Author Interview with Teagan R. Geneviene

Trailer:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbNBeJN_oUs

Prologue narrated by author:  https://youtu.be/C2RxcIwRzsA?t=2

 I just finished reading Journeys.  I didn’t want it to end.   What did you enjoy the most about converting this novel into a serial?  What did you struggle with the most?

It gave me a chance to explore the various characters in a more individual way than would be typical in this kind of “high fantasy” story.  If it was only one huge book, that kind of thing would have seemed to bog down the plot

 Who was your favorite character and why?

Horsefeathers!  That’s a logical question, but so very hard to answer.  I would say that I just don’t know.  However, I suppose I answered that for myself, when there was one character to whom I particularly didn’t want to say goodbye.

I don’t mean to be coy…  Actually, I don’t guess that is a spoiler, since he’s already dead.  Hallr, the High King of the North, became my favorite character.  I enjoyed the transformation that took place in him, and having him be different from the kind of person one would expect in such a character.

Who was your most difficult character and why?

Umm… These are really good thought-provoking questions, Pat.  Let’s see…

Characters were difficult for various reasons.  Afon Faxon became difficult during the re-write, though it didn’t originally phase me.  He was difficult because there was so much of my own father’s attitude toward me in his reactions to Emlyn.

Haldis was an enjoyable challenge from the beginning — because I had to at the same time show and let her cover up how broken she was.  Of course, writing her was also difficult emotionally.

As you know I have always been a huge Deae Matres fan.  How did you come up with the idea for this group of learned women?

I’m really not sure.  The idea was just there.  I didn’t think about it, get inspired by something, or struggle to come up with it.  It was just there.

I love how you give us some details of each land visited on the Journeys and allow us to fill in the details.  I feel like I have been to the British Isles, all over the Mediterranean, and into some of the Middle East.  Do you have a favorite Land among those we have journeyed to?

It’s wonderful to hear that, Pat.  I tried to use names and descriptions that led the reader to fill in a lot of details without me slowing the story by giving long descriptions.  I intentionally tried to make the fictional countries resemble real-world countries from our past.

The appearance of the people, clothes, and landscape of Pergesca (which is a city in the country of Lutesca) was very enjoyable to me.  That was one place where I went outside my “system” and designed the gowns myself.

However, I think my favorite country is one that the journeys didn’t reach.  That is Tajín’s homeland of Bandihar.  It is described in a couple of the journeys.

Your god and goddesses are an eclectic group.  I love how all of the little hints dropped along the Journeys, culminated in some surprising scenes and incidents.  They seem like a mix of Greco/Roman gods and goddesses with a bit of Celtic and even Norse gods thrown in.  No one is predictable or one dimensional.  How do you select these characters?

The goddesses and gods are directly inspired by the various mythologies that you mentioned.  I did a lot of research on different mythologies.  Selecting the ones I used was, again, part of what I did to subtly get the reader to imagine the many different countries.

I love how the horses are an integral part of the plot.  Each one is a separate character.  Do you have an affinity for horses?

While I do love animals in general, the answer is no.  My stories always include animal characters.  Emlyn’s oppressed homeland didn’t allow her to start out with a pet, since they were prohibited.  However, in this kind of “high fantasy” the horses almost always get their part.  It’s said jokingly of this genre, but it’s nonetheless true — every character and place gets a name, no matter how insignificant, even the horses.

Do your different worlds spring full blown from your forehead like Athena did from Zeus?  Or do you do research once you have an idea and let research help dictate the plot?

Both.  The Athena-Zeus thing happens first.  However, no matter what I’m writing, or how well I think I know a world or a subject, I research the heck out of it.   Thank heaven I’m a research geek!  Because I enjoy it.

What is one thing about you that none of us are likely to guess?

That’s hard.  Sometimes I figure most people think I’m an enigma, even though I feel I’m an open book.  Between blog posts and comments, I disclose a lot of personal thoughts.  I can’t think of anything good.  I’ll offer up that I play the piano, although I don’t read music at all.  It’s too much like math to me, and I’m useless with math.  Am I any good?  Well, that’s a matter of taste in music and opinion.  I do love my piano though.

 Was the very helpful summary of characters at end of each Journey for your benefit or ours?

I create a story matrix for every longer story I write, so the list wasn’t for me.  There was a massive series that I loved, so this isn’t a criticism.  However, it was character heavy, and they all had affiliations and allergenics out the wazoo.  I couldn’t keep up with all the names.  Plus, many of them were similar, within a couple of letters of being the same name.  I always wished there was a list of characters.  Since I was publishing Dead of Winter in installments, and I had a ton of characters, I didn’t want to put readers through the challenge of keeping all the names straight.

Teagan and the Dragon’s Eye from the Journeys. Be Careful; He is listening.

Teagan’s Blog.