Insecure Writer's Support Group Day!

Today is the first Wednesday of the month, meaning that it's time for Alex Cavanaugh's Insecure Writer's Support Group. The purpose is to share insecurities, and encourage other writers who are insecure. Writers can express doubts and concerns without fear of appearing foolish or weak. Those who have been through the fire can offer assistance and guidance. This is a safe haven for insecure writers of all kinds!

So what am I insecure about this month?

Well, I'm really close to finishing my second novel. It's almost completely edited, I have about 70 pages to go before I'm ready to send it off to my editor.

This novel is the sequel to From the Ashes. It's called The Inferiors. What I'm most worried about is the fact that my writing has changed so much since I published From the Ashes. It's like I'm a completely different writer now, and I don't want to disappoint my readers. What if they don't like the new twists my story takes?

It's changed a lot from the first draft, and of course, I want it to be perfect.

Of course, I'm a realist so I know The Inferiors can't ever be perfect, because there is no such thing! (Unless you're talking about someone you love.)

In the end, the thing I'm really insecure about this month is: how will people react to The Inferiors when it's published?

What are you insecure about this month?

Thanks for visiting today!

MAY THE FOURTH BE WITH YOU!

–Jess

Y & Z…END OF THE A TO Z CHALLENGE

My A to Z Challenge theme is (was): characters from my trilogy, From the Ashes.

Y is for…

Years

So many years have passed since the rise of computers in human society that it is sometimes referred to as The End of Ancient History. The story of how the Imperial Alliance rose to power goes something like this.

Ancient History – The beginning of civilization, lasting to the dawn of the age of technology

The End of Ancient History – Humans build a space station on the moon, which marks the end of ancient history.

World War III – The Earth and humanity plunge into the Third World War. This creates chaos. Nuclear weapons are used once again, and many people die, creating many areas that are inhospitable. The war is short.

Formation of The Global Alliance – Every independent nation on Earth decides to join a global senate. The nations become like individual states.

The Age of Terraform – Humans begin to colonize Mars, then venture out to moons of the gas giants. They learn to terraform. They also discover faster means of communication between planets and moons, and faster ways of traveling by experimenting with different sources of power.

The Second Age of Exploration – Humans discover the first signs of life on other worlds. The hyperfield is discovered, which is a faster means of transportation, similar to the idea of using a wormhole to travel.

The Great Flood – Back on Earth, the ice caps have been melting for centuries. Because of widespread ignorance, the people of Earth don't try to preserve the environment, which results in the ice caps melting completely down the permafrost. This creates a mass panic on Earth.

The Second Age of Enlightenment – Humans discover another race of intelligent life on another world. These intelligent "aliens" point humans in the direction of other intelligent or semi-intelligent races, spread here and there around other star systems.

The Treaty of Planets – Each planet with intelligent life on it signs a treaty with humans so that they do not declare war on each other. They all learn from each other and technology progresses quickly for everyone.

The Galactic Alliance is born – People (which is the term now used for all intelligent life) decide on creating a form of government for all of them to participate in. Yet after 400 years, the Galactic Alliance grows corrupt.

The Century of Darkness – Without a government, there is widespread panic and fear of war breaking out anywhere or everywhere.

The Great Stellar Wars – Groups of terrorism fight for power among cities, continents and even star systems. The group that won replaced the Galactic Alliance with the Imperial Alliance.

Every year in the Imperial Alliance is based off of a full 365 day Earth year. The years are measured in ASW (After the Stellar Wars).

***

Z is for…

Zorin Viraak

I am a lost soul. I died before I knew my son, Dezar too well. I was killed in a street fight. I had my own business, I ran from poverty and from the life my parents had. I wanted to do better. So I did my best.

I met Anya in a crash. Her transport had smashed into mine and injured me badly. She and her mother lived alone together, and over the few weeks, they took care of me. I fell in love with Anya very quickly. I married her, and we were so happy together. There is a lot I could tell you about, about how difficult my life was, but it was beautiful. Every moment was worth it because of Anya.

She made every day worthwhile.

My life was short, but complete.

***

I know I'm a day late, but HAPPY END OF THE A TO Z CHALLENGE!!!

CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYONE WHO MADE IT OR EVEN PARTICIPATED!!

Have a lovely day :)

–Jess

X is for…

My A to Z Challenge theme is: characters from my trilogy, From the Ashes.

X is for…

Xana Devyn

I struggle to breathe, but no air reaches my lungs. Warmth fills my chest, and I choke on the blood. Yes, it's blood, I am drowning in my own blood. My lungs convulse, I know I'm in pain, but I don't feel it. It's like I'm watching it happen to someone else.

I know my eyes are open, but I can't see.

I feel like I'm being torn in into a million pieces, but it is beautiful in the strangest of ways. Warm light flickers onto my eyelids, and I wake in my bed on Virana. Everything is glowing a little bit, like it isn't quite real.

I see Liam for the first time. He annoys the shaav out of me, but I smile at the sight of him.

Something happens, and that fades away to meeting Jaina. Then it switches again. I'm in the kitchen making cookies with my friend. The smells, the feel, everything is so real and beautiful.

