Since I’m getting to the point where I might actually start publishing some of these things I’ve been writing, I thought it might be a good idea to talk about what I’m writing.
I’m writing a series of stories. The series as a whole is tentatively named Spotted, for reasons that will become quite clear, I’m sure.
My goal was to have a series of graphic novels, but honestly, I don’t have the time nor the inclination to draw all of this up-front. So, for now, it will be a series of written stories. Since it is a series, each instalment will have its own story. I have taken to calling these instalments “Arcs”, the same way comics have “Issues” or books have “Volumes”.
Here’s a bit of deep lore for you: I was actually inspired to call them “arcs” after one of my favourite TV shows growing up, Port Charles, which had individual “arcs” with an overarching story. And similarly to Port Charles, a single arc might have multiple plot points. For example, consider how some TV shows have an “A plot and B plot” in a given episode.
If an Arc were to be made into a visual medium, it’d probably reach about an hour long or so per “episode”. I’ve completed principal writing for Arcs 8 and 10, and each are just under 10,000 words. The “bigger” arcs I’ve worked on so far, which are 13 and 20, are near 20,000 – these would probably be two-parters in such a world where they were part of a TV show.
The main character, at least at the beginning, is named Renee Maple. She is a Dalmatian who was born and raised in the middle of the United States. Her best friend is another Dalmatian by the name of Dave. Curious how he has a first name that starts with “D” and is originally from England. They both went to school at the University of Coastal Barkeley, which is not a typo and definitely not a reference to any actual school that exists anywhere in northern California.
Dave looks up at the building in front of him. “Ah, Fawn Library. Never thought I’d see that again. The history of just about everything on Earth is in there.”
– possibly the first public quotation anywhere from Arc 20
Within the first few arcs, they also make friends with a spotted Tabby cat. Now you might see why the series is called Spotted!
The world they inhabit is somewhat in-between the “real” world and a fantasy setting. There is crossover with 101 Dalmatian Street, Housepets!, and Midsomer Murders at various points, so if any of those sound familiar, you’re pretty well acquainted with what you’re in for. There’s no “magic”, per se, but animals of all kinds are fully sapient. That feels weird to say since I’m pretty convinced most animals already are sapient in the real world too, but most of them don’t program computers or have degrees in ecology, so I’ll save that soapbox for another day.
And yeah, that’s a lot of variety of crossovers!
The animals are quadrupedal, meaning they stand on all fours. They have mutual intelligibility between most species, though one of the animals ends up being able to speak fluently to other animals in ways not normally seen. There’s a lot of fun world building actually, and I hope that as I’m able to publish some of the stories, it’s enjoyable and easy to follow.
Speaking of publishing… I’m hoping to write a small Rails site to keep all the writing together. I thought about sites like ao3 and even Tumblr, but I have specific ways I want to present some of this content and I really want the flexibility of my own site/framework.
I want to start a Patreon and have early access to chapters being a perk. I’m also thinking about a few other perks that would be really cool to offer, so we’ll have to see how it all develops.
It’s all really exciting for me, especially since these characters and stories really mean a lot to me. I’m so proud of how Renee and Daffodil (another Dalmatian introduced later in the series) both grow through their triumphs and struggles. I’m so happy for Dave as he grows as well. And I can’t wait to share their stories with the world!
And on that note, I’m going to go back to drafting Arc 1 so I can do just that – share this story with the world.