Join the Professional Author's Group Halloween Celebration: Introducing Our Founder Rayne Hall

It is a distinct honor to welcome writer, editor, teacher, mentor, and my friend Rayne Hall.

Many know Rayne, and her wonderful cat Sulu from the Twitterverse as well as all the books she has written and edited: Her own fiction, the writers' craft series, and the Ten Tales series. But this month, she's here to focus on horror.

Welcome Rayne! 

Tell us a little about yourself and what you're writing these days.

I write dark fantasy and creepy horror fiction, as well as the Writer's Craft Series of guides for authors who want to take their craft skills to the next level.

Do you write full time? 

I've been writing professionally for thirty years, and I've always had an 'other occupation' - for example, I was a journalist, magazine editor and adult education teacher. Sometimes the day job was full time and the writing was something I did in my spare time. At other times the writing was my main job and the other activity was a sideline.

What are your writing inspirations?

Thousands of ideas flutter around in my head at the same time. Sometimes, two or three of those ideas click together like jigsaw pieces, and that's when a story starts to form.

The location is almost always one of the first pieces to click. I like to set my stories in unusual, atmospheric places where I've lived and travelled – the streets of Nepal, the cliffs on the English coast, the stone circles of Cornwall...

Most of my horror story ideas come from my own fears - things that frighten me, places that creep me out, nightmares that keep me awake at night. Cowards make good horror writers, because we know what fear feels like, and because we never run out of ideas what to write about.

I’ve learnt that by fictionalising something, putting it on paper and shaping it, I gain control over it – especially the things that frighten or disturb me. Horror writing is form of empowering therapy.

Let me give you an example. I used to have a terrible fear of fire. It was so bad, I could never bring myself to even light a match. Once when I was about seven, my father forced me to watch a house burn, and I had nightmares about it for three decades, and the experience increased my fear. As a teenager, I heard about disturbing fire-related events that had happened in my neighbourhood, some recent, some of them long before I was born.

Another house burned down, and I heard afterwards that the Turkish family who lived there had not been able to get out. Their charred skeletons told how they had cowered in the corner as the flames devoured them, and the father had shielded his daughters with his own body for as long as he could. This moved me deeply, and then I heard someone say “They were only Turks. Good riddance to the vermin.”

Then I found out about the atrocities committed against Jews during the Nazi period. This was in the 1980s, and the prevailing attitude was still that these were things best not talked about. But some things filtered through. In the town of my birth, locals burnt the synagogue and then built a church on that spot. In a nearby town, the eager citizens went even further: they locked the Jewish population into the synagogue before they set it on fire. The fire brigade, instead of putting out the flames, fanned and fed them, and made sure none of the Jews could escape.

One day I took a sheet of paper and wrote down everything that scared or disturbed me in connection with fire. Burning houses, churches, racial hatred, hypocrisy, a scared child witnessing events she cannot understand... these elements clicked together. into a disturbing tale of human evil.

That story – titled Burning - was the most difficult piece I’ve ever written. Several times, I had to set it aside because I was too upset to continue. But I persevered, and during the process of putting my thoughts on paper and shaping them into fiction, I gained control over my fear. When it was finished, two amazing things happened: My phobia vanished, and the story won awards.

It took great courage to write that story. So, tell us about Thirty Scary Tales.

Thirty Scary Tales is a compilation of my books Six Scary Tales Vol. 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5. These are are horror stories of the creepy kind - more spooky and suspenseful than violent and gory.

Is this book part of a series?

I keep writing horror stories and publishing them in Six Scary Tales. Eventually I may gather the new yarns in Thirty Scary Tales Vol. 2, but it won't be for a while yet.

What project will you be working on next?

I always have several projects under way - usually a non-fiction book, a novel and several articles and short stories. I'm just finishing the next book in the Writer's Craft series, titled Writing Deep Point of View. Work has already started on Getting Book Reviews, Writing Vivid Dialogue and Book Promotion for Introverts.

Other works in progress include a sequel to the dark epic fantasy novel Storm Dancer and several steampunk and horror stories.

Tell us one surprising or interesting fact about yourself.

I write with this sweet black cat snuggling between my arms. Sulu is a rescue cat I adopted from the shelter. He likes to lie between my arms as I write, with a paw on my wrist and his head in the crook of my elbow.

