Know the Novel Part 1: Introducing Kings Bleed Gold

Look at me actually joining in on my own linkup and telling you guys about my NaNoWriMo novel. And only 3 days before NaNo. I’m always so on top of things!

Okay, in my defense I didn’t really know all that much about my novel until now. But I’ve been feverishly outlining it and digging into my characters and doing tons of worldbuilding and I ACTUALLY KNOW WHAT’S GOING ON NOW. Woot, woot! Or, well, we’ll pretend I do. Ahem.

ANYWAYS.

Today I’m going to be answering the questions for my Know the Novel linkup, which you can find info for HERE if you missed it. But basically, it’s a 3-part linkup that asks questions about your novel and writing that you can answer on your blog (or anywhere on social media!). Part 1 runs through October, so there’s still a couple of days left to join in if you haven’t yet!

SO. I am fiiinally properly introducing my NaNo novel, Kings Bleed Gold, which is a King Midas retelling WITH DRAGONS. But also creepy fairies and an underground city-type place and weird magical technology and so. much. pain. It’s gonna be great!

HERE WE GO.

(Note: All the following pictures were found on Pinterest and do not belong to me. If you click on them, they’ll take you to their Pintrest pages.)

 

KINGS BLEED GOLD

1.) What first sparked the idea for this novel?

That’s a funny story actually!

Back in last October, my awesome friend Jenelle Schmidt created a twitter challenge called #Drachtober, in which she gave us 31 dragonish questions to answer on twitter for each day of October. (And she’s running it again this year, so if you follow me on Twitter and have been wondering why basically all my posts have been about dragons, that’s why! Of course, most of my posts are about dragons anyway. *cough*) One day, the prompt was “Best Friend for a Dragon”. I spontaneously said King Midas, because I thought, what dragon wouldn’t want a best friend who can TURN EVERYTHING TO GOLD HE TOUCHES? I mean, gold, dragons. It just makes sense!

Buuut then, being the plot bunny plagued writer I am, my brain ran with the idea and was like, “But what if the dragons weren’t friends with Midas, but enslaved him because of his ability???” Annnd here we are.

This is the original tweet:

So I’ve had a year to mull over the idea. Though it wasn’t until September that some fun plans for it attacked my brain. It was at that moment I knew it had to be my NaNo novel. But it’s been fun plotting it literally exactly a year after the first idea for it came!

But yep, you can blame Jenelle for this story. I don’t even know if she knows this is her fault… If you’re reading, THANK YOU, JENELLE! <3

 

2.) Share a blurb!

Ugh, who created such hard questions? Oh wait…

Okay, so I kind of hate this blurb with a deep, burning passion. It’s so terribly written UGH. But I just have not had time to spend perfecting a blurb, so…this is what you’re getting. Sorry.

“Midas has gold running through his veins—literally.

One day, when young Prince Midas and his little brother were out on one of Midas’ crazy adventures, they stumbled upon a da nerai—one of the secret homes of fairies. It was there they found the golden pool, and there Midas nearly drowned. With the help of his brother, he managed to escape the strange waters, but when he emerged, he quickly discovered anything he touched turned to gold, including his brother. After that terrible accident, Midas chose to assure his new ability would be a gift and never a curse again. He would use it make his kingdom the richest and greatest in all of Ellador. And his little brother, forever encased in gold, would be placed in the throne room and be honored for his sacrifice.

Now nearly eighteen, Midas is almost of age to take his place on the throne and truly enact his plans. But someone else has other ideas for this boy with the golden touch.

Life of pleasures and luxury quickly turns to tragedy when Midas’ kingdom is ravaged by a beast he barely even knew existed—a dragon. Next thing Midas knows, he’s being swept away by the terrible monster into an underground world full of dragons, strange, magical devices, and enslaved humans. The dragons have one goal: to live on the surface world. The problem? The sun is poison to them.

With the aid of fairies and their magic, the dragons are creating a way to block the sun’s poisonous rays. But to use this magic, they need gold. Now with Midas in their clutches, they have an infinite supply.

