Writing

35 posts

To Keep The Darkness At Bay

Cast A Shadow Of Doubt In Sleep You Know On Creating Writing

One of the questions I get asked a lot, and I’m sure most writers do as well, is one that cuts to the bone of our motivations.

What made you want to become a writer?

It is a well-meaning question, asked by those who truly don’t understand that writing is less of a choice than a drive or a need, at least for me.
I’ve been writing stories since I learned how to print my letters. Stories have been in my blood from the very beginning. I learned to read when I was two years old, and I was writing before I started school. I’ve mentioned before that in first and second grade I had a following of girls who would join me in the grassy field during recess while I told them tales that I created on the spot. We would make clover chains and discuss faeries and talking animals and creating magic potions. There’s a meme out there about how little girls instinctively form covens and I’m here to tell you that, at least for me, that was so true.

I wrote my first book at age six, and it was a total rip-off of E.B. White’s The Trumpet of the Swan – okay, okay, it was inspired by it. I even illustrated it, and made it into a stapled chapbook, foreshadowing of my ‘zine days to come. I loved every bit of doing this, and from that moment on, I was hooked on being a writer.

To me, it made sense. I was a voracious reader. I told myself stories all the time. Why wouldn’t I be writing books?

I had a lot of stops and starts on my path of sharing my words. I wrote poetry, music, short stories. I published them myself in my ‘zines, and had them published in other ‘zines and small press publications. I blogged online, fairly religiously. I wrote in my personal journal daily, and some of the things I crafted there became shared pieces.

And I started abortive attempts at novel writing. None were successful, at least not for a very long time.

I like to keep the magic alive outside of the book, too. This is what came in the original deluxe signed paperback packages.

It wasn’t until I revisited my notes for the world of the Eleriannan, as I looked for inspiration during the pandemic lockdown, that I started to see how the stories I’d begun and then abandoned could be fleshed out. They’d been waiting for me to get to the right place in my mind and in my life.

Everything is terrible! Let’s write a book!

Now that I’m into the editing portion of Cast A Shadow Of Doubt, I have time to read for pleasure. That’s a good thing, because I have a BIG stack of TBRs, and the one on the top of the stack is Never Say You Can’t Survive, by Charlie Jane Anders.

I’ve been dying to read this, and so far it has not disappointed. The subtitle is How To Get Through Hard Times By Making Up Stories, and if that isn’t directed straight to my heart, I don’t know what is. Chapter five in particular has hit home for me, because it talks about writing the things that comfort you when the world is burning. One sentence in particular jumped out at me and brought tears to my eyes.

“Write whatever you need to survive.” – Charlie Jane Anders

Her point is that we get a lot of messages about what we are “supposed” to be writing. Some of those are external, others internally designed to make us feel like we’re not good enough as writers. [yay for that, brains]
However, our actual job as writers is to bring forth what we need in the world. And not what we think everyone needs – no, I should write what I specifically need or want. You should do the same. Write the thing that gives you heart to go on, that allows you to get up in the morning, that fills a space in your life that was lacking before you addressed it with your words.

YES PLEASE.

THAT is when writing brings joy, when it rings out clearly across the empty spaces that needed those words, those ideas, that specific story. Writers who embrace this philosophy are easy to spot, at least to me. Reading their stories is an authentic experience.

Conversation between me and Christopher, which is when it all became clear to me about why I write.

And that is why I was able to write In Sleep You Know, when before I’d never been able to finish writing a novel. It was something I needed, a moment where possibilities exist and magic is real but what really matters are the choices that one makes… Especially the choices that bring friends together and create family and community.

And Cast A Shadow Of Doubt embraces those values even more. I cannot wait to share it with you, because these stories are what I need to see in the world, and I am hoping that they are for you, as well.