I've trained Sulu. Many people think you can't train a cat, but you can... if the cat wants to be trained. Sulu loves it. When I say "Sulu, shake hands" he puts his right paw into my right palm. when I say "Sulu, scratch" he walks to the scratching post and scratches. When I say "Sulu, read" he lies down next to the open book, puts a paw on the page and 'reads' - perfect for book promotion photos.

Is there anything else about yourself you'd like to tell us about yourself or your writing?

My horror stories are atmospheric, creepy, disturbing - but they're not gorefests. If you enjoy chainsaw massacres and mounds of spilling intestines, my books are not for you. I like to creep my readers out, not gross them out. 

Atmosphere is crucial. To research the atmosphere for a ghost story ('Take Me To St. Roch's,in this book) I spent a night alone in a remote cemetery. I observed every skeleton-pale tree and every cloud wafting across the moon, I listened to rustling leaves and distant creaks, I touched lichen-encrusted tombstones and dug my hands into damp maggot-crawling soil. The details were worth it. You can read the resulting story (Take Me To St. Roch's) in Thirty Scary Tales.

Thanks so much for taking time out of your busy schedule.

How can folks best connect with you?

https://twitter.com/RayneHall

https://www.pinterest.com/raynehallauthor/

Welcoming Rayne Hall: The Author

Rayne Hall wears many hats: author, instructor, journalist, editor, moderator of the Professional Author's Group and Fantasy Fiction Forum. For as long as I've known her, she's been nurturing the cast of interesting and complex characters in Storm Dancer. I'm delighted to welcome her this week while she has a special 99c offer until June 5 for those of you who like your dark fantasy meticulously researched.

Rayne, how did you choose the title Storm Dancer for your book?

Storm Dancer was the first title that came to my mind, even before I had written the first chapter. Although I played with several other title ideas, this one just felt right. The two leads are both storm dancers, in different ways.

Dahoud is a troubled hero with a dark past seeking redemption. In the metaphorical sense, he is dancing in a storm of violence and temptation.

Merida is a magician who can change the weather by dancing. She's on a mission to bring rain to a land in the grip of drought and starvation. Her dance rouses a violent storm and unleashes the events that of the story.

Which characters did you enjoy writing about?

I loved - and still love - all my characters,  especially Dahoud. He's a dark, flawed hero, yet he fights his demon with integrity and courage, and I respect that.

Writing Merida was fun. She's a lovely woman, warm, compassionate, serious, honest and resourceful, but also tight about principles and prudish. I had wicked fun putting her principles to the test and making her do the things she swore she would never do.

The villain was fun to write, too. Many readers tell me that Kirral is their favourite character... although they wouldn't want to meet him in real life.

Yora is a spunky adolescent girl with a passion for knife fighting. She craves action and is unafraid.

Tell us about the world you've created for this book.

I had fun inventing the world, a fantasy world loosely based on the Middle East in the Bronze Age period. That's roughly the time when the Greeks besieged Troy and King David ruled in Israel. The cultures are inspired by ancient civilisations, especially Egypt, Greece, Persia and the Hittite Empire.

I enjoyed making the scenes come alive with intense atmosphere, so readers experience the story as if they were there and can smell the desert and feel the sand between their toes.

Dahoud is a fascinating character. Tell us more about him.  

He is a troubled hero with a dark secret. 

He needs to atone for the atrocities he committed as a siege commander. He works to build a new life, but his dark past won't let him go. Ruling the land he once devastated, how can he keep the secret of who he really is? He is possessed by a demon that tempts him back into his old ways. How long can Dahoud resist the lure? He fights to shield his people from war's violence - but the worst danger comes from himself. How can he protect the woman he loves from the evil inside him?

Are parts of the book based on real experiences?

The places and characters exist only in my imagination; I like making things up.

However, many inspiration come from real life. For the fantasy world, I've drawn on places where I've lived and travelled - Asia, Europe,  North Africa, the Middle East. Some of the characters have personality traits I've observed in real life people, although I like to mix them up so no real person finds their way into my books.

My own experiences are fertile material for fiction. I used to perform semi-professionally as a bellydancer, so I could write with authenticity about how the heroine in Storm Dancer learns the dance and performs it in a tavern.

