Sequel Progress Update March 21th, 2025

I think I've fixed what was wrong the playlist for the sequel to Alpha's Ghost. I write to music, so if the music is wrong, the scenes will be wrong. I realized my mistake this week: I was too heavy on Future Garage, and didn't have enough Wave like I did for the playlist I used for Alpha's Ghost. However, because I want the sequel to be different, I needed to add a little something to make it distinct. After some research, it turns out that Phonk (Drift Phonk, specifically) has an origin that matches the setting of the sequel, and I lean into happy coincidences like that. The playlist now feels like the soundtrack to a movie whose screenplay I want to adapt into a novel, which is my process in a nutshell.

I am continuing to add depth and layers to the antagonists of the story, but I have my hands full. There are two tropes that I am trying to bend and twist into something original by layering other tropes on them. I should mention that I am not afraid of tropes, as tropes are just like design patterns in software - they're the typical way an effect is achieved. In software, if you use a design pattern the way it's typically used, it's a good thing. In writing, using a trope the way it's typically used is very, very bad unless you're being deliberately ironic.

The benefit of self-publishing is I can do whatever I want, and I'm pretty sure that I would be asked to separate the two antagonists into separate books by a publisher, but in the movie in my head, I want the internal and external threat to the team. Why? I just think it's cool to have to look out at the horizon for a threat while also having to look behind you.

I want a chase to feature prominently in the book, but I'm facing a realistic problem (damn realism) in that to create the chase I want a lot of innocent people would be put at risk. While STRAND agents are anti-heroes, I don't want them mowing down civilians to accomplish the mission. However, I want them mission-focused. As a result, I can't put an innocent civilian between a STRAND agent and the agent, as I don't know what they'd do (I never had an idea until I'm writing that line). However, it's very hard to have a chase that involves roads that doesn't have civilians on it. No clue how to resolve that without something stupid and cheesy like, "The road just so happens to be under construction." I don't have a solution yet, but I really, really want to write a chase scene.

I love layering themes, and one of the themes of the sequel is loneliness and how we react to it. Now, Alpha's Ghost had a similar theme, but it was more unrequited love than loneliness - but the result is the same: you are alone and have to deal with the feelings of isolation. The trick is to play with this theme without making it obvious, but to still make it felt. This is part of the art of writing that's similar to twists: on 2^nd reading it's obvious that the twist is coming, just like the themes are obvious on second reading. On the first reading, however, they have to be invisible or it will feel too "on the nose."

I am still struggling with the opening chapter, and the direction I'm leaning towards is the story starts DEEP in media res - like kick-the-door-in media res. This might be jarring for people coming from the epilogue of Alpha's Ghost, but it could also be super cool, like, "Oh shit, the movie started already." Among other challenges, the story would start with very little dialogue (the action has begun, so no time for chit-chat) so I guess I'll just have to "show, don't tell." Oh darn. I guess I won't be using info dumps and inner monologues this go around (NOTE: Alpha's Ghost has no info dumps, organic exposition, no inner monologues, and excusive uses show-don't tell).

It's about to be April and I haven't started writing, but I'm not ready to start writing yet. The writing for Alpha's Ghost started very suddenly without any warning, and then I kept writing practically non-stop for 6 months. Right now, I'm tracking for publishing in early 2026, but I was MUCH rather a kickass sequel than rush the shot.