As Midas goes from crown prince to slave and forced into helping the very creatures that destroyed everything, he begins to fear that his ability is actually a curse after all. For if the dragons’ plan succeeds, a reign of terror and darkness awaits not just his kingdom, but all of Ellador.

 

3.) Where does the story take place? What are some of your favorite aspects about the setting?

I am super pumped about the setting!

It takes place in a fantasy continent called Ellador. Midas’ kingdom, Chrysafel (name subject to change), is based off ancient Greece, since the original King Midas myth is Greek. Plus I really like ancient Greek culture. It’ll be fun to attempt to write it for the first time! So some of the story takes place there.

Then there’s where the dragons live, which is underground because the sun is poisonous to them. FUN STUFF. And their homes basically hang from the ceiling and there’s weird glowing creatures and all sorts of crazy fantasy thiiings.

I’ll also be incorporating African culture. THEN there’s the places where the fairies live which are basically these secret forests dotted around the world that you can only get through by special means and they thrive off this special kind of magic (that involves gold hehehe). And all the fairy stuff is based a lot off Celtic culture. I’m even incorporating the “fairy ring” myth for something fun. I’M EXCITED.

So yeah, it’s probably my most diverse, wild world yet, and it makes me really happy.

But what’s probably my favorite aspect is it’s not going to be fully medieval-type fantasy like I usually do. Yes, a lot of the world has that flavor, but I’m also adding technology that runs on magic. There will be these special machines and weapons that are kinda futuristic, kinda medieval, kinda fantasy-esque all at the same time. Plus a lot of other stuff, like strings of light made with gold magic and yeah. Pretty much all the magic needs gold or blood or both to work. It’s gonna be interesting! And I really hope I can pull it all off. Eheheh…

 

4.) Tell us about your protagonist.

I sort of have three. Midas is my main, main protagonist, but two of the other characters play key roles. So I’m gonna cheat and give a brief description of all three!

MIDAS

ESTP, almost 18, extremely ambitious, bit of a lady’s man, really good at rationalizing his questionable behavior as a cause for the “greater good”, charismatic and fun but not always very sympathetic.

On the surface, Midas is actually a really fun guy. He’s always good for a laugh, has great conversational skills, and can charm the wall if he smiles at it hard enough. But that’s the problem, all his relationships never go past the surface. He’s far too caught up in his goals and ambitions to truly care and think of others at an emotional level. It doesn’t help that anyone who touches him turns to gold, so he has to be very guarded with his human interaction. He’s convinced himself he doesn’t need any deep relationships, that being able to use his ability to make his kingdom the greatest in Ellador is worth the sacrifices, buuut well. He still has a heart. *smile, smile* It’s gonna be so fun to completely and utterly break him of his selfish, cocky, warped-thinking self. Bwahahaha! (Also, that picture of him isn’t exactly how I imagined him (plus the guy is too old lolz), but it’s close!)
(If you want to know more, you can check out my Language of Worlds post I did for him HERE.)

KORINNA

ISFJ, softhearted, kind, broken, extremely smart but far more of a feeler than a thinker, lets her own fear constantly drive her, probably could use a hug or 12.

Korinna is a warmhearted soul, though her fear, depression, and determination to keep everyone safe is her ever-driving force and can often hinder her relationships. She would do anything to assure no one gets hurt, even if that means putting herself in harm’s way. She is organized, efficient, and focused—all around having a good head on her shoulders. Her sharp wits mixed with diplomacy helps keep her alive, though she won’t shy away from a debate if she sees an injustice that needs to be put right. Her want to keep others safe and happy very often hinders in her own happiness, as she’s not quick to share her own fears and worries, despite always having time to listen to other’s needs. She carries her own emotional baggage, making her a highly sensitive being. But, if you can find her in the right mood, you will see there is a fun-loving, mischievous person behind that shroud of emotion and fear.
(I also did a Language of Worlds post for her HERE.)

