Lou Paduano | Urban Fantasy Novels | Sci-Fi Crime Series

The Apartment Commentary – Walter Schriff

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The Apartment author commentary concludes! SPOILER WARNING ahead. Big time for this one!

Figuring out the threat…

When it came time to figure out who these ghosts were hassling people in Portents, the first two or three drafts never named them.

Yes – them.

Three were present in the first drafts. I made their appearances vague, their motivations even more nebulous. I had no idea how they connected to the story or how to raise the stakes. At one point I was researching things like Blackbeard and Napoleon in an effort to connect with some legendary aspect.

They didn’t fit. None of it fit with the narrative.

Enter the Kindly Killer

It was during the self-editing phase when I stumbled on this notion of the Kindly Killer. He is the first connection between Loren and Soriya, a vital part of their so-called origin story and when I remembered him he fit so perfectly I couldn’t stop writing until the story was completed.

Having that personal connection with Soriya at the climax of the tale raised the stakes. She knows how dangerous Walter can be and can’t risk his return to the mortal plane. Making it personal, looking for that deeper meaning in terms of the overall narrative of Greystone, builds a better story in my mind.

I hope you agree.

Why care so much about the Kindly Killer?

Walter Schriff has been around since Signs of Portents. Always a background mention, never anything more. I did that purposely. (I try to do everything purposely…)

Some people believe his inclusion in the first novel is a distraction. I look at it differently.

His presence is a seed for something to come.

The Kindly Killer serves as a point of origin for Loren and Soriya’s relationship. His suddenly viciousness in slaughtering people, his arrest and the subsequent events that locked Loren and Soriya into this incredible journey lies at the heart of the story that will serve as Book Six of the series.

Say what?

Yeah. I’m a couple years away from putting it together. Having A Circle of Shadows back on my desk has sparked a few notions about what’s to come for the back half of the series.

But Walter Schriff plays a huge role in Book Six.

Get ready.

Red eyes…

Did you notice another old friend within the Bypass at the end of our story? Talking about raising stakes, having Soriya peer into the Bypass at the climax of the story served two purposes.

The first was to seed an event to come in A Circle of Shadows. (Shhh, it’s a secret…)

The second was to bring back old red eyes, Nathaniel Evans, for a cool cameo. I missed our old villain from Signs of Portents and once I realized Schriff played a role in the story I thought it would be cool to bring back more past threats as a nod for where we’ve been in the series.

And where we’re heading…

Did you enjoy the story? Did you like the nods to the past? Shoot me an email at lou@loupaduano.com to let me know.

Thanks for reading.

The Apartment Commentary – Bypass Thread

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The Apartment author commentary continues and your mandatory SPOILER WARNING is still in effect! Strap in kiddos cause here we go!!

Logic rules all

Logic, especially story logic, is and always will be my number one rule when it comes to writing. Things need to happen for a reason. If there is a way to make a story element fit within the massive structure already being built over the first three novels of the series then it needs to happen.

As long as it makes complete and total sense.

I’ve spoke about this before. Certain elements of the series have to carry over, character traits that would never disappear (unless mind control is in the mix, which DOES happen…), and other rules that each writer creates for their world.

So how do ghosts fit into the Greystone mythos?

I wanted a ghost story. I knew I had the perfect trappings of one. An abandoned apartment, kids trapped inside and Soriya playing the hero.

But where do ghosts come from when dealing with a city like Portents? With mythical creatures and legends becoming real, how do these specters play into it?

I wracked my brain on this one. It took WAY too long to figure it out, if I’m being honest, and I always am with you, dear reader.

The truth was I had no clue until I was going through the proofreading phase of The Medusa Coin.

The Bypass.

I wrote my answer months earlier. The Greystone was freaking out and, by extension, the Bypass was changing. Evolving. Fluctuating.

The Bypass stands as the center of existence, the crossroads of reality, as we know it. It holds every past, present and all futures within its orbit. So what happens to the dead? Are they floating inside?

And what happens when the Bypass shudders, when it shifts, and a flick of light escapes the chamber tucked under the city?

