Category: Writing

How Will “Lucia and the Saints” End?

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Earlier this year, I released the first four books of a new series, Lucia and the Saints. This series is a prequel to the Valentine series, and traces the begining of John Rafferty’s entrance into the Syndicate. It also tells the story of the woman who hepled him rise to power, Lucia Milazzo. You could play Six Degrees of Separation with the other characters in the Valentine series, and you would end up at Lucia every time.

So far, Lucia has managed to introduce John to some key people, help him secure a few night clubs, and make some money. Plus, there’s some other important issues at play: the Lady Saints in New Orleans trying to maintain the business they started, and the connection between Lucia Milazzo and Lucia Calderon. With all of this, how is the series going to end?

Lucia Vol One Cover

If you’ve read the Valentine series, then you know, Lucia isn’t mentioned anywhere. No one says her name, no one ever brings her up in a conversation. This can only mean, by the time Val goes on her roadtrip to Cali, Lucia is nolonger a part of John Rafferty’s life. So, how did they part ways? On friendly terms, or not so friendly terms? And where do the Lady Saints fit into all of this? The final book in the Valentine series reveals how Rafferty’s story ends, so one has to wonder, if Lucia will have something to say about that…

The final two books in the Lucia and the Saints series will be available late this Fall.

Woolaston Entertainment

 

“Summer Reading” Shouldn’t End With The Summer

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We’re all familiar with the phrase, Summer Reading. You probably became acquainted with it while you were in school. The school semester would come to an end as the Summer season began, and you knew you had a few blissful weeks until the Fall semester began. But, you were expected to read. Maybe there was a list of specific books, or maybe you just needed to read something during your Summer break, and be prepared to write a book report about it when school started again. Either way, you knew you needed to read something.

Summer Reading can go one of two ways: either students look forward to it, or they can’t stand it. I have always enjoyes reading, even since childhood, so Summer Reading didn’t bother me. But there are some students who would rather do ANYTHING than spend any part of their Summer vacay reading a book.

I think part of this relates to what students are being asked to read. My generation had The Scarlet Letter and As I Lay Dying. Don’t get me wrong: the classics are still good books. Students shouldn’t be limited to only reading the classics. Nowadays, students need something they can relate to. I’m happy to see books like Wonder and The Fault in Our Stars make the lists. Even books from the Percy Jackson series have been considered.

Summer Reading shouldn’t end when Summer ends. Its already difficult to grab a student’s attention, let alone maintain it. My opinion: we need to keep students interested in reading throughout the year, and not just during the Summer. While I’m all-for teachers choosing books for their class to read during the semester, I think it may help to include the students in the decision. Ask them what they’re interested in reading. Maybe, mix it up a little” use some of the classics along with the modern books. This way, they’ll see that reading doesn’t have to be painful and boring.

Of course, if you’re looking for new titles to add to your reading list, you can always check out Woolaston Entertainment

What Makes a Good Spin-Off?

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Spin-off: by definition, it is “a byproduct or incidental result of a larger project” or “a product marketed by its association with a popular television program, movie, personality, etc”. It’s not quite a sequel, but more of an extension of a smaller component of a larger creation. For example, there’s the sitcom, The Big Bang Theory, and its spin-off, Young Sheldon. The Big Bang Theory is the primary show, while Young Sheldon focuses on one character from Big Bang, Sheldon Cooper.

What makes a good spin-off? When it comes to books, I believe it helps to chose one of the most interesting characters or settings from the original book or series. Perhaps, a character the audience didn’t learn very much about in the original story. My Valentine series has led to two spin-offs: Valentine Apart and Lucia and the Saints (and I’m working out the details for a third series, Valentine R). The Apart series focuses on characters other than Valentine; characters the audience didn’t know much about, because the bulk of the series focuses mainly on Valentine herself. I chose the characters that seemed the most interesting, such as Lola Vencent and the Avery siblings. Her Name is Lola Vencent dives into Lola’s background, and her life before she worked for John Rafferty, while Allan and Mac depicts the events that took place before Allan and Mac met Valentine. While each character (or set of characters) received one stand-alone book, Jo Fuentes, another featured character from Valentine , will be the only character to have TWO books: Jo Fuentes The Black Queen and the upcoming Jo Fuentes Project Sleep. 

