Sometimes it feels like somebody’s watching me…
Several years ago, I decided to challenge myself to write and release one new short fiction piece a month for an entire year from my World of Lasniniar epic fantasy series. Up until this point, I had only written two or three shorts in the series that took place between the novels. But now I was back to working a day job at the local bookstore. I figured a bunch of shorts would be more manageable as I got my job/writing balance worked out again, while still giving me a push to get things out.
This ended up being a huge growth period for me. Lasniniar is a large place, and even at the time when I started this project of shorter pieces, the existing books spanned thousands of years of history. I had a TON of potential characters and places/events to explore, without the obligation of making a novel out of it.
Some of these stand-alone shorts were origin stories or explored the history of an established character’s past. Others revealed how certain characters had first met, or gave insight into historical events from the series. One of them even debuted an entirely new character, who comes into play in the novels written afterward. These Legends of Lasniniar also range in tone from light and fun to mysterious, to even a few that are a bit darker.
“Possession” isn’t the first one of these I wrote, but it’s the one that chronologically comes first out of all 29 I’ve written so far, so it seems like the best place to start. (Since these adventures tend to hop all over the place in the series, I also tend to write them in the order of whatever idea strikes my fancy.)
“Possession” is a story from Iadrawyn’s past, and takes place before Light Chasers (the first novel in the series). I wanted to explore the origins of the twisted relationship between her and another elf, which plays a significant role in Light Chasers.
As a result, this story is one of the darker ones.
I decided to draw on personal experience to fuel Iadrawyn’s point of view (with Iadrawyn’s situation escalating a good deal further than mine). At first I worried that not enough really happens in the story, since I’m used to writing a fair amount of action, and this was more psychological and tense. But when Mark finished reading it, he said it was his favorite story I had ever written, and it’s still his favorite short, even now.
This was also when he first said something along the lines of, “You know, maybe you should think about writing thriller or mystery.”
I’m pretty sure I laughed this off at the time. I mean, I had lots on my plate already with my fantasy projects. Besides, I had never written a mystery or thriller before.
But ever since this story and Mark’s reaction, the idea of branching out into another genre lurked in the back of my mind.
Several of my other Legends of Lasniniar stories started to have mystery elements, even without me purposely moving in that direction. (The Christmas/Solstice ones in particular. I don’t know why, but Iarion and Barlo always seem to need to solve a crime or mystery when Solstice rolls around in Lasniniar in a fantasy/mystery/humor mash-up adventure. I just go along for the ride.)
Fast-forward a few years later, and I finally break down to start my Kira Brightwell crime fiction series. (And I have other plans in that genre now as well.)
So, yeah. Writing this fantasy story is what got me into writing crime fiction. Who knew things would turn out this way when I started this whole Legends of Lasniniar project?
I certainly didn’t.
Get Possession, PLUS an exclusive, bonus epilogue for FREE!
This story is included in the ebook collection Back Story, which you receive as a free gift when you sign up for my newsletter. The version in this collection also includes a bonus epilogue to “Possession” that isn’t available anywhere else. Click here to get your free copy.
**”Legends of Lasniniar: Possession” is the Free Fiction Feature for June 2020. You can read it for free on this site for one month only. This story also comes in ebook and paperback format—both on its own, and as part of the Light Chasers Lasniniar Collection. You can find “Possession” at your preferred online retailer here, or buy it direct from the author. You can find retailer links to the Light Chasers Lasniniar Collection here, or buy it direct from the author.**
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