Category Archives: All Beastking Chronicles

All posts pertaining to the Beauty and the Beast series ‘The Beastking Chronicles’

Inside of Bre

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

A growing concern in my mind over the years has been the increasing sense that Labriella, the semi-normal-perspectived main character, is a flat character. Most of that stemmed from having little to no interest in her. In the beginning, turning from a Damsel in Distress into a Damsel with a Kick was the main point of Bre’s origins and tendencies. Basically, she existed to show off Rome, and she was built to want to show off Rome.

But as any of my readers would readily tell you, Rome is not the type of guy to love a dunce just because she was there. Especially when she is the reason he hit rock-bottom for the second time in his long life, Rome would be more prone to kick the girl to the curb definitively than to wishy-wash back and forth with uncontrollable emotion over her exit. The magnitude of this is seen not only in Rome’s dealings with shopkeepers and employees, and with nobles, but also with the nobles’ showcases. A remote attraction to Kitiora can only be true if she has a brain, and the balls to kick him in them.

And yes, if you haven’t noticed, Bre’s concern over that last bit is grounded in reality, not jealous paranoia.

So, what is an author to do with a heroine who exists to be as unobtrusive to and un-hated by female readers as possible?

The first major recognition is that Bre lives in a world outside of my area of expertise. I do have professional ties to the medical world and service experience through prior employment. I know masseuses, nurses, and mushroom hunters. I now live in a wooded area. I grew up in a conservative religious culture. I have a family member who beat cancer post-surgery through homeopathic supplements and dietary changes. I have another family member who made burn cream in her backyard. But what do I really know about binding wounds, tinctures and tonics, poultices, and poisons? What about those “long-lost” apothecary skills? What about herbal remedies that aren’t attached to witchcraft?

Throughout (or despite, or because of) my long college career, I gradually found the opportunity to study some of these things: CPR, Wilderness First Aid, mushrooms and poisons books through inter-library loan and a co-worker, and tonics and tinctures through another co-worker, plus pheromonal experimental study results as they relate to psychology.

Today, I add to that study through a couple preliminary classes on Udemy about massage and herbs.

The amount of behind-the-scenes research we conduct, even as Fantasy or Romance authors, is amazing. Just because we can create our own world from scratch, doesn’t mean we aren’t cobbling together actual starting matter based on real-world principles.

Beasts, Alphas, Doms, and the BDSM Line

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

First, I’d like to thank my anonymous reviewer for their compliment, in saying that my story was well-written. But second, I would like to address some concerns that this reviewer brought up.

For those of you who haven’t read the review, the subject is the mentality behind alphas and dominants, and what that tendency actually says about the person in question. This begs the question of whether an alpha can ever be considered a well-rounded character. Since one of my two main characters is a beast character, and he is the focal point, this tension makes up the crux of my story.

“I have always found over-the-top ‘alphas’ or ‘doms’ to be more than a little repugnant…”

Alphas and dominants certainly cater to a particular taste. The stories that revolve around them often center around the issue of control. This is because being an alpha means being at the top of the food chain, and therefore usually at the top of a societal structure. Think “natural leader” who’s got the fate of his clan or community or business in his hands. (Note that when most fantasy or paranormal readers see the word “alpha,” they typically think “werewolf pack leader.”)

Control for an alpha is a double-edged sword. On the one edge, he has to keep control of his pack—settling squabbles, administering justice, appeasing offended parties, protecting against outside forces. He’s the politician and the ranking military commander at the same time. On the other edge, he has to keep control of himself; he’s the most powerful member of his community, and he’s accountable for how he handles that power. Theoretically, he has the ability to bring down the whole pack with him. Not to mention every life he is responsible for is on his conscience.

Now, let’s move on to beasts. If you’ve snooped around Beauty and the Beast stories and TV shows, you’ve probably noticed that there are two types of beast characters that writers present: the man who is beastly on the outside, and the man who is beastly on the inside. Often beastly characters end up ugly on the outside as a reflection of being ugly on the inside (i.e., by a curse or a spell). But there are exceptions where a kindly man is unfortunate enough to end up with a repulsive appearance by no fault of his own. The woman who can see through that guise is richly rewarded—either by the amazing character of the man underneath it all, or by a more material peeling back of the ugliness to grant the heroine a physical representation of the beautiful man she knew him to be all along.

Now let’s look at my alpha beast character specifically.

