The next several months will bring author commentaries on all six stories contained within the Tales from Portents collection. My hope is to offer insight into the decisions made in putting the project together and the challenges therein. It’s also fun to point out the little Easter eggs throughout. (I love that crap.) So, SPOILER WARNING is in effect for the duration.

Starting point

As I pieced together the lineup for the collection, I realized I was missing something. I had solo stories with the main leads, a focus on our main supporting cast member in Ruiz and another with Vlad. There was Resurrectionists at the heart of it all but I needed more.

I needed another Loren and Soriya adventure.

It is the central dynamic to the series and without it, the collection felt incomplete.

But where to take it? Since I was in prequel territory I could have chosen any moment to explore their relationship. I knew I wanted something different than that seen in both Resurrectionists and Signs of Portents but not exactly sure what that meant.

Then I remembered the cut dynamic of Ruiz and Mentor, the much more aggressive point/counterpoint to Loren and Soriya’s relationship. That was the starting point.

Why this moment exactly?

At six months into the start of their partnership both characters are still feeling each other out. On Loren’s side it is much worse, his anger clouding any sense of trust in the pairing. That level of tension, that lack of comfort between the two leads compared to where they are presently in Signs was very interesting to me and something I wanted to explore fully.

It offered a natural conflict, instead of a manufactured device filtered through the narrative.

Why not their first case?

This came up early when I was plotting out Gremlins. If I had the opportunity why not start from the beginning? Why not turn the clock back completely?

Honestly? I’m saving that one. Their first case, their first chance to pair up after the arrest of the Kindly Killer, is a bigger story than I could fit into the collection. Not only that but it serves as the perfect bridge into the second half of the series. Might be years away from telling it but it’s coming and it is going to be great.

The Ronnie Phillips Factor

I had this glaring plot point when working on the draft for Gremlins. Loren is hunting down another potential criminal that he believes may have had a hand in Beth’s fall. But then I did nothing with it. He gets the call to head to the Second Precinct for the main thrust of our adventure and nothing is ever mentioned about Ronnie Phillips again.

Not cool.

Changing the original ending with Soriya and Loren to help resolve this omission is one of the best changes I made during the editing process. It fit perfectly with Soriya’s attempt to bridge the gap between the pair and really sell the point of their trust for one another. Or more trust than had been there at the beginning, I suppose.

Next time

More about the threat of the Gremlins tale. Psst, it’s in the title.

Thanks for reading.