New cover of Valentine

Spin-off’s need to be interesting. If a boring character, or one is just isn’t memorable is chosen, and all the details about them are boring, the audience will most likely lose interest. Readers like interesting backstories.

A good spin-off, should have a little foreshadowing. There need to be clues and events that connect the spin-off to the larger story. Lucia and the Saints is FILLED WITH FORESHADOWING. This series follows John Rafferty as he rises to become the “villain” readers know him to be in Valentine. It also follows the life of another important character, Lucia Milazzo, who ultimately helps Rafferty gain his power and position in the Syndicate.

Allan and Mac
Her Name is Lola Vencent
Young Kelly McCormick

There are other characters in Valentine that I could have chosen to use in Valentine Apart. Veronica, Val’s cousin, may have been a good candidate. However, since she and Val practically grew up together, and you learn more about both of them throughout the series, I felt it would have been a bit redundant. There’s also Melinda, the orphan Val rescues during her road trip to L.A. Melinda provides a brief recount of her life, prior to meeting Val, but since she’s only fourteen, I didn’t think there would be enough to tell about her, to fill a stand-alone book. But, Allan, Mac, Lola and Jo are all hitmen, with tragic backgrounds that make their stories interesting enough to appear in a stand-alone book.

Several characters make appearances in Lucia and the Saints, aside from Rafferty and Lucia. Vincent and Victor Entienne, Jacob Price, and Allan and Mac Avery, all had to start somewhere, and their entrance into the Syndicate is revealed in this series.

Jo Fuentes: Project Sleep is coming soon. The rest is available on Woolaston Entertainment’s site

“Lucia and the Saints” and Things to Come!

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Hello! This past weekend I released the fourth volume in the Lucia and the Saints series. Volume Four finds Lucia and John purchasing a second nightclub; this time its located in Chicago. While Lucia prides herself on her skills as a business woman, it seems the men around her don’t want to take her seriously. Lucia decides its time for her to show the fellas what she’s made of. Meanwhile, in New Orleans, the confrontation between Brian and the Lady Saints is about to come to a head, as the connection between Lucia Calderon and Lucia Milazzo is finally revealed!

Lucia Vol Four Cover

I will be taking a short break from writing the remaining two books in this series, in order to finish some of the other projects I started. But, rest assured, the rest of the series will be released within the next two months.

I had planned to release my mother’s third book, A New England Serial Killer, this past weekend, but I was feeling a bit under the weather and was unable to finish editing. I did however, manage to create an image for the cover. Don’t worry: no one was harmed in the creation of this pic. 

ANESK Cover Photo

I hope to have A New England Serial Killer ready before the end of the week. 

I’m also getting back to The Age of the Daughter and Jo Fuentes: Project Sleep. I put them on hold for Lucia and I’m glad I did. During my hiatus from working on those two books, I came up with new ideas for them. 

More things to come!

Lucia and the Saints: Volume Four is available on Amazon

Woolaston Entertainment

My New Day Job Forces Me To Eat Healthy

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Everyone has a McDonald’s near them, right? You probably pass by one on your way to work, or on your way home. Maybe its near your house, or your job, or your favorite shopping center…either way there’s a McDonald’s near you. I’ve had a McDonald’s near every job I’ve ever had…until now.

Its nice to be able to step outside for thirty minutes (or more) and grab a burger or a taco

My new day job is in a public library, and there are NO FAST FOOD PLACES NEARBY!!! I’m used to having the option of a McDonald’s, Taco Bell, Arby’s…something! But this time, there’s nothing at all. My only solution: bring lunch to work everyday. The downside: no tacos or fries. The upside: I’m saving money and I’ll probably lose some of the weight I recently gained. Still, its nice to be able to step outside for thirty minutes (or more) and grab a burger or a taco. But, for now, its sandwiches and left-overs.

