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

A Look Ahead at 2018

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Welcome back! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year! Most years I take Christmas break to frontload as much work for the following year as possible. This year? Not so much. Between potty training my youngest and moving into a new home, work was in short supply this December.

A Look Ahead…

Now the fun begins.

2018 marks the end of a journey I started back in 2007 with the very first scripted version of Signs of Portents. Greystone has been with me ever since and to see the first half reach its conclusion this fall has me giddy. This last week has been all about returning to Portents and buttoning up the fifth book’s self-editing phase. I think it is the best installment yet and hope you’ll agree.

But before we get there…

February 20, 2018

Pathways in the Dark arrives. Book Four of the Greystone series is a short story collection taking place immediately after the events of The Medusa Coin. Tensions flare up between Loren and Soriya that will significantly change the dynamic of their partnership going forward. Ruiz deals with life as a full-time dad for the first time and the challenges it brings. Myers gets a turn at the spotlight with more information about the secrets she holds and how it will impact Loren down the line. Lots of important moments and even some hints at what the second half of the series will bring to Portents.

The shadows are closing in on Loren and Soriya. Will they see the signs in time or will they be too late to prevent the darkness that is about to be unleashed?

September 2018

The big one. Book Five of the Greystone series – A Circle of Shadows. It’s all been building up to this. Secrets held by all. Relationships come to light. Old threats return and new ones rise.

Loren and Soriya’s relationship lies shattered but both will be needed as war comes to Portents.

When I started putting together this last novel I knew some of the elements. I had ideas for others. But it took Tales from Portents and The Medusa Coin to solidify the core of what is coming in this book. I thought I knew the story inside and out. I was wrong.

And it is so much better than I could have imagined.

And then what?

I’m nailing down the details for what comes next. I have The Lost Outpost waiting in the wings but there are a number of other projects demanding more and more time. Stay tuned for a ton of announcements later this year. New books. New free novellas, including the first of four set in the Greystone world.

2018 is going to be a huge year for me but it is nothing compared to what I hope to unleash in 2019.

Want to stay up to date on what’s coming?

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Thanks for reading!

End of Year Wrap Up!

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Well, that snuck up on me quickly. The end of the year is here! How does that always happen?

This has been a crazy year all around. Greystone is reaching the end of its first major arc. I’m diving into the final book right now and am so excited with the enormous shift coming from the events within. People will be angry, for sure, some downright insane over what happens next but there is plenty of story left to tell.

That’s what this has all been about for me. Telling stories. Big and small. From this blog here to the published page. I love being able to play on this stage, having the opportunity to converse with so many of you. I hope to be more available for local events next year and really bring people to the world of Greystone.

And all the worlds to follow.

Where are we headed next?

I’m figuring that out right now. There are 8 books sitting on my shelf demanding edits and another 9 begging to be written. From conspiracy tales to the far reaches of space, from superheroics to a supernatural legal thriller, there are many places to explore coming in the next few years.

And then there is always the second half of Greystone to consider.

This last month has been centered on moving my family to a new home. It’s meant that writing has been on the backburner. No longer though. Mapping out the next year has energized me and the projects coming your way are going to blow you away.

2018 marks the end of Greystone for now.

But 2019? Just you wait. It’s going to be amazing.

Thanks for being here.

None of this is possible without you. I can’t thank you enough for supporting the series, this site, the newsletter and so many other aspects of my work. This has been an incredible journey and it has barely begun.

Stick around. You won’t regret it.

Happy End of Year!

Have a safe and happy holidays! See you in 2018!

The Medusa Coin Commentary – Final Thoughts

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We made it! My final thoughts on The Medusa Coin! FINAL SPOILERS AHEAD!

Two items.

I’ve broken down the novel for you pretty explicitly. I hope you’ve enjoyed this journey as much as I have. I love sharing the details and evolution of the creative process – the insane arguments and the sudden inspiration that comes with months of working on a single project.

If there is anything else you’d like to hear about The Medusa Coin be sure to email me at lou@loupaduano.com. I’m always excited to ramble about how things came together in extreme detail!

