Effective September 15, 2017, this blog has moved to the following domains:

• ForsakenIsles.com
• ForsakenIsle.com
• EricKBarnum.com
• Darmalcor.com

www.forsakenisles.com

It's mid-September and I'm 80,000ish words in Merakoran Agenda. It's fun writing because, at a certain point, the story catches hold of me and starts to write itself. Like a runner's high, this is my writer's high. Something about how my brain works requires that most of my 1st draft gets junked as I write to find the story waiting and wanting to be told.

Against this, I commissioned art for the River of Time mentioned so much in my writing. While there is a ton of great art work out there featuring clocks and skeletons, I wanted something within the Forsaken Isles. Dar Tania 2: Set's Dream ends with 9 year old Ana sitting on Dar Tania's lap while speaking to the priestesses. The art will feature this as a past scene with 20-year old Ana looking back and seeing it, while looking forward and seeing herself as she hits the peak of her powers.

The River is a key concept in my writing as it is the metaphor by which Morbatten understands how Time flows. Because of their influence, surrounding nations adopt the metaphor as well. Clerics and paladins in the Forsaken Isles are able to access the River and use it side-step in Time. It looks they vanish and reappear in a blink. Though all of my books have River scenes in them, I am hoping that having a visual will help drive home what it is like. The Multiverse map also shows how the River is actually the flow of Time. Ancient civilizations named it the Ethereal, or Ether for short. But, Tiamat sees it for what it is... poisonous murder to the eldar, and a tool for mortal Tehrans to grow in power.
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The art should be done sometime in early November and shortly after that I'll start work on the cover art for Merakoran Agenda!