Random Quotes

After much debating (okay, about three minutes), I decided to post some of my favorite quotes from the book thus far, including a few that popped up in the last few days. In no particular order:

“How did you not notice that the train was in fact a ‘death train’?”

“How didn’t you?”

“Are you actually trying to blame me for this folly? Georg, you are over a century older than me. I have youthful ignorance, what’s your excuse?”

-William and Georg

“I will make this painless for you, Laura. You are right; I have no doubt that you are going to Heaven, and that I am going to Hell.”

-Thomas

“That one man was not innocent. He tried to kill that girl.”

“Yes, and then we did the job for him, remember?”

-William and Thomas

“Dark Ones seem pretty content to live in the shadows, as if them and the other Immortals should hide from humans. I have never understood that. Immortals were created first, then humans. There was a reason for that; we are the top of the ladder. Humans are nothing more than ignorant beasts of burden and a food supply.”

-Elizabeth

"She is probably at least a century.”

“And? I like my women older.”

-William and Thomas

“We work for him [Claudis]. We’re kind of like his…attack dogs, I guess.”

“Gus, that’s a horrible way to put it."

“We are, though, aren’t we? Or maybe we are just the ones that clean up messes.”

-Georg and Gustav

Take It Away, Boys...

(William and Thomas spend about 15 minutes using the computer to research old German photographs and play the 'do we know them' game.)

William: So, um, I guess we can start now?

Thomas: Now's as good a time as any.

William: Very well. Well, hello to all of you in...the real world, I suppose.

Thomas: The Internet is not the real world.

William: What about all of those people who keep talking about Second Life, and The Sims, and all of those other online communities?

Thomas: Trust me, it is not the real world.

William: Oh, well, anyway...let us introduce ourselves. My name is William, I look 20, but I am 417 years old.

Thomas: I am called Thomas, I also look 20, and I am also 417 years old. We're twins, you see.

William: I think they can see that, Thomas.

Thomas: No, they can't. Angel doesn't have that web camera contraption.

William: Ugh. That ruined my entire entry.

Thomas: In any case, we are here to answer questions, give a few first hand accounts, and if William has his way, completely ruin this blog.

William: I will not ruin the blog. I barely know how to use it.

Thomas: I rest my case. So William, do you think this author covered our story nicely?

William: She left out that time we crashed that party while we were at Georgetown University.

Thomas: Well, um, I think that was for the best.

William: Are you kidding me? It was amazing! You drunk that one kid under the table...

Thomas: Okay, that's enough of that.

William: ...you do not remember that? I remember it quite well...

Thomas: Let's end this, now.

William: Why? We just got started. Vladimir is not going to get mad because you beat a 19 year old at drinking.

Thomas: You forgot that we are supposed to abstain from alcohol because it lowers our inhibitions.

William: ...

Thomas: So we are going to sign off now.

William: Yes, we are going to go now. We've said too much. Can we delete this?

Thomas: If you have questions for us...

William: ...something that doesn't involve any form of alcohol...

Thomas: ...then comment below or contact our scribe, Angel.

William: I'm serious, can we delete this?

Age Old Battle: Good Versus Evil

 Good versus evil is the most basic but most powerful battle in the real and imaginary world. Sometimes it is an obvious battle, like in the Harry Potter series or in Brian Jacques' Redwall series. In this novel, it is much more blurry.

 The biggest dilemma I faced with this story was creating the climax, the high point. It was actually the last piece of the plot puzzle written. I had the beginning, the rising action, the point of no return, the ending, and no climax. There was no climax because I had no obvious battle. It took quite some time to identify the one thing that could defeat William and Thomas. I knew that Elizabeth was not a direct threat (yet), and no one was trying to kill them (yet). So what could make up this epic climatic battle?

 The twins themselves.

 Anyone who knows a set of twins knows that they seem to either really love or really hate each other, often doing both at the same time. They are not living examples of good and evil as much as they are living examples of the human condition itself; a constant tug and pull of wills, desires, hopes, and wishes. That is what the main battle of this story is: the battle of the human condition. It is one of the most complex battles to write about because there is no clear winner or loser, only achievement of a certain level of existence and acceptance. 

