It’s interesting how, when you’re (a) mildly stuck on a current WIP, or (b) really not enjoying a current WIP, or (c) revising a current WIP, ideas about totally different stories suddenly start to jump up and down in the front of your mind, clamoring for attention.
Not sure this always happens. In fact, I’m sure it doesn’t: Tuyo was so obsessive that during the entire writing and revision process, it drowned out absolutely everything else. But that’s somewhat unusual. Twice during work on Tasmakat, I’ve hit periods where other stories suddenly moved from the back of my mind to the front. Once was during a mildly stuck period, in which I suddenly started thinking about Silver Circle. Which I really do want and plan to work on in 2023, hopefully for release in 2023, but I certainly did not want to work on it right then. (I did take notes.)
And then yesterday, for no perceptible reason, I suddenly thought, You know, I could write a Tuyo-world story where the main character is a young Lau woman … who finds herself in difficulties … and disguises herself as a young man … and, hey, she could hire a bodyguard! … so that she can travel to Gaur and get Aras to deal with the source of the difficulties!
And there I am, with like 60% of a story suddenly in my head. I mean, would that be a romance? Who knows, maybe, that’s certainly a romance setup. Given that I’m trying to gently (sometimes not so gently) shove every society in a good direction for that particular society, and obviously Lau society could use another nudge toward improved freedom and status for women, maybe this young woman could kick a pebble into motion at the top of a mountain so that the reader, if not she, can see the rumblings of an approaching avalanche?
Anyway, I need to make a note about this in the Possible Story Ideas file so that I don’t forget. I do know some things about the women’s side of Lau culture that so far readers have not been able to glimpse, except in the very most tangential way possible. Eventually I should write a story from a Lau woman’s pov so that readers have a better chance to see that side of Lau society.
By the way, I’ve now got the Tano cover on schedule to be done during the early part of February. So I definitely plan to write the story, at least most of it, over Christmas Break, no matter what else I’m also working on at that time.
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I would LOVE to read this story!!! I mean, more about Lau women PLUS improvement in Lau society PLUS my favorite girl-disguised-as-boy and hot-bodyguard tropes = I don’t know where you’ll find the time but I hope you do!
Honestly, after the big push to get stuff done early in 2023, I only have Silver Circle on my To Do ASAP list. So … maybe kind of soon?
Lau society is already being pushed gently in that direction. Suelen has taken on a female apprentice, and he’ll almost certainly take on others — we hear about that in Tasmakat — and Aras’ granddaughter is likely to eventually provide another, harder, shove, with, I’m guessing, her … second cousin, I guess … Prince Sekaran lending a certain amount of support. But another push in that direction might be a good thing, and for various reasons perhaps the near future (story time) might be a good time for that. So … we’ll see!
Mark me down as someone else who would love to read this story.
(Silver Circle! Yay!)
(sorry?)
I circle among stories. It’s the only way I get them done. . . .
Beth, no, I’m glad people keep pointing out that they’d like me to actually write Silver Circle! I hope it will give me relatively little trouble, not expand out of all reason, and wind up with a release date around Halloween 2023. Or if not that, then before Christmas 2023 at least!
I would surely enjoy another story about Lau women. It sounds a little bit like Keranuani, who dressed up as a man to get her fiance out of trouble. (Speaking of whom, she surely will want to visit the Winter Lands.)
I realized I missed one author in when you asked for recommendations. His “Old Kingdom” series is excellent, except for the excessively grim book 4, “Clariel”. And “Left-handed Booksellers of London” is a favorite.