Hey all. It's been a while. I know my last post was explaining some sickness I came down with that kept me down. Unfortunately, things got a bit worse before getting better.
As many of you know, I have bipolar disorder, and sadly I've been dealing with a pretty serious episode over the last couple of months. I've been in and out of hospital evaluations and requiring full time care, and I haven't been able to make content.
I'm starting to find my footing again, and I really miss reacting to stories and talking about the things we love.
I'm cannot going to promise a huge upload schedule right away, but I'm working on getting reactions and analysis going again.
Thank you to everyone who's stuck around, especially my patrons. Your support has meant more than I can really express. I hope to build that back up soon.
Hey all! Thank you for your patience as I've had a bit of a lull in posting. I came down with a pretty nasty sickness that has had me in bed for weeks with a fever and lost voice but I am finally on the other side of it and hoping to get back into the swing of things very soon!
Hey all! The demo for that book song I’ve been working on and casting on TikTok is out now! It’s a version that in my voice but I think it is a sweet song. If you want to show some support, go check it out over on the channel @TheEmoraProject . I’ve worked hard on this and the support would mean a lot!
Today I updated the epigraph at the start of The Seven Rangers Vol 1 - Harvest as well as the biography entries in the back of the book. If you want the original version of The Seven Rangers with the behind-the-scenes details in the back of the book, you have about 48 hours before the file updates on Amazon!
In the meantime, any guesses on the meaning/implication of this quote or why I would choose it for this book specifically? It used to be an Akira Kurosawa quote before I changed it.
Hey all, I just need a few more days on the new video. It's one of the longest ones I've ever made and I'm looking forward to bringing it to you all. Thank you for the patience. The parts are uploaded early on Patreon for my reactions to Dispatch and my Undertale reaction should be starting up there soon
This is Eryka, the most polarizing character in my series.
I knew going in that readers were going to be split on her, but I didn’t quite anticipate the scope of that split. Some absolutely loved her and resonated with her, while others have literally called for her deletion from the novel.
So what makes her so controversial? To answer that, I need to tell you a bit about her life.
Eryka, like everyone in my story, was born on the isolated floating island of Emora. At the age of 9, Eryka’s parents were both killed in a way she traced to the captain of the guard, Asmus Filsen. Devastated, Eryka spent the next decade learning every trick of the trade to maneuver, manipulate, and claw her way to revenge, systematically dismantling Filsen’s life and ultimately leading to his demise.
This left Eryka broken and with a skill set for manipulation that had been groomed into her but no good outlet for it. Captain Leonne found her fevered in the forest and on death’s door. She took her in, healed her up, and ultimately trained her to become the diplomat of the Ranger Corps—a force that defends the city from external threats.
So why does she divide audiences?
Much of it comes down to a few key factors:
1 Manipulative natures are notoriously hard for readers to forgive and require a deft touch
2 While the text refers to her as being manipulative, that isn’t actually the trope she embodies. She’s more of a social engineer / negotiator than a truly fictionally manipulative character isn’t he way the trope would suggest. I even studied real life FBI negotiation handbooks to refine her technique.
3 I frequently use Free Indirect Discourse in the novel, where I narrate the thoughts of the character as objective prose, trusting the reader to differentiate. That said, I was pretty over aggressive with it at times with Eryka’s chapter in a way that in practice is hard to distinguish from telling rather than showing.
Ultimately though, Eryka is a little sweetheart in a very traumatized package while also being genuinely unsettling at times. When things hit the fan, all she wants is to cuddle into her massive riding shoebill stork, Muna, and get away from it all. But when others are hurting, she can’t bring herself to look away because she knows what it is like to feel that way.
My favorite scene with her happens when Eryka comes across a scared child and takes the time to get on their level, tell her a story, and make shadows against the wall to make her smile.
For all her flaws, for all the divide among readers, Eryka always will have a special place in my heart as a writer.
Writing update: This is my entire second volume of my book, The Seven Rangers.
Why is it a bunch of index cards, you ask?
Because my plot was very broken.
Well maybe not VERY broken, but my scenes were not well distributed. My back 60% is firing great—a character driven, high octane, adventure that is hitting how I want. The front half, especially the first act, is not hitting how it should.
A big part of that was me trying to balance the need for logistics with chapters that were just planning meetings. You can see which chapters are which with this:
🟢 Green - primarily character driven chapter 🟡 Yellow - primarily plot driven chapter 🔴 Red/Pink - meeting-based chapter 🔵 Blue - transition chapter
My biggest offender was the abundance of red scenes in the front third, at once point having 4.5 planning chapters in the span of 6 chapters.
Obviously that cannot stay in the book.
So I wrote out each chapter and color coded it to see what I could do about rearranging and redistributing my current material, though it’s looking like the biggest cure is going to be a full reimagining of how my first act is delivered.
The biggest help to me was actually studying the writing of a series I had never seen before: Battlestar Galactica (especially the miniseries movie). In their early seasons they had immaculate pacing that hid a deep character drama in a high intensity space adventure.
