What if the villain was the hero of the story?
What if the villain was a…dragon?
What if that dragon bucked a lot of stereotypes, and he was a supreme dragon overlord?
You know, those kind of what if questions.
My favorite villain of all time is Long John Silver from Treasure Island. I loved how affably evil the old salt was. In the beginning of the book, he’s always smiling and he’s a friendly guy. But when he turns—he turns. And when you see the true heart of his character, he’s pure evil.
I thought it would be cool to write about a character that, from page one, you know he’s rotten to the core. Yet somewhat redeemable.
Affably evil.
But I didn’t want to have him become a good guy (boo). I wanted the story, the world, the characters to revolve around him.
That’s how Old Dark was born. He pays a few homages to ol’ Long John. There’s even a nod to Treasure Island in Book 2 when Dark gives Meah the grimoire and a black spot appears when she gives it to Moss. That’s how much of an impact that novel had on my childhood.
But I’m digressing.
Old Dark is his own kind of evil.
Fear
I’m going to tell you a little secret…
This series scared me to death.
For starters, I’ll make a few more confessions…
I don’t follow the traditional “author” ways.
I don’t outline. I don’t plan. The most I knew when I sat down to create this series was that it was going to be about a narcissistic dragon lord who gets his comeuppance and wakes up in the future. I didn’t know about Dark’s parents. I didn’t know about Norwyn. I didn’t even know about Miri or Lucan. I just sat down and started typing, and I let my subconscious tell the story.
I also don’t write multiple drafts. I write my novels in one pass, going back and looping through them for spelling errors and story inconsistencies. So I wrote this entire series STRAIGHT THROUGH in one draft without looking back. I don’t believe in writing “sloppy” first drafts, but I also don’t believe in taking until the apocalypse to write a novel either. I move at a steady pace.
But yeah, that’s kind of scary when you’re writing a story like this because any fiction genre is all about reader expectations, and when you’re writing from the subconscious, you’re focused on the story, not the “market” or “what the market wants.” That’s a huge risk, especially for a series like this.
Old Dark was also a larger than life character for me. Compared to the other protagonists I’ve written to this point, there was a deeper level of complexity to him that quite frankly I didn’t think I was ready to write. I almost pushed this series back a year, thinking I couldn’t handle it. But something told me to push myself.
And I’m really glad I did.
But boy was it scary.
You know what I was afraid of? That readers wouldn’t like the series. That they wouldn’t get it. There are a lot of familiar fantasy tropes, to be sure, but as with a lot of my work, the series is a little “out there.” But not so far that people would be like “Ha ha, look at that funny guy writing that book about a psycho dragon. What a loser!!!”-kind of “out there.” Feel me?
That’s when I know that I’m in my groove. When I’m writing something where people are either going to say “it’s awesome” or “it’s a train wreck”, I know I’m making good work. If you’re an author, you will understand that completely. If not, pray for me, will you?
I certainly hope that the book worked for you. That you liked the characters. That the nuances came through. That the story was deeply satisfying and worth the money you paid for it.
I always feel like I come away from a series wiser than when I started. I could have never expected the many nuances that came about in this story. After all, I didn’t plan it.
It’s absolutely amazing what your subconscious will come up with if you just sit down and let it do its thing.
It’s the Little Things
I spent a lot of time on the packaging and presentation of this series to make it feel distinct from my other series. I mean…androids, teddy bears, necromancers…I had to make sure my “dragon” series would stand out and offer my readers something new to cheer about.
Let me tell you a story…
When I was thirteen years old, my mom took me to Universal Studios. I had never experienced anything like it in my life—I was a city kid from St. Louis so I had been to amusement parks, but nothing like this.
I remember walking through the gates for the first time and just taking in the place—thousands of people flowing around me like a river, the smell of hot dogs, sprinklers gently watering the hundreds of flowers all over the grounds, and the mascots lumbering around and hugging children.
I saw a sign for Dr. Doom’s Fearfall and thought the ride looked really cool so I beelined for it.
