Be Your Character

I read “be your character” somewhere, in one of the many articles I devour. It seems a little blasé and unrealistic. How can I be my character when I write pre-Christian Irish historical fantasy? My characters spent their lives chopping off heads, stealing and raping, drinking and debauching. If I took a method acting approach to being my character, I would not last too long this side of high walls with razor wire on top.

But what did the author really mean? I am sure it wasn’t that I had to put on some plaid trouse, get out my broadsword, and head into the hills of Ireland looking for a settlement to rob. So, what? In the end, it comes down to what, I think, is a simple list. Give characters realism; make them relatable; make them individual; give them conflict.

Realism

Characters must be realistic. Readers need to invest in them and believe in them. So how do we writers achieve that? There are several ways to make characters realistic. Not least would be giving them fallibility. Let them make mistakes. There is nothing more real than falling over occasionally. No one goes through life error free. Take Gandalf, he went off and left Frodo alone with the ring, when he should have run for the hills, Frodo in tow, as soon as he suspected. Then he led them into the mines of Moria, knowing there was something dreadful in them, but being too fallible to go against the wishes of the fellowship.

Make them complex. There is nothing less real than a one-dimensional character. There needs to be layers that the reader can discover through the journey the character is making: their arc. Even the villains need the layers. Take Sergeant Troy in Far From the Madding Crowd; pure villain, but multi-layered, evidenced by his attempted suicide.

Relatable

The reader needs to feel a connection to the characters. Even the bad ones need to garner a little sympathy, or some understanding. The reader needs to be able to say, “yes, that is an understandable reaction”, even when it is not something they would condone. This gives characters their humanity. The old Alexander Pope-ism about erring being a trait of humanity. Angus Thermopyle from Donaldson’s Gap series is a good example. The way he treats Morn Hyland is despicable, evil incarnate, for want of a better cliché. But the reader is given the backstory to Thermopyle’s evil, which, although it doesn’t excuse his actions, it does go some way towards explaining them.

Individuality

Each character needs to be their own person. They need to have their quirks and their habits: a certain nuance in speech; a particular tic; a quaint turn of phrase: something that is unique to them. Henry Treece’s Heracles in Jason is a good example. Treece made Heracles a homosexual eunuch, which was a particularly unique take on the character, giving the story of Jason and the Argonauts another dimension. A slightly less well-known character, at least for now, is Inspector Laconto from the Time to Say Goodnight series: Laconto smokes Gauloises at murder scenes because he can’t stand the smell of death, which is a unique trait for a copper.

Conflict

Characters need to have troubles to overcome to generate interest in them. If they move from scene to scene without defeating any demons, then the story will be flat. It does not matter what those demons are, the inner demons of a character of literary fiction or the fire breathing type from epic fantasy, conflict keeps the interest of the reader and, therefore, the pages turning.

So, what do I think?

Can I be my character? No. As covered earlier, I would end up in lock-up, never mind lockdown. Can I make them real, give them personal traits, put them within touching distance of the reader, give them obstacles to overcome before they reach their goals? Yes and yes again.

Micheál

On the Origins of My Species

I am often asked why I chose to write in a genre where it is notoriously difficult to succeed. I still have nightmares about the reactions I received for a piece I submitted to a writer’s group four years ago: “stop this nonsense, stick to writing crime”, being the essence of the message. I cannot! Historical Fantasy is in my blood!

Why historical fantasy? I suppose the simple answer is evolution.

My father was educated in the classical grammar school system back in the nineteen-fifties. As such, bedtime stories in our house tended to be read from a tome of Greek mythology. My formative years were filled with hydras and Heracles, Gorgons and flying horses, minotaurs and one-eyed giants.

Small wonder that when I graduated from listening to reading, Henry Treece was high on my agenda. Next to The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe, I invariably had a copy of one of Henry’s Viking sagas. And from there, to the adult versions of Jason, Electra and the Green Man. Not to mention the works of Mary Renault, notably The Bull from the Sea, The King Must Die and The Praise Singer. And then the twentieth century ended with David Gemmell’s Lion of Macedon and later in the noughties, The Troy series.

The thing I loved most about the works of Treece and Renault, and later Gemmell’s Troy, was taking away the magic and monsters and making the stories (for me at least) more believable. Don’t misunderstand me, I do love a dragon or two, when appropriate, but I also love putting humanity into the ancient myths. I love that Treece’s Heracles was a Eunuch and Gemmell’s Odysseus was a storyteller with a vivid imagination.

But why Irish Myths and Legends?

I think it is probably because the Irish myths are there, within touching distance. They are not so distant in time as the Classical myths of Greece and Rome: Conaire Mór was high king when Caesar was invading Britain; Queen Medb was cattle rustling just before the birth of Christ; Conor Mac Nessa’s head exploded at news of Christ’s crucifixion. For me, that places them more in the historical aspect of the genre than the fantastical.

So, my evolution leaves me with a question; a question that will not recede.

If the history of the tribes of Ireland had not been a verbal tradition, passed from druid to druid, but a written one, would we still have the Irish sagas firmly stuck into the Mythological pigeonhole they are in?

I think not.