My reviewer is right: Rome is incomplete, and he is damaged. His parents were murdered when he was a child, leaving him orphaned, and he didn’t cope well. Then he got a beast persona shoved into his already-existing personality. And then his best friend and crush dumped him, and he doesn’t know the whole story of why. He’s been abandoned most of his life, he’s in a constant psychological battle for his sanity, and he doesn’t understand love.

What he does understand is that he has issues—the kind that make him unsafe for people to be around. He feels a very strong connection to Labriella, but he doesn’t know what to do about it. He doesn’t trust himself to do the right thing, but he can’t bring himself to stay away from her either.

Labriella, for her part, does not stick around for the pain and pleasure of the experience. She sticks around because she feels the deep connection too. She sticks around because she wants Rome himself—even if that is impossible for him to comprehend. And she’s willing to demonstrate that by putting up with a lot.

If you think Labriella is the type to just “roll over” once she’s comfortable, though, you’re greatly mistaken. Rome has a way of bringing out the adventurous side of her. You’ve only had snippets of it so far. Remember, she’s used to that spark inside her being extinguished by the temple. Once she learns that Rome’s baiting her (rather than just trying to push her buttons)…well, let’s just say things’ll get a little steamy. Just give the tables time to turn.

What kind of relationship does that make this? Is it BDSM?
Well, Rome’s an alpha beast, so we’ve already got the “D” for “Dominance.” I did consider putting some light bondage into the story—the handcuffed or tied-wrists kind, not much beyond that. I’m still undecided as to whether that’s a good idea, though, because that might give you the idea that Rome has to tie her down to make her stay. And while he may think that, it doesn’t make it true. As for SM…well, the only pain between the main characters in this story should be incidental. Hurting one another isn’t going to make them happy or satisfied. In fact, Rome is deathly afraid of hurting her. Only a few love-bites might be on purpose.

The idea is that letting one person in can change everything. (…Well, that’s one of the ideas, anyway.) So, you’re right: Aggressive posturing is not the way. But my intent is not to glorify Rome’s aggressive posturing. The intent is to introduce a new element to soften it, and bring balance to the equation. And that element is Labriella.

So I would ask you this about Rome: Is he immature because he is an alpha? Or is he an immature alpha?

Because I would say that an alpha is supposed to take care of others. He shows his maturity by fulfilling this responsibility. But living alone does not facilitate relating to people. An alpha without at least one person to depend on him…How can he possibly learn how to be a good leader? How to be a good husband? How to be a good friend?

As for the kinds of women who are attracted to this kind of male character…

I theorize that there are 4 common draws to fictional alpha characters:

  1. the quest for power
  2. the desire to not be responsible for once
  3. sympathy for the emotional plight
  4. curiosity

Quest for Power. I’m talking about that man or woman who always has to be in control, be the best there is, or come out on top. They don’t care who they have to step on to get there. In fact, stepping on certain people might make them feel more powerful. And that’s good, because it’s all about them. They want to be that alpha. They’re jealous of him, so they’re studying him. One day, they’ll have more; they’ll be better. Or one day, they’ll have someone like him, to love and control. He’s the top dog, so they’ll make him submit, to prove that they are the only one who can do it.

Desire Not to be Responsible. Some people just plain get tired of being in control. They have to make all the hard decisions all day, every day. They always have to look out for themself, because nobody else will. They have to take care of their entire family, and they want to know who’s going to take care of them. Or they realize that they’re reserved or reclusive or socially awkward, or will always say “maybe later” to the person they’re actually dying to be with. To these people, an alpha male looks like the perfect solution. Maybe they’d push back in real life. But in the safety of their own head? He brings out their repressed wild side. And maybe, just maybe, they can trust him.

Sympathy for the Emotional Plight. It’s not about control at all; it’s about the person on the other end of it. The alpha has the weight of the world on his shoulders, and he may or may not know how to handle it. Who’s going to help him? Who’s going to care for his heart, when everyone else just cares about what he is or isn’t doing for them? Who’s going to hold him when he comes home exhausted and broken at the end of a long day? Who’s going to be his sidekick when nobody wants to follow his lead, or when he doesn’t believe in himself, or when the problem’s too big for him to face alone? “I’LL DO IT!” scream ten million fangirls. Because it’s not just about where he has the power and the prowess and the bravado; it’s about where he doesn’t. (Otherwise, he would be a hatable character.)

Or maybe they look at the alpha male, and say, “Hey, that reminds me weirdly of me…or how accomplished I wish I was. Where’s my sidekick love-interest?”

