Mortality, Writer's Block, and Other Ramblings

...Wow, it has been a long time since I last posted. I am so sorry. You have my BFF & beta-reader to thank for a post right now...

The first draft of Mortality is almost finished. I am so glad. It's been over a year, now, since I started writing it, and now I'm so close and yet so far. So close: just one chapter and an epilogue to go. So far: it took me a month to get through the previous chapter, which wasn't even average length. Not to mention the fact that I've got missing scenes to write in and the entire thing to edit.

I'll be really glad when I can move on to The Road to Reichenbach. Mortality has been one long angst/torture-fest for Holmes & Co, and that was initially fun to write... initially. A few months ago, however, I reached the point where I was tired of writing all this angst and depressing stuff, and I was more than ready to move on. Months ago. Last month (or possibly May, I can't recall for sure), I wrote a scene in which Holmes suffered a panic attack. I was assured by my ever-encouraging reviewers that the scene was good, but it was the first time I've ever hated a scene while I was writing it. I didn't want to put Holmes through that panic attack, but I had to. It wouldn't have been a realistic recovery without a few bleak moments like that, and I knew that. But I really didn't like it.

Still... even when I can't write, I do other things to promote Deliver Us from Evil. It now has its own set of TV Tropes pages: the Main Page, a Character Sheet, a Quotes Page, a YMMV page which details some reviewer reactions (that's an entertaining page to work on), and Awesome, Funny, Heartwarming, Nightmare Fuel, and Tear Jerker entries. Please, do check it out!

On my deviantART account, I actually have several Sherlockian gallery folders: one for AMM illustrations, one for general Sherlock Holmes, one for Granada Sherlock Holmes (including a second-place contest entry!), one for A Study in Regret (for which I really enjoy doing fanart), and one for Deliver Us from Evil, which includes cover-art for Mortality, as well as a couple of blurbs. (I really ought to do more fanart for myself.)

On a rather unrelated note, I can't wait for NaNo... I'm going to be writing my "potential novel" Greater Love (see my Sherlockian novel list for details). No matter what else I'm doing at the time - college or editing or Doctor Who/canon!Holmes crossovers or whatever - I am definitely writing that novel.

Did I say Doctor Who? I did, didn't I? Did I mention that my cousin finally pulled me into it? 'Course, if you do keep track of me on FF.N, you probably already knew that. But no Wholock for me, thanks - I crave Wholmes. Hence my very-much-AU planned crossover, Fantastic, My Dear Holmes, starring the Ninth Doctor, Beth Lestrade, Rose Tyler, and Sherlock Holmes. (And probably John Watson and clone!Moriarty, as well.) Be prepared for timey-wimeyness, fluff, unashamed romance, hurt/comfort... and more fluff!

And check back here next week! I've made a resolution to break my writer's block and get myself back onto the blogging scene, so I am going to do a post once a week, every Wednesday. Next time, it'll be about Doctor Who, Sherlock Holmes, and Sherlock. Stay tuned!

Return from the Hiatus

No, not the Hiatus—my hiatus. But I had a very good reason for that hiatus (as did Holmes, IMHO). Namely, online college (for myself, that is—not Holmes).

But I bear good tidings of great joy for myself and for all my readers!

I AM FINISHED WITH MY ONLINE COURSE!

Finito. Kaput. End of the road.

And just beginning with my Sherlockian road! In fact, my mentor asked point-blank if I had any fiction ideas that did not involve Sherlock Holmes! You can guess what my answer was.

Nope. Mr. Holmes, I'm here to stay.

So! What am I going to be doing now? Read on!

I. UPCOMING FANFICS 

(Warning: Here Be Crossovers!)

1. The Innocence of a Child (Sherlock Holmes in the 22nd Century)
Beth Lestrade finds herself the guardian of two boys when Sherlock Holmes and James Moriarty are regressed in age to learn certain lessons about life in order to tackle the future.

2. Stepping Through the Wardrobe (canon/The Chronicles of Narnia)
When nine-year-old Sherlock enters a snowy wood via a wardrobe, he learns about the importance of family, love, forgiveness, and sacrifice.

3. Enemies Within (SH22/Buzz Lightyear of Star Command crossover)
Professor Moriarty teams up with the Evil Emperor Zurg in the 31st century, and Star Command will have to call upon Sherlock Holmes to defeat the Napoleon of Crime.

4. Case Apocalypse: Left Behind (BBC Sherlock/Left Behind)
Sherlock and Mycroft Holmes come to terms with the vanishing of millions worldwide, including their mother, as they deal with the world’s rising star, Nicolae Carpathia.

II. FICTION TO BE PUBLISHED

1. At the Mercy of the Mind: A Journey into the Depths of Sherlock Holmes
I am going to polish AMM up and edit some bits that do not fit with more recent material, and then see if MX Publishing will accept the thing.

