Lou Paduano | Urban Fantasy Novels | Sci-Fi Crime Series

The Cult of Anubis strikes this week

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If you’ve read last week’s chapters of Army in the Obelisk, you know things aren’t looking so good for Soriya. This week continues the story with Part IV – The Cult of Anubis. Loren desperately searches for his missing partner and uncovers a deadly threat to the city.

The thought behind Part Four

This part is a little different than the rest. There are some ties to a previous story from the series – Connections – which can be found in Pathways in the Dark.

When I was putting together the series, my aim was to keep it standalone. And it is. Mostly. But if you’ve read the releases before this, you know there is more to the Cult of Anubis and their leader Osiris. You know where their story continues, so I took some time to make that definite connection to Pathways.

I love those connections to the larger narrative. As a reader, it pulls me in and as a writer, I think it helps with worldbuilding. Every story – big or small – should have a lasting impact, and that was my goal with this part of Army. That while the Cult of Anubis might not be the center of matters for this book, they will return to pose a danger to Portents and to our heroes.

Connections

As an added treat, subscribers to the Patreon will be able to read the Cult of Anubis’ first appearance this Friday! There’s a lot to love about this one, and I remember how fantastic some of the imagery throughout was when putting the story together. From the Onna Bugeisha to the pyramid buried beneath the city, this story showcased everything I love about Greystone.

I hope you enjoy both stories this week. Next Wednesday, Part Five arrives with a murder in the Courtyard and the arrival of some cool new characters.

Pathways in the Dark Sale Begins Today!

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The build up to the final Greystone book continues this week with a sale on the penultimate chapter!

Pathways in the Dark is only $0.99 right now!

Grab your copy on Amazon today!

The dark pathways of Portents tell of frightful demons and characters’ surprising histories.

Detective Loren and Soriya Greystone’s journeys continue in the next series of tales in the Greystone Collection, Pathways in the Dark. Discover new monsters in Portents, including a phoenix, an onna-bugeisha, and the cult of Anubis. Delve deeper into Detective Samantha Myers’ secretive past, and follow Captain Ruiz as he continues to be plagued by the demons of Portents, even during his leave of absence. As Loren and Soriya battle the city’s monsters and their fractured relationship alike, they come to realize that everyone has two stories…and that nobody can be trusted, no matter how well you think you know them.

The next anthology of the Greystone Collection further casts the city of Portents in the shadows, showing that no one is safe.

The shadows are growing…

See where the seeds for A Circle of Shadows are planted in this thrilling collection of tales that push Soriya and Loren into the darkest corners of Portents.

Some of my favorite moments with these characters are included in this book. Check it out today!

Sale ends September 6th!

Buffalo Comicon is in two weeks!!!

That’s right! The fall convention in the Queen City is here with guests galore and thousands of free books!

September 15 and 16th at the Buffalo Niagara Convention Center!

Stop by my table and say hello. Grab your tickets now!

Founder’s Day Commentary – Challenges Part 2

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Welcome back to the Founder’s Day author commentary! SPOILER WARNING for those just joining in.

As I mentioned last time, there were a number of challenges in putting together this tale. Not only was Founder’s Day meant to the centerpiece of the collection, it also set up events in A Circle of Shadows, served as a sequel to Resurrectionists AND had to play as an entry point into the series.

(It failed on the last point…)

Part of that failure came because of an integral part of the series was not present in the story.

Where the hell was Soriya Greystone?

One of the main characters was missing? Not my brightest idea, to be sure.

There were many reasons behind her absence. Collateral set up their separation. This tale was an extension of that divide, one put in place by Loren.

That is the story level reason. My own reason was to keep the interplay locked on Loren and Myers. To keep the story grounded in the detective side of things for a change and see how the plot developed.

It was meant to offer a different view of Portents, one where the crazy isn’t so obvious or easily explained thanks to having Soriya right there with an answer.

Coming from a narrative standpoint, for where the story falls in the series, this choice made complete sense.

From an entry point perspective? Not at all. Again, this is one of the many challenges I had in putting together the story. While I eventually let Founder’s Day out into the wilds of publication as its own entity, I struggled with the decision for months because of questions like these.