Years ago, I went on an assignment as a development aid worker to a remote part of northern China. I had been promised a heated, furnished flat with running water. When I arrived, the flat was a ruin, the windows broken, no water, no furniture, no heating, and a blizzard was raging outside.  I survived the freezing night by piling all my clothes on top of me. In the morning, I confronted my employer and requested that he honour the contract. He shrugged. “I'm a busy man. I don't have time to keep my promises.”

I adapted this experience for Storm Dancer.  Merida is a weather magician, sent by her government to bring rain to a distant, drought-parched country. When she arrives, she finds the promised private apartment doesn't exist. Instead, she has to sleep in a grimy, noisy dormitory. She complains, and is told: “I am a busy man.” His voice had the low-humming hiss of a wasp hovering over rotting fruit. “I do not have time to keep promises.”

This was just the start. Things got worse for me in China, and they get worse for Merida in Quislak.

You write British English. How does it differ from American?

Some words vary. For example, Brits often use which or who when Americans use that.  In British English, we talk about autumn, lift and suspenders when Americans use fall, elevator and garter belt - not that those words are common in Storm Dancer. More significant are the spelling variations. British English words often have more letters than their American equivalents: honour, colour, jewellery, travelling instead of honor, color, jewellery, traveling, and s instead of z, for example in realise. Grammar and punctuation rules also differ a little.

Most readers enjoy a book regardless, and some even appreciate the variety. However, I've had emails from Americans who complain about spelling “errors” and demand that British authors give up their “inferior” English in  favour of “proper” (American) English. If anyone really can't bear British English, I suggest they avoid my books.

I actually love British English so that's something I really don't understand. Anyway,  who painted the cover?

The cover is a collaboration between two artists, Paul Davies and Erica Syverson.

Paul Davies is a professional illustrator specialising in fantasy,  He painted most of the character and some of the background. Erica Syverson is an art student who studies at Kendall College of Art and Design, majoring in Digital Media. Fantasy, horror and supernatural images are her speciality. . She painted much of the background and some of the character.

And you made the trailer, correct?

I had fun creating it myself. I think it captures the mood, intensity and excitement of this dark epic fantasy novel. 

How dark is Storm Dancer? Why the R-rating?   

Storm Dancer contains some dark elements which can be disturbing - war, violence, rape, treachery, human sacrifice, demonic possession. Most readers take these aspects in their stride, but some find them distressing.

There's no graphic sex, but the erotic tension is sometimes intense, and not all of it is of the consensual kind. Some of the temptations are vivid. The violence is not excessive, but in places it's graphic.

I recommend downloading the free sample pages to see if it's your kind of book.

You can also read the first six chapters free here: https://sites.google.com/site/stormdancernovel/storm-dancer-free-sample-pages

Where can we buy the book?

The ebook is available here:

Amazon for Kindle: viewBook.at/B005MJFV58 [Unknown A2] 

Kobo http://www.kobobooks.com/ebook/Storm-Dancer/book-T8AIA5xS_k6gZlCd-dUyiQ/page1.html?s=KcWDYlJ4lkyuGb9QgU7bxA&r=6

Smashwords https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/88037

iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/storm-dancer-dark-epic-fantasy/id483339067?mt=11&buffer_share=d7658&utm_source=buffer

Barnes&Noble for Nook http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/storm-dancer-rayne-hall/1106014027?ean=2940011519741

Storm Dancer is also available as paperback. It's a big fat book for many hours of reading pleasure.

http://viewBook.at/1482567229

Thanks, Rayne. I hope you'll come back another time as Rayne Hall: The Editor, perhaps to reveal the cover of your next Ten Tales Series book?

Of course, I'd love to. Thanks for having me.

Slim Down Your Manuscript This Holiday Season

I'm always happy to have Rayne Hall stop by. Her posts are always informative and, based on the response from my friends and followers, you all agree.

When I finished The Widow's Walk last year, it was way too long for a paranormal romance: a whopping 110,000 words. I knew there was some fat to be trimmed, and suspected that there was an entire chapter that I could delete. But that wouldn't have made a dent in the job. I had to get the novel down well below 100,000, in the 80-90,000 range if possible.

Having worked with Rayne as a critique partner  for several years, I've learned how to cut and tighten my writing. And now she's offering a class, with her usual copious amount of information and feedback. Using her suggestions when I revised, The Widow's Walk topped of at just under 97,000 words

Rayne, can you summarize how to get started?

In thirty years as an editor, I've found the same fatty words bloat the style of many authors.

