by
Dora
Machado
Fantasy
is a subversive genre, requiring the mind to bend and the imagination to flex.
I love the genre's creative freedom, the opportunity to rethink, redesign and
reinterpret the human experience in fresh and diverse settings, and the
mysteries that magic brings to the human equation. But above all, I love
realism in fantasy—the idea that even the most powerful magic is grounded to
our sense of self, fueled by the choices we make, and rooted in the people we
are. To me, a dose of gritty realism authenticates a story, validates my characters,
and makes my worlds "real."
This
is exactly what I've tried to do in my books, and my latest novel, The Curse Giver from Twilight Times
Books, is no exception. The Curse Giver
is about an innocent healer named Lusielle, who is betrayed and condemned to
die for a crime she didn't commit. When she's about to be executed, Lusielle is
rescued from the pyre by an embittered lord, doomed by a mysterious curse. You
might think that Bren, Lord of Laonia, is Lusielle's savior, but he isn't. On
the contrary, Bren is pledged to kill Lusielle himself, because her murder is
his people's only chance at salvation. Stalked by intrigue and confounded by
forbidden passion, predator and prey must band together to defeat not only the
vile curse obliterating their lives, but also the curse giver who has already
conjured their ends.
The
quickest and most effective way of establishing a link between fantasy and
reality is by connecting the story's main themes to humanity's enduring themes.
The Curse Giver, for example, is inspired by our ancient, deeply
rooted belief in the power of curses. You can find curses in every culture on
earth. It's one of those concepts that transcends background and ethnicity and
binds us to our original ancestors. It's primordial to the human experience.
In
more concrete ways, reality betters fantasy when it comes through in the
details. Settings provide great opportunities for realism. For example, The Curse Giver's river-centered world is inspired by the great American waterways,
including the Colorado River, which I have rafted often, the Mississippi River,
which I've had the opportunity to explore, and the Amazon River, which has
always intrigued me. Setting and landscapes offer some great opportunities for
realism in fantasy and so does geography, especially when the details are
vivid, concrete and deeply woven into the heart of the story.
But ultimately, real characters make
real worlds. Realism achieves its maximum expression through the human
experience as characters tackle the story. In The Curse Giver, Bren, Lord of Laonia, is a warrior. To be real,
the concrete details associated with his trade have to be right. Research is
fundamental. I relied on medieval primary sources to make Bren real. From his
weapons to his fighting strategies, to how he thinks and acts—everything about
him has to be consistent and make sense, even if he exists in a fantasy world.
The same is true about my heroine,
Lusielle. By trade, she is a remedy mixer, an ancient occupation to the human
experience. I spent a lot of time researching medieval medicine, herbalism and
the historical use of healing ingredients. Lusielle's potions and ingredients—the concrete elements of her practice—make her more
real to the reader, more credible and therefore more compelling as a character.
But
beyond the details, what makes these characters real is their willingness to
make choices, fail, cope, learn, adapt and change; to establish emotional connections
and engage in each other's quests; to suffer loss, grief and love, just like we
do in the real world. Magic is a
powerful element in fantasy. No doubt about it. And yet ultimately, what
matters most is the strength within. In the end, realism in fantasy is all
about connecting with the powerful reality of our own humanity.
****
Dora Machado is the award-winning author of the epic
fantasy Stonewiser series and her newest novel, The Curse Giver, available from Twilight Times Books. She grew up
in the Dominican Republic, where she developed a fascination for writing and a
taste for Merengue. After a lifetime of straddling such compelling but
different worlds, fantasy is a natural fit to her stories. She lives in Florida
with her husband and three very opinionated cats.
To learn more about Dora
Machado and her novels, visit her website at www.doramachado.com or contact her at Dora@doramachado.com.
For a free excerpt of The Curse Giver, visit: http://twilighttimesbooks.comthingsTheCurseGiver_ch1.html.
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