My biggest project right now is the editing prep for Hidden in Sealskin. I’ve been laying foundations for the rest of the White Changeling series so that, when I do start editing, I’ll be able to hone the story into a pretty darn good first installment.
I’ve been working on this series for…
Ok, wow. I did not see that number coming.
I’ve been working on this series for almost four years.
Hold on a sec… I need to let that sink in for a second.
*mouths in astonishment* Four years?
Wow.
Anyways, what I was going to say was that, after working on this for so long, you’d think that I’d have a really good handle on the world and everything. Especially the backstory, which was the first thing I developed in detail, and which hasn’t changed in any of those details since I first wrote it all out. I mean, I did get a whole huge bunch more of backstory several months ago, but all it did was make what I’d already established even more interesting.
So, today, I was going through and formally writing out stuff that I already knew so that I wouldn’t forget it and so that it would be accessible later.
And then wouldn’t you know it, but I discovered that this one guy (let’s call him Bastard King, because that’s what I call him in my notes) was assassinated for more than just being a total dick. I mean, I was 100% satisfied with just that explanation, because I really don’t like him. One reason is that he killed his father and then lied about the circumstances so that he could be seen as a hero. The other reason is that he just has a terrible personality. But, as it turns out, the real reason he was assassinated had nothing to do with either of those lovely factors, although neither of them helped his cause any when the time came.
Turns out, the people who hired the assassin had Bastard King killed because they had found out that he was part fairy. There’s this huge stigma in that country about people who are only part human, and to have a king like that?
But, how did they find out? Because the timing of it all was impeccably bad for him. This was not too long after he had assumed the throne (you know, after killing his father, who had been a rather popular king), and right at a time in his life when he was being significantly less charming than usual. Plus, he’d been keeping this secret his whole life. I can guarantee you that this was not a result of stupidity on his part.
Well, as chance would have it, Bastard King discovered something huge not too long before he died. The method of accessing this information has been closely guarded by a certain family that has a great deal of influence (and children) everywhere. Like, seriously everywhere. And, when Bastard King got a hold of this information, they watched him very closely.
You see, him just knowing the information wasn’t going to get him dead. What he was going to do with it, though, could. So, that family watched him to see what his reaction would be to his discovery. Evidently, they weren’t pleased with said reaction because, well. One thing led to another and now the country has a regency.
Fun times.
None of the main characters know any of this, by the way. Adren, Nadin, and Rina were all younger than thirteen when this happened, after all, and it happened just under a decade before Hidden in Sealskin starts.
But now you know, and I wonder…
What is it that you plan to do with this information, exactly?