Here are two notorious phrases: 'begin to' and 'start to'. They contain empty calories without real nutrition. If you cut them from your diet your writing style will be come sharper and tighter.

Beginner writers are prone to overusing these two phrases. Editors need only glance at the first page of a manuscript. If it contains 'begin to' or 'start to' (or both, perhaps even more than once), they know a beginner wrote this. 

'Begin to' and 'start to' are almost always unnecessary.  If something happens, you don't need to tell the reader that it starts to happen. Just let it happen.

EXAMPLES:

Fat version

She began to run.

Slim version

She ran.

Fat version

Rain began to fall.

Slim version

Rain fell.

Fat version

She started to shiver.

Slim version

She shivered.

Fat version

His lips started to quiver.

Slim version

His lips quivered.

Fat version

The dog started to growl.

Slim version

The dog growled.

Use your word processor's Find&Replace tool to count how many times you've used 'begin to' (begins to, beginning to, began to, begun to) and 'start to' (starts to, started to, starting to).

You don't need to cut every single 'begin to' and 'start to'. Sometimes, when an action starts and is abandoned immediately,  they help clarify what's going on:

She began to walk home, but changed her mind after a few steps.

He started to paint the fence, but Jane halted his arm.

About four 'begin' or 'start' per novel are fine - but forty are a sign of fat-wobbling writing, and four hundred are definitely too much.

I'd love to hear from you. When you've checked your WiP for 'begin to' and 'start to', post a comment to tell me how many you've found, and whether you're going to cut some of them.

What other 'wordy words' do you think writers can cut from from their word diet?

If you have questions about writing style, or need advice on  how to tighten your writing, please ask. I'll be around for a week, and I enjoy answering questions.

If your writing style tends towards wordy waffling, if your critique partners urge you to tighten, and if editorial rejections point out dragging pace, this class may be the answer. It's perfect for toning your manuscript before submitting to editors and agents, or for whipping it into shape before indie publishing.

JANUARY ONLINE CLASS: THE WORD-LOSS DIET

This is an interactive class with twelve lessons and twelve assignments, for writers who have a full or partial manuscript in need of professional polish. At the end of the class, you may submit a scene for individual critiques.

Dr Rayne's Word-Loss Diet is much more fun than depriving yourself of food, and you'll see real results fast.

The Word-Loss Diet, presented by Rayne Hall

1-31 January 2012

Registration deadline: December 29, 2011

http://www.oirwa.com/forum/campus/#JAN

Rayne's recent release, Storm Dancer, features Merida, a magician who dances for rain in the parched desert world in which she finds herself imprisoned. The novel is epic in scope and explores the concept of a djinn that possesses Dahoud,  a former warrior, compelling him to commit terrible crimes against women. 


He and Merida find themselves thrown together by circumstances beyond their control. Will he  able to defeat his djinn, and will she be able to forgive his transgressions to accomplish the impossible and save the town entrusted to their care? 


Mysterious, dark, full of political intrigue and meticulously researched, Rayne brings this Bronze Age world to life right before the reader's eyes with unique, fascinating characters, vivid detail, and a complex, compelling plot. She puts her expertise on writing fantasy, magical systems, and fight scenes to the test, leaving readers unable to resist turning the page.


Read an Excerpt


Amazon Buy Link

Get Your Power Up: Part Two of Magical Rituals with Rayne Hall

The previous thread is still open for review and comments, but today Rayne moves on to discuss how magicians concentrate and raise the power needed to fuel their rituals.


To recap: I am thrilled to welcome Rayne Hall to my blog this week for a two part magic lesson on Magical Rituals. She has has more than twenty books published under several pen names, in several genres. She holds  a degree in publishing management, and a masters in creative writing.

Currently, she lives on the south coast of England where she writes horror and fantasy fiction, as well as puts three decades of editorial experience to the test by publishing themed anthologies. 

Rayne's teaches online classes on a variety of subjects, which include copious feedback and support. Her simple, easy to understand primers on the nuances of magic are a fascinating look at various aspects of the art across a variety of magical systems. Whether you a writer, a reader, or a dabbler you'll this two part series on Magical Rituals fascinating.

All magicians raise power to fuel their spells.  If the term  'power-raising' sounds too much 'New Age' for your historical novel, you can invent a different phrase.

The magician (who can be male or female, although I use the female pronoun throughout) can raise power in many different ways, and she may use more than one source.