Would Soriya have strengthened the narrative? Not in this case. Not with where the character’s are in their story. Loren’s made the choice to avoid her until he can figure out the meaning behind the photo given to him by Myers. If Soriya entered into the story thanks to the high profile murders it would have derailed Loren’s story and even his growing relationship with Myers.

Something I will talk about next time…

The title debacle…

Founder’s Day isn’t grammatically correct. So not only was I dealing with my own qualms about the narrative I had to deal with the title as well.

I should have been fine changing it to Founders’ Day. It’s fine but that damn apostrophe bothered me. I spent an entire day figuring out how to keep the title as Founder’s Day and eventually realized that because of the multiple founders involved, because of the parade in honor of the day it works as Founder’s Day.

It’s things like this that make it impossible to sleep sometimes!

Griping done!

That’s never the intention behind the author commentary. I did want to showcase the challenges in this tale, however. It’s important, especially for any writers out there, to realize that not every story comes together without some real difficulties. Not always in the telling but in how it is packaged, how it is released into the world.

Founder’s Day was an eye-opener for me. Do I remain proud of the work? Absolutely.

Do I wish I would have done things a little differently when releasing it? Definitely.

And those lessons will be carried over to the DSA series when it comes out.

Founder’s Day Commentary – Challenges Part 1

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Welcome back to the Founder’s Day author commentary! SPOILER WARNING ahead and some insight into the challenges in putting together a series…

Wearing too many hats.

Writing a series can turn into an enormous mess sometimes. One would imagine when putting events together things would flow in a linear fashion. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. There are greater concerns tucked in the background of the writing process, unseen by the reader.

Which is probably where I should keep this blog but I prefer to share my troubles (and triumphs) when I can.

Founder’s Day had the unfortunate place in the series of wearing too many hats.

Instead of being the centerpiece of Pathways in the Dark, it was also the sequel to Resurrectionists.

Instead of offering a complete narrative, it also had to set up events to come in A Circle of Shadows.

Instead of being contained within Pathways in the Dark solely, it was also a free novella offered to readers and retailers.

And the story had to fill each of these needs; each of these roles.

Did it succeed?

I don’t think it did. I like the story. I enjoy the interplay between the characters and the mystery attempted to be solved. There are, in fact, a number of strong points in the tale:

The opening with the “dragon.”

Samantha Myers standing shoulder to shoulder with Loren.

The murders and subsequent mythology behind their deaths.

I enjoyed all the aspects of the story and putting them together was a treat.

Where did it fail then?

In standing on its own. There is a beginning, middle and end, sure. But when it comes to looking at Founder’s Day, there is no way to read it without some knowledge of the series.

I know that is the point of writing a series. Starting from book one and going, but for this to work as a free novella to draw in new readers Founder’s Day had to be its own thing. And it couldn’t because of the restrictions I had placed on it.

On the hats the tale was forced to wear.

It still works…

Reading through Pathways in the Dark, the tale still offers readers a great little story. It opens the door to A Circle of Shadows and pulls in the history offered by Signs of Portents and Resurrectionists.

On its own? As a free novella? As an entry point to the series?

I blew it on that front. I’ll be the first to admit it. I needed the story to do too much in too limited a space and then added the horrible idea of offering it as an entry point to the series.

Probably my biggest mistake of the series. And the fault is mine, not the narrative.

Lesson learned.

Next time!

Challenges Part 2 – Where the hell was Soriya? And what’s the deal with the title?

Connections Commentary – Hints for the Future

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One final look at Connections! SPOILER WARNING is in effect for the Pathways in the Dark author commentary! Beware!

I mentioned 2 goals, didn’t I?

It’s been a bit since our last look at this tale but I mentioned having two goals with Connections. The first, and foremost, was the give Gilgamesh the boot from the series (for now). It was a necessary evil, but there was no way to make his presence work with where things are heading in A Circle of Shadows and set up Soriya’s growing isolation nicely.

The second goal, and the enjoyable one for me, was in laying out hints of things to come.

