Do like books? Want to read about legends and treasure in a fully immersive fantasy world, I recommend checking out this interview with Katherine Briggs and her new book The Eternity Gate!
1. Katherine, can you name five of your favorite stories in books, movies, or shows? (These don’t have to be the top 5.)
Katherine: This is a good and difficult question! There are many excellent stories. Some that have captivated and shaped me include The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis, "Little Daylight" by George MacDonald, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea by Jules Verne, Casablanca directed by Michael Curtiz, and the film Beauty and the Beast.
Tyrean: I love many of those, as well, especially The Horse and his Boy, and Beauty and the Beast.
2. What have you learned from these stories, either as writing lessons or life lessons?
Katherine: I admire growth, and I love redemption. Seeing these written well encourages me to press on in my own stories to try to offer these beautiful experiences to deserving readers.
4. Are you a plotter, a discovery author, or a mixture of both? What do you like best about plotting, discovery, or mixing both?
Katherine: I think I'm a plotter and discovery writer blend. I plot books, even scenes, before beginning to write, but often things do not go according to plan (which is sometimes horrifying but always rewarding!). I tend to discovery write during idea creation before drafting and later when transforming plot holes and deepening characters while editing.
Tyrean: I do a combination of discovery and plotting, too. :)
7. Which character was your favorite to write in The Eternity Gate?
Katherine: One of my favorite characters to write in The Eternity Gate is Geras. He's the oldest surviving character through all the versions this story took in my mind and on the page. He also claims the prize for being one of the two most difficult characters I've ever tackled. I'm working on a third challenging character now, and she takes residence in the duology's Book 2.
8. I love the specific word choices you've given your characters to show they are in an alternate world with a different language than ours. How did you come up with those?
Katherine: Thank you so much! That's a lovely compliment. I lived outside my home country for a few years, and I didn't have very many friends or access to books written in my language. So, I read lots of old books, especially the Bible. I think I drew a lot upon that time period and to shape the characters' vernacular. Verbs are particularly powerful.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts with us, Katherine!
>> Book Blurb
Destroy the key. Save her people and herself.
The Eternity Gate is found, and kings and monsters battle over its legends of treasure. But rumors whisper that someone stole the gate's ancient key.
Seyo, handmaiden to the princess, keeps three secrets. First, she's gifted in fire, not light, and may as well be cursed. Second, she translates a prophecy warning that the gate does not offer treasure but judgment. Third, Jorai, the scorned prince and Seyo's confidant, entrusts her with the key and disappears.
Surrounded by war, Seyo and her companions embark on a journey to seek help from a faraway empire and find Jorai, unaware of the trap awaiting them. But what should Seyo do with the key? Who can survive judgment, especially someone as flawed as her? Will hiding the key—or destroying it—save her people or ensure their defeat?
The Eternity Gate is found, and kings and monsters battle over its legends of treasure. But rumors whisper that someone stole the gate's ancient key.
Seyo, handmaiden to the princess, keeps three secrets. First, she's gifted in fire, not light, and may as well be cursed. Second, she translates a prophecy warning that the gate does not offer treasure but judgment. Third, Jorai, the scorned prince and Seyo's confidant, entrusts her with the key and disappears.
Surrounded by war, Seyo and her companions embark on a journey to seek help from a faraway empire and find Jorai, unaware of the trap awaiting them. But what should Seyo do with the key? Who can survive judgment, especially someone as flawed as her? Will hiding the key—or destroying it—save her people or ensure their defeat?
>> Book Links
Amazon | https://www.amazon.com/dp/
Christianbook | https://www.christianbook.
>> My Links
Website/Newsletter | https://katherinebriggs.com
>> Short Author Bio
Katherine Briggs crafted her first monster story at age three. Since graduating from crayons to laptop, she continues to devour and weave fantasy tales while enjoying chai tea. She, her coadventurer husband, and rescue dog reside outside Houston, where she classically educates amazing middle school students, teaches ESL to adults, and enjoys studying other languages.
I love a redemption story too! Katherine's story sounds like a good one!
ReplyDeleteCongratulations, Katherine! Horse and His Boy is my favorite of the seven Narnia books.
ReplyDeleteElizabeth - it is a good one! Thanks for stopping by, Elizabeth.
ReplyDeleteNatalie - Same. Thanks for coming by!
Alex - It's one of my favorites, too. Thank you for stopping by and visiting.
That's wonderful that the experience had her reading the Bible more.
ReplyDeleteHi Tyrean - I haven't read any of Katherine's suggestions ... but I must look at The Horse and His Boy ... thanks for the introduction and good luck to Katherine. Cheers Hilary
ReplyDelete