James Paddock's Blog

I was browsing through eBook offerings the other day and happened onto one having to do with a dragon shifter. That got me to thinking about the trend in fantasy fiction involving the various shapeshifters that appear to be popular. I actually read one by Nora Roberts just a few weeks back; The Awakening. Even though fantasy is not my normal genre, I do appreciate the quality of Nora’s writing.

Anyway, back to the shapeshifting thoughts. I might have been getting carried away with my imagination, a fiction writer’s biggest tool after all, but I found myself thinking about dragons and wolves, snakes and bears, the green hulk and flying squirrels along with who knows what other shapeshifting vicious beasts one’s mind can conjure up. That got me to wondering if I shouldn’t create my own shapeshift character, one that most resembles my base personality. Let’s see, I like sleeping and munching and occasionally bathing. If I go out in public, I find I can sit for long periods not moving, watching people, doing little more than thinking. I can see the title and the cover image already forming in my mind’s eye. Be sure to study the accompanying image closely; there might be a bit of shapeshifting going on. The plot, however, may take some deeper thought. I’ll title it the Sloth Shifter. To find the real story, I may have to climb a tree so I can munch on leaves and stare off into the distance in creative reflection.

Since I haven’t a tree that’s easy to climb at my almost 72 years, I envision sitting back in my office chair, my stocking feet up on the desk, my eyes closed, thinking about how my character will present himself, how he will move through the story. When my wife asks me what I’m doing I can say, “I’m getting ready to write my next book; I’m in researching mode.” Better yet, I’ll say to her...

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