Chapter I – Unseen
Five hundred and eighty-three years after the Battle of Ak’horokaš…
§Hâr-Tharion, Ser-Mathion, and Ser-Mathios were riding along the Red Mountains, returning home after holding council with Belevâk, the Mountain-lord of Hádakaš. Belevâk was now very old. Having been nine hundred and six years old during the time of the Great Alliance, he was now eleven years shy of his fifteenth century, and there was far more grey to be seen in his hair than when Mathion first met him. Mathion had changed as well. No longer counted among the “young people” of Ánovén, Mathion had only the year prior reached the age of one thousand, during the course of which he had garnered many victories against the Kânín.
§His son Mathios was now four hundred and twenty-eight years old, and a perfect replica of Mathion himself at that age, save for Mathios’s red hair. For much of the last ten years, Mathios had spent his time in Kôvudén, joining the Watchers guarding King Lehadi X. As a result, he had adopted many Kôvudénean customs, and now rode with his sword sheathed behind his back.
§Tharion, by the grace of Ka’én, was now one thousand, five hundred and twenty-four years old, the oldest King of recent memory. Not only was his sheer age a rarity, but Tharion did not succumb to senility nor dementia, two maladies which often plagued many of the Elders in their waning years, as had been the case with Mahavir of the clan of Úrevos. Tharion was neither crippled nor bent with age, but tall and proud as ever, save that his hair had now become as white as Elekan’s fur. Some said that it was not simply by the grace of Ka’én that Tharion had lived for so long, but that Mathion’s Wolfstone had blessed his entire family.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
The MATHION Twitterview
Well on Sunday the world got it's first real look at MATHION: BOOK ONE OF THR MAVONDURI TRILOGY. How else can you really put it? Novel Publicity, and William Linde in particular, were gracious hosts and I was introduced to a wide audience of fantasy authors and readers alike, who's love and respect for the genre really touched me. It was a challenge keeping all of my responses down to one tweet though! If you missed the big day, fear not, I've got you covered. I've posted the first 4 questions from the twitterview here, the rest you can find here: on Novel Publicity's website.
Get your copy of MATHION today via Nook or Kindle and witness the beginning of the saga!
Monday, March 21, 2011
Well, the first negative review is in...
But thankfully it's not scathing! Nevertheless, by dint of being a negative review, I admit it is humbling to say the least. Read it for yourself via this link.
This review has, however, given me an opportunity to explain MATHION's apparent "flaws". As my first novel, it was virtually guaranteed that there would be flaws. The benefit of a trilogy however is the opportunity to learn and grow from the experiences of the books as I write them. Yes, MATHION is a "traditional" epic fantasy tale. The two main elements of a primary world fantasy story is 1) strange lands and 2) an epic quest/journey. This is what I love about fantasy, and though it is a tried and true plot device, if it weren't for the epic quest, the reader wouldn't be able to explore the strange lands in the story.
MATHION, by way of traditionality, eases the reader into a trilogy that, as it unfolds, will turn out unlike most other series' before it. In keeping with the theme of lost legends being uncovered, you will soon see that THE MAVONDURI TRILOGY is, despite its scope, ultimately fragmentary and incomplete. MATHION, being the tale of Mathion's youth, was the most complete story in my mind. It always has been. But when looking at classical myths and legends, the deeper you go the less you uncover in terms of actual narrative. Book 2 (which I officially revealed to be titled "THE LAST ASCENSION") and Book 3 will be VASTLY different from Book 1. MATHION as a book is meant to be accessible to the casual AND hardcore fantasy fans alike.
Now, if this is an issue of characterization, that's up to the reader. I love the characters in MATHION, and have no intention of changing them, but as an author it is still JUST an opinion. There is a bond that grows between them, and as they interact with other characters you see the bond of fellowship and brotherhood that only soldiers share.
I do have ONE issue with the review, and that is the reviewe's description of Elekan the White Wolf as a "Saturday morning cartoon character." WHAT?! He rips werewolves' throats out left and right, and wise as he is, he (like any animal) can be brutally vicious. I don't know what the reviewer saw, and I'm not knocking his opinion, but Elekan is NOT a Pokémon. That is not the character I see, but that's why opinions are opinions I guess.