Curiosity. These are the outsiders looking in. They’re not really sure what’s going on, or how they feel about it, but they’re interested to see a new-to-them concept play out. “To each his/her own” is their motto. They’re just wondering what some people’s “own” looks like. They want to see something new and exciting. They can’t wait to see what happens next, because it doesn’t play according to the usual rules of engagement. They want to dip their toe into the forbidden pool. Or they just want to slake their curiosity so they can stop wondering what all the fuss is about.

Feel free to chime in with another reason to add to my theory. Or if you’re thinking, ‘Heeeey, that’s not right!’, feel free to correct. What good is a theory, if it’s not perfected?

I will end by saying that I by no means think alpha males should appeal to everyone. I myself am rather on-the-fence about it. I don’t like a character to be too strong, but I don’t like them to be too weak either. For me, it comes down to what that character does with what is given to them—them learning how to use it, what they learn from having it, and watching them grow from it.

Let the Story Begin

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

So here’s what I’m thinking:

When is romance/sex most poignant in a novel: when it’s just another nail in the coffin, or when it comes like a thief in the night, sneakily riding the wave of the plot until the perfect time?

I’m going to create another version of the story. I know I’ve been talking about it, but I’m actually going to do it, instead of just moving a few things around, adding in here or there. To me, it’ll still just look like moving things around. But to you, it will probably look like a full story makeover. I’m doing this for the sake of the story. There is a time for Rome and Labriella’s relationship to be hot and heavy. But I rushed it–not because I introduced attraction too early, but because I made attraction the main event. Yes, that attraction is vital, but I don’t have to singularly focus on it for it to come to pass.

I wanted to find out if I could write abruptly instead of detailed.
I could.

I wanted to see if I could write sex scenes.
I can.

I wanted to see if I can get away with detail and gore.
I did.

Now it’s time to write a story.

3 Seasons

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

3 Seasons Flow Chart

3 Seasons Flow Chart

Alright, I know this map is a little archaic, but I finally figured out what I’m doing with the seasons! It means a little backtracking to edit out some of the insinuations about winter, but I am totally willing to go there, because I can ascribe a different season per volume!

Volume 1 → Planting Season {spring equivalent}
Volume 2 → Mating Season {summer equivalent}
Volume 3 → Frozen Season {winter equivalent}

I know Fall is not on the list. Sorry autumn-lovers, but I’m throwing it out. It’s simply not a romantically productive season. Planting season has to do with birth and rebirth (of both plants and animals), Mating season has to do with heat (both sexual and sunshine), and Frozen season has to do with cold (which necessitates hibernation, staying inside, being under the covers, and sharing body heat). If I put harvest at the end of Planting season, making Planting season literally all about plants (from planting seeds to harvesting crops), and make Mating season the red-hot time when all greenery dies out, that eliminates the need for Fall.

Only three seasons–another little way to remind you that this is a fantasy, and a thematic way to distinguish between volumes. The season doesn’t matter so much to volume 1. But in volumes 2-3…well, you’ll see the difference–psychologically, leading to action.

So…that puts us in Mating Season for volume 2. I seriously hope you can guess from that what is going to transpire.

Which means volume 3 will have battle scenes in the bitter cold. Awesome. Death all around.

(And no, I’m not saying that last bit to be morbid. >_< )

Crayola Colors

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

I’m starting to feel like Mistress Healer with all the eye colors I’m drafting up! Suddenly I have a very deep appreciation for Crayola, what with naming their boxes of over 200 crayons. I thought all their crayon names were weird back then—I mean, seriously, Apricot versus Peach? Cerulean versus Cornflower versus Cyan? But now that I’m trying to figure out how many different ways I can say blue, pink, purple, green, or brown, suddenly all those years of coloring books and crayons were good for more than just honing motor skills and precursors to school projects. Who knew I’d end up expanding that expertise to novel-writing—illustrations with words and not just pictures?

Write What’s Not There

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

It’s been really encouraging to see people reading, following, and favoriting me as an author. As I’ve been hunting for stories online to read lately, I’ve been reminded of why I began writing my story in the first place. Sure, I was bored and didn’t have a book with me to read. But I also had devoured so many online stories that there were few left in my genre that appealed to me at the time. Exasperated, I realized that I had subconsciously developed an ideal male character in my mind’s eye, somewhere between a fantasy and a character I would want to read about…but he existed nowhere except in my mind.

