max or Dark Angel. The need of the Shaytonians to hide from humans is greater than ever.

So now they must find out who has been hiding from them.

Question 12: Why the history lesson?

2006-05-13T17:48:00.000-07:00

Question 12: Why the history lesson?

There is a long lesson in the middle of Talkar growing up. Why put all that lot in, I mean you cover it other places, we don't need to go to school."

The reason I left that in is because it is important for the reader to realise some things about both the shaytonian people and how they think, and especially, how Talkar feels about it all.

I have taken it out, but whenever I do, then people miss a lot of things and frankly get confused. It's sort of like pre-reading a text book. you don't have to, but lordie, it makes life easier.

Question 11: Why change Talkar's name to Tamal?

2006-05-06T16:39:00.000-07:00

Why Change Talkar's Name?

Tamal's Jouneys, the second book of the Shaytonian chronicles, was pretty much all Talkar so why bother to change his name? If it is just for the mystery, it's too confusing.

Tamal is not just Talkar. Tamal has been a body that has housed the souls of shaytonian royalty since the beginning of the shard's history.

Bodies destroyed just as they were entering a portal could be transported into Tamal as a sort of holding area until they recovered.

The link between Tamal's world and the Shard has been hinted at, but the full story not yet explained.

Maybe in the next book. :)

Question 10 - Why so much stuff in the front?

2006-04-29T16:56:00.000-07:00

Question 10 - Why so much stuff in the front?

A few readers have suggested starting the novel after they get to shayton, one even a far in as Talkar almost drowning in the fountain. So why keep the front?

The first section dealing with Lisa and Tony shows how the Council and the shaytonian mind works. Although a lot of the facts are repeated elsewhere in the book, nowhere else does it show the cold-minded practicality. The closest is Talkar's own experiences with his son are close, but the effect of having the control over each generation is too powerful to lose.

It is hinted that the King's children were created through a similar set of controls and if so, how far back does it go?

Tamal's Journey hints it might be quite a ways.

Question 9 - Why Did Rex Visit?

2006-04-21T16:22:00.000-07:00

Question 9 - Why Did Rex Visit?
Talkar needed a lot of things to happen in his life for him to be able to accept the rest of it.

One of the things he needed to have happen was accept that others were also different, that he was not alone.

When he was nearly drowned by the other children in the fountain, at that moment, he was being forced out. Then he met three people.

Marcus saved him and punished the Carer, but formed no real bond, gave no expectation of any future connection. Marcus saved Talkar because he was a child, because it was the right thing to do by Shaytonian law, and perhaps because Melinski had cared for them both. He was not unkind, but he wasn't overly caring either. He was just there. Marcus Survived in Shaytonian society by being strong, protecting the important things (children) and then keeping himself to himself. Shaytonian society had no place for Marcus as he wished to be, so he made his own place - living in the Wilderness and creating his own family there.

Next came Leila. she was also alone and lonely. She felt the great weight of her responsibility, and went she tried to lift that wieght, to play like a 'normal' child, someone got hurt. The fact that it was Talkar that was hurt, drove the point home that he would need to be careful to shoulder his burdens, or people he cared about might be hurt too.

Finally Rex. Rex came out of nowhere, a little terrifying, and a lot different, but able to show him new things, take him places he had never been, see things he had never seen. Rex stood for the wild, free, magic side of Talkar - his connection to the old powers.

Rex embodied three main lessons:

that Talkar was strong enough to Survive
that he should never forget where he came from, who he was
that he should never forget what the others felt like.

It is a strange thing, but by definition, if you are different, so are they. it takes an effort to understand the differences.

Question 8 - Lisa?

2006-04-16T17:34:00.000-07:00

So why is the first scene with Lisa and Tony so
short?
Shouldn't they get to date before they feel that
close?

Although no shaytonian does not do 'love at first sight', they do bond very quickly. Life is a constant fight for survival, so anything good is accepted and held tight and fast. You never know when it will be gone again.

They are used to adapting quickly. And they demand it of those dragged into their world. The speed of it all accentuates the lack of control that either party had in the whole proceedings. "It just happened all so fast" is exactly right.

Question 7 So why two books?

2006-04-07T15:57:00.000-07:00

Why was the story seperated out into two books?

Well there was the practical reason of getting one out there to create interest while I wrote the other one, but the real reason was I am trying to have one book per character.

Destiny Sets is Talkar.

Tamal's Journeys is Tamal obviously.

Wolf and Man will be Lisa

Then next - Kalib.

Question 6 So who have influenced you?

2006-04-03T02:48:00.000-07:00

I read a lot, so it is hard to pinpoint Authors that have influenced me the most.