Interviews, Revisions, and a Street Team

Events Writing

Interviews are a LOT of fun to do, let me tell you! I was lucky enough to be interviewed by Wendi Van Camp of No Wasted Ink. I talk about how I became a writer, my writing style and inspirations, and some of the background behind the world of the Eleriannan and In Sleep You Know.
Please click through to read the interview, then stick around to read the rest of the interviews, plus poetry and more!
https://nowastedink.com/2021/09/23/author-interview-christiane-knight/

As I continue to worn on Cast A Shadow Of Doubt, I have decided that now is the time to open up my street team, the Fae Council! What’s a street team? It’s a group of friends and fans who agree to help spread the word about me and my books, in exchange for special access, ARC opportunities, swag, giveaways, and more.

It’s a pretty casual affair that gives you lots of opportunities to get rewarded for telling other people how much you love my writing… aka a win-win! There’s a Facebook group and a private Discord channel, so sign up now!
https://www.christianeknight.com/street-team/

Speaking of writing, I’m actually finished the first draft of CASOD and I’m well into the revision/editing stage! Things start to move faster once I’m in this part of the process, so expect to start seeing excerpt shares and teasers soon. Yay!

I can tell you that if you love Lucee and Vali, you will really love this story. There are new characters and creatures and of course lots of music, food… and bad guys. There are always new bad guys, right?
I post mini-updates a lot on Twitter, for those who like chatty platforms.
Link is at the top of the website 🔝

ps – I’m going to start planning my event schedule for 2022! As it stands now, Cast A Shadow Of Doubt is scheduled for launch in early 2022, and I’ll be looking to make appearances after that. Do you have suggestions? Anywhere you’d LOVE to hear me read, or get a chance to talk about my books or writing in general? Drop suggestions in the comments! 💜

Monthly Update: Word Count September 2021

In Sleep You Know Novel Updates Writing

Hello Magic Seekers! I’m checking in with my current word count and State of the Novel update, as promised.

I’ve been writing away, and I am pleased to tell you that I am at 93,907 words, or at 78% complete on the first draft. My base goal is 120,000 words, give or take. Just for comparison, In Sleep You Know came in originally over 127,000 words and I trimmed it down to about 125,000.

The task of getting the word count under control happens during the editing and revision process, which is coming SOON for me! I’ve found that once I get close to the end of the story, things start speeding up and before I know it, I’ll be blasting through the action like I’m riding a speeding bobsled to reach the conclusion. It’s always a wild ride!

After that, I’ll take a small break to let the story rest and to give myself some space and fresh perspective. After I’m ready to dive back into the story, it’s time to re-read and start looking over the plot to see what should be tightened up, moved around, or deleted. Some things may be added, like extra scenes or observations, things that will stitch the subplots together with the main plot seamlessly – that is, if I do it right! In this time frame, I’ll also have some trusted beta readers look over the story and let me know what they think and if there’s anything I’m missing.

Next up is all the line editing and proofreading, first by myself, then by a professional. This is really when my hands start to come off the reins, and the pros take over to make sure that the finished product will be the best that it can be. My job changes at this point, and I will start concentrating on things like writing my back cover blurb and elevator pitch and all those good things that will help my book get into the hands of readers.

But enough about that! Want to see some fun character avatars I threw together via Picrew? They aren’t perfect, because I had to work with the limitations of what Picrew offers, but they are adorable.

The Fae as Comic Style Avatars

  • Aisling
  • Tully
  • Morgance of The Ladies
  • Camlin
  • Karsten
  • Merrick
  • Lucee
  • Vali
  • Sousa
  • Cullen

Like I said, not quite perfect – for one, I couldn’t do green hair for The Ladies! But hopefully you can see the spirit of the Eleriannan, Gwyliannan, and Mortals in these cute comical avatars!

Check back in next month for the next update, Magic Seekers!

Why I Chose to Self Publish My Book

Writing

“Why did you decide to self publish In Sleep You Know?”

I get asked about my choice to self publish all the time! Usually, it’s people who preface the question with a variation of “But your book is so good,” as if only shitty books get self published.

