The Louise Cooper Messageboard » General Discussion

1. falcondraco
   Member

   Dear Louise Cooper,

   Please re-release the Indigo series!!!! I do have a couple ideas for revisions though...

   #1 Give the series a happier ending (like Fenran doesn't turn into a crazy man and Indigo kills him & forever damages her relationship w/ Grimya)

   #2 Did Indigo have to cheat on Fenran w/ Veness, really?

   #3 The 8th and final book should focus on Indigo & Grimya, not newcomers Vinar and Niahrin (though I like the characters, maybe they should have minor roles)

   But it's a wonderful series. And I think these revisions could make it an AWESOME series. Please write me back!

   -Leslie Soule
   falcondraco@hotmail.com

   Posted 2 years ago #

2. falcondraco
   Member

   Hey there. This is Leslie again. Just wanted to post up an idea for an alternate plotline for book 8, should you choose to re-release Indigo. Just trying to help in any way possible. So here's my idea - Indigo's final demon has to be the most difficult, and ought to be someone close to her, but maybe not Fenran. What if Indigo came back to Carn Caille, to find her doppleganger on the throne? Let's say the dark side of Indigo took on physical form and so Indigo knows that she has to kill this dark side of herself - but that in doing so, she'll kill herself. But the Earth Mother's Emissary keeps her promise and Indigo does not die - just the dark side of herself, the final demon, and Fenran is released from his demonic hell. This leaves the question of where Fenran has been physically - well the other books have said that Fenran is somewhere in Carn Caille, and I think it's only fitting that he's in the Tower of Regrets. You could even start off with the original plotline - with Indigo and Grimya in a shipwreck and Indigo with amnesia, but you could have Niahrin tap into the power of the Aisling sooner in the book - soon enough so that Indigo realizes who she is, what mistakes she's made, and what she has to do to kill her dark side and save Fenran. Vinar could find another woman - fall in love with some simple girl and be happy. He shouldn't be the star of the show anyway. This is Indigo's time to shine.

   Posted 2 years ago #

3. EveGutierrez
   Member

   Hey there, I love your ideas! have you ever thought of witting a fan-fict?

   Posted 2 years ago #

4. DracheaRannak
   Member

   To tell the truth I never understood the Idea behind the Indigo series. To me some stories were very good, some others not as much, but to me the whole series sounded like a recompilation of perhaps already written stories with Indigo added later as the link between them.
   Still, Louise hand was clearly there, so I was able to enjoy every book by itself. I always though The last book should have been more about Indigo and her story; that she would face her past from the very beginning; that she would perhaps interact with phantoms from the past, her family; that she would regret... etcetera. But with her lost memory and all, it was again like another random story.
   Concerning your questions... try YOU to go thru all those years without a partner... lol. I don't know, I think that made Indigo a bit more credible as human able to make mistakes. Fernan had his as well, didn't he?
   I was not trilled by the ending, but since I don't like happy endings...
   Anyway...
   Be well!!!

   Posted 2 years ago #

5. Louise
   Administrator

   Indigo's an odd one; people seem to love it or hate it in about equal measure. To tell the truth, I've never quite been able to make my own mind up about it. It was a stage, an exploration; it had its time, I think, but I've moved on.
   For that reason, Drachea, I wouldn't consider revising the books if they were ever reissued but would prefer to let them stand or fall as they originally were. Instead, I'm inclined to agree with Eve's comment to Falcondraco.:-)
   As for whether they will be published again - I think it's unlikely in the foreseeable future, partly because of the amount of work involved in getting the text on to computer. The original floppy discs on which I wrote them are completely obsolete and unreadable now!
   Louise

   Posted 2 years ago #

6. DracheaRannak
   Member

   But I didnt say anything about changing them!!! T_T It was falcondraco!!! Poor cute me :(

   Posted 2 years ago #

7. Louise
   Administrator

   Oops! Sorry, Drachea - I must have been having a senior moment... :-)

   Posted 2 years ago #

8. DracheaRannak
   Member

   Lol I was just having a Louise Cooper attention moment :)

   Posted 2 years ago #

9. Liddi
   Member

   Louise, I'm sorry you don't foresee republishing Indigo in the near future. Indigo in its entirety isn't my favourite of your works possibly because it gets darker and darker (Infanta remains to this day, my favourite of the 8 books - I never saw the twist coming at the end.. wow!), but any work of yours is always worth revisiting. I AM however, excited to see that the entire Time Master series as well as your standalone novels will be available through Mundania. I've only read the Chaos Gate trilogy, so being able to get my hands on the Star Shadow series is something I am really looking forward to.

   As for the standalone novels, the only ones I've had the pleasure of reading are Sleep of Stone and Mirage. (I do not include Lord of No Time since it belongs in the Time Master universe). Finally, after all these years, I will get a chance to read some of the others.