SYRAM

INFP (I think), spacey, somehow both wise and childish at the same time, surprisingly intelligent, rather quiet and private, relaxed and very sympathetic to others.

OKAY GUYS. This guy may be what makes me the most excited about my novel. I know I’m not supposed to choose favorites but… *GRIIINS* Syram kinda popped out of nowhere while I was outlining (and also wouldn’t tell me his name for like TWO WEEKS) and I fell in love. Some of my favorite types of characters EVER are those off-their-rocker, not really all there types, ya know? The…well, the crazies. Such as Winter from The Lunar Chronicles. I LOVE THOSE. And here Syram bebopped into my brain and pronounced himself such a character and I was all WELCOME!

As I said, Syram is a not always there. He’s known for his vague looks and off-the-wall remarks and sometimes childish behavior. But then, every once in a while, he’ll say something so wise it sounds like he’s 100 years old or something. Despite his strangeness, he’s the nicest person you’ll ever meet. He’s a harmony maker, and his calming presence can be very comforting. His shortcoming is the fact that he very rarely reveals anything about himself, being private and too concerned about other’s wellbeing. As a result, he carries a huge emotional load. But he’s also hardworking, creative, and very fun-loving. And he has a mysterious past and everyone but Midas and Korinna hate him because of reasons and he’s kinda broken inside because I always torture my favorite characters the most. SO YAY. FUN STUFF. ButseriouslyIlovehim.

So those are the three I shall be spending all of November with. I AM EXCITED. And don’t worry, there is not a love triangle between them. I’m actually super, super pumped about some purely platonic but deep friendships I’ll be exploring in this novel, including an awesome bromance between Midas and Syram. MY FAVORITE.

 

5.) Who (or what) is the antagonist?

Well, basically all the dragons for one. They are capturing people and dragging (and I just typed that as “dragoning at first, which I guess is also accurate?) them underground and enslaving them. So nice. This’ll be my first book where dragons are evil. It’ll be interesting.

But then there’s also a certain group of fairies that end up being a huge part of the plot and make things even messier.

And I guess sometimes Midas is his own antagonist because despite being really smart he’s just so, so dumb ugh.

So yeah, there are antagonists everywhere. I basically never have just one main villain. Because why do that when you can make your readers scratch their heads and go, “Um WHO are we rooting for and who are we hating again???” *smile, smile*

 

6.) What excites you the most about this novel?

SYRAM!!!

Oookay, lots of things!

I am excited about the setting, I think it’s gonna be a lot of fun. I’m also looking forward to trying my hand at mixing an old world setting with magic and some technology.

I also really like the concept of the fairies. They’re not your average little people with wings. In fact…the don’t even have wings, and are normal human height. But they do have magic and wildly colored hair and grayish skin and golden eyes and antlers growing from their heads and live in these areas that are kinda sort of in alternate dimensions and they’re all bound to each other and yeah. I really like my fairies!

 

Basically how I imagine my fairies.

And this is weird, but I’m excited about how emotional it’s going to be. I KNOW. I have a problem! But like, my favorite scenes to write are always the ultra feelsy, painful ones, and this whole novel will basically be one giant ball of pain with some pretty heavy themes and IT’S GONNA BE FUN. I’m really not making this sound any less weird. Should I be worried about myself? Probably.

Also DRAGONS. Last year was the first NaNo novel I ever wrote that didn’t have dragons. IT WAS CRAZY. It’ll be nice to be writing about dragons again. My happy place. Except this time they’re not-very-nice dragon which is kinda new for me but it’s gonna be fun!

 

7.) Is this going to be a series? Standalone? Something else?

Ehehehe. Funny story about that.

When I decided to write this book, I had every intention of making it a standalone. Right now, standalones are more popular than series, and as much as I enjoy series, it’d be nice to write some standalones. That was my goal for this book. A pure standalone, no exceptions.

……….

