Time to dust another idea off from the old scrap heap and take a look at why it’s still there. Our latest autopsy subject: Master of the Clouds.

What was it? In short, an anime-inspired elemental swordmaster story, set in a nebulously non-Earth setting reminiscent of feudal Japan. A young boy studying to be a swordsman receives a boon from his dying grandfather, granting him all the old man’s skills and spiritual power in the Cloud Dragon style of mystical swordmanship. His older sister, a more skilled student and heir apparent (in her mind) becomes jealous. When a disaster strikes, the boy needs to go on an epic journey… (etc. etc.).

Why isn’t it happening? There are a few reasons for this one. First and foremost, I don’t have a lot in the kernel of an idea that feels unique or original enough to justify the effort. An important secondary consideration is that it’s a very culturally centered aesthetic, and to do it justice I’d have to pull in a lot of other people to make it feel authentic and appropriate. Oh, and let’s not overlook the fact that it was really conceived AS an anime series. While it could be written as a book, it would at the very least need a manga to do it justice. That’s really not my lane, nor is it even a lane I’ve got a blinker on to switch into.

For the time being, I remain strictly a novelist (with an occasional dabble into screenwriting that has yet to go anywhere).