Thursday, August 16, 2012

A Classic Tale of Good against Evil (and dragons): An interview with fantasy author A.D. Trosper

Today I'm talking with fantasy author A.D. Trosper about her novel Embers at Galdrilene.

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1) Tell us about your book.

Embers at Galdrilene is your classic tale of good against evil, woven together with magic and dragons. However, you won't find a host of other races in Embers. There are no orcs, elves, dwarves, etc.

2) What inspired this book?

Actually, my husband's persistence that I should write my own book. Everything I looked up about writing a novel said to write what you love. I love dragons. If I could, I would have a real live dragon in my backyard right now.

3) Tell us about your lead, Vaddoc.

Vaddoc is one of several leads. There are quite a few POV characters. Chapter one begins with Vaddoc. He is a border guard in the nation of Shadereen when he realizes he can use magic. Due to a war between dragons five hundred years before that devastated the nations, a war that left everyone thinking dragons were extinct, the ability to use magic is punishable by death.

4) The concept of dragons has fascinated different cultures for thousands of years. Please tell us a bit about your take on dragons and how it draws on (or differs) from previous depictions of dragons.

The dragons in Embers are European-style dragons. They do the typical things like breathe fire and fly. In order live in the world of my characters, they must bond with a human when they hatch into order to anchor their souls to the plane. They will not hatch until they find their rider, however long that may take. When they have located their rider, they begin to sing to them from within the egg. The person destined to hatch the egg hears the song in their mind and finds them self drawn to it.

5) The popularity of epic fantasy has waxed and waned throughout the decades, but seems to be on an upswing. Any thoughts about why the genre is growing in popularity in recent years?

I think Harry Potter probably kicked off the current love of fantasy. The making of the Lord of the Rings movies gave it another boost. Other than that, who really knows the workings of the human mind and why we suddenly find things so fascinating. Perhaps it has to do with the legends and tales deeply rooted in every culture and when something like Harry Potter or the Lord of the Rings movies comes along, it sparks some buried longing to hear those stories again.

6) This is the first in the series. How many books are there in the series? In addition, will they focus on the same characters?
There are three books in the series. They will focus on the same characters. Other characters will come and others will go, but the focus will always be on the first seven.

7) Do you have any other projects in the works?

I am currently working on Tears of War, the second book in this series. It will be out in fall of 2013. I have two other stories, unrelated to the Dragon's Call series, waiting in the wings to be written.

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If you'd like to see more from A.D., please check out her Facebook page.

2 comments:

Carol Ervin said...

I love this from the interview: "Everything I looked up about writing a novel said to write what you love. I love dragons. If I could, I would have a real live dragon in my backyard right now."

From a long-ago reading of dragon fantasies, I remember dragons as strong, gentle, and committed. Seems like something we all need!

Unknown said...

Couldn't tell you the last time I read a fantasy novel and now I ask myself why I've deprived myself of that pleasure for so long, particularly with books like this in the offing. Thoroughly enjoyed this interview with A.D. "Embers at Galdrilene" is definitely on my list. What inspired the title A.D.?