 The series will eventually lean more toward the traditional good versus evil fight, but even that is compromised and open to debate. No one side is completely right or wrong, just as the twins' two sides (humanistic and animal) are not right or wrong. 

 I say all of that to say this: there aren't any true villains, in my opinion, to boo in this series. There are only different viewpoints that can easily be regarded as good or evil, depending on who is looking at them. Be mindful of every character in this series outside of the viewpoint characters, William and Thomas. 

Religion and "Forbidden Children"

 About four people on the planet have seen the prologue to this novel. The Prologue is the story of how the Immortal Clans came into existence, and it runs parallel and with the Christian story of Creation, Adam and Eve, and Noah. 

 Most Immortals (and all of the ones featured in the novel) believe in a Higher Power. Most refer to that Higher Power as God, but the Immortals accept any name given to that being (God, Allah, the Creator, etc). To them, all of those names refer to the same being. Immortals are not as stringent as humans when it comes to religious beliefs; they feel that every culture is entitled to their set of beliefs and celebrate the similarities between major religions rather than the differences. 

 The Higher Power belief is very strong in the Immortal world, but I chose not to go too much deeper into their spirituality with the fear that it would take away from the Forbidden Children plot (and later the Tylea's Blood plot, which is the working title for book two). And yes, the vampires and werewolves believe in a Higher Power as well. 

 This, of course, brings up the ever touchy subject of religion in fictional works. Heads of different religions appear to be wary of the questioning or altering of their beliefs, even in a work of fiction. Look no further than some of Dan Brown's novels and the reaction of the Catholic Church to see an example. I believe that many writers don't go in trying to attack a particular religion (although some do); we go in to write a compelling story, and religion is one way to make a story compelling. 

 Rest assured that even though religion does pop up often in Forbidden Children, I am not trying to attack or dismiss a religion. I am introducing you to a world different from your own, beliefs different from your own, and a general world view that is different from your own.

The Art of Friendship

I once heard that we tend to change friends (leave some, get new ones) every seven years or so.  I don't think this is a hard and fast rule, but it highlights how fleeting friendship can be, especially if you have very little in common. By that rule, the friendship between the twins and the two NightWolves should end in 1613.

 Immortals have a different concept of relationships; friendship is highly valued, and once one is deemed a friend, it takes extreme betrayal to destroy it. This is one of my favorite things about these four. They meet under distressing circumstances, and yet a supportive bond is formed when Georg and Gustav realize that the twins are not the monsters everyone thought they were. They take a chance on William and Thomas, and as a result, a centuries-long friendship is started. 

 So what does their friendship look like? It involves a bond between families, comical banter, wise words, and saving lives. It also looks like a bunch of guys hanging out with some high quality ale or beer, snapping good-natured insults at each other. It includes godparents, project buddies, and guard relief. They are sparring partners, babysitters, advisers, and coaches to each other. Out of all of these titles, though, one overpowers them all: Friends.

"Are you looking for the Holy One? I am in the next seat. My shoulder against yours." ~Kabir

Brother versus Brother

This is the first time ANY part of my novel has been put on display. This happens while the twins are confined to the Immortal HQ in Ireland for 75 years. Someone needs anger management classes...

    The argument started out stupid enough.

            Thomas and William were discussing their plans for the free day; William wanted to stay inside, while Thomas wanted to venture to Dublin. The heated debate continued as they walked to the weapon room to do some training on their 

    “Why in the world do you want to go to Dublin?”

            Thomas shrugged. “I just want to get out of here.”

            William frowned. “Why? We’re safe in here, there are no humans to attack.”

            “God, it is the same argument every time!” Thomas groaned. “I want to test our progress, and you want to stay locked away from the world.”

            “It is safer.”

            “Will, forget safe, okay? I want to live.”

            William glanced up, his eyes narrowed. “I am living.”

            “No, you are sitting around here staring at the walls.” Thomas started heading toward the door. “I’m out of here.”

            “You cannot just leave.”

            Thomas laughed. “Of course I can, just watch; I will go to Dublin with Georg or Gustav.”

            “No.”

            “And just what are you going to do, stop me? Are you coming along?”

            William started flexing his fingers. “No.”

            “Fine, then I am leaving.”

