Elijah David

Arielle Bailey's debut novel, The Icarus Aftermath , is out in the world now, and I'm here today to talk to her about it. ED:  The Icarus Aftermath mixes Greek myth and Star Wars-style space opera. What led you to that combination? What led you to use the Icarus/Labyrinth myth specifically? AB: The combination burst on me fully armored, like Athena herself. My horse had died earlier that day, and I’d had a long day following. I was in the shower, trying to deal with it all, and I suddenly thought, “What if Icarus flew too close to the sun not to be an arrogant twit (look, he was in the original myth, okay) but to save someone else?” I mentally saw it in the blackness of space and knew instantly it was a space opera. Another ten seconds and I had the foundation of a scene that I wrote as soon as I got back to my room. It was a blinding flash of inspiration. And after I realized I’d be retelling Icarus, I knew I had to retell the Labyrinth/Minotaur myth too, be...

I recently picked up Charles de Lint's Riddle of the Wren because I learned that it was part of Mirriam's inspiration for Paper Crowns (that is, she flipped through, saw the word Wysling, and ran with it). I wanted to see what he'd done with the concept, and when I saw that Cernunnos was also included in the glossary, I knew this book would be worth the read. (Mirriam also asked me to see how the two books compared.) From the opening pages, this book feels quintessentially de Lint-ish. It has ordinary people who love stories and wild things and the edges of artistic society. There's lyricism in the prose and a sense of wonder and magic pervading the world. The opening chapters felt like something out of the Newford stories rather than something like Harp of the Grey Rose or Wolf Moon , both of which seem to be related to Riddle of the Wren in the sense of de Lint's working old myths and folktales into new works. RotW works its way into Irish lore about t...

Today it is my very great pleasure to interview/host Mirriam Neal as part of the blog tour for her newly published novel, Paper Crowns. I had the privilege of beta reading this book last summer and I can't wait to read the final version. Below you can see the beautiful cover and the synopsis of the book. Ginger has lived in seclusion, with only her aunt Malgarel and her blue cat, Halcyon, to keep her company. Her sheltered, idyllic life is turned upside-down when her home is attacked by messengers from the world of fae. Accompanied by Halcyon (who may or may not be more than just a cat), an irascible wysling named Azrael, and a loyal fire elemental named Salazar, Ginger ventures into the world of fae to bring a ruthless Queen to justice. And without further ado, the interview: ED:   Ever since I first read  Paper Crowns , I've only been able to think of it as a fun romp through Faerie. What drew you to writing a story about Faerie in the first place? What...