Woolaston Entertainment & The Public Library

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If you’re an avid reader, writer or publisher, chances are, you have or are currently using the resources at your local public library. However, if you’ve never visited your local library…ain’t no time like the present! Come on! Get in there! Free books and internet access? Are you kidding me ? I’m pro-library, and not because I have worked at two of them. Public libraries are a must. For writers and publishers, they are a great way to introduce your books to new readers. I’m not just a patron of the library, I’m in the library. Literally.

There is at least one Woolaston Entertainment book available in the following public library systems:

Queens Public Library in New York

Norfolk Public Library in Virginia

Newport News Public Library in Virginia

Hampton Public Library in Virginia

Patagonia Public Library in Arizona

As I continue to publish, I hope to extend my reach to other library systems (although Arizona is a pretty good stretch from New York and Virginia!). If you’re a published author (self-published or otherwise) I highly recommend working with your local public library and adding your work to their collection. It’s a great way to introduce yourself to the public and gain some new readers.

Woolaston Entertainment

Research and Planning in Writing

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I once read a short story, which took place in the 1960’s. There was a scene in which a character pulled out a cell phone and made a call…which is odd, considering the first mobile phone didn’t come out until 1973. This character was not a time traveler, which simply means, the writer didn’t do enough research before writing their story. 

How much research and planning do you do, before writing your story or book? Some work requires only a little research. Others, require extensive research.

When I wrote the first book in the Valentine series, I used a road map. Yes, an actual road map. In the story, Val Entienne drives from Chicago to L.A. to find her father, and I wanted her to use route 66. I also wanted to make sure I had her drive through states route 66 passed through. To some readers, this probably wouldn’t matter. To an anal-retentive like me, it matters, and I’ll give you an example of why.

I’m a New Yorker, and if you’ve been watching films or television shows for the past thirty years or more, you’ve noticed how many films and shows are recorded in New York. Take Law and Order, for example. I can watch an episode, and recognize a landmark or a street, because the show takes place in New York. While watching a scene in John Wick: Chapter Two, I thought, “I know The Continnental isn’t real, but I can tell from surrounding landmarks where its supposed to be located”.  Little details like that can make a huge difference. So, if I’m reading a story, and a character says they’ll meet another character in Chelsea, on 125th Street in New York, I know that’s a mistake. 125th Street is in Harlem, not Chelsea.

I can’t afford a slip-up such as having a character appear to be too young during a particular arc of the storyline.

I’m working on a series thats a prequel to Valentine, and one key detail I needed to focus on, are the characters’ ages. I ended up making a chart of how old certain characters were in the Valentine series, so I could calculate how old they should be in the prequel, Lucia and the Saints, should I need to use them. 

ages

Val Entienne is 19 when the Valentine series begins, but she’s only 3 during Lucia, so there’s a good chance she won’t be mentioned in the prequel. Again, this may not matter to some readers, but for those who are paying attention, I can’t afford a slip-up such as having a character appear to be too young during a particular arc of the storyline.

Careful planning went into Our Lady of Righteous Rage’s Righteous, too. In this book, the band goes on their first national tour, via an R.V.. I calculated the amount of hours it would take to drive from city to city, to make the story more accurate. For instance, it takes at least two hours to drive from New York to Philadelphia. Anything less than that, would be incorrect. 

I also keep a list of fake birthdays for my characters, so I can have them age appropriately, as the story progresses. If a character starts out as a fourteen year old, and the story takes place across six years, by the end they should be twenty. If they’re only seventeen by the end of story, there’s a problem. This became very important in the Our Lady series, which begins in the 1990’s and goes from there. 

If you decide to use certain landmarks in your story, such as stores or restaurants, and you’re focusing on a particular time frame, you may want to make sure those landmarks still exist, or existed during the time in which your story takes place. I wanted to use the famous CBGB in Our Lady, but the time within the story I wanted to use it, wouldn’t have worked, since CBGB closed in 2006. 

Just a little food for thought. 

Woolaston Entertainment