Category Archives: Sanctum: The Novels

Posts relating to the Sanctum of the Archmage Novels

Sanctum 2 v4.2 Remake

2 - The Quest, Crucible of Heroes, Sanctum v4q, The Miracle Worker

I’ve had some inquiries about the status of the Sanctum 2 v4 module remake, so I thought it would be a good idea to re-consider my plans for it and to address them on my blog.

I’m currently about halfway through my original plans for the remake. Unfortunately, as I announced here, I had to put finishing that work on hold in recent months in order to allow time for other projects and priorities. Modding and writing are both things that I do in  the spare time allowed by my career — and finishing and publishing the first book in the Sanctum series, The End of the Beginning, and completing the Sanctum 2v4 remake, were both competing for that time. Given how much more work was still left on Sanctum 2v4, I felt that I could no longer delay starting to get the novels ready for publication.

But I do miss modding, and after a few months away from it I think that I may be able to fit in the time for a more limited module update for Chapter 2. The good news is that most of the important work — especially the custom content implementation and the linkages from Chapter 1 — are already done. Most of the rest of the work I had planned centered around an extensive new quest sequence that I was going to add. If I skip that, then it shouldn’t take me too long to get the rest of the remake ready for release.

So I’ve decided to go ahead with that, splitting time on Sanctum2 v4 with my novel writing. Aside from one new encounter that I’m already halfway through, the only thing I really still have to do is to re-build the flying areas at the end with the new Sanctum Flying Skyscape tileset. So fingers crossed, it should be possible for me to get the update out for beta test by the holidays.

Crucible of Heroes in 3 Parts

Crucible of Heroes, Sanctum: The Novels

As readers of my earlier posts have probably already noted, I’ve been torn between a desire to write a shorter work that could be completed and published sooner, and the kind of more comprehensive first novel that I think the storyline deserves. Now that I’ve been working on Crucible of Heroes for a while and have had a chance to refine the outline, I think I’ve found a way to accomplish both goals.

The solution I’ve come up with is to structure the first novel into three shorter parts that could be published either separately, or together as sub-books of a longer work. Each of these should be roughly the length of a short novel, in the range of about 40-50 thousand words. That will allow me to publish each of the individual parts as I finish them, as well as to publish them together as a single novel once all three parts are completed.

So without further ado, let me announce the planned structure of Crucible of Heroes, the first novel in the Sanctum of the Archmage series:

Part I will tell the full story of the coming of the horde and the fall of Lannamon, and Part III the story of The Sight up to the flight from Blackwing Lodge. These are consistent with my previously announced outlines. The new element is the addition of Part II, which is really the part of the story that’s been expanding the most as my writing has progressed and I’ve continued to re-work the outline. Part II will tell the story of how our three heroes meet for the first time, and of how Mount Cassandra became the center of the resistance against the Black Magus.

Chapter 2 Complete

Crucible of Heroes, Sanctum: The Novels

Crucible of Heroes chapter 2 (The Calm Before the Storm) is now complete. The first two chapters come to just a bit over 14,000 words, which at an estimate of about 350 words per page, should be about 40 pages. The whole book should probably end up being about 10 chapters, which should put me at about the 20% mark on a roughly 200 page book. (That doesn’t count editing, of course, which is a whole other ball of wax for which all bets are off.)

The first two chapters are the main ones for background and exposition, and focus a great deal on visual description and character introduction. Those have always been the things I’ve found most difficult and time-consuming to work though, and I’m quite glad to have that behind me. The real action begins in Chapter 3, the first sentences of which I’m just now starting to write. I’m really looking forward to that — and, hopefully, picking up the pace of my progress on the saga even more.

Chapter 1 Complete

Crucible of Heroes, General, Sanctum: The Novels

It will still need a few more editing passes, but as of now, Crucible of Heroes  chapter 1 (The City of Rainbows) is complete. It ended up coming to three scenes and just over 12 pages of single-spaced type in 11-point font. So far Crucible of Heroes as a whole is just shy of 9000 words and 470 Kindle “locations.”

By SWFA standards that already puts it over the line into a Novella, with at least six more chapters still to go. So obviously, my initial estimate of 20,000 words is going to be a bit short of the mark. As it looks right now, fifty to sixty thousand is probably more realistic, which will put it well over the word count guidelines for a novella.

So it looks like it’s official. Although a relatively short one, Crucible of Heroes is, in fact, going to be novel.

Crucible Progress

Crucible of Heroes, Sanctum: The Novels

Here’s a brief update on the progress of “Crucible of Heroes,” the first book in the “Sanctum of the Archmage” series (which I’m currently writing for release as a Kindle book).

Not entirely surprisingly, I’ve already had to adjust my plans for the outline of the first installment. Fortunately the reasons are all good ones: I’m writing too much, and I’ve got too many ideas, to realistically fit all of it into one introductory novella. So naturally, of course, I’ve now re-organized it into two introductory novellas. The more I got into writing, the more I realized that was needed, and that there was too much to the back-story for me to cover properly in the space allotted allowed by a short first book.

I think it works better that way anyhow, since it was essentially going to be telling two different stories (the Fall of Lannamon, and the introduction to The Sight). Instead, now, the first two books will now tell each of those stories in more detail. And since they should both be roughly of the same length that I’d originally intended for “Crucible,” the re-structuring shouldn’t significantly delay completion and release of the first one.

