Daily Archives: December 4, 2016

The Author’s Kingdom #3

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The Author’s Kingdom is a series of articles, where the Author explains his perception of Heirs to the Kingdom. It is written to cover the festive season of Christmas 2016.

Women who Inspire Other Women.

For this particular article in this Author’s Kingdom series I have made the decision to write about something which for some time has been on my mind, and does directly include heirs to the kingdom, as well as many other authors and their work.

There are times when I read the media posts from within the book industry and I feel confused, especially when it comes to the roles of female characters within literature. It appears to be a bit of a modern day phenomenon as the media suggests there are just not enough female role models and heroines within today’s books. So this also leads me to question, should every writer being doing their bit inspire young women, I mean would it not be a far better example to be inspired by a real life living heroine?

Now I am not one to judge, but I find my own experience of books and writing to show quite a different story, just to name but a few, I would instantly suggest Lyra from the Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pulman, Hermione and I may add Molly and Ginny Weasley from the Harry Potter stories most certainly come to mind, in fact I would say just from the Harry Potter stories alone there is great deal for young women to admire, even dare I say Bellatrix, who although on the side of evil, she is most certainly a women who has no problems getting the job done.

I have thought often on this subject, and I do wonder at times (Being a male writer) what it is exactly that young women want from a leading character? I cannot claim to be that aware, although from my own point of view, and from personal experience, I have always noted the qualities of grit and determination within the females characters I have read in the past, and many I have met in real life, and I think that has played a naturally important role in the characters of Heirs to the Kingdom.

As most writers do today, we often get asked about our work and the people we create, and I always get asked who is the central most important character within my story, and to be really honest, it is not that easy a question to answer.

Ok so the Lord of Loxley is possibly the central figure within the books, after all he is the one who leads the fight to defend the Woodland Peoples, but the answer is really just not that simple. For instance how can I point at Robbie without also including Runestone, or Jade, or Jett for that matter? Would my hero be doing as well as he is if it was not for the bravery of Sapphire who threw herself into a fast flowing river, risking her own life in Book Two? Although, would he also be doing as well if it was not for the power of violet that is wielded by Runestone? Would his home be as safe as it is, if it was not for the grim determination of the quiet and at times isolated Treen? I mean after all she was the one who filled the shoes of Scarlet and stood alone on her platform directing the battle with great skill, her only aide being the shy and nervous young Claire the flag girl, who stood beside her as the arrows of the enemy rained out of the sky at them.

Like all readers, I too have my heroines from books, and I hope in a way it shows in the books I write. I am particularly fond of Scout from To kill a mocking bird, I admire her grit and stubborn determination, and what about Josella from Day of the Triffids? She more than shows the courage and strength of women in a classic piece of literature from the late 1950’s. I also think Luna Lovegood is an extraordinary character in the Harry Potter tales, so okay she did not wield an axe and batter a troll, but she exhibited a quiet determination that I feel should inspire any young woman of today, personally I feel there was not enough of her in the books. I also will add, sorry but in my mind Ginny Weasley would not have sat idly by while Harry faced so much danger, I honestly feel that in the last book, Ginny should have been at his side, she was without doubt one of the bravest members of Dumbledore’s Army, I really feel she should have had a much more active role in the final part of the story. 

When it comes to bravery, Lyra as stated above shows immense bravery as she avoids the evil grip of her mother and fights to find and re-join her father, I mean wow the girl confronts an armoured bear face to face to negotiate for a fair fight for her friend Iroek, tell me that shows no courage? All of these have served in one form or another to influence the way I see women in books, and therefore have had a dramatic impact on HTTK.

Can women fight? Hell yes they can, I have seen some pretty scary stuff in my own life from the smallest of women, where do you think Jett and Blades come from? Jett Amber is possibly one of the most aggressive characters of HTTK, not only is she trained by a very formidable women (Her mother Scarlet) Jett although only slender, has the aggression, skill and coolness of mind to out fight any of the Specialists. Remember Ivor Walters? Jett was overcome with the grief at the loss of her sister and mother, she had not slept, and yet when faced with the man who plotted their deaths, she dug deep within herself to overcome her fear and fought him to his death, not unlike I may add, Eowyn as she defended her father’s crushed body on the fields before Gondor in Lord of the rings. Need more well lest we forget Blades, for she prances like a deadly cat, armed with her two swords as she twists and weaves through her enemy with cold and deadly surgical precision?