Well. Then I started plotting, and more characters appeared and the plot got bigger and more convoluted and ideas kept coming and I may have wailed because HOW WAS I GONNA FIT THIS ALL IN ONE BOOK? And I had an existential crisis or two and questioned everything and got really stressed because I did not want this to be like a 200k beast NO.

Then I took a deep breath, prayed about it, mulled it over and…I decided to make it more than one book. *LE SIGH* I’m hopeless, I really am. But, honestly, the second I decided it, all the stress was gone. It just felt…right.

So yep, Kings Bleed Gold is no longer a standalone. BUT, I am determined it will not, not, NOT go past a trilogy. Although, I’m actually hoping to make it a duology, but obviously my hopes and plans mean NOTHING. >.> But yeah, no longer than three books. I REFUSE.

 

8.) Are you plotting? Pantsing? Plansting?

So much plotting. Like, detailed character bios, a list of reminders for important bits about the world and such, and, um, a 16k chapter-by-chapter outline type of plotting

Do I over plot? Probably. But at least I won’t get writers block during NaNo! Woot, woot! (Unless my outline decides to jump off the deep end but we’re gonna pretend everything goes as planned. I really, really hope everything goes as planned.)

 

9.) Name a few things that make this story unique.

Well, I guess the entire concept of King Midas and dragons is kinda unique??? Maybe? I literally have no idea. I’ve never actually read any King Midas retellings. Eheh. It’s honestly not even a story I’ve ever paid much attention to and yet here I am writing a retelling of it. Lolololol someone help me.

I also think my whole magic system and how it’s tied into gold and blood (and the sun is actually also involved) is a little different. And the way the magic is mixed with technology to make everything work. Plus the fact that there is some technology in an ancient Greek-esque setting.

I don’t even know! I’m just throwing a bunch of random stuff into one story and hoping it works. XD

 

10.) Share a fun “extra” of the story.

Firstly, here is my Pinterest board, which I love and adore. All the gold mixed with a touch of other colors is so aesthetically pleasing to meh eyeballs.

Secondly, here's a link to my playlist on YouTube. Because I’m a weirdo and still haven’t made a Spotify account. I DON’T KNOW WHY. But yeah, I’ve been compiling songs on YouTube and it’s seriously the most emotional playlist I have ever made. It’s basically all epic instrumental pieces and I LOVE IT. It totally makes me pumped to write! (And also gives you a hint of how feelsy this story is eheheh.) This song and this one are probably my favorites if you just want to listen to a couple and not all 30+ that are on there. XD

And there we have it! Waaay more information than you ever needed about Kings Bleed Gold. Sheesh, I wonder why I keep having to write series and not standalones??? #foreverlongwinded

Needless to say (except I’ve already said it like 29 times in this post), I AM EXCITED FOR THIS STORY!!! I don’t think it’s going to be the easiest to write between the heavy themes, complex storyline, and crazy world, but I’m totally up for the challenge!

And don’t forget there’s still a couple of days to join in this linkup! All the details HERE!

Next time you guys hear from me we’ll be a few days into NaNo! O____O

 

TALK WITH ME!

What’da think of my dragonish King Midas story? Can you believe NaNo starts in THREE DAYS???? *hides under shock blanket* WHO’S PUMPED?! (My NaNo profile is HERE if you want to be buddies! *hint, hint*) HAPPY NANOING, GUYS!!! *throws motivational cookies at everyone*

 

P.S. For all of those who asked to join my NaNo Google Hangouts, it’s up and running! I think I’ve added everyone who asked to join, but if I missed you, do send me an email and let me know! (Also, I discovered you DO NOT have to have a gmail account to join so yay!) And if I’ve added you but you haven’t seen it yet, go to https://hangouts.google.com/ and there should be a chat box titled “The Pen Dragons” there, which is what we’ve decided to call ourselves for now. *grins*

If you have no clue what I’m talking about (but are interested in joining a Hangouts chat full of enthused writers), you can check out last week's post. Scroll to near the bottom where it says “A Special Invitation” and you’ll find all the info!