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truepennyQ: Reading about the various old cemeteries, off-shoot chambers and secret underground culture makes me think of the old houses and history in and around New Orleans. I've lived within spitting distance of the city my entire life and as I was reading about the different parts of the city, I couldn't shake the sensation of being on a tour of The Quarter or the Garden District or the Marigny, and somehow France steeped in courtly manners. And Vey reminds me of a much bloodier Marie LeVeaux.
So, my question is: What informs the cityscape? Is it a combination of historical locations, pure fancy or a good dose of informed speculation? I've done some writing myself and I've found the setting can almost be an individual/independent character.
A: Yes. *g*
Mélusine is mostly Vienna, as far as real places go, with probably a dash of Paris thrown in, then filtered through Dickensian London (not real London, as I've never been there), plus, you know, every city I've ever read about, real and otherwise. New Orleans isn't a specific influence (I've never been there, either), but I've read books set there (Barbara Hambly, Poppy Z. Brite), and certainly Mélusine is somewhere around the latitude of New Orleans.
I hadn't thought about Vey Coruscant in the context of Marie Laveau; it's an interesting comparison.
Q: What was the "inspiration" for Felix and Mildmay? Where did they come from? While Mildmay is familiar (as far as thieves go) and sane, and a nice escape from the emotional imbalance that is Felix, I found Felix more engaging because he's so problematic. Clearly, he and Mildmay are not "heroes" by any stretch, but I found myself heavily invested in their successes and utterly gutted by their failures and mistakes. Felix in particular reminded me of several "problem protagonists" - Gerald Tarrant of C.S. Friedman's Coldfire Trilogy, and Vincent De Vilbiss of Brent Monahan's The Book of Common Dread. Both characters were understood to be "villains" but for the most part, they just weren’t quite that evil to me. Also, Felix reminded me of Vanyel Ashekevron of Mercedes Lackey's Last Herald Mage Trilogy. Which leads into the next question...
A: There's a reason Corambis is dedicated to Joan Vinge and Ellen Kushner. *g* Mildmay's first ancestor is Cat from Psion and Felix's first ancestor is Alec from Swordspoint. Obviously, they accreted a lot of other influences as they went along (I get my kink for Byronic wizards from Raistlin Majere, although it pains me to admit it), but Cat and Alec were the first examples I met of their character types, and their influence has been profound.
Q: Did you anticipate Felix's charm and influence outside of the text (I'm charmed despite my best intentions) and how do you think that influences subsequent rereadings as well as fresh readings of the sequels? (I almost didn’t read The Virtu because I was furious with Felix for his liaison with Astyanax.) Does reader/audience reaction to your characters figure into how you handle those minor moments in the overall plot?
A: My understanding is that many readers are not charmed by Felix. I don't know. I can't control reader reactions; all I can do is write the characters as best I can and as truthfully as I can. Felix is charismatic. He's also an asshole, and since we see him from a much closer perspective than he would like (both his own viewpoint and Mildmay's), he can't camouflage himself as he would if you met him in real life.
Also, I've learned not to try to anticipate reader reactions. I will always be wrong. *g*
Q: The narrative structure of Mélusine, The Virtu and The Mirador reminded me of Faulkner’s “As I Lay Dying” (which I actually liked because of the almost schizophrenic feel of the narrative). How difficult is it to stretch FP-POV across four books and maintain consistency and individual voice while avoiding redundancy and the potential for didactic writing? The way that you present each POV reads effortlessly, but is so immersed in the personal perspective of three characters, I found I was starting to prioritize Felix’s over Mildmay’s over Mehitabel’s views (could just be my obsession with troubled mages, however).
A: Um. I'm not quite sure what this question is asking. So I'll take a kind of stab at it by saying that the key to writing unreliable first-person narrators is that you have to remember that it isn't YOU talking. It's your narrator. And you have to develop a sense for what s/he would and wouldn't say. And how s/he would and wouldn't say it. As a corollary, if you're writing an unreliable first-person narrator, there had better BE things s/he wouldn't say and modes of expression s/he wouldn't use. That's what makes the narrator a character instead of just a disembodied voice.