The good and the bad part of hints…

There are two sides to this coin and it is one of the points of my writing I work very hard at when outlining. Hints come at a cost. You are committing the narrative to an event of some kind that can’t be forgotten.

There has to be a payoff.

But it can be fun to create those moments. Connections is FILLED with them. Go on and read it again.

I’ll wait…

Done, yet? Good.

Every aspect of Connections is a hint for what is to come. Gilgamesh’s abduction by Ishtar and the forces of Anubis comes about because someone knows he is in Portents and working with Soriya.

Who? Who could be working in the shadows and manipulating events like that?

Then, of course, there is the big climax of the tale where Gilgamesh reveals his connection with Death and how it keeps an eye into the future…

The original ending of The Medusa Coin…

Yeah, I tend to keep my favorite bits even after they’ve been sent to the cutting room floor. In the original draft of The Medusa Coin, Gilgamesh meets Soriya in the Bypass chamber and offers hints of the future. He talks about events down the line and choices to be made that will impact everyone.

It didn’t work. It was forced and held no place for the narrative.

This later became the coffee house scene and the small tidbit about the Bypass falling if Soriya isn’t careful. Much clearer and it fit the moment.

Connections allowed me to revisit the original ending to The Medusa Coin, but use it in a fun, foreshadowing way for readers with a keen eye on what is happening in Greystone.

I don’t want to get into specifics. That spoils the game. And while I haven’t heard from many on the subject, I hope it managed to spark some ideas in your heads about what is on the horizon. That’s why I like playing with the notion of the future, of hinting at longer stories tucked into the background.

To spur imagination. To enrage readers (to some degree) and get them ready for what is coming down the line.

Connections Commentary – Build Up Then Tear Down

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SPOILER WARNING is in effect as the Pathways in the Dark author commentary continues!

Building Connections

Soriya’s arc in The Medusa Coin was all about building connections. She realizes her secrets from Loren, her lack of trust in handling the Erikson case, hurt their cause and almost caused Loren’s death. That couldn’t happen again.

Her eyes opened to the need for others, something she always wanted anyway. By the end, Soriya walks away from the Bypass to search for a new home.

And she gains an ally in Gilgamesh.

For me, at this stage in her arc, Soriya’s goal is to grow, to humanize, in a city where all kinds of insanity occurs to dissuade her from that. Making friends with Gilgamesh cements their bond by the end of The Medusa Coin.

And it causes her to trust in his presence.

Creating my own problems…

Unfortunately, I knew where we were headed in Greystone. For all my efforts of building up these connections, of cementing friendships for Soriya, I knew I had to end some.

I had to sever ties to push her where she needed to be for A Circle of Shadows.

That became one of the two goals in Connections. How to take Gilgamesh, who has just committed to being Soriya’s ally in the fight ahead, and knock him from the board.

I’ll be honest – I didn’t want to do it. At all.

I had the same fight when it came to breaking up Loren and Soriya. Driving the wedge between them was the toughest choice I ever made. Was it the right one? Absolutely.

Did I struggle with it? Oh, hell yeah.

The same held true in this. Gilgamesh was fun to write. There is untold potential in writing a character that has served as Death for centuries and is suddenly part of the world once again. (I wrote down three separate notes about potential stories while typing this…)

But his presence, his friendship with Soriya, for as much as I wanted it to be there, needed to move in a different direction.

Tearing them down.

Finding cause to do this was tough. Having Gilgamesh run from Soriya at the end, to disappear for fear of what might happen should someone else figure out who and what he is, was probably the toughest scene to craft in the tale.

I went back and forth on the how of it. On the reasons behind each choice.

There was a moment where killing Gilgamesh off made it easier than simply walking away. I didn’t want that. I wanted to know he was still out there, able to be part of the narrative to come.

By tying his fear to his connection with death, by making it about his potential to be exploited and used against Soriya cemented the decision for me. It also based his departure in friendship, in their deepening connection, rather than be abrupt and out of place.

Using the knowledge we learn about Gilgamesh and then tying it to the overarching story playing out in the background strengthened the final choice all the more.

What this means for Soriya down the line comes to light in A Circle of Shadows, this September.

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