EXSOMNIS will be published in print and e-book FALL 2023
Audiobook release late 2023
To stay updated on the series publication, sneak peeks, merch, and more, join my mailing list, follow my Instagram, or join my discord server [coming soon]!
About Primus Tenebrae
Primus Tenebrae is an Adult High Fantasy/Scifi series written by myself and my best friend, Sara Richardson. It has subplots in romance (with LGBT), but it is not the main focus. In future books, horror and suspense are also subplots. We have written the first draft of six books, with more planned. Exsomnis is the first book of at least ten.
Characters
Character Playlists and Pinterest Boards, and Extras
Primus is written solely through active roleplay. Because of this, PT is extremely character driven. Everything that happens in the book is left solely up to the characters to react to and fix. If they don’t fix it? Well, it’s their problem, not ours. Sara and I believe deeply that our characters are bits and pieces long lost souls. To us, they are living breathing creatures that deserve to be in the world.
Sara and I allow our characters to be and become whatever they wish. Their thought processes may be drastically different than our own, but we allow all of our characters the freedom to express themselves openly. We refuse to filter them into cookie-cutter characters. For this reason, the Primus Tenebrae series is intended only for adults. This way, we can allow our characters to be who they want to be and do what they want to do without feeling like we have to hold them back.
While we focus heavily on plot and character development, we do have romantic subplots. We strive to make our romance as realistic as possible, meaning it comes with all the joys and despairs that real relationships do. We never force characters to be in relationships, so if characters become romantic with one another, it is because the characters wish it to be that way. It has even frustrated us on occasion how daft some of our characters can be when it comes to relationships! Sara and I do believe that intimate scenes show beautiful character development. We only leave intimate scenes in the book if we believe it adds value to plot, character or lore. This is another reason why our series is intended for adults.
Many of the main, sub-main, and secondary characters fall into the LGBT spectrum. A handful of main characters are also polyamorous. We do not recommend our series to anyone who is offended by such topics. We do not have the time or energy to argue to others about these topics, so please, take it or leave it.
Science Fiction Aspects
While many of our planets may feel very similar to Earth, I love the challenge of making something insane and turning it into something that could plausibly exist under the perfect circumstances. I am extremely passionate about science. I have spent hundreds, more likely thousands, of hours researching astrophysics and quantum mechanics; I think the only thing left for me to do is seek out a degree in both!
No, we don’t have (many) spaceships. That’s usually the first thing people ask me when I mention that PT is Science Fiction as well as Fantasy. We do, however, have over a dozen new planets in the first few books, and we are consistently making more. I do understand that many readers have no care in the world to be told why a planet is the way it is. Even though I adore science and astronomy, I would rather enjoy the story than the science in some cases. In our series, we rarely explain why planets are the way they are, even though hours and hours of thought and research has gone into every single one.
Fantasy Aspects
Sara and I both grew up playing DnD, so when we roleplay/write, it’s only natural for us to add in fantasy aspects to our writing. We often even leave things up to chance by rolling dice!
Along with the theme of “fantasy,” we take a lot of inspiration from the medieval era. Though the series is set in the near-future, you will see plenty of knights in shining armor and majestic castles. One of the main characters is even a blacksmith that prefers to work metal by hand.
Primus Tenebrae comes with realistic “magic” based on quantum mechanics. We, however, did not want our magic to be overpowered. Those who are fatally wounded in the series still run the risk of dying, even with the help of magic. We didn’t want there to be a way out for every mess our characters get into. Magic may help them in a lot of cases, but it does not make them gods.
Yes. There are dragons.
Lore
Sara and I have always had an interest in history and mythology. My parents lived in the Middle East for several years before I was born, and I just barely missed being born in Jordan. Not surprisingly, as I grew up, my interest in the Middle East and other cultures solidified. My dad would go on mini rants about the Jordanian culture, and little did I know at the time, that information would fuel my interest in world building.
On Earth, cultures are wide-spread and fascinating, and that was the inspiration for many of our planets. Earth is filled with beautiful cultures, and we really wanted to display that beauty in our series. Some of our planets have very specific religions and religious practices that are heavily influenced by religions of Earth.
One of my favorite cultures, as I’m sure many can relate, is Egyptian. I think Egyptology creates a whole world in itself, and Sara and I really wanted to take that idea and play around with it. After all, isn’t it a conspiracy theory that the Egyptians came from another planet due to their technology being so advanced? 😉
You can see Egyptian, Celtic, Spanish, Native American, Mexican, Indian, Japanese, and Norse (and much more!!) influences in several of our worlds and characters.
On the flip side, we enjoy making cultures completely from scratch as well. Some of our cultures rely heavily on hyper-advanced technology, while others rely solely on survival of the fittest. Animal life may be important for religious practices, fashion may be important for social status, and food may be important for tradition. So many aspects come into play when creating brand new cultures, and for us, it’s very important to understand the differences between every single one.
Life on Planets
Coming up with animals is by far my favorite part of the world building process. I won’t even lie, I am infinitely jealous of some of our made-up pets. From small ursine animals with hoofed feet and oversized ears to unruly colorful emu-like birds that you wouldn’t want to meet down a dark alley, it’s safe to say that Primus is completely packed with crazy new animals. Sara and I take joy in coming up with the most flamboyant, vicious and/or ridiculous beasts to add flair to our universe. Most of our animals are spur-of-the-moment creations that we immediately fall in love with. However, you may see some familiar species across the universe like sheep-, goat-, and cow-like creatures.
Plants, on the other hand, tend to be more of a scientific feat. When creating flora, I typically think about what properties it may have that would be beneficial to “human” life. Is it edible? Is it toxic? Is it medicinal? Medicines are extremely fun to play with because they can also cause adverse side effects. Certain plants may be poisonous to one species of humanoid, but a treat to another species. I tend to think about the chemical make-up of plants in order to understand what reactions “humans” might have to eating them.
Speaking of eating plants, life on other planets would be never exist without food. In fact, Sara and I have even made a traditional dish (to the best of our Earthling ability) from one of our favorite planets. We have officially confirmed it to be a very tasty recipe and we may eventually release the recipe once it’s fully perfected.
With so many planets in the Primus Tenebrae series, it only makes sense for many of those planets to have their own languages. To make it easy on our readers, we have decided that a common language (English to us and our readers, but not English to our characters) was absolutely necessary. However, nearly all of our planets have a local language, and some even have a few dialects. In the first book alone, you will see examples of several different alien languages, which are written phonetically and immediately translated for reader ease. By the end of the book, you’ll even know how to call someone an idiot in an alien language.
Behind the Screens
Sara and I began our journey with Primus Tenebrae at the beginning of 2016, though we had already been writing with each other for over a decade. We started writing it as a random project, no more than a fun pastime. Our characters quickly made it clear that we had no control over them, but instead, we were channeling their story.
In 2020, like many other people in the world, we had to take a step back from our passions to focus on reality. In 2023, however, we are overjoyed to announce that Primus Tenebrae will be finally published in the fall.
melissabeenewton.com 