Regardless, I thank the reviewer for being honest in his/her opinion, and look forward to the reviews to come. It was, in a twisted sort of way, actually a relief to have someone NOT gush over the book, and for a very specific reason: It gives me the motivation to write better, and challenges me to really bring something fresh to the epic fantasy table. Which, I may point out, is exactly what I intend to do with THE LAST ASCENSION.
Now if I could just get my computer a new charger...
This review has, however, given me an opportunity to explain MATHION's apparent "flaws". As my first novel, it was virtually guaranteed that there would be flaws. The benefit of a trilogy however is the opportunity to learn and grow from the experiences of the books as I write them. Yes, MATHION is a "traditional" epic fantasy tale. The two main elements of a primary world fantasy story is 1) strange lands and 2) an epic quest/journey. This is what I love about fantasy, and though it is a tried and true plot device, if it weren't for the epic quest, the reader wouldn't be able to explore the strange lands in the story.
MATHION, by way of traditionality, eases the reader into a trilogy that, as it unfolds, will turn out unlike most other series' before it. In keeping with the theme of lost legends being uncovered, you will soon see that THE MAVONDURI TRILOGY is, despite its scope, ultimately fragmentary and incomplete. MATHION, being the tale of Mathion's youth, was the most complete story in my mind. It always has been. But when looking at classical myths and legends, the deeper you go the less you uncover in terms of actual narrative. Book 2 (which I officially revealed to be titled "THE LAST ASCENSION") and Book 3 will be VASTLY different from Book 1. MATHION as a book is meant to be accessible to the casual AND hardcore fantasy fans alike.
Now, if this is an issue of characterization, that's up to the reader. I love the characters in MATHION, and have no intention of changing them, but as an author it is still JUST an opinion. There is a bond that grows between them, and as they interact with other characters you see the bond of fellowship and brotherhood that only soldiers share.
I do have ONE issue with the review, and that is the reviewe's description of Elekan the White Wolf as a "Saturday morning cartoon character." WHAT?! He rips werewolves' throats out left and right, and wise as he is, he (like any animal) can be brutally vicious. I don't know what the reviewer saw, and I'm not knocking his opinion, but Elekan is NOT a Pokémon. That is not the character I see, but that's why opinions are opinions I guess.
Regardless, I thank the reviewer for being honest in his/her opinion, and look forward to the reviews to come. It was, in a twisted sort of way, actually a relief to have someone NOT gush over the book, and for a very specific reason: It gives me the motivation to write better, and challenges me to really bring something fresh to the epic fantasy table. Which, I may point out, is exactly what I intend to do with THE LAST ASCENSION.
Now if I could just get my computer a new charger...
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Wishing for a Negative Review... / The MATHION Twitterview!! (Full transcript coming soon)
In addition to making personal appearances at local middle schools and book clubs, I'm getting the word out about MATHION: BOOK ONE OF THE MAVONDURI TRILOGY online via the Twitterverse. Today, Sunday March 20 at 4pm Eastern Standard Time I will be having my very first interview on both MATHION and the writing process in general. The hard part is leaking as few spoilers as possible, so that you (the readers) will be able to enjoy the story and find out as much as possible along Mathion, Elekan, Dovosir, Kéle'il, and the rest of the characters as you encounter them in the story. You can either check it out LIVE, as it happens on Twitter, via #emlyn if you already have a Twitter account (and if you do, follow me @Mavonduri for the latest updates and news on the book). If not, I will be posting the full transcript on the MAVONDURI TRILOGY OFFICIAL BLOG.
In other goings-on, the reviews are coming in and they're great and I'm greatly humbled and thankful, it's a pretty awesome thing! But, they're all positive reviews. I certainly wish this on no fellow author, but as I read the reviews that I have, I find myself wishing for a BAD review. I don't know why, but I do. But the amazing (and most important thing) is that people are enjoying the story, and not only enjoying it but finding themes and meanings in it that I didn't even know were there. Regardless, a good negative review would sort of bring me back to the real world a little bit, since it's fairly impossible for EVERYONE to like something
...right?