Taking the thread left by The Medusa Coin and being able to use it here, dove-tailed perfectly with where things were heading in the series. The threat of something happening to the Bypass needed to be explored and with its presence in the apartment as a means of transportation for the ghosts haunting our heroine, it created the story logic I needed to explain their presence.

Our friendly neighborhood ghosts…

I’m saving this one for next time. I’ll be talking about our friend, the Kindly Killer, who seems to continually pop into these pages and why that might be, as well as another friend tucked in the background of the tale.

But I’m sure you know who I’m talking about already, don’t you?

Thanks for reading!

The Apartment Commentary – Starting Points

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It’s been a couple weeks but the Pathways in the Dark author commentary continues!!! SPOILER WARNING ahead for The Apartment tale in the collection…

Starting Points

Truth be told, The Apartment was the very first idea I had coming out of Signs of Portents. At one point it was going to be a story tucked in Tales from Portents but then that collection turned out to be full of prequel stories and it didn’t fit.

From there, the concept of Soriya leaving the nest stuck with me. I thought it was a nice progression of her arc in the series, always looking for connections; always resenting Mentor’s stance of isolation for the betterment of the work.

When it came to The Medusa Coin, the initial outline had Soriya seeking out a new place to live. It was ancillary and really pulled people out of the story. Frankly, it didn’t interest me when looking at the overall narrative of the novel and it was quickly cut from further outlines.

However, I couldn’t let it go. I had been drawn to that moment for almost a year. In my head, it played more comedic as Soriya is forced to learn how to live a “normal” life amid the insanity that plagues her. A real super-hero dilemma compared to the nightmares she usually faces.

That wasn’t enough to sustain the story, though. Doing it for giggles, while tempting, offered no drama; no stakes and the initial concept petered out pretty quickly from there.

Telling a ghost story

I scare pretty easily. I don’t enjoy the feeling, the terror that comes with the horror genre. Yet, something always pulls me in that direction; some unnatural predilection to scaring the crap out of myself that made writing The Apartment so exciting.

When it came to finding a reason for why Soriya would pick a certain place to live, without relying a simple need to connect with people, I kept coming back to her work. Her commitment to Portents.

So what would draw her to this apartment at the Golden Palisades?

A ghost.

Something simple, yet mythic in how we’ve created lore around the idea of ghosts in the world. Those unwilling or unable to head to their natural end and remain stuck. What would they do? What would they want? These questions fascinate me as much as they terrify me and I wanted to figure it out.

The Apartment allowed that aspect. It opened Soriya to a new experience, multiple new experiences especially when taking into account the arrival of the kids – Davis and Kevin – to the story.

That was what Pathways was about; pushing this cast of characters into new situations to see where they would go. How they handle tragedy, violence, horror and even the mundane on their own…

Holding onto an idea

This one stuck with me longer than most and I was so glad it did. Soriya’s move fit perfectly with the themes being explored in the collection and it let me tell this haunting tale as a bonus.

Thanks for reading.

The Greystone Saga Volume Two – OUT NOW!

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OUT TODAY!! The Greystone Saga Volume Two is available for purchase at any and all greater retailers!!!

            

The shadows are growing…

Over 600 pages of monsters, myths and murder as Soriya and Loren struggle against the growing menace surrounding the city of Portents. This box set contains books 3 and 4 of the series and offers an EXCLUSIVE sneak peek at the gripping finale coming your way this September, A Circle of Shadows!!!

Nothing will ever be the same again.

The seeds are planted here. Follow one man’s desperate quest for immortality in The Medusa Coin and then continue the journey of our principal characters in Pathways in the Dark as each must face a dark choice.

Not everyone will make the right one.

Partnerships crack while others cement. Dangers from the past return.

Can Soriya and Loren survive the growing threats in Portents?

Find out in this box set!! Only $2.99 for 2 books during the limited time launch sale!

