The Writings of Cora

I write for a few purposes:

1. I have stories to tell, and I love to tell them.

2. I want to write stories that people enjoy. Not to teach lessons or have a subliminal message. There is no "And the moral of this story is _____" at the end to convict the reader and make them want to go home and re-think their life. Nope! Just a fun and exciting story. If you get something out of it, bravo for you! If not, I hope you liked the story and the people in it!

3. I've discovered a distinct lack of gripping fantasy novels that have no magic. I've gotten bored with magic, think it's dumb, and it tends to turn dark quickly. It seems like when an author can't possibly think of an explanation or a fix for a plot hole, he says, "Why, it's magic, of course! Didn't you know?" Blech! I was even encouraged to use magic in my stories by one friend because it was an easy excuse. Why do people buy that excuse so willingly? So. No magic. To the trash bin with it! *tosses magic into bin filled with crumpled paper, eraser dust, and pencil shavings* *fixes lid* Ah, that's much better!

4. ON THE OTHER HAND, lack of magic in fantasy is usually a synonym for boring, super-sweet, annoying stories. For example: genre Christian fiction. The main character is practically perfect, though they're allowed 1 flaw, and it's usually pride. Then they have some issue with that flaw, and the whole story takes a melodramatic turn for the worse. After a few pages, the main character says, "What have I done?" and apologizes, repents, and all is good again. Then an older, wiser character comes to the main character to say, "Son, this just goes to show you that nothing good comes of being proud." The authors avoid magic simply to create a super-sweet story that all Christian parents would let their children read. You can only read so many books like that before you can predict the ending after reading the book's first paragraph. Eventually, you have to look for something else. I'm writing that something else.

In my first book, the main character does not have a huge, glaring flaw because it did not fit the story. She does not have a flaw merely for the sake of having a flaw to teach the reader to be a better person. My goal is not to teach lessons on how bad pride, greed, etc. is throughout the story. I am assuming you know that already and don't need me to tell you.

I'm a Christian. I write fiction. I do not write genre Christian fiction. I write fiction from a Christian perspective.


So I am writing to fill the gap I've found in the "epic fantasy" genre. Swords, leathers, cloaks, dungeons, desperate ventures... and characters that are lovable. Or love-to-hateable. :)

All fueled on the power of coffee, M&Ms, and sheer willpower.

........Mostly the M&Ms.....