For this final blog on the subject I wanted to focus on two areas of the book:

The number seven

The Medusa Coin centers around the number seven quite a bit. There are seven sons, seven victims and seven levels in the Library of the Luminaries.

When Myers calls her mysterious benefactor she presses the number 7 on her saved contacts list.

There are seven major players in the narrative – Soriya, Loren, Ruiz, Hady Ronne, Henry Erikson, Gilgamesh and Jeremy Bennett.

Henry Erikson and Jeremy Bennett both have seven letters in their last names!

Why the number seven? It fit with the story I was trying to tell but it also pays tribute to one of my absolute favorite Justice League stories from the 90’s. Written by Mark Waid it speaks to synchronicity – chances of probability – and how it can impact our world when manipulated. I cannot rave about this tale enough and highly recommend picking it up.

The other reason behind the number? My original release date for the book was 7.7.17. I so wanted to hit that date for the book just for the effect even though I would be the only one that knew about it!!

Unfortunately, I needed the two months in the summer for extra cushioning on future releases and pushed The Medusa Coin to September. Synchronicity be damned!

The small ending.

Stories by trade are built around the climax. As we’ve matured in our ability to tell stories on the small and big screens we have never forgotten the need to go big or go home. It is one of the reasons why Signs of Portents ends at the top of the tallest structure in the city.

We crave the big finale, we demand the ultimate in action and adventure and refuse to settle for less.

Which is why I absolutely love the climax of The Medusa Coin.

When I finished Signs I realized I would never be able to have as great a set piece as Evans Tower. It was this huge moment that anyone looking up in the sky could see, with the lights swirling around the big confrontation.

For The Medusa Coin, I wanted to prove a point. That the biggest moments in history can happen in the smallest setting. That fate can be determined in a small ranch home in the suburbs just as easily as the spire in the center of a teeming metropolis.

For that reason alone, I love the way The Medusa Coin came together in the end. To show the reader that any moment can be the one that changes everything. And all of us can impact that change.

Jeremy Bennett is absolutely my favorite character in the book because of that feeling and I will stand by that for all time.

Thank you for reading.

The Medusa Coin Commentary – Hady Ronne

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Almost at the end! The Medusa Coin author commentary continues!! SPOILERS AHEAD!

Coroner Hady Ronne

If you remember from my discussion of the long road to publication for The Medusa Coin, I mentioned how I wrote the book before I wrote Signs of Portents. Because of that act there were certain elements put into place that I then had to seed in the first two books.

The main one was Coroner Hady Ronne.

She didn’t exist in Signs. Not at that point. There was no coroner mentioned. Loren still took Soriya and Mentor to the morgue but there was no talk with Hady over procedure.

With the revelation of Hady as the Charon I realized I had a rare opportunity: to lay the groundwork for that change.

Smart writers would have known from the first book and put it in place. I had to write the damn thing backwards to figure it out. Oh well…

hady ronne

Laying the foundation…

I think I did all right with this one. Hady comes off as decidedly creepy in Signs. Even to the point of Soriya mentioning how something is off about her.

Tales from Portents really brought it home and not many called me on it even though they had every right at the time.

In The Great Divide, a younger Ruiz remembers the sudden change in Hady during their teenage years. From outgoing to introvert. From pretty young girl to wiry, straggly hair always covering her sunken eyes.

The Consultant, however, took the prize in terms of clues as to what was going on with Hady. In the fourth chapter of the tale, Soriya watches Russell Kerr approach the precinct just as Hady Ronne is leaving. He stops at her arrival and growls at her.

GROWLS AT HER.

No one yelled at me for that? COME ON!

Why is that significant? Cerberus (Russell Kerr) hates the Charon for sneaking living people into the underworld and then allowing them to depart for a price. A little mythology lesson for you there!

What’s in a name?

I thought I was being clever with this one. I wanted a clue right there in plain sight for all to see when I came up with Hady’s name.

Coroner HAdy RONne.

CHARON.

Do other names have hidden meanings or messages in the series? I’m not telling!

Next time!

