Between how long it’s been since I last worked on it and what changes I’ve made since then, I think I’m going to try going back to the beginning of Divine Strength and just start over. I mean, a lot of it will probably still be taken directly from the current draft, but…well, maybe this’ll help me do a little better.

I’m still not sure what to do about Light’s hair color, though. My previous idea was that the color was determined by her age—it starts red, then turns orange as she gets a little older, then yellow, and so on down the visible spectrum, ultimately becoming purple right before her death. I can’t help but feel that’s a little silly, but I like the idea of her hair color changing with age, so I thought maybe the color stays the same as the body’s natural color, but the shade starts out brighter and eventually darkens. So, if the woman had black hair, upon becoming Queen of Light it would become very light gray, and then darken progressively until it becomes pitch-black near the end of her life. But…I’m not sure about this either. I feel like it’s weird to put so much thought into this little aspect, but it’s something I really want to get figured out.

If I’m starting over, I’m also considering changing the result of the early battle between the Queen of Light and Riniyon. This is where Riniyon reveals he can sever the bond between the Queen and her Crown, but in the current draft she’s able to retrieve it before he escapes. Now, I’m wondering if the story might be more interesting if she can’t retrieve it and Riniyon ends up stealing the Crown and running away. This would lead to a lot of people questioning if she really is still the Queen of Light—both in the sense of who she is and if she’s qualified to continue ruling Bivor. It would also provide Riniyon with a chance to study a Crown up close, which he could use to craft new spells for fighting the Queens and make him more of a threat. Still…I’m hesitant. It might make it feel like this story about Queens isn’t actually following a Queen.

As for making Riniyon more of a threat, I feel like that’s really something I should explore. Up until now he’s been some bumbling angry fool who just got lucky, and I’m increasingly worried that destroys any chance for tension. So maybe he’ll actually be a rather powerful sorcerer? Or, since it still could be hard to justify a human being able to battle the half-goddess Queens, maybe Riniyon could be…something else? Looking back, the magical aspects of this supposed fantasy story are actually very limited, so it might be worth my time to explore some additional magical beings and such.

And, another slightly minor concern, the queendom of Roche. The name made the most sense when it was ruled over by the Queens of the Land and Gravity, since it’s a reference to concepts about gravitational pull and orbits. Now that the queendom is ruled by the Queens of the Land and the Sky, however, the name seems less applicable…though, I’ve been using it so much I’m quite attached to it, and I thought it might have some thematic applications to the flaws and conflicts between these Queens. I might be overthinking it—the chances of people caring that much about the name of the queendom are probably lower than I’m worrying.

Gee, it’ll be a miracle if this ever actually becomes a thing.