Q&A with R.T. Kaelin discussion

As you read Progeny, if you have any questions about anything in the book - where an idea came from, why I approached something from a certain direction, anything... ask and I'll try to answer.

Try to keep the spoilers to a minimum.

Given the little I know about the story at this point, I was wondering about your view of magic in Progeny and wether you drew influence from other sources like Robert Jordan (weaving patterns) or Roger Zelazney (seeing magic as different strands).

I've only read some of Jordan - I was never able to stick with the Wheel of Time series. Still, one may see similarities - but only in the sense the word 'weave' is used.

Ultimately, Strands are what mages use to create Weaves.

There are nine types of Stands, each unique and powerful, pure energy and essence of what they represent. They can be woven into patterns on their own or combined with other types of Strands into designs that have be researched and taught for thousands of years by practitioners of the art. If a mage gets a pattern wrong as he or she creates a Weave, there can be unanticipated results.

Most of the population of Terrene have will never be able to work the Strands. Those that can are born with the ability but may not come to realize it until later in life. If a person has been gifted with the ability to sense or touch the Strands, they are often limited to two, three, or rarely four types. Throughout the recorded history of the nations of Terrene, there have been only a handful of times anyone can touch all nine. Such a person is a Masterweaver.

Here's an excerpt regarding an encounter with a type of Strand...

"Just beyond arm’s length, a glimmering, glittering string of white shimmered into view before her, hanging in the air. It dangled there, light and airy, waving as though a soft breeze were teasing it, blowing ripples through it. Slowly pulsating with bright white light, it fluttered before her, almost beckoning Kenders to reach out and take it. The strand appeared to be only a few feet long, although when she tried to judge the true length, she found she could not. As her eyes traveled up or down the string, the part she had just surveyed diminished, weakening and fading from sight. She could not say whether she ever saw the start or end of the string."

It needs to be noted that in the Oaken Duchies, magic was outlawed over three hundred years before. Anyone caught doing anything with magic is captured and disappears. It's not like that throughout the world of Terrene, though. An in Progeny, we get a taste of how things work in both situations.

So based on the description, are strands a resource you have to find in order to use rather than just an element of magic you can use anywhere? For example, if you have someone who could be a water/void mage that lives in a desert and doesn't happen upon those strands, would they ever find out they could use magic?

The simplest way to explain is to use another excerpt from the book:

"The pattern he wove was so ultimately familiar to him, thinking about it was like consciously thinking of drawing air when he was breathing. Pulling at the verdant Strands of Life, golden Strands of Will, and the silvery Strands of Soul, he arranged them in the right order, overlaying some and intertwining others. It was easy to make this Weave in the wilderness with so many of the right sort of Strands nearby. It took much more energy to pull necessary Strands over great distances."

In your example, a mage that is a master of Water could summon forth Strands of Water in the middle of a desert, but it would take a toll. A mage that has only marginal skill might be out of luck, though. That, or they'd knock themselves unconcious.

Some mages that can touch fire are known to carry a burning ember with them to ease the effort it takes to weave Strands of Fire.

I've noticed that you use some Finnish words in the book. Are you of Finnish descent or is there another motivation for it?

(I know it isn't probably common for an American to be able to spot that but I learned to speak the language fluently.)

I used some words from certain languages, but mostly used consistent phoenetic patterns of those languages for various cultures/settings to give a cohesive quality to some groups. (For the most part - I do have definitive intent behind the inclusion of a specific language.) Finnish is indeed one of the origin languages I used.

Funny how you picked up on that.

I haven't read a lot yet since I don't have the book. (Still hoping for the first-reads win.) I was reading a little through amazon and caught some of the words when Broedi was telling the history of the tribes:
vahva = strong
Tuhka = dust
Totta = true
ei mitaan = nothing

after that I caught:
iskoa => sisko = sister
kaveli => veli = brother

It was a fun little easter egg for me. I love to see Finnish pop up in unexpected places since it is so rare. I look forward to reading more.