There are some interesting notions about self publishing. Some of the biggest ones I’ve noticed? The idea that all self published books:

  • are poorly written
  • are poorly edited, if at all
  • have cheesy covers
  • cost more to publish
  • are lower quality
  • are drowning out Trad and Indie published [implied, “good”] novels

The prevailing thought here is, that without the gatekeepers of agents, editors, and publishers, the market just fills up with bad books. Well, I am here to tell you that while these things can all be true, there are MANY great books out there that prove the stereotypes wrong. And here’s a truth that a lot of people don’t want to talk about: not every book that is published through those other routes is a good book! *gasp*

Seriously though – each route to publishing has its pluses and minuses, and plenty of great and awful examples of what’s out there via those methods. Yes, the lack of gatekeeping in self publishing means that if you’ve got the money and wherewithal, you can put a real stinker out there. But guess what? It’s probably not going to sell, especially once a few reviews get out there and talk about poor editing, lack of clarity, or multiple typos. The market will take care of itself in that regard.

By now, I think it’s clear that I think the claims of “flooding the market with poor quality writing and taking attention away from quality product” is overblown hokum.


***HOWEVER***


I want to stress that it is extremely important to not go at self publishing alone. What do I mean when I say that? Simply put, get some professional help on your side. Hire the editors you need, pay for proofreading, find a competent cover artist and don’t go cheap. This is how you avoid adding your novel to that “flood” of poorly done books.

About now, you’re probably thinking, “Okay, I get it. You are pro-self-publishing, blah blah. So tell me why you went that route already!”
Sure, you’re not wrong, or at least you’ve got part of it right. I am for whatever road to publishing makes the most sense to you. But let me explain why I decided to do it myself – or more accurately, me with a team to help me.

Trust me when I tell you that my manuscripts look nothing like this.
Image by Nile from Pixabay

First and foremost: time.

What does that mean? In my case, I had a wake up call two years ago, when I almost died from an unexpected illness that turned out to be the calling card of Crohn’s Disease. I’d been sitting on these stories for my whole life, outside of some fumbling attempts to serialize them in the late 90s. I knew I had the skills to publish myself, as I’d already done some homegrown small press publications. And now, I felt like time might be in short supply, so I had the motivation to Get It Done.

I didn’t want to go through the endless struggle of trying to find an agent, trying to get through slush piles as a complete unknown, trying to somehow catch the right eye at the right time. I’ve always been the type to look around and say “fuck it, I’m doing this myself,” with a pretty good success rate. I’ve also worked in publishing and owned small businesses, so I had a decent background in skills I’d need to put things together and then market them.

Obviously, not everyone has these things in their back pocket. That’s something to consider when you think about who you’ll need on your team if you go the self publishing route.

Other things in my favor

I had the money to invest at the time. Self publishing isn’t cheap if you do it right, although you can do things to make it more affordable. * I had the time to pour into getting it done pretty quickly, as I’m still chronically ill and fairly housebound. And I already have a pretty big community behind me, as I’ve been gathering people online for at least twenty years. That definitely helps!

That doesn’t mean that you can’t do it without that setup already in place. But in the interest of being transparent, I wanted to mention all of these things. They offset my feeling of being afraid to wait for things to happen organically, aka trying to get picked up by a traditional publisher or even an indie publisher.

Here’s another thing to think about: as a self published author, you are responsible for everything. That is both extremely freeing and also a burden.
You can market yourself however you want! Yay!
You have to come up with all the marketing schemes, boo.
You can hire someone to do marketing for you, huzzah!
You have to pay that person, aw dang.
You have to pay for everything yourself.
But all the money you make, less fees taken by printer/distributor, is yours.

* I have a LOT more to say about choosing Self Publishing as an option, and it isn’t all going to fit in this blog post! Lucky for you, if you are interested in this line of thought, I cover this topic and more over at my Ko-fi. If you choose the membership tier “A Writer’s Life and Craft” then you will get all my posts on these subjects, plus a lot more. You’ll also have the option to ask me questions directly and have detailed conversations!

