Why Marvel is a Huge Influence on Relic Worlds

I never thought I'd be such a huge fan of Marvel.  When I was younger I was a DC guy; in particular I followed Batman, and story lines that took a darker turn.  But what Marvel has done over the past 5 to 10 years is nothing short of miraculous.

It's a minor miracle whenever any movie gets made.  I know; I've worked in that industry for a long time.  The number of elements you need just to bring together a single movie is head-spinning.  So for them to be so ambitious as to plan a series of movies that tie together, then one movie that brings them all together... that takes balls of steel.

Thank god it was successful, because it's spawned a franchise that I believe is one of the best of all time.  I've always liked the idea of the larger world around the characters being developed.  Each individual is just a cog in the larger machine.  With the Marvel movies, TV shows, games, etc. that is exactly what they have done.  Like a photo that is made up of many smaller photos, they have all painted a larger image.

This is what I want to do with Relic Worlds, and what I have been striving for.  Even though this particular series focuses a lot more on one central character, I have developed a whole section of the galaxy complete with star systems, planets, corporate governments, etc.  The idea is for there to be a larger story arc in addition to the smaller story told about Lancaster James and his close friends.

It's sometimes hard to know whether a company is doing this just to make more money, or if they're truly expanding to make a larger story, but if it's telling a good tale, I'll bite.

The Lost Relic Worlds Novel

I had already written an entire novel that was supposed to act as book 2.  In fact, it was supposed to be book 1.  I had originally written it as the follow-up to a graphic novel I had been putting together.  The idea was going to be that people would read the graphic novel, then go on to the novel.  Actually, that’s a simplified version.  There was actually a novella that came first, then a comic book, then a picture book, then the novel.  I called it a multi-media event, but it really was just me pulling at straws trying to figure out how to tell this story.

I didn’t accept how absurd this was until I finished the novel.  Each of those stories was not only a different format, but a different audience.  And they would each get distributed and promoted completely separately as well.  I had to slowly come to accept that the graphic novel and the picture book, and anything that came before in fact, had to be thrown out, and the story would have to start with the book.

But then I was faced with an even uglier truth.  The book I had written was clearly a sequel.  It had the feel of a sequel, not an original story.  It felt like we were jumping into the middle of these characters’ lives, their journeys, as though their conversations were already in progress.  I tried to convince myself that this was a good thing because one generally does want to jump into a story already in progress and not take too long to set something up.

But that’s different.  There was simply too much back story going on that was important to the plot.  After really questioning myself, I finally came to the conclusion that the novel I had written had to be book 2.  So I set about writing book 1, and a year or two later I had Lancaster James and the Search for the Promised World.  It included everything I had in the graphic novels, the novella, the picture book, short stories, you name it.  And it also had more.

I needed to add more to the story in order to tie it together and make it a better novel.  But in doing so, I took the story off the rails that led to the second book I had already written.  Book 2 would now need to be a whole new book.  I could use some elements from the earlier novel, but overall, it had to be changed.

And thus, there is a lost Relic Worlds novel that will never get published.  I am stripping it for parts, using elements in it for the novels and short stories, but the book itself, which was called The Last Transmission, will never see the light of day.

Alternative Forms of Propulsion

I recently saw this episode of SciShow Space which showed an alternative form of propulsion that revolutionizes the way we think of traveling through space.  The common model in both science and science fiction has always been a burning fuel which ejects a flame out of the back of the ship, thus propelling it forward.  The one notable exception to this was Star Trek which just had a couple long beams held up behind the main saucer section.  I guess there was a glow on the back of the saucer section itself which was supposed to be part of the impulse drive, but even that didn’t really shoot any flames out the back, and didn’t look like it would be enough to propel the entire vessel.  There had to be something more that was moving it, and I always found that rather curious.

Now, it turns out, something like this might wind up being the future.  In this episode of SciShow Space, they talk about a Photonic propulsion system where the ship is propelled by lasers.  There is a whole science behind it involving mirrors and a lot of logistics that would have to be worked out before it becomes a reality, but it completely changes how we think of space flight.

It’s yet another example of how hard it is to write science fiction with some sense of science, because just as you think you have something fitting a possible future, your theories become outdated, and scientists start doing things completely differently.

