Instead of our usual "When I'm not writing" post, we have a different guest post for you today, from the very talented Dianne Duvall. Without further ado, here are some confessions of a panster!
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Confessions of a Pantser
One of the most common questions I’m asked as a writer is whether I’m a plotter or a pantser. My answer: I’m a devoted pantser. When starting a new book, I don’t first sketch out a detailed plot outline. I simply sit down, open a new file, and fly by the seat of my pants. Yes, I know how much I want the overall series arc to progress. But the rest I allow to unfold as I write. And it’s a good thing I do, too, because giving my imagination free reign has allowed quite a few characters to surprise me, taking the story in directions I didn’t originally intend and affecting the Immortal Guardians series arc or plot in ways I never anticipated.
Ami, or Amiriska, was the first character to surprise me. I had no idea, when I began writing DARKNESS DAWNS (Book 1), that Ami would rise above her torturous past and become Marcus’s heroine in NIGHT REIGNS (Book 2). Nor did I realize what a prominent role she would play in ensuing books. Though her own book was the second in the series, her story with Marcus continues to unfold in NIGHT UNBOUND and will spark intriguing changes in the series arc.
Bastien is the second character who surprised me. When Sebastien Newcombe first burst upon the scene in DARKNESS DAWNS, he was the villain. His heart full of vengeance, Bastien raised an army of psychotic vampires he pitted against the Immortal Guardians, intent on destroying them. But there was just something about him that I (and many readers, I was pleased to discover) believed was redeemable. As did Dr. Melanie Lipton, who helped Bastien transform from villain to hero in PHANTOM SHADOWS (Book 3). Had Bastien not made that transition, the Immortal Guardians would never have considered taking an important new approach to the vampire menace, one that will feature prominently in NIGHT UNBOUND.
Zach, the hero of NIGHT UNBOUND, is the latest character to surprise me. Zach entered the series as a pretty enigmatic figure. Dark. Threatening. Seeming more foe than friend to the Immortal Guardians. And I intended for him to remain such: a rather mysterious, winged figure who occasionally slipped from the shadows to perform this deed or that and issue dire warnings and thinly veiled threats. Then he accepted a lollipop from Ami in PHANTOM SHADOWS and, aware of her tortured past, showed her kindness. When he did, he revealed a whole new side of his character. And his role in the series took a dramatic turn, one that would become more evident in DARKNESS RISES (Book 4) and culminate in NIGHT UNBOUND.
I’m so excited by the direction in which Zach has taken the series. And I love the deeper, richer character he has become. (He’s actually one of my favorites now.) Perfect for Lisette, the heroine. Lisette is a courageous, kick-butt, telepathic Immortal Guardian who has labored for centuries beneath the guilt of transforming her twin brothers. I always knew she wouldn’t seek happiness for herself unless her brothers found it first. But I had no idea whom she would eventually love until she captured, chained up, and interrogated Zach in DARKNESS RISES. Their intense fascination with each other fired my imagination, compelling me to write their story next . . . and I enjoyed it so much.Zach was a very welcome surprise. And I doubt he will be the last. That’s the joy of being a pantser. I can’t wait to see what will happen next, and hope you’ll join me on the journey. :-)
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For more Dianne, check out the following links:
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Here's the scoop on NIGHT UNBOUND:
For centuries, Lisette d'Alençon has been a warrior against the dark. She fights alongside her brothers and comrades. But when the dreams start coming, she can't bear to confess them to the Immortal Guardians' command. Dreams of a dark-haired man with soft eyes and brutal wounds, a man her heart aches for—and a man she knows has been declared a traitor.
Zach is an exile, a loner. He won't defend himself against false accusation or grovel to those who should have faith in him. But he'll damn sure defend the woman who kept him sane against a plague of supervamps that seems to have appeared from nowhere. The Guardians will blame him, and that will make Lisette suspect, too. With life, death and eternity on the line, who can they really trust?Purchase: Amazon | Book Depository
There's a tour-wide giveaway -- details in the Rafflecopter.
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New York Times and USA Today Bestselling Author Dianne Duvall earned a bachelor’s degree in English from the University of St. Thomas, where she studied fiction writing, playwriting, and poetry writing. Darkness Dawns, the first book in her Immortal Guardians paranormal romance series, was nominated for the RT Reviewers' Choice Award for Best Vampire Romance by RT Book Reviews and for Best Paranormal Romance - Vampire by The Romance Reviews. It was also deemed a Top Pick by The Romance Reviews and a Best Book by Long and Short Reviews. Night Reigns, the second book in the series, was nominated for Best Best Book of 2011 - Paranormal Romance by The Romance Reviews and declared an “utterly addictive” Top Pick by RT Book Reviews. Phantom Shadows, the third book in the series, has been declared a Top Pick by both The Romance Reviews and Night Owl Reviews.
Her Immortal Guardians novella In Still Darkness was released in the Predatory anthology on May 7, 2013, and has received many fabulous reviews. Darkness Rises, the fourth book in the series, hit the USA Today Bestseller list, has been nominated for the RT Reviewers' Choice Award for Best Vampire Romance by RT Book Reviews and was deemed a Night Owl Reviews Top Pick.
Dianne has also completed two not-yet-published paranormal romance novels that are prequels to Darkness Dawns. A Sorceress of His Own is a medieval romance with paranormal elements that won awards in the Lone Star, Where the Magic Begins, Southern Heat, Picture This, Book of Your Heart and Suzannah national writing competitions. Rendezvous With Yesterday is a time travel romance and won second place in the Picture This writing contest.
In addition to writing romance, Dianne has completed a one-act play (comedy) and teamed up with an award-wining screenwriter to write a spec script for a new situation comedy. Several of her poems have also been published in anthologies.
When she isn’t writing, Dianne is very active in the independent film industry and once even appeared on screen as a machete-weilding maniac not unlike the vampires she so loves to create in her novels.
Thank you for hosting Dianne today during the NIGHT UNBOUND blog tour!
ReplyDeleteI became addicted in this series since the first book. NIGHT UNBOUND, as expected, was amazing! Congrats to Dianne Duvall!
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