2. Deliver Us from Evil, Book I: Mortality
The fourteenth chapter of Mortality was uploaded to FF.N on New Year's Day. It's coming along a bit slowly, but it's coming. I hope to have the manuscript ready to submit by summer. Unfortunately, I can't promise any sooner.

3. Have Yourself a Chaotic Little Christmas
Those of you keeping track of the Sherlockian part of FF.N probably saw the advent calendar challenge in December. That was hilarious fun, and I plan to edit my own Christmas collection in hopes of publishing it in time for next Christmas. This anthology includes vampires (not what you think, trust me), Jack the Ripper, Moriarty, Mary getting the better of Holmes, picnics in graveyards, WWI, the Irregulars, Lestrade, Irene Norton, Kitty Winter, and whole lot of delicious crack!

4. Deliver Us from Evil, Book II: The Road to Reichenbach
Yes, yes, oh, yes. Once I’m in the editing stage for Mortality, I’m hitting the Road (lame pun absolutely intended). I even have a fairly substantial chapter outline for Road, and it’s looking very exciting, indeed!

5. Greater Love: A Tale of Redemption
Those who have read the AMM ebook might recall an AU short in which a certain young gentleman was a criminal genius rather than a genius detective. Well, for one of my lessons, I had to do a synopsis for a future novel, so I did one for that concept. The results were utterly intoxicating. Upon reading said synopsis, my beloved beta-reader replied, “You have to write this novel now so I can read it.” So I’ll be writing it whilst working on Road.
That’s all I’ll say for now. This will be one novel I won’t spoil for you!

III. THIS BLOG

As always, I’ll be providing you with info on my stories, as well as essays/rants/“scholarly” posts such as “Writing Child!Sherlock” and “Else our universe is ruled by chance.” PLUS, I’ve got a pile-up-a-mile of Sherlockian movies and novels to review, including Without a Clue and The Return of the Hound, respectively.
AND what I’d really like to do is interview various Sherlockian authors. The problem at this point? My wallet, as always. (Big problem when you’re a flailing newcomer to that career that every professional says, “Don’t make your day job.”) By golly, I’ll overcome that obstacle somehow!

So, there you have it! My new year’s resolutions (a bit late, I know) in a nutshell. Now, off I go to watch some more Star Trek… Oh, didn’t I tell you? I became a Trekkie during my hiatus. Blame KCS’s However Improbable and The Next Generation’s “Elementary, Dear Data” (which, btw, is going to get a review in the future). Throw in a dash of Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home, and I’m hopelessly hooked.

No, this will not take my focus away from 221B Baker Street! Eesh , don’t panic!

Laterz!

Eyes and Brains, My Dear Sherlockians

He’s brilliant.  He’s fast.  He’s strong.  He’s… blond?

A little hard to believe, but Sherlock Holmes is blond in the 22^nd century.  Blond and blue-eyed—very Anglo-Saxon, and finally living up to his name: fair-haired.

He hasn’t lost any of his sardonic wit, but, on the other hand, he’s also mellowed some.  Not that this is a bad thing: this is simply Sherlock Holmes having lived a full life (some 70 years at least), died, and then returned to life.  Though he has the body of a 25-year-old, he has more of the maturity of an older man.

His supervising officer is the direct descendant of his “favorite” Yarder—folks, meet Inspector Beth Lestrade.  His comrade-in-investigation is New Scotland Yard compudroid Watson, a robot who has scanned the real Watson’s journals and taken on an imitation of the Good Doctor’s personality.  His home is once again 221B Baker Street, restored to living quarters after museum attendance fizzled out.  His eyes and ears in the Underworld are teenager Wiggins and tweens Deidre and paraplegic Tennyson.

And once again, his enemy is none other than James Moriarty.

However, unlike the cellular rejuvenation of Holmes, Moriarty is not the real McCoy returned to life, but a clone with all the original’s memories.  To borrow Holmes’s own words, “isn’t technology wonderful.”  This clone is younger, stronger, theatrical, and rather emotionally volatile, prone to anger.  Nevertheless, Moriarty is once again working his way up to the top of the criminal world, and he’s not content with just that, either.  Nope, this Moriarty is setting his sights on global domination, a goal he could well have achieved several times over by now did not Sherlock Holmes, compudroid!Watson, and Beth Lestrade stand in his way.

Moriarty’s one main assistant is Martin Fenwick, a rogue French geneticist.  The world has Fenwick to thank for retrieving the original James Moriarty’s DNA and RNA from the ice cave below Reichenbach where Holmes buried the Professor.  From there, Fenwick grew himself a criminal mastermind with the intention of using the clone as his servant.  But, as Lestrade deduced, “slave turned on master,” and Moriarty took control.

