I haven't "talked shop" on here in a while but that's something that I plan to rectify. Starting with the indomitable Dr. Grady Hunter!
If you've been around for the past couple of years then you probably already know Grady. He's one of my lead protagonists in the ROAM series and a reader favorite in terms of characters. If you're new then you'll get to know him soon; especially when ROAM gets re-released through NineStar Press this July! But this post is about the possibility of you getting to know him a lot better, much sooner! At least...that's the tentative idea.
As stated in the post title, this is definitely a work in progress but also a long time coming. Allow me to give you a little background. I first wrote ROAM in the Autumn of 2015. Grady was a full-fledged BAMF with quite a thorough, and vastly mysterious, backstory. After finishing the first book and beginning work on the sequel, HUNTER (Currently unavailable due to ROAM finding a publisher. HUNTER will have its own re-release down the road.), I quickly realized that there were so many possibilities for a prequel. I had already tackled a prequel novel with The Revelation of Dacey Sinnett and I just knew that eventually I'd want to give life to all of the adventures that had already crept up in my mind in forming Grady's early years. His pre-ROAM life; specifically in the early '90s.
Thankfully, I retain the rights to all of my characters and have quite a few liberties in writing whatever new material that I'd like for them. And I finally feel that I'm ready to really dive into this project. The characters are already there, the stories have been percolating over the past couple of years, so I really only lack making one definitive decision. What format should I tell it in?
I'll start by discussing the current frontrunner; although, it would also be the most time-consuming and challenging.
Webcomic. For years, I've had people telling me that I should create a graphic novel or comic. As a freelance illustrator with a BFA in Studio Art, this seems like a no-brainer. My style is already cartoonish and, to be honest, I could probably use some focus in my art life. I tend be all over the place! Taking on a project like this would be an exciting learning experience and it would also finally tie in my illustration with my books in a cohesive and fully encapsulating way. It's terribly tempting. EXTREMELY tempting. The drawback would definitely be finding the time to work on it regularly. But here's a peek at what some of the characters might look like:
Wattpad Short Story Series. Another option would be utilizing old reliable Wattpad. Really no drawbacks there and a lot of you found me through that platform in the first place. I think this would be the most obvious option.
Blog Series. That's right! Posting them right here on the blog in its own series. Not really sure how practical that would be. And if I did it, then it would probably become a mixture of short story and minor illustrations. A lot of planning would still need to go into a structure for this venue.
So, that's where I'm at. Grady's Case Files. I just need to choose a medium and then I can really get to work. If you have any preferences, let me know! I'd love to hear your thoughts.
x, DS
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WEEKLY LINKS & THINGS
Alternative Model, Nils, keeps being lions and other beasts it's as amazing as it sounds.
If you're not already listening to BØRNS you should be.
Whimsy & Noir is starting to illustrate her daily outfits and I hope she continues because they're rad.
Prisma Visions Tarot is its own brand of magic and I'm obsessed.
