I’ve realized (slowly) that there aren't enough consequences in The Pit (Formerly part I of The Forge.)
My current round of non-fiction writing is done. Transcontinental travel provides ample time for rumination. And that leads to plans for yet more rewriting.
I’ve been sitting on ideas for well over a year now. As I rework parts of the The Forge, there’s some violence without consequence that has to be redone.
While I don’t want to kill off some of the mage’s friends, I don’t think there’s a way around it. The Temple is in an awkward place, unable to simply kill The Mage and equally unable to control them. The first wave of blackmail, coercion, extortion, torture and what-not don’t work out, leading to escalation.
Rewriting to include the bad guys is important, also. I often leave them out because — frankly speaking — you rarely have any clue who’s against you. And providing the reader with knowledge The Mage doesn’t have is kind of bothersome to me. But. It’s a way of foreshadowing and knowing The Mage is making a mistake is part of the drama.
Sigh.
I liked those characters. But. Nothing good can come from the violence; that’s what #grimdark is all about.