Fenwick is perhaps of average height but grossly deformed, looking more alien than human with his grey skin, distorted face, and demented eyes.  Lestrade makes regular cracks at the man, calling him “beautiful” and Moriarty’s “lab rat”—Fenwick could almost pass as a caricature of Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars.

Beth Lestrade herself is in her mid-twenties at the oldest, quite possibly New Scotland Yard’s youngest Inspector.  She’s notorious for risk-taking and reckless driving, and she’s more than willing to stand up for herself, be it to her boss, Chief Inspector Greyson, Holmes, or Moriarty himself.  Lestrade (lehstrahd) is either American or Canadian, judging by her accent, and she stands nearly as tall as Holmes.  She’s brunette and pretty, but don’t let her looks fool you: the woman is one zedding good fighter.  She can take on three criminals with lightsabers all at once and have them on the ground in handcuffs in under two minutes—impressive, yes?  She gets easily irritated—more than ever, with Holmes and the Irregulars around—but she has a heart of gold underneath.

It was Lestrade, a Sherlockian, who recognized Moriarty and made the decision to have Sherlock Holmes’s honey-entombed body rejuvenated.  And since she took the responsibility to resurrect the Great Detective, she got stuck with the responsibility to keep tabs on him.  Fortunately, she seems to hold her own pretty well with the not-so-very-misogynistic Holmes.

Lestrade’s compudroid was meant to keep an eye on the volatile Yardie; he made sure she stuck to the rules, took her every word very literally, and reported to Greyson regarding Beth.  Despite her frustration with these traits, she named the robot “Watson,” and, upon introducing him to Holmes, ordered the droid to scan the original Watson’s journals.  After doing so, the compudroid took it upon himself to act as if he were the real Watson—he appears even to consider himself as such, though there are times when he very clearly identifies himself as a machine.

Holmes initially shunned the compudroid’s new persona but very nearly lost it when he thought Watson destroyed by the Thames.  The detective then embraced the droid with the kind of fervor only Sherlock Holmes can have when he attaches himself to something, and went so far as to insist that Watson lived with him in 221B.  Watson took on an elasto-mask that was meant to be a replica of John H. Watson’s head, bowler hat and monocle (???) included.  Watson now accompanies Holmes on all his cases and has proven himself an invaluable assistant.  Though quite tough in a fight, the droid is gentle and very good-natured, not really an exact replica of the canonical Watson but a fair imitation.

Sherlock Holmes in the 22^nd Century may be a cartoon, but don’t let that put you off.  Though the outdoor animation is a jarring 3D (think late ‘90s computer game graphics) compared to the indoor 2D and the dialogue is sometimes not quite… there… the show is quite faithful to the spirit of the Canon.

Holmes may have to fend enemies off physically more often, but the Great Detective has lost none of his stellar ability to observe and deduce.  As he says so often in the show, “eyes and brains.”  A robot may ironically be the heart of the group, but Holmes lets others see a fair bit of his own “great heart.”  Holmes and a new Inspector Lestrade argue as much as ever but have a strong friendship beneath.  Moriarty may be somewhat less stable, but he’s as evil and as cunning as ever.  And one thing hasn’t changed: the world still needs Sherlock Holmes.

Most of the episodes take stories from the Canon and update them to the 22^nd century, sometimes retaining only the bare bones of the original story in order to give the audience something fresh (e.g. “The Sussex Vampire Lot”).  But not all episodes are Canon cop-offs: some are completely original stories, such as the premiere and its sequel.

And if you’re worried about any romantic interaction between Sherlock Holmes and Beth Lestrade, you needn’t be.  Nope, they don’t kiss… though there are quite a few fans of the show that wish they would.  The creators seem to have left the relationship open-ended: friendship or potential future romance.  Some fans prefer the former, some the latter.  If you’re willing to be convinced as to the potential, however, you need look no further than this page http://suburbanbanshee.net/holmes/bethsher.html

, which lays out a compelling case using Holmes’s own methods of observation and deduction.

All in all, a terrifically fun show for kids and adult Sherlockians alike!  Holmes’s stellar characterization alone makes it worth seeing, and watching him react to 22^nd century changes and interact with both friend and foe (Moriarty, especially) is fantastic.

I’ve only just recently started to watch the show, and I’ve yet to make it all the way through.  But, of course, the muse has already been fired up—you can find two SH22 fics on my profile thus far!  In fact, if you’re an AMM fan, I’ll go so far as to recommend my SH22 stories to you—they use AMM material, including material that you can’t find anywhere else except for in the book itself.

But whether or not you check out said fics, do check out the show itself!  It might take some time to get used to it, but give it a chance—it just might grow on you.