Editing and Writing

If you're following this blog, then you know I've taken on the task of editing my big series, Shadow Gods. With over a million words in it across 9 books, its quite the undertaking. Though I've only begun, I've found it both easy and difficult. For example, a majority of the writing is well done and only needs a slight change here and there. However, there are certain paragraphs which need to be completely re-written because my writing style has changed, the context and content has changed, and I'm trying to make the entire story flow better. These small sections are taking days to fix. In a way, I've bitten off quite a bit, but I have no choice. This is my Mona Lisa, so I want it to be as good as I can get it. I also don't want to remove any of the 'Easter Eggs' which will be explained later in the series. I do love my twists.

All this editing becomes tedious at times, so I have not put away my other projects, namely Ascension and Opal (book 5 of the Stone Vengeance series). I did put them down, but not completely as I put a few pages into Opal this past weekend. The challenge I'm finding, which is also intriguing to me, is how technology in the near future might change and how society might change with it. I still haven't figured out everything, not even close, but I am getting a better feel for the story as I begin to piece together the first few chapters. Here's a sample -

The constant buzzing of flies filled the air around the grizzly, sickly red scene. To look upon the mass of bodies and scattered heads made bile rise within Lt. Brim Thomas’ throat which he choked down with effort. He wasn’t used to this, but who could be. Then, with a glance at the other policemen around, he thought maybe the forensic unit was able to detach themselves from it all, but for him the brutal loss of life was staggering. At first glance, it was hard to tell where one body ended and another began. It was nothing like he’d ever seen before and he hoped he’d never see it again. Turning away from it all, his shoes rebelled as the sticky, dying blood held him in place a little longer. Staying here, however, was something his stomach couldn’t tolerate.

Taking twenty paces at an even stride, Brim walked away while regaining his composure before reaching the one eye witness they had to the slaughter. He found it odd that this dumpy, middle-aged man was even here to begin with, let alone had survived it. However, he understood why the man was still shaking even though it’d been an hour since the massacre. Just how the man was going to live through the nightmares of this night was something Brim didn’t want to think about. He only wanted answers and this man was going to give them to him. “What’s your name?” he asked as he looked down upon the man sitting on the curb.

Lifting his trembling eyes, the man took in all of the lieutenant before answering. “Simon Garring.”

“So tell me, Simon, what happened?” Brim asked, not beating around the bush, only to see the man quiver at the thought of explaining the events which had taken place. “Just take it slow and it’ll be okay.”

The man eyes fell to the pavement as a half-hearted chuckle lifted his shoulders for a second. Then dread entered the man’s voice as he responded. “You ever have that awkward feeling of showing up to a party and everyone knows the host except you? That’s how I felt when he showed up.”

“When who showed up?” Brim questioned.

“The devil,” the man replied before lifting his eyes to meet Brim’s.

In that gaze, Brim saw the depth of the man’s fear. There was no doubt within Brim’s mind that Simon wasn’t exaggerating the truth. In fact, Brim wondered if a worse word could’ve been used had the man’s vocabulary been larger. But before he could discount the man’s choice of descriptors, Simon continued.

“I was new, my first night. I wasn’t even indoctrinated yet. Maybe…maybe that’s what saved my life.”

Puzzlement filled Brim’s thoughts as he realized Simon wasn’t a bystander, but actually one of these men. He thought to question this, probe deeper, but waited as more words spilled forth from the witness.

“Or maybe because I was the only one without a gun, though that wouldn’t have helped me. It didn’t help any of my brothers,” Simon stated without turning his head toward the masses of dead.

“Your brothers?” Brim interrupted, not understanding the reference only to have Simon lift his head to meet his gaze.

“The Luminaries? From the Church of Light.”

Suddenly, the light bulb clicked on for Brim, bringing forth a hundred other questions. “You’re a priest? You were all priests?”

“Yes.”

With his brow furling, Brim continued in disbelief. “Then why the guns?”

“The church has enemies; lots of enemies.”

Of course, Brim knew this. Everyone in the world knew this. Since its inception nearly twenty years ago, the Church of Light had gone against Catholicism. In doing so, it created a backlash of terror which exposed Christianity as being intolerant and, at the very core, violent. Thousands died around the world, but in the end the Church of Light came away stronger than ever as those dedicate to His Holiness, the Pope, fell into disgrace. Since those first years, a silent war of attrition between the two factions of God had divided earth’s population. But now, the Church of Light reigned supreme whereas Christianity became a shadow of its former self.

Going back to the man’s initial statement, Brim refocused his witness. “You say the devil did this; so tell me exactly what happened?”

“We were just gathering. It was supposed to be my initiation, my Rising into the Light, when the street lights flickered. In that moment, the devil appeared in the middle of us,” Simon answered, his breathing starting to elevate as his pulse quickened. “I didn’t know who or what it was at first, but upon seeing it all my brothers took a step back. Some started to raise their guns, others screamed out warnings, but…but it was already too late. Like a lawnmower trimming grass, he swept through us. In less than a second, everyone was dead.”

And that's it for today... #ShadowGodsSeries #StoneVengeanceSeries