In other goings-on, the reviews are coming in and they're great and I'm greatly humbled and thankful, it's a pretty awesome thing! But, they're all positive reviews. I certainly wish this on no fellow author, but as I read the reviews that I have, I find myself wishing for a BAD review. I don't know why, but I do. But the amazing (and most important thing) is that people are enjoying the story, and not only enjoying it but finding themes and meanings in it that I didn't even know were there. Regardless, a good negative review would sort of bring me back to the real world a little bit, since it's fairly impossible for EVERYONE to like something
...right?
Sunday, March 6, 2011
Falcon Cove Book Club and the Novel Publicity Twitterview
So this past Thursday, March 3rd, I got the opportunity to speak about MATHION for the first time. More importantly, I got the chance to speak directly to my potential readers. The place was Falcon Cove Middle School, almost right up the street from my house (but man was parking rough!). The audience was the Book Club, a very diverse group of about 15 or so 6th-8th graders.
Now, I don't believe the best way to "sell" a book is to simply lay it all out on the table and say "here it is, this is what it's about, go ahead and read it." So right from the start, I kept things very informal, and got to know them and their literary tastes. A lot of them liked Harry Potter, and one girl commented that she enjoyed James Patterson. When the inevitable subject of "Twilight" came about, naturally all the boys in the room started booing. I thought it was very funny, but hey, reading's reading. And besides, I've never read the series anyway so I have nothing to say about it.
Luckily, Ms. Alexander (the book club sponsor, and a wonderful host!) thought ahead and got pizza for the kids, so when they started getting excited and chatty about halfway through, she knew just how to calm them down. This was actually an amazing opportunity to really get on their level, and to ask them questions about reading and writing, and some of them even schooled ME on some series I hadn't read. Two students in particular, Brandon and Troy if memory serves, were very interested in the religious details of MATHION. It was a great experience and I can't wait to do it again!
In other news, on March 20th I will be doing an exclusive "twitterview" (I.e. Twitter interview) live via (what else?) Twitter. I encourage everyone who has a Twitter account to follow me on Twitter via @Mavonduri, and tune into the hashtag #emlyn to watch and submit your own questions via the #Mathion hashtag.
I am now proud to say that I've sold MATHION on three continents (and counting!) and I can't wait to see what's in store down the road. MATHION has now seen it's Amazon Kindle debut, and in honor of that MATHION is now available for only 99¢ across all major ebook platforms. Get your copy today!!
Now, I don't believe the best way to "sell" a book is to simply lay it all out on the table and say "here it is, this is what it's about, go ahead and read it." So right from the start, I kept things very informal, and got to know them and their literary tastes. A lot of them liked Harry Potter, and one girl commented that she enjoyed James Patterson. When the inevitable subject of "Twilight" came about, naturally all the boys in the room started booing. I thought it was very funny, but hey, reading's reading. And besides, I've never read the series anyway so I have nothing to say about it.
Luckily, Ms. Alexander (the book club sponsor, and a wonderful host!) thought ahead and got pizza for the kids, so when they started getting excited and chatty about halfway through, she knew just how to calm them down. This was actually an amazing opportunity to really get on their level, and to ask them questions about reading and writing, and some of them even schooled ME on some series I hadn't read. Two students in particular, Brandon and Troy if memory serves, were very interested in the religious details of MATHION. It was a great experience and I can't wait to do it again!
In other news, on March 20th I will be doing an exclusive "twitterview" (I.e. Twitter interview) live via (what else?) Twitter. I encourage everyone who has a Twitter account to follow me on Twitter via @Mavonduri, and tune into the hashtag #emlyn to watch and submit your own questions via the #Mathion hashtag.
I am now proud to say that I've sold MATHION on three continents (and counting!) and I can't wait to see what's in store down the road. MATHION has now seen it's Amazon Kindle debut, and in honor of that MATHION is now available for only 99¢ across all major ebook platforms. Get your copy today!!
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