Author Interview with Anna Thayer

Author Interview with Anna Thayer

Author bio:

Anna Thayer (née Slack) graduated from the University of Cambridge with first class honours in 2005 before living and teaching in Sicily for two years. She writes and lectures internationally on the works of fantasists J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis, and has edited a volume of essays on the latter’s work.

Anna currently lives with her husband in southern England, where she teaches English language and literature at an independent school. The Traitor’s Heir is the first in the trilogy ‘The Knight of Eldaran’, and her debut novel.

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Hi Anna, welcome over to The Book Plank and for taking your time to answer these few questions for us.

BP: First off, could you give us a short introduction as to who Anna Thayer is? What are your likes/dislikes and hobbies?

AT: I’ll resist the urge to answer that question in the third person… By day, I’m an English teacher, by night the sleep-deprived mother of an 16-month-old! I’m passionate about literature and story-telling in all their forms, about the curious turns of word and phrase and etymology. The natural consequence of this (and my day-job) is that I can be a bit of a ‘grammar Nazi’. I’ve always loved fantasy and the works of Tolkien and Lewis in particular – this is why I also write and lecture on their works, and have had essays published in a number of collections, as well as editing a book on Lewis’ work. I’ve loved writing since I could pretty much hold a pen, so it’s fantastic to become a ‘real writer’ at last.

BP: The Traitor’s Heir is your debut in fantasy fiction; writing a debut is a daunting task, how did you go about and plan this?

AT: I had been writing fantasy series since I was about 11, and so The Knight of Eldaran began as just an attempt to get back into writing after university. I didn’t feel daunted when I began – I just had some ideas that I wanted to play with, mostly unplanned beyond the chapter I was working on. I tend to know where I want to start and end, but the middle is an adventure. As the world and characters began to grow and do their own thing, and I began to believe that I had written something that was original enough that it might make its mark on the genre – that was when things became daunting. I would say that the long process of editing and revision was the greatest challenge! There were points when nothing could have filled me with more joy than rending the entire manuscript to shreds, because I was so disillusioned with it all. The only way to overcome that was to grit my teeth and go back to it again and again, even when I really didn’t want to; the support of friends, family and, particularly in the final stages, my husband and the wonderful folks at Lion Hudson, was crucial in getting to the book you can hold in your hand today.

BP: The Knight of Eldaran is your first fantasy series, what gave you the idea behind the series?

AT: I had a moment of genuine and unpredictable inspiration. At the time I began writing, I had just graduated and was working as a customer services representative for a wine merchant. I had just spoken to a customer who had asked for a copy of the price list, which I had enveloped and was preparing to send out. While I was addressing the envelope, I saw that this customer lived in a place called Edesfield Lane, somewhere near Reigate. As soon as I read the word Edesfield, I thought: ‘That’s a place that must have a story – perhaps the field of Ede.’ And then I wondered, who would Ede have been? And I had a startling clear picture of a mediaeval king riding to battle in the pouring rain, a battle that I knew he would lose. This was the kernel from which the whole trilogy grew. I would love to visit that man in Edesfield Lane, and thank him for his call!

BP: The Traitor’s Heir is out July later this summer, if you had to sell your book with a single sentence, how would it go?

AT: Every man has a destiny: his is to betray. Which, indeed, has become the book’s tag line!

BP: Did you encounter specific problems when you were writing The Traitor’s Heir?

AT: The occasional writer’s block – to which my solution was generally rather Tolstoy-esque: to add a dramatic incident, and then see how it affected the plot!

BP: What was the hardest part when you were writing The Traitor’s Heir?

AT: Without wanting to give any spoilers, the hardest section was towards the end of the novel, where the protagonist faces the betrayal of a loved one. It is pretty clear to the reader that the hero’s loved one is genuine in what they say, but I struggled to keep the hero himself relatable in his response. It was the scene that I rewrote most often!

BP: Besides the hardest part of the book, which chapter/scene did you enjoy writing about the most?

AT: I have rather a soft spot for Lord Cathair, one of the story’s principle villains. I found scenes that involved him enjoyable to write, mostly for the tension and banter between him and the hero.

BP: If you would be given the chance to rewrite any particular scene of The Traitor’s Heir before it hits the shelves in July, would you do so? If yes, which part and why?

AT: No, I don’t think so – I’ve edited it so many times by this point! But such is the writer’s lot that if I flicked through the pages then I am sure that I would find something that I absolutely had to rewrite immediately!

BP: The Traitor’s Heir is the first book in The Knight of Eldaran Trilogy, The King’s Hand will be the sequel, when can we expect the third book?

AT: I’m just about to start the final editing sweep, so we’re hoping it will be out in February of 2015.

BP: Do you have any other projects that you would like to pursue now that The Knight of Eldaran will be published?

AT: As well as my work on the third book of the series, I’m currently co-authoring with Peter Gladwin on the sequel to his book Out of the Ashes; I enjoy writing critically about literature, and have written and edited a lot on Tolkien and Lewis, which is something I’d like to continue doing. In the long run, I would love to write the ‘prequel’ story to The Knight of Eldaran, to explore exactly how the villain dethroned the house of kings – and then, who knows?

BP: Everyone enjoys science fiction and fantasy in their own way, what do you like most about it?

AT: This genre gives real scope to the imagination and exploration of the trials that we all face – but with enough of a step away from reality that it is easier to look life’s issues in the eye. Fantasy and Science Fiction let us really interact with ourselves and what life is all about.

BP: If you had to give your top 5 favourite books, which would they be?

AT: It’s unusual that I read a book more than once, so I’ll go with those that I return to: The Lord of the Rings, The Three Musketeers, anything by C. S. Lewis, Shakespeare’s tragedies, and Paradise Lost.

BP: And just lastly, can you give us a sneak peak as to what will be in store for the readers of The Traitor’s Heir and the continuation of the series?

AT: This series follows Eamon Goodman who, after swearing fealty to the Master of the River Realm discovers that the man he has sworn to serve is a usurper who is only in power due to the action of Eamon’s own ancestors. Determined to make amends, Eamon swears to serve the true king, and goes to the Master’s capital city as a rebel spy. As he is propelled through the ranks, making friends and enemies alike, he finds his loyalties tested to their utter limits and must ultimately decide whose colours he will carry at the final battle.

BP: Thank you very much for your time, Anna, and good luck with writing the sequel!

AT: Thank you!