I want to take this time to go into some of the inspirations behind the character of Nina. Seeing as most of you haven’t read the three stories on fictionpress that are the book, don’t worry this isn’t about to spoil anything major, it’s just a look into why I created this character and what inspired me to do so.
Nina’s story, if you think about it, serves as the backdrop for the second part of the book. And as a character that is never really seen and only talked about once or twice, is pretty impressive. When I wrote the initial story (part 1 of the book), Nina wasn’t in it as the Temple of the Goddess was meant to be a monument to Lilith and appear more like the Spirit Temple in Ocarina of Time. I only added in Nina a couple of years later when I decided to write the second and third parts and post them all online. I originally wrote her as a sort of Christ-like figure, she’s part divine and dies because of her love for humanity.
But also around this time was when my school put on a production of Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull, which was a beautiful show that I saw like four or five times (and as someone who didn’t consider himself as a Chekhov fan, that’s saying something). And the character that stole the show for me was the character of Nina; her actress brought out both the physical and emotional beauty of the character, and the tragedy of her story was impossible not to have your heart moved. And it is this performance that I truly based Nina off of: her love of acting is so complete that she would rather destroy herself and continue acting than not act and try to live a happier life. Also (don’t yell at me if this is wrong, but feel free to point it out), I believe that the form of a female child in Spanish is Nina, and I thought that was a real appropriate and nice fit for the character.
Ok, that’s my blurb about about the goddess Nina. Let me know if this better informs your reading when the book is eventually published (hopefully by the start of summer), or if you go and read the early draft on fictionpress.
The Value of Gold
Though I didn’t know the real reasons (though I knew there had to be real reasons) when I wrote the second and third parts of the book, the concept of why gold is our most precious substance greatly fascinated me. And it was for this reason that I added the detail of the golden dagger that brought out the hatred of the god and goddesses of Bolfodier. Seeing the power the precious metal had over Nina and other divine beings, man spread the word of the power of gold. And it’s for this reason that gold becomes the highest form of money in the world (though by the time of the story, nobody knows this).
Just another little nugget of information to help enrich the reading experience when it comes. Leave your thoughts and comments below!
Sneak Peak of Never Before Seen Content!
Ok, so I was originally going to post something directly on New Year’s, as a gift to everyone to ring in 2017; but as is my standard, I got sidetracked and forgot about it altogether. I hope everyone had a happy holiday season and that everything went well. But back to the book; here’s a sneak peak from a part of the book that wasn’t in the FictionPress release. Let me know what you think!
“I don’t like this,” Shade said as he curled his thick goatee around his finger; a nervous habit he’d developed once the goatee had grown in.
Walking out onto the small window balcony, Pan looked out. From here he could see the majority of Terang, as well as the lake that both the castle and city surrounded. And as he watched the sun set in the south, Pan released a weary sigh. “I don’t like it, either. But I don’t have much of a choice.”
“No, it doesn’t sound like you do,” Shade agreed as he joined Pan on the balcony. “But I still think you could have put up more of a fight, resisted slightly.”
“Every single guard who saw her said that she barely looked at them and the most indescribable pain followed. She only gave pleasure to three of the fifteen men that she encountered. Pain may be your thing, I don’t want to know, but it’s not mine,” he said with a smile to his lifelong friend. “No, agreeing to help her was probably the best thing I could have done.”
“Oh, I totally agree that agreeing was the best thing you could have done. But it also made you look like the lovesick puppy you’ve always been when it came to this woman.” The smile Shade gave Pan as he said this made Pan know that while Shade meant what he said, it was meant to be a joke. “Besides, you don’t know if she would have given you pain if you resisted a little. Knowing how you feel about her, as everyone does, might have convinced her that the carrot was a more effective tactic than the stick.”
“No; she told me that she’d used the stick, and I believe the look I saw in her eyes as she told me this. Besides, I’m pretty sure that I repulse her; when she spoke of my Reckoning, the amount of contempt that came from her was palpable.”
“How did she know that the one who found the Valin Twins’ library was you? I thought you said that you took every measure to ensure that you weren’t implicated?” Shade asked, voicing one of Pan’s many concerns.
Giving his friend a grave look as this question was raised, Pan simply said, “I’d thought I had. And the fact that she knows it was me is one of the many things about this whole thing that makes me uneasy. She’s been roaming the world for nearly a thousand years; there’s no telling what she’s learned in that time.” Turning away from his friend, Pan once again looked to the setting sun as the sky started to turn the indigo of twilight. For a long time, the silence expanded between them as they took in the sunset. “You know what I’m going to ask.”
It wasn’t really a question, but Shade answered it anyway. “Yes.”
“And will you do it?”
As Shade didn’t answer immediately, Pan turned away from the sunset and looked at his best friend. “I’ve never wanted that,” he said to which Pan nodded his understanding. “But I know that you trust no one else. So yes, reluctantly, I will do it.”
Pan smiled a small smile to his friend’s acceptance to his unspoken request. Shade, however, turned and returned to the room as he headed for the door. Just as he got there, Pan said the two words he knew would stop him from leaving. “Thank you.” Shade stood with his hand on the latch to the door for a long moment before his head fell. When it came back up the next second, Pan could see the ghost of a smile on Shade’s lips. And then, Shade was gone. Slightly surprised, Pan turned back to the southern sun, as the last sliver was being swallowed by the distant horizon.
Cadel Thymab’s Origins
For the 2 people who have actually read the FictionPress versions of the stories, I’m sure you can remember the chapter in which Jazabel tells Nikki about the Ladies of the Night. But what you may have not been able to put your finger on was the familiarity of the story of Cadel Thymab. And that’s because I actually based the character and story on that of Shakespeare’s Lady Macbeth. Cadel Thymab is actually an anagram of Lady Macbeth. Macbeth was one of my favourite Shakespeare plays growing up and I’ve always been fascinated by it’s seepage into pop culture. And the character and story of Cadel Thymab was me throwing my hat into the ring and seeing how the world would welcome this ‘what if’ scenario that I’ve concocted.
Now, with this new evidence in mind, I encourage you to go back and reread Ch. 13 of part 3 of the Kanta Chronicles and then let me know what you think about this bit of lore to the world of Bolfodier. Or if you had pieced this together already, let me know that too as well as if you think I did Lady M justice.
A Link To The Legend: Hyrule’s Influence on The Kanta Chronicles
So, for those of you who don’t know me all that well, I’m a big Legend of Zelda fan; and as such, it has subtly and not so subtly woven itself into The Kanta Chronicles. From Zelda Kanvice to Lullaby Falls, there are many allusions to my favourite video game series. The Temple of the Goddess was originally meant to be the Spirit Temple from Ocarina of Time (as was the island of Vagala meant to mirror the Gerudo Desert). And Shade and Nikki’s final confrontation with the Beast meant to be a reflection of the first part of the final battle against Ganondorf in Twilight Princess where you battle Puppet Zelda. Even when I drew the map, I couldn’t help myself in inserting the Triforce (I’m leaving it up to those with eagle eyes to find it, a hint of which can be found in the chapter where Pan and Iselda travel to the aforementioned Lullaby Falls). But seeing as I haven’t released the chapter regarding Lullaby Falls, the attached pictures should help those of you willing to take the time to go looking for it (as an incentive, I’ll give the first person to find it a special prize).
