Roz Maclaren

Teen Fiction with a Dark Twist

Mirrordom

Writing the fourth book in The Mirrordom Legends

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I’m currently writing the fourth book in The Mirrordom Legends. It’s still a work in progress and there’s a lot to do but this book is set almost entirely on Mirror Island and will explore what goes on there.

I had a lot of questions about the Mirrors’ culture and how they rule themselves. What laws do they have? What is the island like? Why can’t they just swim off and escape?

All these questions will be answered in the fourth book.

Who are the main characters?

The female main character is Flame, a Mirrorless girl who discovers she’s not who she thought she was when she’s able to defend her sisters and kill a wild boar that’s about to hurt her family. This event prompts Flame to realise that, based on her blonde hair and ability to kill, she must be Mirrorless. But who are her parents?

The male main character is Phoenix, a Mirror who has a very traumatic experience in the second chapter. I can’t reveal too much about it, but it sparks a terrible chain of events in motion.

Our villain is called Vex, which I think is a perfect name for a villain and I don’t know why I didn’t think of it before. Writing villains is, for me, often more fun than writing the main characters. It allows me to get creative with my imagination and writing about a character that’s truly despicable is often really enjoyable.

How long will the series be?

At present, I have five books planned in the Mirrordom Legends and I do believe that will be the end of it. I’m not going to say I’ll never write another book about some of the characters or perhaps a prequel, but I don’t have any plans at the moment.

Will any other books, unrelated to Mirrordom be in the pipeline?

I’m currently working on a sci-fi novel set in the year 3034 that I’ve just submitted to a publisher. If it goes anywhere, I’ll be sure to update the blog.

When will the first book in The Mirrordom Legends be out?

Venom and Blaze will be out in July 2024 and I’ll update the Bookshelf page with links on where you can read it.

What’s involved in writing a book: reading the proof copy

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I finally finished working through the proof copy or galley proof of Venom and Blaze. This is my last opportunity to pick up on any errors, so I made sure to go through it very carefully. As expected, I did spot a few mistakes that needed to be fixed ahead of it taking on its final form.

After this, I’ll be trying to organise ARCs and book tours and promotion ahead of the book’s release date.

The proof copy

Up until the moment I held it in my hands, it didn’t feel quite real. As if my publisher was going to jump out and go “Oh, by the way, it was all a prank. We don’t really want it after all.” (Ridiculous, I know!) But now it’s all starting to sink in that, in a very short time, the book will be out in the world.

I will be doing a few giveaways and organising some ARCs, although that will likely be only available for download at this stage. Would you be interested in an ARC? If so, drop me a line or comment below.

What I’ve learned from the journey so far

I didn’t appreciate just how long the process of creating a book actually is. Of course, I knew writers didn’t just churn out a book in a short time and have it ready for the shelves the next day. But there’s a whole world of activity going on behind the scenes – from the very first moment you finish the first draft to even after the book goes on sale. From editing to promotion, there’s always something to do – particularly if the hope is to become a full-time author.

What else has been happening?

I also took the plunge and sent my un-related stand-alone novel off to a publisher. It will likely be around 12 weeks (minimum) until I hear back, but I’ll keep you posted.

The Mirrordom Legends continue, as I’m currently writing the fourth book in the series. It has a working title of Flame and Phoenix and much of the action is set on the infamous Mirror Island. I wanted to explore the culture a bit more and answer some questions I myself had about how the Mirrors regulate themselves, control the population and establish some degree of control over their own destinies.

Venom and Blaze will be available this summer, with Fable and Legend following in the autumn. City and Shadow will be out in 2025 (and you’ll get to see how Venom and Blaze turned out as adults!)

Cover reveal for Venom and Blaze!

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I’m so excited to reveal the cover for Venom and Blaze!

Created by the amazing Ashley of Redbird Designs, this cover absolutely exceeded my expectations. I love the simple, striking design and the opulent gold colours.

And, of course, no book cover for Venom and Blaze could be complete without a few spiders here and there. Ashley cleverly came up with the idea of having a spider in the letter O, which I think adds a lovely touch.

For any independent authors or self-publishing authors, I can absolutely recommend working with Ashley. She created an amazing profile that required minimal tweaks and simply blew me away.

My advice for authors briefing cover designers

Take the time to put together the details

Your designer won’t have read your book, so they can only work with what you give them. That means you need to get down to the granular details, including what colour eyes your characters have.