I really cannot understand why the critics think there is a lack of role models for women, maybe they  want less aggressive women, but even there I would say there is no small amount, want true grit and stamina, enter Elizabeth Bennett from Pride and Prejudice? She is no fighter with a weapon, but hell what a women of intellect and words, she single handily stood against every aspect of the social convention of her time to state her terms and live as she fully intended. I would add that if you look to what is possibly one of the most compelling modern classics, Game of Thrones; there is no shortage by far of immensely powerful women, Cersei Lannister being my first choice. Is there anything that women will not overcome, and hell what about Arya Stark or her sister Sansa, look what they have endured, which has to be a real beacon to the will power and determination of any women?

So where is this lack of female role models?

Maybe the critics are reading the wrong books, I know from my daily reading of most of the industry publications there is no shortage of female writers, and I personally feel there is definitely no lack of strong female characters, I love nothing more than to read of women equalling the efforts of men. Personally I really enjoying reading and writing both sexes as they work together and interact as equals, something I feel is very well represented in my own work. My own work currently has a readership of 52% women and 48% of men, I talk to my readers regularly to gauge their opinions, and to date have found both sexes fully enjoy my work equally as much, so I have to conclude that to date I have served my purpose and done my bit to promote true equality.

I must admit that when I am actually writing, these sort of issues do not come to mind, I can honestly say that after writing seven books, I have never once sat down to sort out the diversity of everything. I simply write what feels natural, and I actually do believe that it is the only the way a writer should put the words on paper. We all get bashed from time to time, and I have certainly had my fair share of comments aimed at me for my writing, but I still feel that once a writer has created a character, they must allow that particular character to evolve naturally. In my own case, I feel they have, and luckily both sexes have had their fair share of praise and glory.

I realise we now live in a society of political correctness, and yes we should all encourage a fair and tolerant range of views and characterisations, but I also think that left alone to their own devices writers will always naturally show the whole range of diversity within their own work. Never forget that for a serious writer; watching the world is something we pretty much do all the time. Every experience and observation is food for our work, and so I feel if you sit back and look at the massive amount of diversity across all of literature past and present, everything and everyone is given a voice and a platform within all the given works. Maybe we just need to see the bigger picture, especially the critics, after all, we all choose to read what appeals, and so it is within the best interests of all writers to write what is appealing.

Having considered this issue, I feel I have to ask what I feel is an important question. Do the critics who express this lack of female heroines, say so due to a lack of female lead characters or just a lack of inspiring female characters in general? I must admit at this point I would look at Harry Potter, possibly one of the most influential books of or our current time, and yes Hermoine is a lead character, but are Ginny or Luna? They are without doubt some of the most important characters in that story, and they certainly are in my opinion inspiring characters for any young women, but they are somewhat of background characters. I could say the same of many own characters, although I have across the series brought my ladies to the fore to be featured in one specific book or another from the series, they are by and large background characters, albeit Runestone, who is without doubt a lead character sharing the lime light with her counterpart Robbie.

I am not convinced that an influential character has to be the lead, in which case todays critics need to re-evaluate their stance, this is only my own opinion I understand that, but I feel it holds some validity. Jade Opal in my own stories is possibly one of the four most important characters of Heirs to the Kingdom, she is in all the books in a prominent position beside her sister Runestone, and I must admit is still the most popular of all my female characters, but she is not the lead of the books. Many of the female fans I speak to identify with Jade, which I feel speaks volumes of my point and the character, although I would love my female readers to let me know if they agree.

Having looked at this issue I must admit maybe I have shown a little complacency, because I suddenly find that I may be amiss in my approach to selling HTTK. I admit I have always put the books out there and allowed those who felt it would be something they may enjoy to choose; maybe I should be applying more marketing to young female readers? It is certainly something that up until now I have not considered, maybe it is time.

 

 

The Author’s Kingdom #2

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The Author’s Kingdom is a series of articles, where the Author explains his perception of Heirs to the Kingdom. It is written to cover the festive season of Christmas 2016.

Between the Lines.

One of the things that I enjoy about the way in which I write Heirs to the Kingdom, is that it can be as simple or as deep as I want it to be. What I mean by this is that when I write, firstly I try to write it in such a way that it is written in a simple style without too many flowery words, so the reader can read at their own pace and garner a great deal of enjoyment out of it. But… if you want something richer and deeper, then you can also walk in my realm of hidden prompts and clues that take into account a lot of symbolism.

