When I was reading through the first draft of Out of the Shadows, I encountered a huge problem with the Fourth Battle for the City of Ezzer. I originally wanted
my main villain [***spoiler protected***] and Davian to engage in a fantastic sword fight across the city with glorious battle description and lots of sweat. I had it all planned out, and in my mind, it was going to be awesome. Unfortunately, while I was reading the draft, these thoughts hit me:
- “What am I thinking? My villain is too much of a coward. He’s not coming out if he thinks he’s not going to win the battle.”
- “Self-preserving little twerp.”
- “Holy crap. Now I’ve got to find him.”
I sat down and scanned through my mental map of the City of Ezzer and tried to figure out where my villain might have gone. (Yes it probably Would have looked quite hilarious to watch me trying to find this guy with my eyes closed…) During that time, my friend Sasha actually called and asked what I was doing. My response: “I’m looking for my villain. He’s hiding and I can’t find him.”
I eventually figured out where he was based on his character traits and my knowledge of the city. It took a lot of creativity and searching for answers to “what if” questions. (Always ask yourself “what if” questions.)
While I won’t spoil how I got my main villain out of the City of Ezzer, I will leave you with this hint: canafs…
PS Just an FYI, I’m not talking about Picante. He never sticks around long enough to get himself killed. Although, I’ve got to admit that he’s a self-preserving little twerp too….
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Fantasy, steampunk, and paranormal novelist M. B. Weston is the author of The Elysian Chronicles, a fantasy series about guardian angel warfare and treason. Weston is also the hose of The Final Cut In Movies radio show that airs on TMV Cafe Monday nights at 8:00 EST. For more information on M. B. Weston, visit www.mbweston.com. To receive notification of M. B. Weston’s book releases click here to subscribe to Dark Oak Press & Media’s e-newsletter.