How to Say Goodbye: a tribute to the trilogy
Today I wrote the closing words to the trilogy that has been a part of my life for almost four years.
Sure, there’s still an epilogue to write, copious amounts of editing and refining, and beta reader feedback to come, but in essence, I’m preparing to step out of Tenebra for the last time. I think I have a little taste of what Peter and Susan must have felt on their list visit to Narnia; at least, I know I’d feel better if I could hug a big fluffy lion right now.
When I started the series in late 2019, I was a new nursing student, bright-eyed and ready to take on the world. Over the course of the series I made it to graduation, wrote and directed a summer camp play for hundreds of kids, had my first serious relationship—followed by my first major heartbreak—and reached the infamous one year anniversary of my nursing career, since which I’ve begun studying for my BSN and leadership roles in my hospital. The Tiding Bearer Trilogy has been there through it all, a therapeutic obsession, an invigorating fever. I can truly say that for the first half of my twenties, Doran, Mavis, and Errol have never been far from my mind.
My Pinterest has grown fat with over a thousand pins for every character, location, and concept I can glean from its golden pages; my trusty laptop boasts over 300,000 words in the manuscripts alone, not to mention the other 50,000-or-so in my scrapped documents, and my phone overflows with digital sticky notes bearing cryptic messages (“Need more peacock motifs!“) and notes to self (“Change attack scene from random rebel lady to unpolitical drunk guy.”) If writing is like living with one foot in each world, then I’ve been squatting in a trailer park on the border of Tenebra and The Real World ever since college, and to be honest, I can’t imagine my life any other way. The inhabitants of Tenebra have shaped me just as much as I created them, so saying goodbye feels less like bidding close friends “See ya later,” and more like kissing my children for the last time as they set sail on a voyage I can never join.
First, there was Doran; I fell for him immediately. And who wouldn’t? Dark and brooding with a tragic backstory and score to settle, he was the perfect protagonist for my first full-length novel. He taught me perseverance, character integrity, and an ongoing lesson on sword fighting and weapons (I am still woefully inadequate in that department despite his best efforts). In writing Gift, I learned to love the writing process, incorporate God’s word into narrative, and face my terror of writing climactic villain confrontations.
Que the epic sequel; Mavis enters, stage right (or should I say, stage write? I’ll see myself out…) A polar opposite to Doran in every way, Mavis immediately stretched my old skills in new directions. She was a study in contradictions, both sophisticated and spunky, graceful and intelligent, yet outspoken and naive, deeply caring and sensitive, yet totally aloof. And she was falling in love and growing up and leaving behind everything she knew all at once. I didn’t know it at first, but Mavis was just the leading lady I needed at that time in my life, and though we butted heads for the first three (3) failed drafts, when we finally got off the ground, we soared. Song taught me to trust the process, even when that meant devastating rewrites, and became a metaphor for everything I learned at that season of love and heartbreak. It also strengthened my grasp of plot development, foreshadowing, character arcs, narrative voice, and the fine art of lore-creation.
And then there was Errol. As dear as Doran and Mavis will always be to my heart, no one has quite captured my adoration like this once-troublesome Auteer scholar. Heart of the Tiding Bearer is set to release early 2024, and I hope when you read it, you’ll be impressed at how seamlessly I set up for this ambitious conclusion from the start, but Errol would be the first to tell you that’s not the case (the jerk). I had no plans for even turning book one into a sequel when I started, but by the time I found myself finishing book two, the concept of a trilogy had written itself into the triplicate nature of the world and its characters. This means that Errol, the third in our intrepid trio of heroes, will be heading up the magnificent and (if I say so myself) most exciting third act. He would say I’ve saved the best for last. And though his ego certainly doesn’t need it, I’d have to agree.
A full post about the sweet-tea-and-sugarless-soda-fueled weeks I spent plotting and writing Heart will follow closer to the release of the book, but for now, I’ll focus on what Errol taught me. If there’s anything you’ve come to expect from him, it’s a complex plan (that may or may not succeed), and he made no exceptions when we entered talks about his starring role. I planned this book more meticulously and with better organization than any before it and it revolutionized my whole writing process. As a result, I was able to turn out a dizzying pace of 8-10,000 words per week, bringing total writing time for this story to a little over 5-months from start to finish. Errol’s growth, the diverse locations and people, and the ever-building tension of the plot kept me glued to my keyboard like an FBI hacker, but I confess there was one more factor that had me even more intrigued—the romance. I won’t give anything away, but just know that for all you readers who celebrated Mavis and Doran’s love story with a twinge of sympathy for the chronically-single sidekick, twinge no more. ;-)
As the realization continues to wash over me that I’m really coming to the end of this series, I look forward to what the future has in store. The trilogy will be released as a full set, featuring a revised and updated book 1 along with other goodies I’ve yet to fully design, and I’ll be actively pursuing more global publishing and marketing options. But as a sentimental soul, I couldn’t let this epoch pass without pausing at the threshold to remember, and to appreciate. I’ve been blessed to write this series; blessed to meet the characters; honored to enter their story and share it with all of you (hi Mom!). But most of all, I’ve been blessed to come to a deeper, richer understanding of the Giver through His lessons in my life and in the mouths of Dara, Riah, and Anthem (you’ll meet him soon!).
Until next time, I wish you clear mind and sound logic.