In the early days of writing Kingdom I used a Beta Group, who read the books as they came together and gave me feedback on the story. Two of that group in particular (Louis, Corinne) were used to reading books and looking at the detail to garner extra clues, and obviously both of them would try their hardest to get me to slip and spill a few details of what was to come, and I have to say they did at times really test me. The greatest aspect of this was it gave me the Author, a good insight as to how others perceived my work and how much I could hide between the lines. Not only did I make some things very obvious, I also hid certain little details about future events within small insignificant parts of the text. From my point of view as the writer, it was great fun seeing if they took the bait, and secondly it let me know if people who read the way I do would find the clues and create a much richer experience of the kingdom.

A few of my favourite aspects the earlier books were the twists that were, “Who is the traitor?” and “Who is the King?” I also thought the riddles of Gwendolyn worked very well, although in many ways they were pretty obvious to the deeper readers, but for me it was simply great fun. In regard to the identity of the king, I made it clear to all the readers that they either appeared or were mentioned in each of the first four books, and it was really funny to see them digging through the lines to find out who the king was. It was the same with the traitor in the camp, although I think it was so obvious, but that was all part of the plan, I made it so obvious that no one believed it, and then when they found it, it was hilarious to see their expressions. I deliberately created doubt, because hey that is what life is all about, but it worked very smoothly and just about caught out everyone I was in contact with at the time out. (Smiles smugly)

But hidden within the text are a million other little helpful clues, and as I tell everyone who messages me, “everything is written for a reason.”

I think the best example to give you all a hint, because I know that maybe there will be a few reading this who have not read everything yet, 90% of the names will give you the most important aspects of the character? Opal the first person we meet from the Green Circle family for example. Opals contain water, and water is the source of life. Runestone is life (and Opal’s Granddaughter) and draws her greatest power when closer to water, there is no coincidence that down from her home is a huge Mere, or that when just starting to understand her powers she achieved a huge feat by helping the boat get thrown out of the cave at Tintagel and into the open sea. Most names will give you a good idea of their magical traits. If you look on the website you will find a page of limited names and their meanings in the background section.

In book Two, you find the biggest clue to whom Rowan really is when he takes Jade back to visit his home, and he tells her his true name (Book two Revised Edition page 75). Look at the gravestones and the names carved on them, most people missed it, but I think you will a find a name on it that Billy used in his tale in Book One (page 5 of the revised edition). Did you go look it up? (Giggle) See? A lot of readers were caught out and surprised in book five, but it was always there. It is the same with the king, and once you have learned his true identity, you can then look back to book one and go through them slowly and you will see he is mentioned in book one, two, three and four. I hide him in plain sight and that is why most readers missed it.

Robbie’s chain is also a wonderful bit of symbolism. I ask you this? When Billy takes off his chain to offer the pendant to Robbie, he could have picked either the lion or the dragon. Both symbolise the king and royal assent, yet Billy chose the lion why?

The silver lion has diamonds for eyes, it is quite deliberate. In most old symbolism, the lion is a sign of Royal Protection, which was my first big hint in the early pages to give you a clue as to what would be asked of Robbie. Diamond: The symbol of Royal power (He will become a Lord and the kings protector). Promotes love and harmony and dispels anger. (He is the only guy for Runestone/will unite everyone) It is the symbol of brilliance and durability, (His task will be difficult and make great demands of him, even in doubt) It is the perfect object to transfer light. (The light of White Circle will transfer via Rune into Violet) Ok so it is cryptic, but it is not fool proof as a few people worked it out. The thing is it is there when you look deep, as with many other tiny little hints. I had a great deal of fun adding symbolism and naming everyone, and I must admit I tested myself a great deal researching the meaning of names. I do keep a log of all the characters and important events within HTTK, and at some point will add it to a book. I have always wanted to add it to the final book, but at this time it is only half written, and so I cannot promise as I am guided by the page count, either way it will appear at some future point.

The Circle and the Star are well used throughout all the books. The circle (or tables) that are woven and blended together in this tale actually represent our own lives. I can certainly say from experience and in my youth, I had several circles of friends that I kept very much separated. I would move from one to another, as each circle fulfilled a certain aspect of me. For example: I had one of close friends in my home town, one of my college friends, and one which was comprised of the people I talked music and visited Rock clubs with. Many of us have these circles if we look at their lives, I am sure you have your work mates, your family, best friends, acquaintances etc.. all of them overlap and cater to you as an individual, and I find in life it is something all of us share, hence the Specialists, Loxley Village, the Outlaws, family, and of course the tables of power, of which Runestone is the centre of all of them.