Micheál May 2020

Lockdown Learning

I recently attended a virtual retreat with Conor Kostick organized by the Irish Writer’s Centre. I think I can safely cliché, without fear of contradiction, that it was an overwhelming success.

Of course, the IWC are famous for their support of the writing community, both here and across the pond, so one expects great things from them. However, dealing with the adversity of holding a retreat remotely must have been a challenge. Video linking to the rescue. Even as little as five years ago, it would not have worked, but today teleconnection is a marvel of modern science (to continue with the clichés) and, I felt, had only a marginal impact.

The format was strong. Forty minutes of Conor imparting his limitless wisdom, followed by readings and feedback on the group’s WIPs. Two hours each day, for two weeks.

I don’t think it is necessary to laud Conor’s skills, which are evident in his multiple awards and literary successes, both in fiction and non-fiction. As a mentor, I found Conor to be generous with his knowledge, patient, and forgiving of the faux pas inevitable in a literary student. I learnt a great deal over the two weeks and feel improved by the experience.

Even at a social level, the retreat was a success. I met a bunch of extremely talented writers and have no doubt that, given time, some (if not all) will become tours de force in their chosen genres.

My takeaway (or perhaps giveaway), if you find yourself with the opportunity to attend a writer’s retreat with Conor Kostick, grab it. You will love the experience.

Coming 31st August

Milesian Daughter of War

The Romans are coming.

The Five Kingdoms are fractious and unprepared.

The Daughter of War will countenance nothing else.

Queen Medb has been unsuccessful in her attempts to punish Conor Mac Nessa for raping her on the banks of the Boyne. Her vengeance has left a trail of bodies across the Five Kingdoms. Rather than admit defeat, the Queen pressures the kings into mustering their armies to bring war to the Ulaid. Her professed target, the prize bull, Donn Cuailnge, her actual target, the head of Mac Nessa, king of the Ulaid.

“It takes a great deal of courage to pick up something so well-loved as the Irish sagas of the Red Branch and the Milesian Kings and dust them off. But the author has managed to do this very well.”

 David Ebsworth, renowned historical author.

Meantime, get Milesian Son of Light at the knockdown £0.99: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B07QH1JY48

Release Schedule (revised)

Revised release schedule

pippo144's avatarPerchedCrowPress

Here’s the PH Publishing planned release schedule for 2020, the year of perfect vision.

A Prelude to War

A Prelude to War, The Milesians was released on February 28th. It is the tale of a king who is too weak to rule, a queen who is defiled by one from whom she sought succor and a hero who crosses boundaries to the extent he loses all control.

Available at: www.amazon.com/dp/B08428DHLS

The Hidden Syndicate

The Hidden Syndicate is due for release on April 30th. It is the complete tale of Inspector Izzo and Archie Moses all rolled into one. There are new bits and the previous three books have been heavily edited.

Milesian Daughter of War

Milesian Daughter of War is due for release August 30th. Queen Medb has tried everything to get her revenge on King Conor. All has failed, so now she has decided on war. She fabricates…

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Hot New Release

A Prelude to War

Conaire is made high king because the Elder Council want a peaceful kingdom. They fear invasion by the horde from the south, the Romans, but their manipulations weaken the Five Kingdoms and war does come to Ireland, but from an unexpected place. The Five Kingdoms are saved by the Red Branch warriors, but not before The Peaceful King is killed by the invaders.

When Conaire is killed, the Five Kingdoms are in turmoil. Conor Mac Nessa, king of The Ulaid, tries everything in his repertoire of evil skills to gain the high kingship but he is opposed by Queen Medb, the Warrior Queen of Connacht.

Their rivalry gives birth to a hero, The Hound of Ulster.

Available at:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B08428DHLS

Selling Hard Truths

I am not sure I can call them truths, not in my chosen speciality, pre-Christian Ireland. There were no written records at the time, the “truths” were passed on by the druids as a verbal tradition. They were committed to paper hundreds of years after the alleged events by monks prone to flowery exaggerations. So, at best, they are unreliable and at worst, simply untrue.

Putting that aside, the unreliable untruths I was told as a child turn out wholly different from those I have uncovered during my research. In the tales that were told to me, there was no mention of Cuchulainn’s psychopathic tendencies, the promiscuity of Medb, nor the evil of Conor Mac Nessa. I do not recall any mention of Conor’s rape of Medb, nor of Cuchulainn’s murder of the women at court after the death of Dervla. I do not recall any detail of Cuchulainn’s death, which was gruesome to put it mildly.

It seems I am not alone. One of my practice readers asked me if my stories are set in pre-Celtic Ireland. “These are not stories about the Celts, surely?” The actual question. “The Celts were musicians and poets. Jewellery makers. Not brutes.” Yes, they were all those things, but they were also brutes. They did take the heads of their battle victims. They did commit ritual sacrifices. They did consider rape and pillage as entertainment.

And my last work, Milesian Son of Light, relates those things. It does not gloss over the indelicacies of the pre-Christian tribes of Ireland.

For a free KU version: www.amazon.com/dp/B07QH1JY48

The next in line for release is the Omnibus tale of Conaire and Cuchulainn, A Prelude to War, available for pre-order at: www.amazon.com/dp/B08428DHLS