Okay, I've mostly resisted bragging all over blogland about Ellora's Cave inviting me to submit my work to them (direct to their EIC, no less), based on their reading of Crossing Swords and Bound by Steel. All question of modesty aside (because I have none), I was keeping fairly mum because I wasn't sure I had a project to send them. It's been my intention from the start to keep all my Emissaries-related books at Samhain (unless I manage to flog them to Tor or something--hey, hope springs eternal, right?), and since I've always set my stories in the universe of the Emissaries, well, I was kind of stymied.
I wasn't sure I was up to building another world. Thousands of years of history and mythology, religion and politics, cultures and customs? Oy.
But pretty much everything I've ever written has evolved from a handful of characters and a single scene, and a week ago, three characters popped into my head. Ralameis Antiog, a princess raised in a glittering palace where men rule and women are silent, forced into a political marriage with fierce tribal prince, Yavarro Singael. Harsh and ambitious, the finger-bones of his enemies woven through a hundred braids of his hair, he scares the living bejabbers out of her. Between them stands his vessel, Roucana, the shield upon whom each blow meant for him must fall, his will made flesh, obedient in all things. His vessel happens to be a woman. She also happens to be in love with him.
As you can see from the new wordmeter below and to the right, I'm already more than 5000 words in, and things are about to get complicated between the prince, his new bride and his vessel. Bad decisions will be made, feelings will be hurt, the heart's innermost longings will be laid bare.
And yes, there will be plenty of hot girl-on-girl-on-guy sexx0ring. Because with EC now considering dipping its toes back into the girl-on-girl pool, despite the fact that they told me I could send them whatever I liked, well, I'm the stubborn type. I know m/m/f BDSM would likely be received better, but being contrary by nature, it will be one man and two strong women from me, and all the bondage will be on the inside.
I'll be posting an excerpt from this WIP on Excerpt Monday, which is in just a week. Considering how my stomach was all tight and tingly playing out the scene in my head, I have some hope it will be both hot and heart-wrenching.
Hugs
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8 comments:
Sounds like a good one. Can't wait to read the excerpt...
Whew! This sounds really intense.
I love the bone weave. Totally hot! :D
And congrats on EC. I hope they love what you send them.
Thanks guys. :)
And congrats on EC. I hope they love what you send them.
Me too. An invitation to submit isn't a guarantee of acceptance, but it is an invitation to bypass the slushpile and have my work go direct to an editor who has already read and enjoyed my work. So it won't mean a possibly year+ wait to find out if they even want to read the whole thing. That long response time, plus the fact that they wouldn't publish f/f, was what was holding me back from ever subbing to them. Both barriers came down in one day, which was so cool.
I loved the idea of the bones, too. I think he's going to have some serious tattoos on his chest and back, too. I wanted his people to appear harsh and savage, but be much more enlightened in their treatment of women than Ralameis' more seemingly sophisticated people. In an effort to prove how he sees her as an equal, Yavarro is going to do something really ill-advised, and there will be some unexpected consequences.
The vessel is kind of the perfect combination of servant, bodyguard, proxy and whipping boy. I'm gonna have a lot of fun with that.
word ver: extrizes (Hmm, jenn, it has an X and a Z...too bad I'm kind of set on Yavarro.)
Well, I'm totally bummed his name doesn't have an X in it.
But I'll give you a pass because of the bones. I love (love) warrior societies that keep souveniers of the dead. There's a huge level of honour for the enemy in that.
Good luck, Kirsten. I'm sure they'll take it.
Chaeya
Very cool! An invitation to submit -- that should give you warm fuzzies. And the premise sounds really intriguing.
Thanks, guys. I must admit, Evie, the invitation came as a total shock, and I was coasting on those fuzzies for a week. :)
I'm having a ton of fun with the premise. It started out as just three people in a tent, and then the concept of the vessel just came--BAM!
Things are starting to get very intense, almost melodramatic--the way Healer's Touch was so rich with buttery-sweet longing it almost made me nauseous, lol. I hope I'm not overdoing it. :P
hey k, i'm all eyes already :)
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