Alexis
asked
Zoë Marriott:
I've read your book 'Daughter of the Flames' twice now; it's one of my absolute favorite books. :) The story, although set in an East Asian-inspired setting, at the same time retains your own ideas and imagination, which I found really interesting and cool. Anyway, what helps you to successfully merge imagination with real life cultural backgrounds in your writing, specifically in 'Daughter of the Flames'?
Zoë Marriott
This answer contains spoilers…
(view spoiler)[Hi Alexis,
Thanks for you question - I'm really glad you've enjoyed Daughter of the Flames so much. The setting is actually (very loosely) inspired by Northern India and Tibet. This happened because of the BBC TV series Ganges which I totally fell in love with (and have watched around 10 times now) and also because my sister is mixed race and I really wanted to create a fantasy setting that would allow me to write a diverse cast, including a mixed race heroine who got to do all the things which generally only white male leads get to do in high fantasy (be the lost heir to the kingdom: check! Inspire and lead troops: check! Have a facial scar: check! Be a badass with a mysterious past and tortured feelings about being in charge: check!).
I think the process of creating a fantasy world like this is exactly the same as writing any fantasy novel. It's just that when you're NOT leaning on Tolkein, G.R.R. Martin and that rich yet somewhat predictable oeuvre of Medieval European fantasy, you have to do a lot more (fun!) research instead of just taking for granted that everyone eats stew, castles look a certain way, and that white guys get to be in charge of everything :) (hide spoiler)]
Thanks for you question - I'm really glad you've enjoyed Daughter of the Flames so much. The setting is actually (very loosely) inspired by Northern India and Tibet. This happened because of the BBC TV series Ganges which I totally fell in love with (and have watched around 10 times now) and also because my sister is mixed race and I really wanted to create a fantasy setting that would allow me to write a diverse cast, including a mixed race heroine who got to do all the things which generally only white male leads get to do in high fantasy (be the lost heir to the kingdom: check! Inspire and lead troops: check! Have a facial scar: check! Be a badass with a mysterious past and tortured feelings about being in charge: check!).
I think the process of creating a fantasy world like this is exactly the same as writing any fantasy novel. It's just that when you're NOT leaning on Tolkein, G.R.R. Martin and that rich yet somewhat predictable oeuvre of Medieval European fantasy, you have to do a lot more (fun!) research instead of just taking for granted that everyone eats stew, castles look a certain way, and that white guys get to be in charge of everything :) (hide spoiler)]
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A Goodreads user
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Zoë Marriott:
I have just started reading shadows of the moon and barefoot on the wind. It's the first series in a long time that I have read in a night. Are you planning on writing any more in the series. Would there be a little mermaid inspired novel set in the Moonlit Lands?
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Zoë Marriott:
Hi! I've reread FROSTFIRE many times and unlike other books, the plot and characters still are fresh. I'm wondering: what difficulties did you encounter in writing that awesome book, what was your inspiration for Frost, and how did you come up with the absolutely beautiful songs ('The falling night has cast your eyes...) peppered throughout the book?
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