The Words Make A Difference

On Creating Writing

The Importance of Poetry & Music

I know I write a bit about the importance of the soundtracks for my books, but there’s a reason for that. Poetry – the lyrics that shape the direction of the feelings being evoked by the instruments and tune that they ride on – makes or breaks a song for me. And when used well in an accompanying soundtrack, those lyrics can develop undercurrents of meaning and energy, and even deliver secrets about the characters or plot.

I’ve spoken about how I carefully match each song to the chapter it heads, and I’ve even mentioned that certain songs remind me of specific characters – basically, their theme songs. But I also pick songs for lyrical content that reflects what’s happening in that chapter, or in some cases, what’s happening concurrently in the plot but isn’t the main focus at the time. It’s one of my favorite ways to add layers to to the tale.

But the reason I wanted to talk about music, specifically lyrics, is because I was listening to one of the songs I’ve included on the soundtrack to the upcoming sequel to In Sleep You Know [title announcement coming SOON], and the poetic imagery of a few lines in Queen Of My Heart, by New Model Army, was so evocative that it brought tears to my eyes.

Here, have a listen:

You can read the lyrics here: https://www.newmodelarmy.org/the-music/lyrics/214-queen-of-my-heart

When Justin begins describing the sky, and how he can feel the dark and how cities and deserts are the same, I always find myself holding my breath, tears building behind my eyes. It’s such a strong, meaningful bit of imagery, a scene painted out in an economy of words that somehow never fails to put me right in that moment.

My personal understanding and meanings behind the song changed recently when it became a song that represents how one of my characters, Sousa, relates to Vali and his relationship with her. That deepened the resonance of the lyrics, which were already heavy with personal feelings for me.

Before I was writing novels, I was a poet. To build a series of emotional responses from a carefully crafted stack of words and concepts, each creating a connection of thoughts that paint a picture or represent a feeling or concept is a heart-skill. Poems look easy to those who do not write them, and poetry crafted into meaningful lyrics even more so. Lyrics require a deft hand and the ability to transmit a sentiment or trigger a response with less words, carefully entwined with the music in a way that increases the emotional punch. Lyrics removed from music often look simple or trite, because removing them from their scaffolding weakens their effect.

As someone who uses lyrics in my novels, that presents an interesting challenge. I write my own lyrics. They do have music that goes with them, but not transcribed or recorded, and at this juncture I’m not interested on taking that task on. So when I write about The Drawback performing and I include lyrics, I risk them coming off as overly simple – bad poetry. But they are missing that aforementioned scaffolding, so my job as a writer is to describe what sounds and sentiments are supposed to be there as support, so that the reader can imagine them in their mind. If I’ve done my job well, the reader should get an immersive mental experience bolstered by their imagination and the imagery I’ve conjured up.

My old band, The Violet Dawning, proof that I do actually know what I’m talking about when I write about music 😉

It’s always a risk that it won’t work. But when it does, you – the reader – will feel that music, even though there’s none to be heard, and the emotional content of the lyrics will have the proper punch.

When you put on your favorite music that has lyrics, how does it make you feel? What effects you the most in the track, and why do you come back to that track time and again? What song would you insist must be on your personal soundtrack, and why?

Now take those questions and apply them to your favorite stories and characters, and see what you come up with. It is such a fun exercise, and it can give you interesting insight into characters and parts of the storyline you might have never paid attention to before! I’d love if you shared some of those pairings in the comments, here or on Facebook. Go forth and listen with a new focus!

New: Membership Tiers on Ko-fi

On Creating Writing

I’m pleased to announce that there are two different ways to support my work – and get lots of extras!

I’ve been using Ko-fi for a while now as a place where readers, fans, and friends can pick up a signed copy of In Sleep You Know & related merch, as well as support me and my writing through donations, AKA “buying me a coffee.” It’s a great platform, where I actually receive all of the funds donated outside of Paypal’s cut. But until recently, I couldn’t differentiate between updates for fans and knowledge that other writers might have an interest in following.