   I wonder though... would you ever consider having all your works made available in eBook format, including the children's books like Demon's Crossing, Hunter's Moon etc? I wouldn't mind any format as long as I am able to purchase it easily but eBook is a preferred format for me these days (portability is a major plus). The excerpts have gotten me clamouring for more!

   Posted 2 years ago #

10. Louise
    Administrator

    I'd love to bring out eBooks; I think they're excellent value for readers, and an inexpensive way of making backlist titles available. The snag with Indigo would be the time it takes to scan the printed books and prepare them; with books like Demon Crossing, though it's a different problem - though they're off the market, the publishers still have the rights to them, so I can't bring out eBook versions until and unless I get those rights back, which is a huge shame. But I'll look into it and see if there's a way through the maze...

    Posted 2 years ago #

11. Storm
    Member

    You wrote them on a floppy disk?

    Wow, times have changed... How do you submit new writing to publishers now?

    (For the record, I don't think Indigo should be re-written)

    Posted 2 years ago #

12. Louise
    Administrator

    I could get about 10 chapters on to one floppy disc, so I ended up with a vast heap of them! And of course, unlike CDs, floppies were very vulnerable to corruption if they were left anyway near a magnetic field. I suspect that my original discs have suffered that fate; whenever I've tried to read one with my present operating system, it says something like "You HAVE to be joking!" :-)

    And thanks for your input on the "re-write or not" question, Storm...

    Posted 2 years ago #

13. Lu
    Member

    Louise, I can send you links to data recovery software that can assist you in recovering those floppies. Even ones that have been subjected to magnetism can be recovered at least 80% of the time. Let me know what operating system you use and I'll send you in the right direction.

    I, for one, am most interested in a re-release of the Indigo series. I am a collector of all of your works and I am having an extremely difficult time getting my hands on that series. I have all but one of them and they are used and not altogether in great condition. If I could get them in new condition I would certainly buy them all. Two sets. One to read and the other for my shelf of untouched originals.

    If you do re-release them in any format, please do not change them. I am reading them in order and I am waiting for Avatar to become available before I read the remaining books of the series. I would like to read them as they were originally written.

    Posted 2 years ago #

14. EveGutierrez
    Member

    Lu what country are you in? Maybe I can help you get the rest.

    Posted 2 years ago #

15. suebird3
    Member

    Louise, I understand your not revising the stories. However, is there a possibility we can ever expect an 'update' on what Anghara/Indigo and Grimya are up to?

    Posted 2 years ago #

16. Lu
    Member

    I am in the US. Washington State, to be more specific.
    I would greatly appreciate any assistance you may be able to offer!
    Thank you!

    Posted 2 years ago #

17. Lu
    Member

    An update.... That's not entirely a bad idea, though one would think it might necessarily be more of a stand-alone novel or a short story rather than part of the series. The series was based on a particular conflict that has since been resolved.

    Your idea has merit. I do like the personalities of those two characters and would like to see more of them. Certainly Indigo's many years held more stories and adventures than just those related to her quest. Perhaps Louise could be convinced to tell one or two of them?

    Posted 2 years ago #

18. EveGutierrez
    Member

    Lu contact me via comment on my journal: http://soulafire.livejournal.com/
    It would be really easy to get u books to buy if ur in Washington state. Hope I can be of help :)

    Posted 2 years ago #

19. Louise
    Administrator

    You've got me intrigued! I've often wondered what did happen to Indigo and Grimya after the end of Aisling... maybe it's time for me to start thinking, write a short story and post it on the site...? That seems the best way to go!

    Posted 2 years ago #

20. EveGutierrez
    Member

    THAT WOULD BE FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!!

    Posted 2 years ago #

21. Lu
    Member

    I am glad your curiosity is piqued. Nothing but good can come of it.
    I am also glad to hear that you are considering posting a short story, should you write one, here on the site for us all to enjoy.
    I may have to restrain myself from reading it until after I have completed my collection and finished reading the series. Or break down and actually read Aisling without having read the others first. I hesitate to do so, but I should not want to miss out on the opportunity to read another Indigo and Grimya tale as soon as it is available.

    Now you have ME intrigued.

    Posted 2 years ago #

22. Lu
    Member

    Louise, have you thought of recovery software for those floppies? There are a multitude of them available online. Many of them should be able to regain your lost bits of data on those floppies.

    If you are using a Windows computer, I might recommend BadCopy Pro. It is almost always capable of reading unreadable floppy disks.

    Of course, I am assuming that you do want to recover them?

    Posted 2 years ago #

23. Khylan
    Member

    I like the Indigo saga the way it is as, for me, I found them an honest portrayal of a girl trying to make things right in a fantastical way. I read the saga during a time I was trying to decide who I was, and when I was going through a stage of loving and loathing myself. It meant something for me then. To go back and revise would loose that meaning. Just my 2 cents worth.