By the stars, my life is beautiful.

***

I hope you liked this little except today, couldn't write too much about her. Spoilers.

Have a lovely rest of the day!

More A to Z Participants HERE.

Don't forget to check out my other blog, My Unofficial Guide To Everything. Also, From the Ashes is on sale for 99¢ in the Kindle Store, so make sure to check it out!

–Jess

V & W are for…

My A to Z Challenge theme is: characters from my trilogy, From the Ashes.

V is for…

Dezar Viraak

I used to feel guilty about murder. I was 14 when I first killed a man. He was a general with a weakness for alcohol. I didn't do it for money, I did it for revenge. He killed my mother.

I never intended to make murder my career. I was on the run from the law, working at a bar. I was 15, but I looked 18 and had a fake ID, and the owner of the bar liked that I worked hard. That's when Jamal Tel found me, and threatened to expose my true identity. We came to an agreement, if I could assassinate his political nemesis within a month, he'd pay me 10,000 Imperial Ariks. Seemed worth it.

These days I don't take a job that pays less than a million.

I completed the job in less than a week.

I had a steady job of assassination after that from many different customers. Don't know how they found me, I never asked.

If you had known me back then, you would have seen that I wasn't the killer type. Then again, no one in their right mind is. Now I do it for the money. It pays well, keeps food on the table, and helps me support my two children and the woman I love.

I don't feel guilty about it anymore. Not at all. Maybe it's a coping mechanism, but through all the madness, and all the blood, I found someone I love. Her name is Ana. Can't imagine why she loves me, she knows what I do.

Now I have a daughter and a son. My children and Ana are everything to me.

***

W is for…

(Since nothing starts with W, I'm just doing a little excerpt from Book 2, The Inferiors.)

We take the lift downstairs in silence. When we reach the bottom, I walk through the lobby and out of my apartment complex. He follows close behind me as I lead us into the pale light of the late morning.

My apartment is built on the outskirts of the Crystal City Plaza. It's a large expanse of area paved with white Tarnoshian marble. Ever few meters or so, there are gardens that line the fountains where strange, unfamiliar birds hop around and bathe in sunlight. They're smaller and more colorful than any of the birds I had known on Virana. Their songs are more intricate, and they sound more like wind chimes than birds.

Things were so different back home.

The air is more stale, the gentle breeze less…real. There is not a breath of disorder, and it makes everything feel so wrong.  

***

I hope you enjoyed my post for today!

Don't forget to visit other A to Z Challenge Participants, and my other blog, My Unofficial Guide To Everything, where I wrote a "breakup letter".

Also, From the Ashes is on sale for 99¢ this week, so make sure to check that out too!

Have a lovely day :)

–Jess

U is for…

My A to Z Challenge theme is: characters from my trilogy, From the Ashes.

U is for…

The Uncharted Lands (and the rest of the world)

This is the Earth as we know it.

This is the Earth after The Great Flood, after the plague. After World War III, IV, and V. This is the Earth, our home, after the Century of Darkness, after the Great Stellar Wars. This is the Earth in the year 426 After the Stellar Wars.

***

This is my map of what the world would look like in From the Ashes. (I know it's not super realistic, just bear with me!) Thank you for visiting today everyone!

Don't forget to check out other A to Z Participants here, and make sure to look at my other blog My Unofficial Guide To Everything.

Also, the Kindle edition of From the Ashes is on sale for 99¢ this week, so make sure to get a copy!

Have a lovely day :)

–Jess

T is for…

My A to Z Challenge theme is: characters from my trilogy, From the Ashes.

T is for…

The Shadow Hunter

The existence of The Shadow Hunter has long been debated throughout the history of the Imperial Alliance. The myths and legends that surround the the name are extensive and some are beyond belief, yet the general story goes like this.

The One True Emperor had risen above humanity. His eyes had been opened by the power of Darkness and Light, and in that moment he saw all that ever was, and all hat could be. In the moment of Darkness, he saw the jealousy of his half-brother. Upon seeing this, The One True Emperor saw that Varyn must die. And so it was done. Yet in the moment of Light, The One True Emperor saw all Varyn's life before him, he saw that he should pity him, he saw that Varyn needed love. The One True Emperor's power transcended the physical world, and he brought Varyn's soul back from what lies beyond.

The Rule of Life and Death was broken, the soul of Varyn was not meant to return. It happened that only those who looked for Varyn could see him. He was the shadow of a cheated life, and he became the symbol of Death. His life was owed to The One True Emperor, and so he took the lives of those that opposed His Holiness. Henceforth, he would be known as The Shadow Hunter.

The truth about The Shadow Hunter remains a mystery. Some say that after the passing of The One True Emperor, The Shadow Hunter lost his power and was sent back to death with his half-brother. Others say that the spirit of The Shadow Hunter lived on forever, throughout all time. Some even say that the sprit of The Shadow Hunter uses his power to consume the souls of others, using human bodies as a host for a lifetime.

What do you think happened?

***

Don't forget to visit other A to Z Challenge Participants, and don't forget to visit my other blog, My Unofficial Guide To Everything.

Have a lovely day!

–Jess