Every ride at Universal Studios is like a mini-universe. The ride has probably changed in 10-15 years since I’ve been there, but this is what I remember. When you enter the Dr. Doom, it’s literally like you’re walking into the gloomy castle of Dr. Victor Von Doom, the villain of the Fantastic Four series. It’s almost like he could have lived there. It smelled damp and you could feel cold air as a recording of a thunderstorm played. Every now and again, Dr. Doom’s voice sounded on the speakers, and in his thick Latvian accent, he talked about how he had created a sinister new device that would destroy the Fantastic Four. On the walls were posters of the Fantastic Four in fighting poses, and framed pictures of the top comic issues. By the time you got to the ride, you were steeped in the Fantastic Four universe and were ready to ride.
The ride itself wasn’t so fantastic, but that’s beside the point.
Universal took a character, Dr. Doom and literally made him larger than life. They made HIM an experience that you never forgot by using subtle tricks to get you into his mindset.
With The Last Dragon Lord series, I wanted to treat my books like Universal treated Dr. Doom.
I’m a firm believer in the statement that you, gentle reader, probably don’t read for plot. If you did, then you’d probably be reading the newspaper (all plot, sorry—except for the editorials in The New Yorker, THOSE are all character). You probably picked this series up because you love dragons, and/or because you love interesting fictional characters, right?
For me, Old Dark literally was a larger than life character (see the fear section in this Author’s Note), and I wanted him to feel like it. So everything from the first point of contact until the end of the series was carefully engineered to evoke a certain kind of emotion.
The book description.
The epigraphs/quotes at the beginning of the book.
The Roman numeral chapter numbering.
The Dramatis Personae and intermezzos, which gave the book a very decidedly Shakespearean feel.
I felt that all of these little things added up and gave the series a unique flair that made it more enjoyable and easier to get into the heads of the characters.
What’s Next for Me
I have absolutely no idea, and that’s a wonderful place to be. By the time you read this, though, I can guarantee you that I’ll be off having fun in the land of my next series.
But in the meantime, if you liked The Last Dragon Lord series, sign up for my mailing list at www.michaellaronn.com. And tell your friends, would you? I’m on a crazy journey to write the best work that only I can, and I can’t do it without readers like you. I’ll give you a free book for signing up, plus a huge handshake and hug if I ever meet you in person.
Again, thanks for reading this series, and I hope you remember it for years to come. But most importantly, I hope my books are the kind of books you want to cozy up on the couch and read when life gets rough. Because that quiet reading time—sacred as prayer—spending time with authors and characters I love is what inspires me each and every day.
See you next time
.
—Michael La Ronn
November 28, 2016
Des Moines
About the Author
Science fiction and fantasy on the wild side!
Michael La Ronn is the author of many science fiction and fantasy novels including The Last Dragon Lord, Android X, and Eaten series.
In 2012, a life-threatening illness made him realize that storytelling was his #1 passion. He’s devoted his life to writing ever since, making up whatever story makes him fall out of his chair laughing the hardest. Every day.
To get updates when he releases new work + other bonuses, sign up by copying/pasting this link into your browser: http://bit.ly/1r6kNTG
Also by Michael La Ronn
Modern Necromancy Series
Death Marked
Death Bound
Death Crowned
Android X Series
Android Paradox
Android Deception
Android Winter
Eaten Series
Season 1
Season 2
Season 3
Nutrizeen
Sword Bear Chronicles Series
Theo and the Festival of Shadows
Theo and the Solstice of Dreams
Decision Select Novels Series
How to Be Bad
Short Story Collections
Reconciled People
LEARN MORE:
www.michaellaronn.com/books
Table of Contents
Title
Copyright
Dramatis Personae
ACT I
Epigraph
I
II
III
IV
V
VI
VII
Intermezzo
ACT II
VIII
IX
X
XI
XII
XIII
XIV
XV
XVI
Intermezzo
ACT III
XVII
XVIII
XIX
XX
XXI
XXII
XXIII
XXIV
XXV
XXVI
XXVII
XXVIII
XXIX
XXX
XXXI
XXXII
XXXIII
XXXIV
XXXV
Intermezzo
ACT IV
XXXVI
XXXVII
XXXVIII
XXXIX
XL
XLI
XLII
XLIII
XLIV
XLV
XLVI
XLVII
XLVIII
XLIX
L
Intermezzo
ACT V
LI
LII
LIII
LIV
LV
LVI
Coda
Author's Note
About the Author
Other Books by Michael La Ronn