Making The Novel

Introduction: “Mary Mackey’s  The Village of Bones , gives us the vivid adventures of  The Clan of the   Cave Bear,  the magic of  The Mists of Avalon  and  Lord of the Rings , and the beauty of  Avatar . Filled with the belief that love drives out fear, it contains stunning twists that will leave you wanting more.”             —Dorothy Hearst, author of the  Wolf Chronicles A perilous journey, a stunning prophecy, a dangerous love that could destroy humankind:  In 4386 B.C., a young priestess named Sabalah conceives a magical child with a mysterious stranger named Arash. Sabalah names the child Marrah. This child will save the Goddess-worshiping people of Europe from marauding nomad invaders called “Beastmen,” but only if her mother can keep her alive long enough to grow up. Warned by the Goddess in a vision of the coming invasion, Sabalah flees west with Arash to save h...

Introduction:  This excerpt is a chapter that was culled from  Atomic Aztex   (City Lights, 2006). Atomic Aztex as published takes place on two alternate realities—both mid-20th century—one where the Aztec defeated the Spanish, had colonized Europe and in coalition with their allies, Russian anarchists, during World War2 are helping to defeat the Nazis. The novel's action takes place in that alternate world at Stalingrad. The other alternate reality is in Los Angeles in a pork slaughterhouse in East L.A. (The City of Vernon). Initially, in the draft of the novel that was approximately 100% longer, the "story structure" (so-called) was that of a fractal structure, that is, capable of bifurcating at each chapter into realities spinning farther and farther from the original point of departure, more and more only remotely related to preceding events of the "story." So initially the editor could not make heads nor tails that structure, with every plot line bifur...

Introduction : This excerpt is from Tony Robles’ novel-in-progress,  Fillmore Flip , based on his family's experience living in the Fillmore District—a community of blacks, Filipinos, Japanese, Latinos—whose fabric of life is threatened by displacement by city officials, real estate and big business interests. Fillmore Flip Chapter 1 I don’t know who gave me the name  Fillmore Flip.  It was a muted birthmark, an invisible tattoo that attached to my skin like a blood flower. I was in my late teens and I could look my older brothers dead in the eye. Nobody ever called out the words  Fillmore Flip  when they saw me but it came through in nods and gestures. The neighborhood was a big womb that gave birth to a bunch of guys with nicknames—carved into walls and flesh--arms, legs, faces--spirits. Me and my running partners were born in the Fillmore… Fillmo’ . Some got here when they were 2 or 3 years old. Some folks called it “The ‘Mo’” or the “Filthy ...