The top contenders though would be:

Terry Pratchett
Harry Harrison (Esp. the Stainless Steel Rat series)
Lois McMaster Bujold
Laurell K. Hamilton's world. of Anita Blake

and many more.

Question 5: So what are these books like?

2006-04-01T14:46:00.000-08:00

The Shaytonian chronicles are whatever you wish to take from them really.

They are light humour, with lots of sex and violence, for those that want a quick romp through a book.

They are a commentry on the ways of man, for those that wish to read more.

I am sure they are a lot of things really, sort of like a picture, you take what you want from it.

Which reminds me, there is a very talented artist doing up scenes from the book to be released in an illustrated novel soon. Or perhaps even a graphic novel down the track. Keep your eyes peeled.

Question 4 Aren't you getting a bit religious, all these demons and gods?

2006-03-28T03:40:00.000-08:00

Aren't you getting a bit religious, all these demons and gods?

It has very little to do with religion, in fact, a lot of the humour is a tongue in cheek dig at those that take it all too seriously.

Talkar is a demon from the old meaning of the word, someone different from those around him.

Q3 Why Put Molly in a wheelchair?

2006-03-26T02:13:00.000-08:00

Q3 Why Put Molly in a wheelchair?
Many of our reactions to people are learnt. Talkar would never think of discriminating against someone because of the colour of their skin because there are just too many choices on Shayton. Never mind white and black, they have fur or fin.

His own life shows how baseless discrimination is. A child living in fear of his life every moment because he is different.

Hopefully, his triumph against imposed limitations, will prompt others to shatter theirs just as much.

Question 2 Why so much sex?

2006-03-24T16:34:00.000-08:00

So why is there so much sex in your books? Especially the incest? Is it really necessary?

The shaytonians are a very sexual people, but yes it is necessary. By contrasting them with the real world, I hope to show what these things are really like and more importantly, what they are not.

For example, Molly. The only time she ever comes across as a cripple to me, is not because she is in a wheelchair, but because of the bruises on her soul that her father has left.

It is not the beatings that really wreck someone, but the feeling that they are worthless. To quote Pratchett's Granny Weatherwax "It starts with people as things."

Talkar's relationship with his mothers, is very different from Molly's relationship with her father. All were incestuous, but Talkar was not made to feel less. At no time was he forced to equate the physical act with "love" or made to feel like he was the only thing handy. His ability to be worthwhile was never, what can you do for me?

Contrasting the whys is more important than oh, she has sex in the book.

Getting Serious

2006-03-23T18:51:00.000-08:00

Well, a pulisher has taken up both books, so I suppose it is time i got serious about this blog.

I thought a Q&A might be in order.

So here goes, question 1

Why vampires?

Well to be honest, I'm not sure, it was just always like that. I first had the idea for Shaytonians back when I was playing as a kid and trying to think up reasons why I didn't want to play with my cousin and much younger sister.

I created a shapechanging race that could transform into dogs (giving me the excuse to stay palying with the dog which is what I really wanted to do.)

Once they were dog/people, it was a pretty small step to werewolves and there to vampires.

Lit Format

2006-02-11T03:17:00.000-08:00

I love reading ebooks on my PDA, they are lighter, you can't lose your page and they are easier to take with you everywhere you go.

So it was time Destiny Sets and Tamal's Journeys were released in .lit Microsoft reader format.

Tamal's Journeys

2005-12-01T17:43:00.000-08:00

The second half of the Chronicles is now available for beta reading.

The two books will soon be released as a complete novel.

Website

2005-07-10T21:19:00.000-07:00

The website covering the books and offering a free read of the first chapter is http://shayton.net

Sharing the cover

2005-07-10T21:16:00.000-07:00

Here is the author of the Shayton Series - Destiny Sets

The World of the Shaytonian

2004-10-31T18:11:00.000-08:00

Want a sample from the Shaytonian chronicles?

Vampire fiction set in another dimension in space

Cliche yes, funny, sometimes, maybe a little too much sex and violence? You can never have too much sex and violence. Full of werewolves, mermaids and togas.

An insightful glance into the human condition with subtle commentry on issues as diverse as incest, rascism and what to do on Saturday night? Sort of. Take from it what you will.

The flaring lights of sky highlight the constant struggle beneath. Trapped between reality and death, every scrap of life fights for each moment of existence. To stop fighting is to die.

In death, you return to the soil, to be reborn as new life, that starts the fight again.

There is no stopping, but there is respite, small pockets of calm can exist for precious moments, and in those moments, life can take a breath and wonder at all the harsh beauty.

But it is only a moment. Then the struggle resumes.

www.shayton.net