Ko-fi has changed this, and I’m happy to announce that I’ve created membership tiers for my regular supporters, including one for current and/or aspiring writers!

What does this mean? Well, if you are only interested in getting those current work snippets, exclusive poems/short stories/preview pages, and other behind the scenes updates, then the first membership tier – YOU are the Magic – is for you. Basically, if you’re a fan, you’ll get access to all kinds of exclusive content, all for five bucks a month. And if you’d like to contribute more [thank you] then I’ll create tiers for that as well. Just let me know.

If you are a writer or aspiring writer who is looking for tips about writing, as well as backstage access to the process of what the self-publishing process is like and how I manage being a publishing author, A Writer’s Life and Craft is your membership tier! Some of the topics I’ll cover include finding your voice and style, being authentic as a writer, refining your craft… and also things like how I decided to self-publish instead of going the Trad route, what kind of help I’ve enlisted along the way, what tools I recommend, the struggle to get seen, and much more.

Along with access to all the posts in the first tier, you’ll get an extremely honest glimpse into my life and processes as an author. I’ll be open to questions as well, which is pretty great access for only seven bucks a month.

Supporting my work in this way is just one way to ensure that I keep your bookshelf or e-reader filled with stories about the Eleriannan and their friends Merrick and Lucee. It also allows me to plan for future events like book signings and convention appearances.


To learn more and sign up for membership, click the cute button below!

Unexpected Visitors – a Sequel Excerpt

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Novel Updates Writing

Just a little sequel-writing update, with word count and little peek behind the curtains for you!

Still struggling with a title; the right one will reveal itself when the time is right, but the time could be right sooner rather than later, if you want my opinion.
35,662 words so far, out of a general goal of 120,000. That’s not bad progress! And it doesn’t include my copious notes and my new, updated outline.

Some details about the plot that I haven’t mentioned anywhere else yet: this takes place a few months after the events of In Sleep You Know, and focuses more on Lucee Fearney and Vali Dawe and their stories. Of course, expect the rest of the Eleriannan, Gwyliannan, and Mortals you’ve come to know and love, because they always have opinions! And of course there will be music, magic, graffiti, and even more glimpses of Baltimore.

And of course, there will be some unexpected visitors…

“Will you let me be by her side when we tell our tale?” His tone was stoic, but his eyes were pleading with her to grant his request. “Let me lend her some of my energy, as meager as it is now. I can help her. If you fear my interference – she can ask me if I am dabbling, and I cannot lie to her.”
He looked ill when he confessed this to Vali, and the thought occurred to her that he meant something much more concrete than a basic declaration of respect.
“You swore an oath.”
He looked trapped, but he nodded in the affirmative.
“You gave her that much power over you.”
He glanced over at Emmaline, then back to Vali. He straightened up a bit, and looked Vali in the eyes as he explained.
“She has never, not once, expected me to be anything more or less than what I’ve presented to her. She has never demanded anything of me other than to be myself, and to be utterly and completely honest. This was the way I could assure her that I would deliver on that request. I wanted to level the field between us. I have so much power, and she had very little. At least this way, we could be equals.”

Like what you’re hearing so far? Excited for the sequel? Let me know! Comment below, or on Facebook or Instagram! Can you guess who is speaking in the excerpt above? I want to know!

word count 27,00

Word Counts, Accountability, and Tools

1 comment
On Creating Writing

Quite a bit has happened since last I posted!

