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1. So, what's your favourite comfort food?
Spaghetti and marinara. It has been my comfort food since I was a kid. It is the only thing I crave when I am sick.
2. What does Julian think of when he daydreams?
Not having to go through with this tradition. He wants to be given the time to go learn about the world on his own without the added pressure of running a kingdom on his heels.
3. Does Julian have siblings?
Yes. Julian has one sister, named Sophia Helen de Arques. She is seventeen years old and as of Julian's birthday, she is looking for suitors. She remains at the castle while Julian is on his quest, but she will come into play, I believe in the second book. I'm not sure, but I will be utilizing her. More on her later.
4. Does he have a pet?
He does not have a pet that is just his. There are hunting dogs and horses among other things that belong to the royal family, but there isn't anything that he calls his own.
5. Any thoughts on the climate of [Kingdom]?
I am in the process of drawing a map, actually. The coastal regions range from mild to cool and rainy. Inland there are forests and deserts, but most of the occupied land is around water, whether it be lakes or rivers or even manmade bodies of water. The one thing that there isn't is any tropical climates or rainforest-like climates. Also, I am so referring to it as [Kingdom] from now until I get a name for it.
6. What is your writing process like?
My process changes depending on how serious I am about what I am writing. Sometimes, I just fly by the seat of my pants and go. In this case, I do a lot more planning. I like to write up character profiles for each character that includes precise information on how they look, their personality, their history, their likes and dislikes and any other technical information I need to remember when it comes to writing them into the story. Once I have everyone as detailed as possible, I will write an outline that is a chapter by chapter synopsis. It details the main point of the chapter, what I am trying to convey. I sometimes have more detailed information than others, it just depends on the kind of chapter it is. Often, a chapter is dreamt up from one line of dialogue or a sentence that I want to include and I will build around that.
I find that I tend to work a little bit backwards. I find one detail that I like and I create the story around that. If I have two details, I will run through every possibility that they have to be connect and go from there. My writing process is very scattered because my ideas come out of left field sometimes. Some of my best ideas I've ever had happened in a grocery store or while shopping. I keep a small notebook with me all the time, just in case. Then, I go home compare all the notes and find the plot inside it. For this story though, the process will be a lot more structured than usual.
7. Did you get character ideas from people you know, other fandom characters or what?
My character ideas come from all over. I find that a lot of times I know that my plot needs one characteristic to round it out. For example, with Julian's sister, Sophia; I knew that somewhere in the family I needed a place that Julian could feel he wasn't being pressured and I wanted a sort of logic and realistic feel to this place. So, I took those characteristics--logic, realistic, familiar, intelligence--and wound them all up into one character. That is what Sophia is. She's a very smart, level-headed, intelligent young woman who is a counter balance at home for Julian. They aren't great friends, but they care for each other. I knew that it would give him a firm foundation. It just worked out that she corresponds well with the goddess Athena.
Other times, my characters just come to me. Or maybe I have one look or purpose they need to serve in the book. I'm finding that a lot of the characters in this trilogy are created on and around Julian based on my needs to advance the plot. Luckily, I find that my favorite characteristics are easily implemented in this fantasy world and I can use all my loved personality traits and quirks. I will say this, there's at least two characters that did receive parial inspiration from Captain Jack Sparrow.
8. Do you have faces for any of the characters?
What's funny about this is that I have so many characters to put faces to, but only Julian's came to me and made sense. The rest of them are still up in the air. There's one character in particular, that I could tell you their personality, the way they dress, their scars, their quirks, their fears, their vices, personal details about their childhood and I cannot for the life of me settle on their physical attributes. I can't decide on hair color, hair length, eye color, body type or height. I mean, I know next to nothing about how they look, but I know everything about who they are. Looks are alluding me a little bit for characters, but I think once I get moving on it, they will make a little more sense. For now, we will just have to live with my poor descriptions of their physical appearance.
9. Does Julian have a sidekick/bestie that will accompany him on his travels of epic proportions?
The Quest of Kings does not allow the heir to embark on the journey with a companion. So, starting out on the journey? No. Julian is completely alone, but--and I think I can tell you this without giving away too much, because I want to talk about him--Julian will very quickly gain a traveling companion. I know I've mention Milo Lycus before. He is a very interesting character that nearly gets Julian into trouble... over and over again. I will get to him next week, I believe. He may not be Julian's best friend and definitely not at the beginning, but he definitely occupies the 'sidekick' role.
10. What inspiring/badass music have you been listening to to prepare/write this epic?
Oh man, I dont' even have a good answer for this. I listen to a lot of movie soundtracks when it comes to this kind of thing because I want it to play very clearly in the reader's head when they discover this fantasy land. I've taken to string quartets and also a lot of the metal sounds that are in Hellboy II have been pretty inspiring. Also, the song "Neighborhood #4 (7 Kettles)" by Arcade Fire has been and interesting mix. They actually use the sound of whistling kettles in the song and I like the image it gives me. If I find anything else I love, I'll be sure to share it with you!
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I hope that feeds your craving this week and that you will survive until next week when I post again. I hope to get some plotting worked on this weekend, God willing. A lot is going on around my house right now, but I am consistently excited about this trilogy and I really cannot wait to share it. Thanks for reading!
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