Grab your digital copy of The Greystone Saga Volume Two now…

            

A Circle of Shadows Sneak Peek

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There is more to be unveiled come Tuesday with the release of The Greystone Saga Volume Two, however, I couldn’t resist sharing some tidbits about the climactic finale of the first arc of the series!!!

A Circle of Shadows

The war for Portents has begun.

The mayor is dead, his cause of death: a Greystone. Soriya flees into the shadows of the night, accused of a heinous murder. She is alone; those who trusted her, including Greg Loren, now stand against her. But even Detective Loren doesn’t see what this truly is: a distraction.

From the shadows rises a new threat, one that has lain in wait from the beginning. She ushers in the return of the Heads of Cerberus—and with it, the promise of Portents’ last sunrise. Meanwhile, Loren inches closer to finding the truth about Beth’s murder. But can his shattered heart face the truth of his late wife’s killer—or about the secrets she harbored from him in the months before her death?

The climactic finale of the Greystone Saga’s first massive storyline will leave readers breathless and stunned, desolately questioning the motives of once-trusted characters.

The culmination of two years of work.

The series has been building to this moment since Signs of Portents was published back in August 2016. Every short story, every installment, has fleshed out the drama contained within these pages. Everything was set for a purpose and that purpose is about to be revealed.

Everything changes with this one and you don’t want to miss what’s coming.

A Circle of Shadows arrives on September 11, 2018!!!

The Greystone Saga Volume Two

The box set arrives next week and contains your exclusive sneak peek at the finale. Six chapters from A Circle of Shadows to pull you in and tease at the revelations to come.

Pre-order your copy today!

            

I love the way it came together and can’t wait to hear your thoughts on the series as a whole once it arrives in September.

Thanks for reading.

Connecting Factors – The Power in a Single Choice

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The author commentary of Pathways in the Dark continues with this look at the connecting factors in the stories contained in the collection! SPOILER WARNING is in full effect!

The power of a choice

That’s what it comes down to in the collection. Each character is tested, each of our cast is pushed to make a decision that will impact where they land as we head into the finale this fall.

The question at the heart of the narrative is simple:

Do we stand together or go it alone?

Each story puts this question into play. With Collateral, it is the driving force for how Soriya and Loren react to the arrival of the Phoenix. For Trustfall, Ruiz is forced to accept his daughter’s maturity as well as the growth of Dobson over the last two decades.

Using this question for each character, forcing them to face their concerns or run away from them is a central theme to Pathways in the Dark.

How they answer it was important to me and more crucial to the direction of the series.

Loren

He can’t face certain secrets that have come to light thanks to a certain photo. His inability to work with Soriya, his lack of trust, pulls him away from his one true partner. This distrust forces him to go it alone.

It will cost him greatly…

Soriya

This question was central to her character in The Medusa Coin and this collection served as a extension of that internal argument. She needs others, her need for connection constantly pushing her forward. Her decision to move out of the Bypass Chamber comes from this need. She reaches out to Gilgamesh for friendship. Trust is essential to her.

Especially when it comes to Loren. His decision, however, has put their partnership in jeopardy. The repercussions for this are coming this fall.

Myers

We haven’t discussed Samantha Myers’ solo feature yet but this question is the core of her struggle as well. She is being blackmailed. To what end? We don’t know… yet.

The fact that she internalizes it, that she refuses to come forward and trust anyone in this matter is her choice.

And one that puts them all at risk.

Ruiz

This question jumped out at me from looking at Trustfall. Ruiz’s struggle with sharing with his family, the constant conflict with keeping his family safe or telling them the truth of what is really out there is a fun one to explore.

He learned to trust in his wife but does that extend to his eldest daughter? Zoe is 18 and about to embark on her own life. She has to know but he holds back. That choice puts her at risk, something he swore would never happen.

It’s an eye-opening event in his life and one he takes to heart. Standing together, in Ruiz’s eyes, is the only option going forward.

What that means down the line will be revealed in…

September!

A Circle of Shadows is coming. Everything changes. The ultimate cost for their decisions comes to pass.

I can’t wait to share more about the book this summer!

Thanks for reading.

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