* She may draw the energy from within herself, by taking actions which create energy (dancing, drumming and sex are especially effective).

* Her own intense emotions (jealousy, fury, desire) can add extra fuel.

* She may tap into the existing magical energies of the environment, for example stone circles, leylines, ancient monuments, sacred sites, running water, sunlight or fire.

* She may use the magical energy contained in objects, for example crystals (especially in Wiccan witchcraft) or  relics (especially in religious magic).

* She can ask gods or spirits to lend power to her magic, especially if she practices religious magic.

* She may draw on energy from other people.  For example, if the whole village gathers to help a magician call rain, then those people's enthusiasm can be harnessed.  An evil magician may draw her energy from her victims' pain and fear.

A magician may use more than one source of power. For example, a Wiccan  may pray to the Lady and the Lord, invoke the spirits of the winds, perform the ritual on the intersection of two leylines, use a charged amethyst crystal, and dance herself into a trance.

The magician feels the power inside her body as well as around her. Some magicians perceive it as a surge of energy pulsing through the blood, others as a heat storm around them. Some say it feels like the whole body being stung with nettles inside and out, while others  liken it to waltzing while tipsy on champagne. Wiccan Witches describe the power as rising out of their head and spiralling upwards in a cone shape. You can use your imagination, as long as your magician feels something.

PLOT IDEAS

* What if a magician is not able to create enough energy for an important spell?

* What if a magician accidentally summons too much energy, and the spell is far more powerful than she intended (instead of one day sunshine, she creates ten years of drought).

* What if a magician needs other people to help her with the power raising, and they refuse for religious or moral reasons?

* What if some sources of magical powers are considered taboo or forbidden? What if a desperate magician taps into one of those forbidden sources?

* What if the magician considers certain sources to be sinful or evil, but drastic circumstances force her to use them anyway?

* What if the only way to raise enough power for a much-needed spell is through sexual arousal  with a partner of the opposite sex - and the only available partner is someone she hates?

In 'Storm Dancer', the magician Merida specialises in weather magic. She can call wind and rain through dancing. Additional power comes from earth energies, astronomical constellations, and the presence of fire and water. In her training, she learnt that it's forbidden to other people as a source of magicial energy - but when the other sources fail, she must ignore convention.

FOR DISCUSSION

Have you read any works of fiction which show how a magician raises power?

How does the magician in your story raise power? What does it feel like for her?

If you have questions about magic rituals and power-raising, or about any aspect of writing about magic, ask. I will be around for a week, and enjoy answering questions. 

Rayne's recent release, Storm Dancer, features Merida, a magician who dances for rain in the parched desert world in which she finds herself imprisoned. The novel is epic in scope and explores the concept of a djinn that possesses Dahoud,  a former warrior, compelling him to commit terrible crimes against women. 


He and Merida find themselves thrown together by circumstances beyond their control. Will he  able to defeat his djinn, and will she be able to forgive his transgressions to accomplish the impossible and save the town entrusted to their care? 


Mysterious, dark, full of political intrigue and meticulously researched, Rayne brings this Bronze Age world to life right before the reader's eyes with unique, fascinating characters, vivid detail, and a complex, compelling plot. She puts her expertise on writing fantasy, magical systems, and fight scenes to the test, leaving readers unable to resist turning the page.


If you'd like another chance to win a free electronic copy of Storm Dancer, ask a question, make a comment, or simply ask to be entered in the random drawing, and give Rayne a way to contact you.

Read An Excerpt

Amazon Buy Link

Rayne Hall teaches an online workshop 'Writing about Magic and Magicians'. Create believable magicians (good and evil), fictional spells which work, and plot complications when the magic goes wrong. Learn about high and low magic, witches and wizards, circle-casting and power-raising, initiation and training, tools and costumes, conflicts and secrecy, love spells and sex magic, and apply them to your novel. This is a 4-week class with 12 lessons and practical assignments. If you wish, you may submit a scene for critique at the end of the workshop.

The next dates for this workshop:

March 12, 2012: Low Country Chapter of RWA

April 2013: Fantasy, Futuristic & Paranormal Chapter of RWA

Rayne's other workshops include 'Writing Fight Scenes', 'Writing Scary Scenes' and 'The Low Word Diet'. Click here for an updated listed of upcoming workshops.


Artwork by Kuoke and LadyArmageddon. Copyright Rayne Hall