Thoughts on Uncharted and Tomb Raider

When I first saw information about the game Uncharted I thought it was a good idea to have a treasure hunting videogame, and frankly, it was about time.  There had been Tomb Raider, which was mildly entertaining; but it was so shameless in its over-sexualizing of Lara Croft that I felt like a creep even looking at it.  There had been mild attempts at bringing Indiana Jones to the computer, but there hadn’t been anything that utilized the great story elements we’ve seen in gaming over the past 10 years.

When I at last got a chance to try Uncharted out, I wasn’t disappointed.  In fact, what surprised me was how much I got into the characters, and into watching the story like it was a movie.  In fact, after I stopped playing the game, I looked it up on Youtube and saw the way the rest of the first game progressed.  As soon as it was done, I went right onto 2.  Uncharted 3 happened to come out right after that, and I went on to watching it as well.

The stories were so good, in fact, that I would have paid to watch them, though I had little interest in playing them.  Don’t get me wrong, I had fun playing them, but I’m a bit incompetent when it comes to these games, and I know I would struggle through them, getting Nathan Drake killed over and over again before I could get to the next part.  This both breaks the mood of the story, and makes it all go tediously slow when I’m trying to just get on with the story.

When Tomb Raider made a comeback I was skeptical.  However, the clips I saw portrayed Lara Croft as more of a sympathetic character, and downplayed the huge boobs and perfect figure.  Don’t get me wrong, she is extremely attractive, but the game focuses more on her capabilities and her competence.  They’ve taken what was a pretty chauvinistic character and actually turned her into a feminist model of strength.

And in the case of both storylines, the side characters are wonderful as well.  They bring out real emotions in their central characters, and create engrossing storylines themselves.  The ongoing love interest in Uncharted is something I can really believe; and is frankly more mature than 99% of the relationships portrayed in movies.  Lara Croft does not have very close relationships, and that fact plays rather strongly in her character throughout the first two reboot stories.  She is prepared to always move on without someone, though I’ve often get the sense that she’s wanting to reach out to someone she can connect with.  At least that’s the reading I get from the actress’s performance in the motion capture.

At any rate, I recommend anyone to just watch these games the way they would binge watch a show.  And if they can have the patience to play them, they should purchase them as well.

Wondercon in Los Angeles

This was the first year that Wondercon has been in Los Angeles, and it was perfect timing for me since it was the first time I had a booth.  It made it easier for me to get to the convention, allowed me to go home every night without having to get a hotel, and it was easier for me to get people to help out with the booth and promotions.

What made me nervous, however, was not knowing what to expect.  I had gone to several Wondercons in Anaheim, including the first one when it moved there from San Francisco.  (I remember rain leaking in all over the convention floor which they caught with carbage cans.)  Each year I took note on what I would do when I ran my own booth, and I had everything planned based on what I saw.

So when it changed to LA the very year I decided to run a booth, much of what I had learned became useless, and I had to go off of what seemed would work regardless of the venue.  It turned out fine, and I really stressed myself over very little.  But it was a little discouraging having spent several years learning only to have to relearn again elsewhere.

It’s something I’ve had to learn in general.  Sometimes you spend so much time learning that things change before you get to use the knowledge you picked up.

My First Booth at Wondercon

I ran my first booth ever at Wondercon this weekend, and I learned quite a bit.

First I must explain that I have been studying this for quite a while; how to best use a convention to sell my products.  I first went to Comic Con in 2007 and have been trying to utilize that convention and others in the best way possible.  Mostly, I tried to do it on the cheap, handing out flyers in the front, and running events that didn't involve getting a table myself.  One example was the treasure hunt I ran, where I gave out flyers full of clues that led attendees to several booths until they got to the last one where they got a prize relating to my series.  (The flyer, of course, also said the name of the series on it.)

All of these attempts failed to have much of an impact.  The treasure hunt, first of all, was too difficult to accomplish, and few people got to the end.  But the biggest problem was that I was, ultimately, outside of the convention.  To really be taken seriously, I had to go all the way and get a booth.  So that is a must.

I became impressed with Wondercon when it first moved to Anaheim.  The first year was rough; but overall it had the feel of a more independent minded convention that remembered its sci fi and fantasy roots.  It wasn't quite so owned by the corporations.  I knew that when I got a booth, it would be here.

