Here’s the man to blame for starting my obsession with classic lit, historical fiction, historical fantasy, what have you. :)

Charles Dickens 200th Birthday Google Doodle

A Tale of Two Cities was the first Dickens novel I read when I was in high school, and I wouldn’t have even heard about it had I not stumbled across a movie adaptation of the book on TV. I remember not only being fascinated by the costumes but also developing a schoolgirl crush on the characters of both Charles Darnay and Sydney Carton. Unsurprisingly, they look alike, so you can’t really blame me. :D It wasn’t till I was in college, when I reread the novel with a more critical eye, when I realized that it was Sydney I should swoon over and not Darnay. Both times, I was a sobbing mess at the end of the novel.

A Tale of Two Cities Illustration by Ralph Bruce

To me the biggest influence that Dickens has in my own work has always been writing memorable characters. I know for a fact that I’m nowhere near his level of creativity and skill, but it’s definitely something I work hard to achieve, regardless of what story I write. Quirky characters, especially, are a bit difficult to create (they have to be unique and cockeyed enough to up the interest levels) and “maintain” throughout a novel-length work (they have to be consistent in their cockeyed-ness), but the final results are well worth all that grief. Again, I don’t think I’ve written any character that comes close to any of Dickens’, but the challenge is always there. And I’ve always considered that to be one of the most fun goals I give myself whenever I begin a new story.

Speaking of writing, I’m just about halfway through Dr. Morbid’s Castle of Blood (or Masks #6). The novel’s coming along pretty well, though I’m finding myself second-guessing this story’s plot more than I did with Mimi Attacks! The circumstances of Eric and the superheroes’ adventures aren’t the same; in this new book, they’re trapped, which means very limited action and setting. In Mimi Attacks!, their adventures are pretty much the standard supervillain-versus-superhero kind of thing. So there’s a bit of nervousness and occasional angst-ridden moments of writerly nail-biting throughout the writing process for Dr. Morbid, and I hope I’m able to pull this through without a hitch.

Releasing two Masks novels in a row earns me a break from writing contemporary fiction after Dr. Morbid, and I’ve been refining the story outline and notes that I scribbled in my writing journal for that French historical fantasy novel I talked about before. Following that, I need to turn my attention back to contemporary fantasy again, but not in the Masks universe. I’m still trying to find a new story (series, maybe) that would serve as a complement to Masks and maybe a replacement down the line when I get tired of writing about superheroes. I certainly can’t see myself writing about Eric for more than ten books, and in fact, I didn’t expect to go beyond five volumes overall. But in this series’ case, it’s good to simply go with the flow as inspiration dictates. If and when I write the final book, it’s not going to be an end-end, if you know what I mean. It’ll remain open-ended to show that Eric’s adventures are ongoing even after the curtain closes. I hate goodbyes, anyway. I’d rather have the gang continue the good fight and end the series that way.

And now I’m starting to bum myself out by thinking about it. One day at a time, dahlink. One day at a time.