Strategy and Tactics

I wrote my first major battle scene just a while back. After last evening's crit group meeting, I can actually say that I nailed it. It felt good when I wrote it; I studied several historical battle plans and I've been reading Machiavelli and Sun Tzu. I had to start the section two or three times and ditch the first few stabs at the opening (don't groan, no pun intended) before I got the scene moving the way I wanted. I even drew the battle plan out on paper with all the little rectangles and arrows and everything, and wrote scene notes all over the battle map. But once I got past the opening part, things just flew. The next thing I knew, it was about two hours or more later, I was starving, and the battlefield was littered with the dead and wounded. I even killed the only horse who got a name. Sorry. I didn't plan it beforehand, so I guess his number must have been up or he was wearing a red bridle, or something.

Some writers use theme music when they write, and I'm no exception. The theme for my main character's climactic fight scene in Aspects was from the X-men soundtrack. For her first wartime battle in Shadows, it was the soundtrack from Tomb Raider. Music or no music, the results were pretty good--or so my crit group tells me. I still need to run the scene past the guy who helped me think up my initial war strategy, but I think it'll get a good rating there, too. I might--just maybe--be good at medieval battle tactics. Who knew? If I can keep the stakes high and the sex and battles hot, this book might just be a keeper.

Yeah, I'm feeling pretty confident at the moment, perhaps influenced by all that studying I did on Alexander the Great. Buy my books when I'm published, and you can either diss or praise my battles on Amazon. In the meantime, I've got an island to conquer. Oh, and if Bob should happen to read this--I'm almost done. Just a few more chapters, I promise!