My booth was way in the back, which made it easy to load, but harder for attendees to find.  Luckily, it was right next to the food court, so a lot of people saw it during lunch.

I ran the treasure hunt again, but this time it was simple to do.  And at the end, people who wanted to claim their prize had to give their name and email address to enter the drawing.  The grand prize was a trip to Disneyland, so there were a lot of people who wanted to do it.  This left me with an extended email list.  However, it was not as long as it could have been since people had to do the treasure hunt first, and some didn't want to bother.

The table was filled with the flyers on the right, the books in the middle, and a large volcano model I made on the left.  The Relic Worlds sign hung from the table int he front, and vertical signs of the two books hung behind me.  I found this to be a really good layout, though I might have overdone it on the number of different flyers and different books.  What I really needed was a flyer with the treasure hunt, a flyer with the books, and a flyer with a free short story.  Maybe adding the bookmark was a good idea as well, because it was easy to get people to take a bookmark after they had bought other books.

The way the days worked seems to be the same for every convention.  Friday is the day when people trickle in and look at what there is to offer.  It's best to give them previews of what I have as well as get them on the treasure hunts.  At night there was gaming in a different building.  I thought this would be super important as it would be a whole new audience that extended into the evening.  However, this year the gaming area was far away from the convention center, so hardly anyone was there.  Also, people tend to break off into cliques at these gaming events, so its effectiveness was limited.

Saturday was the big day.  It was the day to push both the free fliers and the books, as well as attract everyone with the volcano, and put on a game that utilized the volcano.  This was more effective than the night gaming as it was in full view of other attendees, who looked on at the setup with amazement.  (I spend hundreds of dollars making it.)  I did find, though, that it would be better to have a separate person run the game, as I needed to be at the booth.  I also had two models dressed as a couple of the characters posing for the cameras out front where the cosplayers hang out, and give out flyers.  This was one of the best and most effective things to do as we got TONS of people photographing them along with the books.  I could not have arranged this, however, if I hadn't had two wonderful volunteers at the booth selling books while I was dealing with the models.

Sunday is known as the dead day.  However, it's also the day people are usually more apt to buy.  They've spent the last couple days looking over everything, and on the last day they go through buying what they've decided to get.  It's also the best day to network with other booths as they're less busy.

In the end, I learned that conventions are essentially the second half of the equation to sell books.  The other half is online, which I'll get to in another post.  Conventions are where you spread the word in person.  You can't really expect to make any money at them; you're going to spend more money than you make creating an effective platform.  However, this platform should be used to create something that the attendees go back and tell others about.  The experience should be something they want to photograph either at your booth, or in the cosplay area.  (I had both with the volcano at the booth and the two models in the cosplay area.)  It's also a great way to get people to learn about your website and any deals you have going, such as a free book deal or a sale.

But what it's best for is what I've recently learned is the most important thing in independent book selling: building the email list.  I never thought of this as such an important step, but it is.  Having a website and Facebook page is important for people to go see, but the general public will forget about you unless you actively remind them of your existence, and sending short stories and/or updates is the best way to do it.  So an email list is what you need.  And there's no better way to build this than at a convention.  When people meet you face to face, they get interested in what you're doing.  They're usually not ready to buy anything because they want to keep checking you out.  So they're willing to give you their email address for you to tell them.  I made the mistake of tying it to the treasure hunt.  While the hunt was fun and unique and best of all, made me stand out, it limited the number of people who signed up on the list; and many who would want to hear more later on never came back.

So the bottom line is it's best to find a way to have the attendees join your mailing list by doing something there at the booth that's fun and memorable, but they need to give you their name and email to do it.

Relic Worlds, Book 2 Now Available

Lancaster James and the Secret of the Padrone Key is now available for purchase.  It can be bought on Amazon in either Kindle or paperback here:

http://www.amazon.com/Relic-Worlds-Lancaster-Secret-Padrone-ebook/dp/B01BHPM4SW/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1458283222&sr=8-2&keywords=Relic+Worlds

There will soon be a hardcover version available, which can be purchased through the website at:

www.relicworlds.com

Anyone who wants a signed copy should contact me by the email address provided on the website.