What sort of details do you need to give your cover artist? These might include (but probably aren’t limited to):

  • the name of your book
  • your pen name, if you have one
  • back cover blurb and any taglines, if you have one
  • the time period your book is written in
  • the genre
  • a detailed description of your main characters
  • any design aspects you do or do not want included
  • any visual inspiration – for example, other covers you really love
  • any input on fonts.

I also included a full, hundred word synopsis with spoilers so Ashley could really get a feel for what was going on in the book.

Be respectful

Your designer is also a creative – and we all know how it feels when someone disparages work we’ve put our heart and soul into. If you need them to make amends, be sure to ask for them politely and clearly. Be as specific as possible.

I couldn’t be happier with how the cover turned out – and I really can’t wait to see what magic Ashley comes up with for Fable and Legend, the second book in the series!

What stage are we at with Venom and Blaze?

I am still waiting for the proof print copy to reach me. As my publisher is in the United States, this is taking a wee while. Once I receive it, I’ll go through it one more time with a fine-tooth comb to check for any errors. I’ll then sign off the errata form, either confirming all is okay or requesting any final tweaks. After that, I’ll be able to confirm the release date and then the countdown begins!

A playlist for Venom and Blaze

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I love it when people take the trouble to put a playlist together for me to listen to. So, my little present to you is a series of songs to listen to while you read Venom and Blaze. Every song has a link (in my head) to the story of one of the characters.

Venom

Who’s Afraid Of Little Old Me? – Taylor Swift

Venom is a complex character who has the potential to choose between right and wrong. Her upbringing and situation has made her feel powerless in life and there’s a very clear moment in the story where she has to choose which way she wants to go and whether to to what she knows is right or embrace her darkness.

This song, by Taylor Swift, reminds me of Venom’s personality and the descent of compromising who she is in a desperate bid for survival.

Blaze

Thunder – Imagine Dragons

Blaze is a dreamer who doesn’t fit the mould. Irrespective of the jeering of his contemporaries, he has his own path to forge and he does so with relentless conviction.

This song, by Imagine Dragons, reminds me of Blaze’s fearlessness in the face of all odds.

Thorn

We Could Be So Good Together – The Doors

I can’t say too much about why this is Thorn’s song without giving away some key plot details. Sufficient to say, if you study the lyrics to this song by The Doors, it fits Thorn’s motivation and actions surprisingly well!

Viper

you should see me in a crown – Billie Eilish

Power is what drives Viper – and what better song to celebrate his unhinged actions than with a spot of Billie Eilish?

There are, of course, other characters in the book. Once you’ve read it, I’d love to hear what songs you think would suit their personalities.

What’s involved in writing a book: editing the formatted version

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It was as I suspected. More editing was required.

This time, I was sent the formatted .pdf for review. Lo and behold, I found a handful of tiny errors that had slipped through the first billion edits. (Seriously, was I reading it with my eyes shut the entire time??)

Instead of marking up the .pdf with comments, this time I had to note them down in what was called an errata. Basically, I typed the page number, a short note of what needed fixed in parenthesis, the offending sentence or paragraph and what the correct version should read, with the new bits in a red font.

Once again, I was grateful for writing such a short book. Imagine how many errors there would have been in a longer one. (I’m looking at you, City and Shadow.)

What happens next?

This was my penultimate chance to find errors. My next and final chance will be in the actual physical copy! Yes, my publishers are going to sent me a printed proof to read and I’ll get to hold it in my hands!

At some point after this, I’ll get to work with the designer to create a cover. This is probably the part I’m looking forward to most. Creating the perfect cover was a major factor in why I decided to submit the books to the publisher I did, as I really like their previous examples and their approach in terms of working with the author.

Talking of images, the girl above is very close to how I picture Venom – except Venom probably looks a little more ruthless and she’ll have a ton of spiders with her.

Anything else happening?

Not really. I’m balancing the day job with writing, but I’m constantly plotting for the next novel. I also have a few works in progress, so we’ll see if I can make anything of those.

What’s involved in writing a book: yet more editing

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It’s all hands on deck, as we get closer to publication day!

What stage are we at?

Venom and Blaze has just been through the second editor. (Yes, even after being through the first editor about twenty million times, there’s still more to fix.) My second editor caught a few things that didn’t make sense and formatted the book to their house style.

What happens next?