I have been working hard on the sequel to In Sleep You Know, and the manuscript has reached 27,000 words. Of course, that doesn’t count the outline and copious notes I’ve also got, because are you even writing if you don’t have twenty-seven pages of notes and outlines? [I am only exaggerating a little, I love amassing notes on my projects]

This Trello board contains a ton of the behind the scenes work that went into keeping In Sleep You Know organized

As a writer, it is important for me to stay organized, and to be accountable to myself and my readers. I am self-published, so I don’t have publisher deadlines to keep me on track. Technically, I can do whatever I want, whenever I like. That’s fantastic for my mental state, because I abhor the idea of having to answer to someone “above” me – hence why I have worked for myself for so long. Freedom is important, but I still require structure in order to be effective at what I do, and setting my own deadlines helps to keep me focused. Producing within a reasonable amount of time keeps readers happy, as well!

One of the ways that I create structure is by setting word count goals as I write my manuscript. Those turn into editing goals once the first draft is complete. For In Sleep You Know, I used NaNoWriMo [National Novel Writing Month] to motivate myself to keep on track with word count and production. For those who are unfamiliar, you join a community that is aligned to one purpose: writing 50,000 words in the month of November. There are trackers on your page where you can update your daily word count, and the page creates a graph that shows you your progress. It’s a great visual reminder, and for a rewards-driven person like me, it gamifies things just enough by awarding writers various cute virtual badges on your user page.

NaNo was the push I needed to get inspired, and I finished the first manuscript for ISYK in record time. It was a real breakthrough for me as a writer! This time around, I am using a variety of cobbled together resources to keep me focused and motivated, including my Facebook group for writers, online writing sprints with Caveday and via the Clarion West Write-A-Thon, and using the daily word count goal option in Scrivener.

I invested in Scrivener towards the end of working on In Sleep You Know, and it was one of the best purchases I’ve made for my writing career. Highly recommended!

Scrivener and Trello are the backbone of my process. I also use Evernote to take notes on the fly, which get automagically uploaded to Trello. I tend to dump a lot of the research that I do [names, lore, lyrics, concepts] into Evernote as I gather it. Once it gets uploaded to Trello – I use Zapier for that – I can sort it into the proper cards.

Trello holds everything from my outlines to character sheets to the piddly but important details like “what was everything in Merrick’s pouch?” and “What does each House look like?” I can add photos, links, and even task lists of every point I want to hit in a character’s arc, for example. As I am a very visual person, I find it to be really helpful in this regard!

Scrivener does have a lot of the same functionality, but I prefer to use it for words over images. The current project – “Unnamed Sequel With Working Title: The Immutable Truth” which I know just trips lightly off the tongue – is mostly chapter folders with scenes broken down in each chapter, plus some notes with character goals and motivations, a rough outline, and a few character sheets. Nothing fancy, but wow does it work for me!

Previously, I used Google Docs, then another writing program that was free, and messed up my manuscript when it was time to save it. You get what you pay for, folks.

You might see a few clues for what’s to come in the new book if you look carefully at my Scrivener screenshot, la la la. You’ll note that some chapters already have their band and track assigned to them, and others have not. That’s a laborious process that, I won’t lie, I love doing so much. I have an entire playlist already going for the book with songs that fit the mood and the plot, with more to come. Others probably won’t make the final cut, but they are still definitely mood and might end up in an extended mix at some point. Want a sneak peek at what’s on there beyond what I’ve captured in that screenshot? Supporters on Ko-Fi have the link! [hint hint!]

I will be compiling a list with ALL the links to tools, books, and other helpful things that I use and recommend as an author – if that is of interest to you, comment below!

[Some of these links are affiliate links. What that means is that I am referring you because I like and use this item, and I’ll get a little bit of cash for recommending it, which supports me and my work. Everyone wins!]

Meet The Characters: Sousa

Characters In Sleep You Know Writing

Joseph Sousa, aka Souz, is a good friend to Merrick and Lucee, and the drummer for their band The Drawback. He’s known to characterize himself as a “dirty punk dude” who loves a sleeveless shirt and drinking copious amounts of beer.

He also, inexplicably, is the owner of The Maithe, a giant brick building in the heart of Baltimore City. The Drawback practices there, and he lives in the practice space with all their equipment and scooters that he loves to repair for fun. He is raucous and funny and stands up for what he believes in loudly and steadfastly.

