Swords and Staves

When the going gets rough, who would you prefer to have at your side:  a brave knight or a cunning mage?

In High Maga, Eolyn has both. When the Syrnte invade Moehn and destroy her home, she finds herself alone in the highlands with Sir Borten, a loyal knight of the king who was assigned to her protection. Soon they are joined by Mage Corey, who took Eolyn under his wing years ago and still considers the maga his ward.

The alliance between Eolyn, Borten, and Corey is a fragile one haunted by failures of the past. Eolyn has reason to distrust both men. The knight and mage have no fondness for each other. As if this weren't enough, the Gods weave their mischievous magic with all three of them, striking sparks of attraction in unbidden moments. A volatile mix, these three, but if they are unable to overcome their differences and succeed in this task, they will perish and the rest of the kingdom with them.

Sir Borten

In my first novel Eolyn, Borten appears only twice. Both occasions play a crucial role in the realization of Akmael's fate as a king and ruler. Early in his reign, Akmael pardons Borten for a transgression that should have cost him his life. In return, Borten submits to his king with unfailing loyalty and becomes one of Akmael's most trusted servants.

Like Eolyn, Borten is a native of the isolated province of Moehn. It is partly for this reason that Akmael designates him captain of Eolyn's guard when she establishes her new Aekelahr. 

Though Borten has blood ties to the impoverished nobility of Moehn, his family is of low rank. This allows Corey to refer to him disparagingly as a "peasant knight", a habit that does little to encourage the knight's friendship. 

When I wrote Eolyn, I did not anticipate the importance Borten would eventually assume in the maga's journey. Indeed, even in the opening stages of High Maga, I had few plans for Borten beyond letting him wield his sword in the Eolyn's defense. 

Then one day, one of my critique partners said to me, "You should let Borten have a crush on Eolyn."

So I did. 

That's when Sir Borten's story became most interesting. . .

Mage Corey of East Selen

Corey was born to a family of magas and mages that ruled the eastern province of Moisehén.  One night when he was still a boy, his clan was massacred by the Mage King Kedehen. Corey escaped thanks to the intervention of his cousin Briana, who was captured by Kedehen and made queen.

At once a prisoner and adopted son of the royal family, Mage Corey struggles with conflicting motivations.  On the one hand, he desires vengeance for the obliteration of his clan. On the other hand, he is bound by loyalty to the few individuals who still share his bloodline, among them Briana’s and Kedehen’s only son, King Akmael. 

Corey and Eolyn first meet under the auspices of his Circle, a travelling show that brings the illusion of magic to the people of Moisehén. The mage recognizes Eolyn’s importance early on, but much time will pass before Eolyn fully understands the true extent of Corey’s power, and what his influence and ambitions will eventually mean for her.

The chemistry between Eolyn and Corey crackles with tension. Their relationship is one of constant disagreement, wary admiration, and latent attraction. Although Corey might be considered a minor character, his fate is tightly intertwined with Eolyn's. The final outcome of the saga, to be revealed in the third book Daughter of Aithne, will depend crucially on the resilience of this besieged friendship.

~*~

Next week, our final preview before the release of HIGH MAGA.

Mage Corey's Surprise

Those of you who aren't too thrilled by my hardcore marketing side will be pleased to know that March Madness -- and all the promotions that came with it -- has now ended. 

I want to extend a very special thanks to the folks at The Magic Appreciation Tour and the Genre Underground, especially Daniel Marvello and Christopher Kellen, for organizing these events.  I also want to thank all of you who participated in the giveaways and/or purchased a copy of Eolyn. Welcome to the magic of Moisehén!  You are in for a wonderful reading adventure. 

In other exciting news, it is now possible to follow Eolyn on Twitter.  Be the first to receive important for updates on giveaways and promotions as we start the countdown to the release of High Maga. If you don't have a Twitter account, maybe now is a good time to check it out.  It's easy to sign up, and free.

I am so thrilled with the opening chapters of my latest project, Daughter of Aithne.  Last week, I devoted my sacred Thursday afternoon writing time to a wonderful scene with Mage Corey. 

There's something about Corey -- no matter how well I've come to know him, he still manages to surprise me.

This scene was no exception.  It was a meeting of the Council of King Akmael, as told from Corey's point of view.  Fans of Eolyn, on the day they read this, will recognize certain parallels between this chapter and another in book one, in which the wizard Tzeremond relates a meeting of the Council of Akmael's father, Kedehen. 

And so the sons take the place of their fathers -- figuratively speaking, of course, as Corey is not Tzeremond's son in the biological sense, though one could call him Tzeremond's son in magic. And he is now the most powerful wizard of Moisehén, clearly making him Tzeremond's heir. (Something Tzeremond would probably not be too happy about.)

Of course, the resemblance ends there.  Corey and Akmael have different temperaments and ambitions when compared to their predecessors; and many members of the Council have changed since book one.  (About 14 years pass between the end of book 1 and the beginning of book 3, including the 10-year interval between High Maga and Daughter of Aithne.  This has allowed me to put a lot of water under the bridge, let a few of the older characters go to their peaceful deaths, and bring in some new characters and younger blood along the way.)

But I digress.  Back to Corey's surprise:

I knew when I started writing that although the entire meeting would be told from Corey's point of view, he himself would intervene only once.  I also knew his intervention would be pointed and brilliant, a classic Corey moment in which an all-too-subtle kindness would be veiled by apparently cruel and honest words.

What I did not know -- until I was right on top of the moment -- was exactly when he would intervene, and what he would say. 



From Virgil C. Robinson's FB Fan Page. 
I promise you, the snake is there!

These moments of surprise are hidden treasures in the writing process.  For me, it's like coming across a snake on a forest trail.  Walking through a forest, you know the snakes are there, but you never see one until you are almost right on top of it.  Then the serpent seems to melt out of the leaf litter, as vivid as death itself at your feet.  Awe, wonder, and a good dose of adrenalin rush through your veins while Snake looks up at you and you, quite speechless and just a little afraid, look down at it. 

Ah, there you are, you think.  I knew you'd be around.  Sorry I almost stepped on you.  I'll try to be more careful next time. 

Snake says nothing, just turns its unblinking eyes away and slithers back into hiding, smug in the knowledge that it will always have the upper hand.

Mage Corey and Snake are different from one another in at least one important respect:  Corey is not fool enough to sink into the illusion that he always has the upper hand.  But he is an expert in making certain everyone around him believes he does. 

Everyone including me, the unwitting author who has taken on the ever unpredictable task of writing his story.