By studying the show, I’ve come up with a few rules for myself going forward:
1. No technobabble (especially my surgeon character cannot deliver plot in dense jargon)
2. Every scene must come with a resource that is being expended or managed
3. All character driven scenes must be tied into the plot, doing double lifting
4. No taksies-backsies ever, to use the scientific word
5. All meetings must actually be character drama scenes, which brings us back to rule 3.
Anyway, I’m having a ton of fun and making great progress, but it is all a process! I cannot wait to share more with you all.
P.s. I obscured my ipad screen in image 2 because I refuse to publicly disclose I’ve been watching My Life With the Walter Boys
Coming up next! Uploading in parts to patreon first and then the full 8-9+ hr cut here on youtube. Looking forward to spending the time together! I had lots to say.
As a late 29th birthday present to me, my talented sister is offering me some character art. I have narrowed it down to these three options! --- 🎨 Option 1: Gwynn Lowdotter
Gwynn is a sort of sad jester archetype. She is a whirlwind of chaotic creativity who hides deep vulnerability behind quick jokes, flashy acrobatics, and the ability to turn invisible. She’s all about vibrance, dynamic motion, and stubbornness in the face of those who would make her smaller.
🎨 Option 2: Eryka Bryndotter
Eryka is a social engineer/manipulator with a good heart. She reads every room like an interrogation, weaponizing polite smiles and tactical silence to keep her hyper-vigilant walls up. She lost both of her parents when she was 9 and spent the next 10 years systematically dismantling the life of the culprit before exacting revenge. This left her with a compromised ability to self assess but a deep desire to do good.
🎨 Option 3: Riannon Taldotter
Riannon is the "debutante who is secretly a badass with a sword" sort of archetype. She was raised by one of the wealthiest families in Emora but she has fought every day to make her own name, carve her own path, and protect those she loves. She is the best swordsperson on the island and stores her sword around her wrist in the form of an intricate bracelet that she can form into her blade at will.
InkWrites
Hey all. It's been a while. I know my last post was explaining some sickness I came down with that kept me down. Unfortunately, things got a bit worse before getting better.
As many of you know, I have bipolar disorder, and sadly I've been dealing with a pretty serious episode over the last couple of months. I've been in and out of hospital evaluations and requiring full time care, and I haven't been able to make content.
I'm starting to find my footing again, and I really miss reacting to stories and talking about the things we love.
I'm cannot going to promise a huge upload schedule right away, but I'm working on getting reactions and analysis going again.
Thank you to everyone who's stuck around, especially my patrons. Your support has meant more than I can really express. I hope to build that back up soon.
I'm glad to be back, even if it is bit by bit.
2 weeks ago | [YT] | 620
View 26 replies
InkWrites
Hey all! Thank you for your patience as I've had a bit of a lull in posting. I came down with a pretty nasty sickness that has had me in bed for weeks with a fever and lost voice but I am finally on the other side of it and hoping to get back into the swing of things very soon!
1 month ago | [YT] | 245
View 17 replies
InkWrites
Hey all! The demo for that book song I’ve been working on and casting on TikTok is out now! It’s a version that in my voice but I think it is a sweet song. If you want to show some support, go check it out over on the channel @TheEmoraProject . I’ve worked hard on this and the support would mean a lot!
2 months ago | [YT] | 55
View 4 replies
InkWrites
I’m opening a small community casting call for an upcoming simple animatic!
I’m looking for a feminine voice for a 20-year-old character.
I posted a learning track on my shorts page if you want to practice.
To audition, stitch the audition prompt on my TikTok: @jacobpenrod_author
This is an unpaid, nonmonetized passion project, and the selected vocalist will receive full credit. Auditions are open through September 1!
If you know someone who might be perfect for this, please share this post.
2 months ago | [YT] | 134
View 14 replies
InkWrites
Today I updated the epigraph at the start of The Seven Rangers Vol 1 - Harvest as well as the biography entries in the back of the book. If you want the original version of The Seven Rangers with the behind-the-scenes details in the back of the book, you have about 48 hours before the file updates on Amazon!
In the meantime, any guesses on the meaning/implication of this quote or why I would choose it for this book specifically? It used to be an Akira Kurosawa quote before I changed it.
2 months ago | [YT] | 39
View 0 replies
InkWrites
Hey all, I just need a few more days on the new video. It's one of the longest ones I've ever made and I'm looking forward to bringing it to you all. Thank you for the patience. The parts are uploaded early on Patreon for my reactions to Dispatch and my Undertale reaction should be starting up there soon
2 months ago | [YT] | 158
View 12 replies
InkWrites
This is Eryka, the most polarizing character in my series.
I knew going in that readers were going to be split on her, but I didn’t quite anticipate the scope of that split. Some absolutely loved her and resonated with her, while others have literally called for her deletion from the novel.
So what makes her so controversial? To answer that, I need to tell you a bit about her life.
