Characters

Guest Post: “On Theon Greyjoy…” by Mark Alder

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AlderM-AuthorPicTheon Greyjoy – do you like him now? Did you ever like him? Will you ever like him?

As a writer, I find Theon by far the most interesting character in Game of Thrones. He illustrates a lot about how to make a character disliked. He also, in his long redemption, illustrates the techniques novelists and screenwriters use to build sympathy in a character.

Theon has had many of these sympathy building techniques applied to him in the course of his redemption, but here’s the thing – up until the very last scenes of the last series of  the Game of Thrones TV series, they simply have not worked.

He’s particularly interesting when compared to another GoT character who has undergone his own redemption – Jaime Lannister.

[Please Note: Spoilers for Game of Thrones!] Continue reading →

Video & Giveaway – Leigh Evans

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EvansL-M1-TroubleWithFateSomething a little different for the blog today. Instead of an interview, here area a couple of video clips in which author Leigh Evans discusses her new novel, The Trouble With Fate. Here’s the synopsis for the first novel in Evans’ Mystwalker series:

WHAT SHE DOESN’T KNOW MIGHT KILL HER

Hedi looks normal. Yet that’s taken effort. Her fellow Starbucks baristas don’t see her pointed ears, fae amulet or her dark past, and normal is hard for a half-fae, half-werewolf on the run. Hedi’s life changed ten years ago, when her parents were murdered by unknown assassins. She’s been in hiding with her loopy aunt Lou since, as whatever they wanted she’s determined they won’t get it. Things change when wolves capture Lou, forcing Hedi to steal to free her – for if she can offer up a fae amulet like her own they may trade. But it belongs to a rogue werewolf named Robson Trowbridge, who betrayed Hedi on the night of her greatest need. Over forty-eight hours, Hedi will face the weres of Creemore, discover the extent of her fae powers and possibly break her own heart in the process.

First up, a clip of Leigh Evans discussing the characters in her novel:

And secondly, a clip in which Leigh discusses the setting of her novel:

But wait, there’s more!

To celebrate the release of The Trouble With Fate, Macmillan have offered a couple of copies of the book for a giveaway.

Just leave your entry in the comments thread, or email me at the usual email address.