After this, it’ll go to the formatters where I’ll get sent a print .pdf for review. I get two chances to spot any other minor things to change (the time for developmental editing has passed.)

Once that’s done, I’ll start working with a designer to come up with a cover that encapsulates my vision for Venom and Blaze.

In other news, the first draft of Fable and Legend is with the publisher and she is currently reading it. I think Fable and Legend is one of the most mature books I’ve written in the series (I don’t mean mature in the sense of content, but in the sense of being written with maturity.)

Is anything else happening?

I’m glad you asked. Yes. I’m currently working on plotting the fourth book in the series, which has a working title of Flame and Phoenix. Whether it ever sees the light of day is another matter. And I’m also editing a YA novel I wrote over lockdown that I recently revisited and found to not be entirely dross. Again, whether that ever sees the light of day, I am unsure. It’s totally separate from the Mirrordom universe.

Oops – I did it again

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The blog has been extra quiet lately. This is because I’ve been working on another story set in Mirrordom (once which is likely going to muck up the trilogy concept because it’ll make four in total. And I’m not even going to mention at this stage that I have plans for a fifth.)

I’ve been working on this one over the winter, simply because I felt the character of Quiver’s mother deserved her own story. And because I ended up writing a throwaway remark in Venom and Blaze that I later realised was quite a cool concept I wanted to explore further.

I can’t say too much at this time – and, of course, there’s no guarantee this book will ever see the light of day. Frankly, if I were my publisher, I’d tell me to go and have a good long think about my actions because I seem to have no concept of the words “chronological order.” Other seasoned authors seem to manage to write their books in the order things happen, rather than my haphazard Oh-I-Think-This-Character-Needs-Their-Own-Story-So-I’ll-Go-Back-And-Write-It-And-Give-No-Heed-To-The-Fact-It-Mucks-Up-The-Planned-Order sort of way. Because this book would come directly after the events of Venom and Blaze so it would become the second in the series, bumping City and Shadow down (again) to third in the series.

I know we’re not supposed to have favourites but this one might just be my new favourite. In a way, it’s quite fitting that Quiver’s mother gets her own story because the very first Mirrordom book I wrote began with her. Although she’s largely overshadowed by other characters, it’s her actions that end up setting a chain of events in motion. Writing about her in her own right gave me a chance to explore her complexities and develop her character.

So what can I say about this book?

Well, we have some new settings. Most of the action of the other books takes place around the castle and the caves. This book features the Glittering City, a farmhouse on the edge of the woods and a lot of taverns – all brand-new locations.

We also have some brand new characters, like Cobalt, Legend and Ballad. Every one of them has their own secrets and Fable finds herself caught up in their stories. We also get to see the return of another familiar character, but I can’t say too much about that.

Part of the reason for writing this blog has always been to document the whole process of writing books and aiming to get them published. At the very least, it’ll be something for me to look back on later and perhaps learn from. So here’s another stitch in the tapestry of working on Mirrordom: throwing yet another novel into the mix. I daresay everyone will be quite used to that by now.

Last night, I typed “The End”

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I’m excited to announce the first draft of Quiver and Arrow is finished!

What happens next?

Nothing. I let the story sit for a few months. Then, I format it using Reedsy (they have a brilliant, free formatting tool) and read it like it’s a normal book. I find the fallow period combined with the change in formatting helps me spot errors more easily.

After that, I’ll submit Quiver and Arrow to my publisher to see if they think it’s got any merit.

And the rest of the Mirrordom Trilogy?

Venom and Blaze will need edited nearer to its publication date. And then begins the fun bits, like choosing a cover and promoting the story. The same process will happen with City and Shadow.

Will there be any other books in the Mirrordom Universe?

Let’s not rule anything out. I do have a novella planned, but that’s not progressed beyond a scribbled note in my journal.

What else is in the pipeline?

I’m writing a psychological novel for adults, purely for my own pleasure. I’m also working on another YA novel, completely unrelated to Mirrordom.

And then there will be all the work of promotion, engaging with readers, approaching booksellers and, hopefully, achieving my dream of getting Venom and Blaze into Waterstones!

What am I reading?

At the moment, I’m reading The Toll by Neal Shusterman – the last in the Arc of a Scythe trilogy. I’m absolutely loving his work. I’m also still reading The Dark Queen by Dana Gricken. I’ll be writing reviews on both when I’m done.

Are you reading anything riveting? I’d love to hear all about it.