Eryka, like everyone in my story, was born on the isolated floating island of Emora. At the age of 9, Eryka’s parents were both killed in a way she traced to the captain of the guard, Asmus Filsen. Devastated, Eryka spent the next decade learning every trick of the trade to maneuver, manipulate, and claw her way to revenge, systematically dismantling Filsen’s life and ultimately leading to his demise.
This left Eryka broken and with a skill set for manipulation that had been groomed into her but no good outlet for it. Captain Leonne found her fevered in the forest and on death’s door. She took her in, healed her up, and ultimately trained her to become the diplomat of the Ranger Corps—a force that defends the city from external threats.
So why does she divide audiences?
Much of it comes down to a few key factors:
1 Manipulative natures are notoriously hard for readers to forgive and require a deft touch
2 While the text refers to her as being manipulative, that isn’t actually the trope she embodies. She’s more of a social engineer / negotiator than a truly fictionally manipulative character isn’t he way the trope would suggest. I even studied real life FBI negotiation handbooks to refine her technique.
3 I frequently use Free Indirect Discourse in the novel, where I narrate the thoughts of the character as objective prose, trusting the reader to differentiate. That said, I was pretty over aggressive with it at times with Eryka’s chapter in a way that in practice is hard to distinguish from telling rather than showing.
Ultimately though, Eryka is a little sweetheart in a very traumatized package while also being genuinely unsettling at times. When things hit the fan, all she wants is to cuddle into her massive riding shoebill stork, Muna, and get away from it all. But when others are hurting, she can’t bring herself to look away because she knows what it is like to feel that way.
My favorite scene with her happens when Eryka comes across a scared child and takes the time to get on their level, tell her a story, and make shadows against the wall to make her smile.
For all her flaws, for all the divide among readers, Eryka always will have a special place in my heart as a writer.
2 months ago (edited) | [YT] | 103
View 4 replies
InkWrites
Writing update: This is my entire second volume of my book, The Seven Rangers.
Why is it a bunch of index cards, you ask?
Because my plot was very broken.
Well maybe not VERY broken, but my scenes were not well distributed. My back 60% is firing great—a character driven, high octane, adventure that is hitting how I want. The front half, especially the first act, is not hitting how it should.
A big part of that was me trying to balance the need for logistics with chapters that were just planning meetings. You can see which chapters are which with this:
🟢 Green - primarily character driven chapter
🟡 Yellow - primarily plot driven chapter
🔴 Red/Pink - meeting-based chapter
🔵 Blue - transition chapter
My biggest offender was the abundance of red scenes in the front third, at once point having 4.5 planning chapters in the span of 6 chapters.
Obviously that cannot stay in the book.
So I wrote out each chapter and color coded it to see what I could do about rearranging and redistributing my current material, though it’s looking like the biggest cure is going to be a full reimagining of how my first act is delivered.
The biggest help to me was actually studying the writing of a series I had never seen before: Battlestar Galactica (especially the miniseries movie). In their early seasons they had immaculate pacing that hid a deep character drama in a high intensity space adventure.
By studying the show, I’ve come up with a few rules for myself going forward:
1. No technobabble (especially my surgeon character cannot deliver plot in dense jargon)
2. Every scene must come with a resource that is being expended or managed
3. All character driven scenes must be tied into the plot, doing double lifting
4. No taksies-backsies ever, to use the scientific word
5. All meetings must actually be character drama scenes, which brings us back to rule 3.
Anyway, I’m having a ton of fun and making great progress, but it is all a process! I cannot wait to share more with you all.
P.s. I obscured my ipad screen in image 2 because I refuse to publicly disclose I’ve been watching My Life With the Walter Boys
2 months ago | [YT] | 95
View 9 replies
InkWrites
Coming up next! Uploading in parts to patreon first and then the full 8-9+ hr cut here on youtube. Looking forward to spending the time together! I had lots to say.
2 months ago | [YT] | 131
View 11 replies
InkWrites
Help me decide what art to get for my book!
As a late 29th birthday present to me, my talented sister is offering me some character art. I have narrowed it down to these three options!
---
🎨 Option 1: Gwynn Lowdotter
Gwynn is a sort of sad jester archetype. She is a whirlwind of chaotic creativity who hides deep vulnerability behind quick jokes, flashy acrobatics, and the ability to turn invisible. She’s all about vibrance, dynamic motion, and stubbornness in the face of those who would make her smaller.
🎨 Option 2: Eryka Bryndotter
Eryka is a social engineer/manipulator with a good heart. She reads every room like an interrogation, weaponizing polite smiles and tactical silence to keep her hyper-vigilant walls up. She lost both of her parents when she was 9 and spent the next 10 years systematically dismantling the life of the culprit before exacting revenge. This left her with a compromised ability to self assess but a deep desire to do good.
🎨 Option 3: Riannon Taldotter
Riannon is the "debutante who is secretly a badass with a sword" sort of archetype. She was raised by one of the wealthiest families in Emora but she has fought every day to make her own name, carve her own path, and protect those she loves. She is the best swordsperson on the island and stores her sword around her wrist in the form of an intricate bracelet that she can form into her blade at will.
Vote away!
2 months ago | [YT] | 50
View 5 replies
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