    In regards to the floppy discs. If they were created on the usual 1.44mb discs, you should be able to purchase a portable floppy drive that would read them. These drives are usually quite modest in price. I brought one for $39 aud, divide that by three and that's an estimate of how much it may cost in pounds. If they were the "real" floppies that were easy to bend and break, and made wobbly sounds when you waved them about then "eek!" Oops! Here I go rabbiting on.

    Posted 1 year ago #

24. Louise
    Administrator

    No, you're not rabbiting on, Khylan! :) In fact when I read your and Lu's suggestions about recovering floppy-disc data, I thought, hey, that's worth trying! So I rummaged for the discs and... can't find them. I had a huge clear-out of "gubbins" earlier this year, and I have a horrible feeling that those discs were among the stuff I chucked out. Oh, dear. Back to square one... :(

    Posted 1 year ago #

25. Lu
    Member

    Perhaps TOR still has a digital copy of those books. I believe that's what they use for typesetting, is it not? Might be as simple as asking for them. Couldn't hurt! They would be "post-editing" versions, but I'm sure that isn't a problem. With today's data capabilities, they could simply e-mail them to you.
    As a zip file each book would only be a few megabytes in size.

    Posted 1 year ago #

26. Louise
    Administrator

    Another blank, I'm afraid, Lu! When I wrote the Indigo series, neither Tor nor my UK publisher at the time, HarperCollins, used digital typesetting! It used to cost me a fortune to send physical typescripts to the USA :) (I'm showing my age here, aren't I???)

    Posted 1 year ago #

27. irthumper
    Member

    Omigosh I found your website! Louise I just wanted to say that my mother, who is 72, loves your Indigo series! She is also a stroke survivor, of 7 years now- my heartfelt condolences to you about your own mum, I love my own mom very much too. I originally purchased the books for myself, but mom took them over and read them voraciously... she said they were very intriguing and exciting, I got to read the first one, lol, so agree! We unfortunately lost the only 3 (I forget which titles we had) years ago, and to this day my mother still talks about the series and wanting to find all the books. I was wondering if you might be able to provide me with a list of the titles in the entire series, and perhaps lead me to where I may be able to find some for purchase? We are located in Oregon State, USA. It would mean a whole lot to my mom and I both to be able to find these books, she is recovering from a severe fall in which she broke her only set of glasses, my sister is supposed to be getting her another pair, and I would love for her to be able to read the Indigo series she has been missing and wanting so much :) Thanks for any/all info you can give me, I'm sure glad I was able to find you on the web!

    Sincerely yours,

    ~Lisa aka "Thumper"

    Posted 1 year ago #

28. Lu
    Member

    Nemesis
    Inferno
    Infanta
    Nocturne
    Troika
    Avatar
    Revenant
    Aisling

    Try Amazon.com

    Posted 1 year ago #

29. falcondraco
    Member

    Hey there Louise. I just have an idea. You could always just have a couple people who are fast typers sit down and transcribe the text from a copy of the book to a Microsoft Word document that you could copy and give to a publisher. I think this would be a simple way to update your files and would make it possible to re-release the Indigo series.
    And for you other posters, I wanted to clear some things up. I was in no way suggesting that Louise needs to re-write Indigo. I merely suggested that if a re-release were to happen, the eighth book might merit a few revisions that would make it more in-keeping with the previous books. I felt like the whole time I was reading Indigo, I was enthralled with the characters of Indigo and Grimya. And yet in book 8, the book goes on for 300 pages with Indigo and Grimya being on the back-burner as newcomers Vinar and Niahrin steal the show. And all of this build-up, only for Fenran to be the eighth demon is kind of a let-down in my own opinion. However, I respect Louise's commentary on how her work was a unique piece of art that ought to remain unchanged.
    And I understand where you're coming from, Drachaea, but at the same time, I would hope that if I knew that my love was trapped in a demon world, that it wouldn't matter to me how much time passed and how lonely I got. I would hope that I would remember that my love was trapped and being tortured for all eternity in a demonic hell until I could save him, and thus would not cheat on him to add further misery to his wounds.

    Posted 1 year ago #

30. Nadea
    Member

    First of all, hello Louise. :) I enjoy your writing very much. I first read the Time Master trilogy and fell in love with the characters and the twist on a theme often seen in fantasy novels. I had parts of the Indigo series from a book sale, and had recently completed the collection so that I could finally start reading them all. (Book 1 was missing at the book sale, go figure.)

    I loved the series, and I truly felt Indigo's pain throughout the books, as well as her self-discovery. Though I do have to say, the final book broke my heart. Every time she screamed for Fenran, I felt the heartache... and the end of book 7 seemed to have the promise of hope. And then, book eight... I wish so much that there could be a retelling of that part of the story somehow, because I can't get the end of it out of my head, and it makes me so, so sad.

    Posted 1 year ago #

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