I'm really not sure if that answers the question. Feel free to make me try again.
[Ask your question(s) here.]
So, my question is: What informs the cityscape? Is it a combination of historical locations, pure fancy or a good dose of informed speculation? I've done some writing myself and I've found the setting can almost be an individual/independent character.
A: Yes. *g*
Mélusine is mostly Vienna, as far as real places go, with probably a dash of Paris thrown in, then filtered through Dickensian London (not real London, as I've never been there), plus, you know, every city I've ever read about, real and otherwise. New Orleans isn't a specific influence (I've never been there, either), but I've read books set there (Barbara Hambly, Poppy Z. Brite), and certainly Mélusine is somewhere around the latitude of New Orleans.
I hadn't thought about Vey Coruscant in the context of Marie Laveau; it's an interesting comparison.
Q: What was the "inspiration" for Felix and Mildmay? Where did they come from? While Mildmay is familiar (as far as thieves go) and sane, and a nice escape from the emotional imbalance that is Felix, I found Felix more engaging because he's so problematic. Clearly, he and Mildmay are not "heroes" by any stretch, but I found myself heavily invested in their successes and utterly gutted by their failures and mistakes. Felix in particular reminded me of several "problem protagonists" - Gerald Tarrant of C.S. Friedman's Coldfire Trilogy, and Vincent De Vilbiss of Brent Monahan's The Book of Common Dread. Both characters were understood to be "villains" but for the most part, they just weren’t quite that evil to me. Also, Felix reminded me of Vanyel Ashekevron of Mercedes Lackey's Last Herald Mage Trilogy. Which leads into the next question...
A: There's a reason Corambis is dedicated to Joan Vinge and Ellen Kushner. *g* Mildmay's first ancestor is Cat from Psion and Felix's first ancestor is Alec from Swordspoint. Obviously, they accreted a lot of other influences as they went along (I get my kink for Byronic wizards from Raistlin Majere, although it pains me to admit it), but Cat and Alec were the first examples I met of their character types, and their influence has been profound.
Q: Did you anticipate Felix's charm and influence outside of the text (I'm charmed despite my best intentions) and how do you think that influences subsequent rereadings as well as fresh readings of the sequels? (I almost didn’t read The Virtu because I was furious with Felix for his liaison with Astyanax.) Does reader/audience reaction to your characters figure into how you handle those minor moments in the overall plot?
A: My understanding is that many readers are not charmed by Felix. I don't know. I can't control reader reactions; all I can do is write the characters as best I can and as truthfully as I can. Felix is charismatic. He's also an asshole, and since we see him from a much closer perspective than he would like (both his own viewpoint and Mildmay's), he can't camouflage himself as he would if you met him in real life.
Also, I've learned not to try to anticipate reader reactions. I will always be wrong. *g*
Q: The narrative structure of Mélusine, The Virtu and The Mirador reminded me of Faulkner’s “As I Lay Dying” (which I actually liked because of the almost schizophrenic feel of the narrative). How difficult is it to stretch FP-POV across four books and maintain consistency and individual voice while avoiding redundancy and the potential for didactic writing? The way that you present each POV reads effortlessly, but is so immersed in the personal perspective of three characters, I found I was starting to prioritize Felix’s over Mildmay’s over Mehitabel’s views (could just be my obsession with troubled mages, however).
A: Um. I'm not quite sure what this question is asking. So I'll take a kind of stab at it by saying that the key to writing unreliable first-person narrators is that you have to remember that it isn't YOU talking. It's your narrator. And you have to develop a sense for what s/he would and wouldn't say. And how s/he would and wouldn't say it. As a corollary, if you're writing an unreliable first-person narrator, there had better BE things s/he wouldn't say and modes of expression s/he wouldn't use. That's what makes the narrator a character instead of just a disembodied voice.
I'm really not sure if that answers the question. Feel free to make me try again.
[Ask your question(s) here.]