“To these folks, the city is a wasteland of negativity and should just be abandoned to the Gwyliannan. Which is ridiculous. There’s so much good in the city. The fight is there, the real reason we should be gathering together.”

Meet the rest of the characters in this ongoing series, then order the book now!

  • note: photo is a composite created by me and containing some of the excellent photography work of Karey Nation [graffiti photo]

Rooted In Reality – Setting a Fantasy Novel In a Real City

In Sleep You Know Uncategorized Writing

aka: What parts of Baltimore are fiction in your novel, Christiane?

Using a real city as the setting for In Sleep You Know was a fun challenge! I am a firm believer in building off of what I know when it comes to writing – even if it’s Fantasy that I’m crafting. I also believe that Baltimore is a treasure trove of undiscovered magic, often overshadowed by its reputation. [Ask me how I feel about The Wire. I have opinions.]

There was no question in my mind that I would be using Baltimore as the backdrop for where my Fae, the Eleriannan and Gwyliannan, lived. But trying to decide on what version of the city I would build from? That took a bit more thought. When I started writing about these characters originally, it was the late 90s, and the way I saw the city in the story was built on my memories from the 80s and 90s. Looking over the story as the platform for In Sleep You Know, I realized that I needed to unmoor the tale a bit from a specific time in order to give it the feel I wanted. It also meant that I could blend experiences, fashions, music from different eras and have it feel cohesive and timeless.

Some of the places mentioned in the story are based specifically on real-life analogues – the nightclub is definitely based on a well-known club that caters to specific subcultures in Baltimore [one that I DJed at for a while, shhh] – but it also draws from some other clubs with which I’m intimately familiar. I wanted that feeling of familiarity for readers who have haunted those sorts of clubs. Same for the Frisky Bean – if you’ve been to this sort of non-corporate community coffee shop, the kind with comfy chairs and bookshelves piled with tattered paperbacks to read and board games, you will picture it in your mind right away. The Frisky is also built on the memories and experiences of so many coffee shops like it, in Baltimore and other places I’ve lived in and visited.

Photo by Henry Guan on Unsplash

There are other places featured in the book In Sleep You Know that are actual locations, but may not quite resemble the Baltimore of this consensual reality. I talk about the Gwynns Falls area, for example, but I paint the scene with a bit of a muted brush, leaving the exact location unidentifiable. It is absolutely based on a few houses hidden away there, but none specifically. Maithe House is indeed exactly as advertised, but only on the outside. I have a lot of tidbits about The Maithe, but I’m saving them for a future blog post. 😉

The first place we go in ISYK is a party at a big house. Traveling outside of the city, down Falls Rd – which runs from close to where Club Marcada is located in Midtown, almost to the Pennsylvania border – it’s obvious that the house isn’t a place one can just stumble upon, it is off the beaten path. I’ve again softened the border between our reality and book reality when it comes to exact location and the ease of getting there without a vehicle. If you’re in the know and driving around the Greenspring Station to Ruxton Road area, you might find yourself traveling the road that Merrick takes to crash a party.

Both Merrick’s apartment and Lucee’s place are based on places where friends lived, in the Mt Vernon neighborhood. Sousa’s place isn’t too far from there. The pic above shows a little of what that area looks like. It is a great neighborhood for artsy types, though perhaps a little more affordable in the fictional version of Baltimore!

Using a real-life place, even one I’m familiar with, gave me some things to think about before I proceeded. I’ve seen it done really well, and also not quite as well. It can be easy to let the setting overwhelm the story by putting the city’s character and descriptions too far forward. For me, Baltimore is an important part of the tale, but not the most forward part. I wanted it to lurk in the background in some ways – interesting but ignorable in detail until the right time. And of course, it is all about timing!

I can’t wait until you travel to my version of Baltimore, and you get to meet the folks that live there.

Keep tuned for more In Sleep You Know news, coming soon!