And so I created him. And somehow, I ended up writing the kind of story that I wanted to read—the kind of story there are so few of. It’s a darker genre, traditional in its culture of men placed over women, but unconventional in its opportunities to flip things on their heads, and in its determination to get inside the characters’ heads.

And really, that’s what I wanted: An angsty fantasy story with graphic romance as both the problem and the solution. I wanted to see two strong main characters fight against themselves, each other, and the world to become one. I wanted to see the woman use her “lower” position in society to become valuable. I wanted to see the strong man have an identity crisis. I wanted to see a beautiful beast who remained beastly. I wanted to see up become down and down become sideways. I wanted to take the “known” (a well-known fairy tale in this case) and turn it into Wonderland (which is illogical/mind-boggling). If I saw one more Superwoman or girly-girl, I thought I would scream…or vomit. If I read one more “let’s get pregnant and have a family,” I was going to throw something. I don’t want to read about a kid; I want to read about the love bunnies. Everybody else can go take a hike. And why do I have to wait until next chapter for a POV change?! What if I want to know what they think now, when it’s most important and fresh in my mind?

And so Beauty and the Beast was born—renamed The BeastKing Chronicles now. A series, but really all one story. A story that could continue on and on for an eternity, because it follows an immortal. A story whose romance doesn’t end in a single volume to trade for another minor-character couple, or end in a family and a happily-ever-after. A story that’s full of trials, just like life—but extraordinary trials, such as you could never actually live. A story full of characters who would be phenomenal or terrible to meet in person—the kind that could make you lust or scream, murder or sex up.

Don’t you want to read that kind of story?

What kind of story do you want to read?
And why aren’t you writing it?

The Beloved Character

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

Budding writers are really getting into perspective shifts now. The ability to shift points of view makes writing in first person so much easier a feat, since otherwise it is so limiting. But I must admit, as a reader I tend not to be a fan of POV shifts—usually because I only really care for one particular character. In rare cases, I may care for more than one character, and then I find myself enjoying the current perspective but constantly looking forward to the next shift.

Oftentimes POVs are done by chapter, remaining in one perspective for the duration of a chapter, and then choosing whether or not to switch for the next chapter. But I had just about enough of that with J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings series. 30 pages of one character, and then I wait 100 pages for that character to turn up again? I couldn’t even concentrate on the next chapter because all I cared about was the previous character! Plus he was tracking so many characters, that by the time he came back around to one, I had already forgotten all about them, because I could only keep so many life stories in my head at one time (especially when getting distracted by scenery). Did anybody else have that problem?

The annoying thing about first person in general is that you can only view an event from one person’s perspective. Even with POV changes, most authors I’ve read rarely take the extra pages to recount the same event from a different character’s perspective. Perhaps they find it unnecessary, or overkill. And in some instances, given enough detail, I am sure they are correct. But in other instances, the reader really doesn’t know what a particular character is thinking. Sometimes that just adds to the suspense of the story. But sometimes, not knowing actually becomes a distraction while reading the story; for the next 10 pages you’re still trying to puzzle out one character’s reaction, and every word you read you hope is the secret decoder ring. So until you get that decoder ring, you miss everything that is said in the next several pages. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve had to flip ahead in a book to find a mini resolution, so I could go back and read the pages in between. (Though, thankfully, I don’t suffer that ailment with actual book endings, mostly because when you’re reading a series, book endings rarely make sense unless you’ve read the book all the way through.)

My story features two strong characters—two main characters. This is unusual. Usually there is only one main character (though they may have a lover or sidekick who is constantly at their side). In the event that there are two, one of the characters is typically “weaker” than the other—for instance, the scrawny geek who is smart enough to think himself out of any situation, or the warrior who calls upon his remarkable strength or strange powers to change the tide of the battle. But most fantasy novels feature a strong hero (who may or may not know they are strong) and a strong villain (who usually knows or figures out that they’re strong enough to oppose the way others want things to be).

However, Beauty and the Beast is by nature a story that defies convention in these respects. Even the title portrays each character as not any more significant than the other. Traditionally, Beauty is physically attractive, practical, self-sacrificial, and strives to see beyond appearances, while the Beast is lonely, defensive, stubborn, and has an appearance that is unacceptable to society. These attributes can take many different forms, and do not have to be dictated by any particular circumstances, which is what makes renditions of the Beauty and the Beast story so unique from one another. Beauty may be smart and well-read, but that doesn’t necessarily make the Beast less so—in fact, usually he has a library with more books than Beauty has ever seen. So Beauty and the Beast are not necessarily opposites. And even the Disney version shows them more than capable of arguing, making Belle quite the rebellious damsel in distress. If Belle wasn’t so stubborn, the Beast would probably have pushed her around all the time, and he might never have fallen for her.

