It has been too long since I last posted. College and all that is a pain, combine that with having to look out for relatives making blog posts and writing in general slipped my mind. But I decided that posting just chapters of the book is stupid, especially since I am frequently updating them, changing wording, or adding new ideas to it, in fact just the other day I undertook a rewriting of the first chapter itself around a simpler concept while also correcting grammar. So instead I think I will just give commentary about chapters, ideas that it will go in, chapter progress I find writing my thoughts like that to be more natural, something I learned from all the papers I have to write.
So what do I intend to do with this story? What is the idea backing it?
I intend to write a story that alters history in many ways, yet at the same time much of the world remains the same. Did the Confederacy win the American Civil War? No. Did both the World Wars happen? Yes. Did both of them end in the exact same way and time? Yes. Did the British Empire conquer India? Yes. Did the Russian Revolution occur and did the Bolsheviks win? Yes. Did Communism fall in eastern Europe? Yes. So on and so forth, greater history itself was not changed but rather moved to accommodate the anomaly and continue on with the alteration of history riding along with it.
As for what is backing it I would say ideals, nostalgia, and dreams of a different time. I have a fondness for old things and for history itself so it drives it.
So what is Hiketes?
Hiketes is three things. It is an island positioned in the North Atlantic that does not exist in our own world and thus is part of this world similar to our own yet unique in many of its own ideas. If one had to compare size it would be relatively close to Jamaica but less populated by quite a margin and is not a popular tourist destination.
The second thing it is the last territory of the Roman Empire, the last refuge if you will. It is there that the Roman people fled to when Constantinople fell in 1453. "Ah,but that is not the Roman Empire, that is the Byzantine Empire" one might say. That is both correct yet incorrect, while many people call it the Byzantine Empire, for Constantinople was once called Byzantium, it had never really gone by that name and instead they called themselves Romans. So it is the Roman Empire to them, the Eastern Roman Empire. Therefore while everything is obviously is written in English would be said in Greek, even the name of Hiketes is a Greek word. Thus occasionally Greek words will be mixed in with what they said with certain contexts, such as titles.
The third thing I prefer to keep to myself to be revealed later.
How many chapters do you intend for there to be?
Simply put I intend for this to be a multi-book thing. I honestly don't expect it to be profitable but I want to write it since I do have a series of ideas in my head. Consider it an attempt at writing something I enjoy. So I can say for the first book and the next few it will be capped at ten chapters. I don't know how many pages there will be and I have a strong suspicion that they will vary.
Progress Report
I intend for most posts to include a progress report about how the chapters are going. Note these are just my estimates and even if they say "100%" they are still open to alteration and change.
Prologue: 100% Complete
Chapter 1: 100% Complete
Chapter 2: 85% Complete
Chapter 3: 50% Complete
Notable quote: “The inside can hide many things. Only God, in all His wisdom, knows what we truly hide. And I think it is better that way.”-Valerius