Now that I’ve had a chance to to work through most of the (expected) kinks in settling into a writing style and a routine, the work is picking up pace. The first of seven planned chapters is nearly done (and I favor long chapters, so that’s more than it sounds like. ;)). It introduces Robin (Randia), Orion, and the royal family, and sets up Diana for her appearance in Chapter 2. And it offers a glimpse into the extraordinary events that were taking place in the Kingdom of Carlissa at the beginning of the saga, which help frame and set the context for what comes afterward…

Crucible of Heroes

Crucible of Heroes, Sanctum: The Novels

After some delays – more than I had expected or intended, and largely due to the ever pesky demands of life and career – I’m pleased to announce that work is now officially underway on the initial prose installment in the Sanctum of the Archmage Saga. The chapter and scene outlines are done, and the Kindle template is prepared and eagerly awaiting an impending infusion of content.

I’m tentatively calling the first book Crucible of Heroes, subtitled (of course) “Book One of the Sanctum of the Archmage Saga.” The title is still tentative, but I settled on Crucible of Heroes because it focuses on telling the origin stories of the major heroes of the Sanctum saga. The first half tells the full tale of The Fall of Lannamon, while second tells the introduction to The Sight up to the flight from Blackwing Lodge. There’s also a prologue that flashes back ten thousand years to offer us a brief glimpse of the mysterious and enigmatic Andarians, though of course I can’t say very much about that just yet…

I’m also pleased to announce plans for Crucible of Heroes to be illustrated with original pen and ink drawings by the very talented artist, Charles Imbro. I’m extremely excited by the opportunity to collaborate with Charles on this effort, which we expect to be very effective for publication in the still predominantly grayscale Kindle reader market.

I’m anticipating a final length of about 20 thousand words, which according to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America should technically qualify it as a short novella. I rather like that idea for a number of reasons, not the least of which is described in this interesting article about evolving publication standards due to e-publishing:

The novella is the perfect length for an ebook. Writers can get around the traditional obstacles that publishers face with novellas, and get their novella onto people’s Kindles directly. Also, in terms of actually getting people to buy your work, it is easier to price your novella at a lower price… than a traditional novella published in print, that would probably go on sale for a similar price to a novel, despite being much shorter in length.

Hellman Family Values

1 - The Sight, Sanctum: The Modules, Sanctum: The Novels

“The Fire Elves long ago rejected the values of love and family. Everyone is property of the state. Hellwomen compete for the attention of males, paying dowries for their sexual attentions. If they conceive and give birth, the child is taken to be raised in a communal education center. The mother is paid for her contribution to society — and the greater the status of the father, the greater the payment.”

 — A’Lindra Ta’Lin, Sanctum of the Archmage: The Sight

Sanctum of the Archmage: The Future

Crucible of Heroes, Sanctum: The Modules, Sanctum: The Novels

I’m pleased to announce plans for the very first work in the saga, tentatively titled “Sanctum of the Archmage: The Beginning,” to be released later this year as a Kindle novella. It will serve as an “introductory prequel” to the rest of the series…

Now that the final remake of my game module, Sanctum of the Archmage 1: The Sight has been released, I thought this would be a good time to discuss some of my future plans for the Sanctum of the Archmage writing projects.

When I first discovered “game modding” with Neverwinter Nights years ago, I made a conscious decision to put aside work for a while on the Sanctum of the Archmage novels. Newly fascinated by the idea of telling stories through the medium of computer-based role-playing games (or CRPGs), I took some time to explore developing part of the backstory to the novels in that form instead. My goals were both to teach myself the new and fascinating art of interactive storytelling through computer games, which I’ve always liked, and to try to help build an audience for my writing at the same time. I think by now that I’ve managed some success at both — and while time-consuming, I found that challenging myself to develop ever better storytelling games was something that I really enjoyed. There’s no question, though, that that effort has turned out to be a substantially longer diversion from my core fiction writing work than I’d originally intended.

I’ve also had to take a hard look at my somewhat ambitious plans for the module series, given a realistic assessment of my other goals and the amount of time I actually have to work on it. My “real life” career as a computer scientist demands most of my time and attention, and I have plans for developing it further that will require additional focus on learning certain new technologies. Both writing and modding are things that I can only afford to do in my (unfortunately, not especially plentiful) spare time — which I need to be more hard-nosed about rationing. Some reflection has consequently forced me to the conclusion that while I’m not quite ready to give up on Sanctum as a modding project just yet, that I need to make more time in my schedule for other efforts as well.

I’ve also become aware of some recent developments in the publishing industry that have an important bearing on my prospects for continued work on the novels. These include the dramatic rise in electronic and indie self-publishing, which has opened up exciting new possibilities for authors that didn’t exist only a few years ago. One writer friend of mine is now publishing her work in this form, and has even written a Kindle book on Step by Step Kindle Publishing. Fantasy author Terry Goodkind deliberately published his latest novel, The First Confessor, solely in e-book form, and his comments on that decision are thought-provoking. And readers who have played his NWN modules may know that Stephen Nowland (aka Savant) has been adapting the story told in his Aielund Saga and publishing it as a set of Kindle — and most recently, indie paperback — novels.

These are all considerations that I can’t ignore any longer, given that my main goal has always been to publish Sanctum of the Archmage as a novel series. So I’ve decided, after releasing the re-make of my first module, to turn the main focus of the project back to that effort. I’m therefore pleased to announce plans for the very first work in the saga, tentatively titled Sanctum of the Archmage: The Beginning, to be released later this year as a Kindle novella. It will serve as an “introductory prequel” to the rest of the series, telling the story of the massacre of Lannamon, and the opening scenes of The Sight up to fleeing Blackwing Lodge.

This is a project I’m very excited about starting, and I hope that you are too. I’ll be posting about it again soon and as it develops, so stay tuned!