One of the most important symbols we have today which has been used throughout all time is indeed that of the circle. It represents the flow of time, which constantly repeats itself, and as we know history or at least the actions of man have repeated themselves many times, hence the sentence “look to the past and learn for the future,” in others words learn and try not to repeat the mistakes of the past, a lesson I feel Mason should learn. Circles most importantly represent life, the circle of birth, life, death and resurrection are a stable of every religion and are also the prime ingredients of life depending on your view point. The circle of life is a vastly important theme throughout all of HTTK as it deals with the life cycle of the planet with the seasons, and the attitude that we have towards it in the modern age. Once again there are countless other examples that I have worked within the text to hopefully present a deeper meaning. These factors which at first are not apparent, actually imitate life and as a result it provides the reader with something they can identify with. For myself as the Author, it is the single most important factor, because if the reader can identify with the life of the characters within their circles, they can draw a parallel with their own life, and thus, the story feels real.

The star is quite obvious, it’s a pentagram and represents all of the qualities of life in the realm, earth, water, air, metal, spirit, all essential elements in the composition of all things. The star also represents the Five Swords of power for good and the five spirits that created the realms, and if you look deeper I am sure you will find several other links that bond five items in union.

In Book Seven, (recently out) we deal with the ‘Bridge of Sequana.’ I am aware as I write this some of you have not read it yet, but one of the biggest response’s I have had to date, especially in the run up to the publication was: Who is Sequana? What you missed her I ask? Look at the prophecy at the very start of Book Two, yup there she is giving you a clue as to what to look for. Also remember the events of Robbie’s fall into the river and Runestone’s melt down? Now for this you will need the revised edition, as this small clue got edited out in the first edition, I put it back. After Robbie is found and recovers, he goes to Robbie’s Mere and shows it to Rune. They spend the night together, and in the morning Robbie goes off to hunt leaving Runestone alone. Her grandfather turns up and gives her a telling off for being reckless. When Robbie returns they talk of “The Book of Black Runes,” and Runestone’s response is, “but the black book is a myth, like Sequana’s Bridge.” So you see it’s been there for some time.

At the start of book five, the passage on the very first page is from Una’s childhood diary, and once again Merlin talks of the bridge, and here you have two clues, firstly the Bridge is mentioned and what it does, and secondly Merlin tells you he is going to use it, so later on in the book when he confronts Morgan… Well you already have the answer. Book seven has thrown a lot of readers, it does start in a pretty dire situation, but look back and it all there so do not despair, you have six books of clues, and yet none of you saw it coming (Grins) Why? I have to ask. Just who is Runestone?

Well she is the stone on which all is written. I must have written that so many times in the previous books, and book seven is the reason I use that phrase, also her grandfather is the guardian of the Whitelines. As Eve explained in book six, the powers mingle, so it should not take a huge amount to deduce that the Whitelines are also referred to as “The White Lines of Time.” We have also spent most of the last book in the Forest of Time, so the clues were there for the plot twist if you looked at it in a simple way. I was thrilled that my wife did not get it either, she is pretty good at predicting things, and I have to be so guarded when working to make sure I do not slip up, thankfully I pulled it off and hope you all enjoyed it.

One of the nicest compliments I have been given by quite a few readers to date, is that they have read the books several times, (which in itself is a huge compliment) and they tell me each time they read it, they pick up on other things, so slowly the layers are peeling back. From the point of view of the Author, I am delighted that for some of the readership these books have given you that kind of extra pleasure. In many ways it can be quite a solitary and at times hard life writing, so being able to play around by layering in symbolism and clues, I get a huge amount of fun in the writing process. I have never expected to be on the best sellers list or make millions writing this, my aim has always been purely the joy of being able to work this tale in a way that it will hopefully give other people the same enjoyment I get from writing it, and for the small readership that has remained faithful, I think it has.

Over the coming days I will provide more details on HTTK and show you how I pull it apart and build it brick by brick, and I hope it will add a little more depth to the books, which are a huge part of my life and also my persona as a human being. Previous Events and the website have a lot on it, so please have a good look round it.

Ok before I finish today, I think you now have a better idea of what is hidden within the pages and there are a great deal more little hints and clues than I have mentioned, so have a good look and as you wait for the final book of this series which I am currently working away on, think of this.

Who exactly is Ena? This one is a lot more cryptic than some of the others, but the loose strings are already there waiting to be tied up, all you have to do is dig deep enough.

Happy Hunting

RJM.