The Age Question

I've been getting some questions about Jessica's age.  No one's complained, but I think there's been a little discomfort that she's younger than your typical "young" protagonist -- especially in view of the harrowing situations she has to face, many of which would have an adult curled up in a ball.  In answer, and to quote myself from an interview question: these are modern considerations.  People ruled empires at 15 and 16 in the past.  We aren't any different now than we were then; modern society has imposed these conventions, and they have nothing to do with real ability or actual readiness.  In fact, probably a lot of modern issues in the "difficult" teen years (that weren't an issue a thousand years ago) would go away if we let kids get the show on the road.

This isn't to say all 16-year-olds are ready to be leaders.  They aren't.  But then neither are all 30-year-olds.  :-)  And so if the talent is there, if the ability is clear, age is an arbitrary limitation.

When I began writing Star Angel I felt the hero needed to have the resilience of youth.  Jess goes through so much more than an average, fictional adult would be expected to endure, absorb, and keep going.  We find later why this is true for her.  At the outset her age may make us a bit skeptical, but by the final installment we're no longer giving it a second thought.  Only that she is who she is, that she's done what she's done, and that the reality of her accomplishments is all that matters.

I did the following on the Team Star Angel site, and I'm going to do it here.  Something that's getting a bit ahead of plans, but because this question is coming up it will probably be a good thing.  Following is an excerpt from the final book, Book Five: Prophecy.  This is Jessica, and her own thoughts as she muses over this very thing.

Here it is.

FROM BOOK FIVE:

Jess thought maybe what she’d done so far, all she’d accomplished, took the sort of perspective only a teenager would have.  Not yet weighed down by the failures and impossibilities of life, able to have the insane optimism needed to make the attempt.  To believe it could be done.  To absorb the kind of trauma such epic events entailed and move on.  Even that shocking trip to Anitra -- she found herself thinking all the way back, to where this began -- events that would’ve left an older mind scarred ... even after that she managed to fight her way through and survive.  Then slip back into normal life.  Though she seemed too young to be the hero of this crazy story maybe youth was exactly what was needed to make it work.  Maybe that sort of durable optimism was the only thing keeping the whole charade in motion.

Things failed.  But they never failed unless you tried.  Likewise, things succeeded.  And, likewise, things never succeeded unless you tried.  And so the only way was to try.  To make the attempt.  And she had.  Often terrified, often wanting to do nothing more than curl into a ball and wish it all away she’d persevered.  And, so far, the greater part of her attempts had been successful.  Success outweighed the failures and here she was, having achieved what she set out to do and, voila, the teen girl had done the impossible.

Writing And Music

I've been asked about music, and whether I listen when writing.  In general I do.  Especially during the initial phase, when creating the first draft.  That's the "writing into blank pages" part, getting it out for the first time, and in my experience the right music helps.

During the editing phase, after the initial writing is done, I prefer quiet.  It's easier to catch everything without distractions.  However, living in a small house, with lots usually going on, the isolation of music -- and a good set of headphones -- can become a necessity to get anything done.

So I've listened to a lot.  Across the writing and editing of all five books, I'd have to say I've probably listened to thousands and thousands of hours.  Maybe more.

Funny thing is, most of that was incredibly repetitive.  Certain songs worked for certain parts of the process and so I listened to those ... over, and over, and over again.

Here's a sample of some of my best options for the creative (first draft) phase:

Anjuna Beats - most

Armin van Buuren - much

Tiesto - many

George Accosta - some

Thrillseekers: Nightmusic - lots

And others of similar type; vocal trance, trance and house.  Less or no words, transcendent music.

Some video game soundtracks, such as Deus Ex: Human Revolution and others.  For certain scenes, some mixes like those by DJ Baby Anne, other breakbeats and dance stuff, old New/Dark Wave and Industrial, like Depeche Mode, The Cruxshadows, Assemblage 23, Front 242 and others.  Even a few pop songs; whatever might've been popular at the time I was writing.  In fact for one scene I remember listening to Selena Gomez on repeat for almost an hour.  I'm just being honest.

Please don't hate.  :-)

Writing some of the more intense action scenes I amped the aggression and/or pace.  Metal and similar styles, fast hits and hard beats, epic choruses if possible.  Specific tracks that worked:

Korn ft. Skrillex - Get Up

Static-X - Push It

Hadouken - Turn The Lights Out

Ministry - NWO

Volbeat - Warrior's Call

Stemm - Face The Pain

Eric B & Rakim - Follow The Leader

Five Finger Death Punch - Lift Me Up

Slipknot - Duality

Die Antword - Fatty Boom Boom

Led Zeppelin - Immigrant Song (Trent Reznor)

The Prodigy - Warrior's Dance

And others.

And, of course, throughout the books a few specific songs are named.  Generally I listened to those when writing those parts, just to get the feel of what was being referenced.

Music.  Not every writer uses it, but I believe many do.  I definitely find a use for it at certain stages.

Plus music is just awesome.

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Stand Alone, Walk On Water

A catchy post title, which I have to credit to my brother.  The story behind it is long, and involved, but the "stand alone" part applies to this post.  :-)

For this reason: Some stories that are part of a series can also stand alone. Book One of the Star Angel pentalogy fits this mold. Yes, it's the opening chapter of the five book series, and part of the whole, but it ends in such a way that it can stand on its own. It was written with that in mind. Kind of like the original Star Wars (1977). You could watch that one and walk away. Or, if you wanted more, you could go on to the next (The Empire Strikes Back) and jump on the train. Once you watch the second movie you're along for the ride.

So enjoy Star Angel Book One. Walk away if you're done. Or, if you want, go on to Book Two, and hang on as we spool out the rest.

Check the Star Angel site for dates.

[ TeamStarAngel.com ]

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Star Angel Release Schedule

We've laid out a schedule for Star Angel [ The Books ], and are on track to keep it.  The books are written, which means no waiting on the creative side of things.  Polishing, editing and so forth has been mapped out and we should hit these targets.  Books One and Two are released, and Book Three is on track for December.

In short, if you're enjoying things so far don't stress that you'll have to wait longer than expected.  These dates should be realistic.  :-)

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