The big finale for the commentary! (Unless there is something out there you’d like to know about the book…)

Thanks for reading!

The Medusa Coin Commentary – Gilgamesh

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The Medusa Coin commentary continues with insight into the character of Gilgamesh! SPOILERS AHEAD!

Gilgamesh

Gilgamesh, the Suited Man within the context of The Medusa Coin, was one of the elements taken from the very first draft. My reason was simple. I wanted an immortal but not an obvious one. No Lazarus allowed.

During my searching I stumbled on The Epic of Gilgamesh and fell in love with the idea of using the legendary figure in the Greystone world. In the epic he never attained immortality, so it was also fun to play on this untold part of his journey.

And why not right?

Opening up Portents to literary figures as well as myths and monsters seemed pretty in tune with the nature of the world. It fit in a creepy, supernatural way.

Plus, having that basis of a backstory made it that much more interesting to have his presence in the narrative.

Taking some facts, omitting others…

That becomes the problem with lifting from other texts. Staying true to them sometimes means compromising your own story. To use Gilgamesh as a figure of immortality – and the cost of such a gift – meant adding to his narrative, not taking away from it.

Because so much is unknown it is simple to say the legendary figure never died – stories of his demise were simply fictional for the sake of the epic.

There is more coming for the character in Pathways in the Dark, including more tidbits from The Epic of Gilgamesh. It’s been fun, like doing a research paper, and then blowing it all to hell with crazy action and modern twists. Very glad he’s been added to the world of Greystone.

Evolution of the damn hat

Yes. There were arguments – SO MANY ARGUMENTS – about Gilgamesh’s hat. I wanted it to mean something, to have this deep insight into his character.

At one point it was a fedora but that seemed played. In another draft it was a Jackie Robinson Brooklyn Dodgers cap. Yes, I am a Dodgers fan – blame my grandmother for whom the book is dedicated to so it would have fit perfectly… But the real reason was for how the game of baseball changed because of this singular individual.

Unfortunately, everything became all about the damn hat. How to explain it to the reader and every freaking character that interacted with Gilgamesh. It took over the scene so I ditched the Dodgers cap.

Why a bowler hat then? In truth, I was making a statement about Charlie Chaplin’s signature chapeau. Seriously. I was trying to say – “This guy changed the movie industry without saying a damn word.” The power of his silence, the influence over the course of history.

That was how I saw Gilgamesh as the Suited Man. This man, this figure of Death, with the ability to tip the scales without having to say a word. Just a single action.

And he does that. When he reaches for Jeremy Bennett’s hand before the van plows through the home he makes a choice that changes EVERYTHING.

So now you know the secret of the hat! (These are the things that keep me up at night, if you can believe that…)

Next time

Hady Ronne – the secret behind her name revealed at last…

Thanks for reading.

Founder’s Day Launch!

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It’s finally here! Founder’s Day is available now!

The sequel to Resurrectionists arrives and Greg Loren is put to the ultimate test.

On the eve of the Founder’s Day Celebration in the heart of Portents, someone is murdering city officials and dressing them up in a signature black robe and cloak. Detective Greg Loren and his new partner, Samantha Myers, are called onto the case only to discover a startling fact linking the murders to the deaths of each of the city’s founders.

What do the murders have to do with the Church of the Second Coming? Will Loren be able to find the killer before the entire city of Portents is at risk?

The seeds are planted for the end of the first cycle of the Greystone series in this tale.

This tale also serves as a primer for the upcoming Greystone Collection, Pathways in the Dark, coming February 20, 2018!

Why this tale from Pathways?

When putting together Tales I knew having a Soriya/Loren story as the freebie was a necessity. This time around not having them together was more important to the overall narrative. Their split is vital to where things are headed and you’ll see more of that shift in the tales preceding this one in the Pathways in the Dark collection this February.

Plus, the added bonus of tying the tale into Resurrectionists was a nice touch to keep the story flowing for the reader.

I hope you enjoy it!

Get your free copy of Founder’s Day today!

      

Come back next week for more commentary on The Medusa Coin!

Thanks for reading!

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