It is very important to me that my Beauty and my Beast are STRONG characters. Strong characters aren’t always going to get along, and there is not always going to be a clear victor when they don’t. But strong characters make for an extremely passionate pairing. In other words, the couple can be counterproductive at times, but when their priorities align, they make a powerful team. The only way to take down such a team is to separate them.

Labriella may seem like a weak character because she gets blown around a lot. But the only reason she gets blown around a lot, is because she cares about Rome, who is not at all an easy person to have any sort of relationship with.

Rome, on the other hand, is extremely indecisive. He has no problem making definitive decisions and sticking to them, but he overthinks things when it comes to Labriella because he cares too much.

But do not make the mistake of thinking that either of these characters is weak. They are human—in soul at least. Good and bad, strong and weak, aren’t so clear-cut.

Flowcharts are Useful

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

Flow charts are really useful. No, really, they are. You don’t even have to draw all the little boxes (though I suppose you can, if you really like shapes; who knows, maybe drawing will stimulate the creative side of your brain!). Or maybe it’s technically called a “web” if you just have ideas and lines. But I don’t like the spider insinuations, so I’m going with “flow chart.”

“But WHY should I care about flow charts?” you’re probably asking. “What does this have to do with actual story progress?”

Everything. It has EVERYTHING to do with story progress.

See, sometimes I’ll just see things–almost like a vision. Whole scenarios will play out in my head, like I’m watching a real-life video. And when I write, I just write what I see. If I can’t describe it accurately enough, I draw a picture or create a diagram or make a list of possible alternate words to record the idea until I find the words to describe it.

But sometimes, a story can get bogged down by ideas. If you have too many ideas, and no clue how to organize them, you can hit just as much of a block as if you had no ideas. I might know exactly where I want to go, and what I want to happen before I get there, but how do I actually get there?

And that, my friends, is where Mr. Flow Chart comes in

New Series Name

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

I love the title “Beauty and the Beast,” because it immediately creates a point of reference in my readers’ minds for comparing and contrasting. But I also realize my series is rapidly diverging from traditional Beauty and the Beast routes (if it ever truly followed them at all). And in light of where I’m headed with the series as a whole…I’ve decided to name the series The Beastking Chronicles. So as the first volume of this Beauty and the Beast series draws to a close, remember the name of the series, so that you will be able to track the next installment of the series. As of today, I will start changing all references to the series from “Beauty and the Beast” to “The Beastking Chronicles.”

Writing Style Change

Posted by Seriah Black Sheep on

I realized after working on finishing chapter 2, and then jumping back to work on chapter 10, that my writing style has changed again. … Drat. This is a problem. I went from uber broad, to social-centered, and now to super detailed.

Given that the prologue isn’t supposed to fit style-wise with anything…except maybe some future “interludes” to give dramatic insight (foreshadowing) into some not-so-closely-followed characters. Or maybe ultimately I’ll just end up making the prologue read like the rest of the novel. I don’t know at this point.

But the problem I’m having that chapters 1 & 2 don’t read like 4 & 5, and 6 & 7 stand out above the rest like a monument–which is finally being overshadowed by the not-so-eventful chapter 10. And somewhere roundabout the scourge on my writing abilities/conscience that is chapter 8, my writing style tried to mutate once again. So I went back and added more detail to chapters 1 & 2…only to discover that my writing style has mutated AGAIN, and this time it’s so detail-oriented that I either have to scrap what I’ve rewritten and go back to the original, or revert the whole thing (all 10 chapters) to detail.

And, well, sorry to those of you that like a simple or easygoing read, but…I think detail is gonna win out on this one. The story just…READS better with the details; the emotion comes across more vividly. And really, the emotion is what this story is all about. If this story reads in monotone for you, you have every reason to call it trash. So at the risk of sensory overload (which is how my dad reacted when I read him the first couple lines of the dream sequence in chapters 1&2), I will be converting the story.

No worries. Basic plotline stays the same. No new plotline “events,” I think; just more social interactions (aka dialogues), and loads more description where there isn’t dialogue. …We’ll see about how much description ends up framing the dialogue.