            William growled, and Thomas glanced back. William’s eyes were very light brown. “You are not leaving me here by myself,” William said in a low voice.

            “Watch me.”

            William hissed, causing Thomas to turn completely around. William’s eyes had turned yellow, and he hissed fiercely at Thomas.

            “Wonderful,” Thomas muttered. Aloud, he said, “Will, snap out it.”

            William’s growl grew louder and claws appeared in the place of his fingers.

            “William!”

            William roared once, staring at Thomas but not seeing him. Thomas gave a deep sigh, and then pulled a lance from the wall. “If you won’t snap yourself out of it, then I will have to do it, brother.”

            William, sensing an attack coming, dropped to all fours and hissed loudly at his twin. Thomas closed his eyes briefly, fighting back a threatening tear. He never thought that their lack of self-control would lead to this, to brothers fighting each other.

            Thomas’s eyes snapped back open and William launched himself at him. Thomas held up the lance, blocking William. William grabbed the lance, trying to pull it from Thomas’s hands.

            Thomas focused on staying in his calm mode; going crazy at the same time as his brother would only lead to both of them getting seriously hurt or killed. Thomas jumped back, and William lunged at him again. Thomas dodged this attack, leaping over William and smacking him across the back with the lance. As William hit the ground, Thomas felt the searing pain of the blow swim across his own back as well. He frowned; it would be hard to subdue William if he himself was affected by every blow he dealt.

            William climbed back to his feet, his hair flaring around him. Thomas grimaced; his twin was pissed. William jumped at him again, this time catching Thomas off guard when he went around him and hit Thomas across his face. Thomas hit the ground about 15 feet away. He felt something warm ooze across his face; he was bleeding. Thomas raised his head enough to see William, who was furious that a similar gash had appeared on the side of his face as well.

            Thomas seized the moment. He jumped up and attacked, pinning his brother to the opposite wall, the lance held against William’s neck.

            “Stop this, Will!” Thomas cried. “Come out of it!”

            William gave a loud hiss, struggling against Thomas.

            Thomas gave another sigh; he knew what would take William out of the rage, but he hesitated to do it. It had worked on the two of them before; a sudden stab of pain from a serious injury. Of course, if he did this, he would suffer the exact same injury. Thomas narrowed his eyes. He had to, for sake of his twin brother.

            “Forgive me for this, Will,” Thomas said in a whisper. In one quick, fluid motion, Thomas dropped the lance, pulled out his dagger from his belt, and stabbed it into William’s arm. The dagger cut straight through, digging into the stone on the other side.

Yeah, I stopped there because I'm mean, lol. Let me know what you thought of it, and I'll finish the scene in the next blog (there's not much left).

The Search for the Twins: Character Building

I started thinking about a debate I have seen between writers: Should the characters or the plot be developed first?

My opinion: Characters make your plot, so they should come first. I'll admit, though, that for Forbidden Children, neither came first. The Immortal society itself was created first, back when I was about 15. I then started a 12 year hunt to find my characters. 

I went through at least 20 potential main characters, but encountered the same problem. Back then, I didn't know exactly what the problem was. Now I know that I was dropping cardboard cutouts into a plot and hoping for the best; the story wasn't their story, it was anybody's story. I eventually scrapped the whole original plot (which was much more predictable as far as horror novels go) and sat the story on the back burner. 

I knew I had found my main characters in 2008 when I could not picture them in any other story except this one. They gave me my plot. They did not neatly slide into a peg hole like my previous attempts did, but they clawed out their own. This is why William and Thomas are my favorite characters, and this is why their story needs to be told. 

I have also seen how crucial it is to know your characters inside out. You have to be able to answer any question about them. You have to get to the point where people think you're talking about someone real. For example:

What would William think about a typewriter? Answer: He'd laugh at it and go back to writing longhand. He thinks that typewriters and computers degrade his profession; he is a scribe.

What does Thomas think about love? Answer: It's a nice idea but ultimately a pipe dream.

This is a nice exercise for writers: can you answer nearly any question asked about your main characters? Do they have a favorite food, piece of clothing, childhood memory? The trivial facts have led me to some great plot points.

Next post: I am actually going to post a scene from the novel, and I am both excited and terrified.