For this interview, I was sat at home on the phone to Bookc@fe where one person was managing the chat room and a second, John, was relaying selected questions to me, to give a varied interview and picking up on topics and ideas that were getting most queries. He then typed in my replies. This is why it reads more like an actual conversation, with people asking several-part questions and my answers sometimes seeming a bit unrelated, when I was replying to clarifications and so on, that didn't make it into the transcript. It was a fun way to do an interview and most importantly gave me the confidence to do more online events.
Bookcafe: Welcome online to Book Café, Juliet McKenna.
Juliet McKenna: Good evening it's nice to be here.
What gave you the idea for The Tales of Einarinn?
By the time I had worked out where the plot was going to finish up for the first book it was clear there were going to be enough questions and ideas to take me into another story.
Is this your first novel - what have you written before?
I've written short pieces, a lot of gaming scenarios for friends. I wrote one full novel before this one and made all my mistakes doing that.
Why fantasy fiction?
I like it. I'm at home with two small kids and fantasy was something I knew I had the resources for in my own head and in the books around me. Anything that requires research doesn't fit with small children.
Is it something you read a lot of and who do you like?
Yes, I read a lot of fantasy, I read a lot of other things as well, how many names do you want? Sheri Tepper, Melanie Rawn, Larry Niven, Tom Holt and Katherine Kerr. I also read a lot of crime; it’s great fun. I’m a fan of Val McDermid, Richard North Patterson.
Do you use everyday life as a source for your fiction or, like Tolkien, do you use sources from mythology?
I use everyday life as a reality check for my characters to make sure what they are doing and thinking are realistic. I’ve invented my own world and mythology because I wanted to be free to include things from a wide range of sources.
Are you romantic and a dreamer or a hardheaded genre writer?
Depends what sort of day I'm having.
Have you tried to deliberately break tired old conventions used in heroic fantasy - such as the main character must be a muscle-bound man and not an intelligent, skilful, woman?
I've tried to take a few sideways glances at some of the more tired clichés but really didn't think I had anything new to bring to your traditional hero tale.
Do you ever find it a problem working from home and looking after a family? It doesn't sound as though you get much time to relax.
You have to make the time. I do a lot of my writing in the evenings when the kids are in bed but now I've got a book deal that's paying for some child minding.
Is there any one person in your family, a writer, or a publisher, perhaps, you would say is responsible for your interest in writing and in fantasy writing in particular?
The only other writer in my family is my stepfather who has written chemistry texts and books on trains. I didn't get published through his influence. My mum started me reading all sorts very young and I basically never stopped.
Do you test your fiction as stories for your family before you send it out to publishers?
I have a carefully selected circle of friends who I trust to be honest in their criticisms and they see everything first.
Mixing first person prose with third person point of view is a very unusual method of presentation is this a quirk or a strategy?
The original story was all in first person. In discussions with my editor, we decided to include a subplot and felt that putting that in the third person gave me more options and an interesting contrast.
Do you write fantasy to reflect political or social problems in the real world?
Absolutely not.
What do you think of the proposition that fantasy fiction really takes off in popularity when the country is in trouble and people are finding it harder to live?
I suppose we all need escapism. Does anyone know if more people watch Coronation Street when things are getting tough?
Despite the high quality of work, very few British fantasy authors get into the general bestseller lists. Is that an objective for you and what made you decide to write fantasy rather than, say, thrillers?
I'd like to be a bestseller, who wouldn't? It's not a personal objective as such but I’ll certainly do anything I can to get fantasy into the mainstream. I could see myself writing crime one day.
Do you ever find yourself thinking of a screenplay for film or TV when you write - is that a distraction?
Script writing is a skill all of its own, not one I have got at the moment. If someone would like to turn my novels into a film I would be delighted to help.
Have you mapped all the books in the series out yet?
I have got five plots mapped out in broad brush so we certainly have the overall story arc plotted.
Why has fantasy fiction leant itself particularly well to the series format? Is it because it's easier to create a fantastic world using a broader canvas?
I suppose fantasy worlds generate questions. If you have been reading a crime novel set in London you are probably not left wondering how the Underground works. The best fantasy novels create vivid characters who you want to know more about. Though people do get a bit too hung up on series; there is some very good standalone fantasy out there.
Where did the name Einarinn come from? It sounds Irish. Does it have a meaning?
No, it is entirely invented. We played around with various words until we found one that sounded right.
Did you base Einarinn on a real geographical area?
No. I have a map showing me where everything is and if I need a description I try and work out where something corresponding on Earth would be and then National Geographic comes in very handy.
Why do you think many British publishers seem to be more enamoured with US fantasy writers when we have so many fine such writers in the UK? Is it more of a struggle to become established as a fantasy author if you live in the UK? Is the new book available in The States and around the world?
It will be coming out in the states in August or September through HarperPrism. For some reason, and no one has been able to give me an answer, US fantasy takes in the UK and it doesn't seem to work the other way round.
If you were casting your book as if it were a movie who would play your lead characters?
I 'd like to do a Star Wars and have unknowns for the leads and big names for the cameos. I see Sean Connery as a very good Otrick, even if he is a bit too tall.
Any advice for young struggling writers?
Learn to take criticism. Be persistent. Best of luck.
Do you use the Internet, Juliet?
I went online in November last year. I can't imagine how I would do without email at all. My next priority is learning to use the Net properly as a research tool.
Will you have books out in between your series?
When I have got the five I’ve got planned written, I may well do a one-off novel. It depends what ideas are going through my head at the time.
Juliet thank you very much for joining us on Online Tonight. Congratulations on the success of your first book and we wish you the very best of luck in the future. Good luck with the surfing.
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