While I wait to see what the designer will come up with for the cover of Book 2: Revenants, (it usually takes around 10 days for the first look), here’s how the cover for Book 1: Requiem came about.
I was a bit of a control freak with my first fantasy book cover. I provided all the images and even a mockup created on Pixlr (with my limited design skills). So I guess I didn’t really let the designer do much designing. See featured picture above for the separate images for which I bought a standard license from stock photo sites such as Shutterstock, Dreamstime, and Deposit Photos. Many stock photo sites do promotions and deals where you can get cheaper images, or alternatively, book designers allow you to choose from the stock images they have access to.
These separate images became the cover of Requiem. 100covers did a good job, I think, and it received compliments to that effect. I rather like the dark, moody blue filter.
So what will the Revenants cover be like? In many ways, Revenants is a darker story, faster-paced, with more peril. Requiem was a somewhat lighter set-up for a series that will take the protagonists on a challenging journey of at least five books.
Jude and Hagar will appear on the Revenants cover, but apart from providing stock photos of these two, and one optional background picture to set the mood, I have given the designer free rein this time. It’s up to them to pick what elements of the story will make up the cover background.
Revenants features weather as an antagonistic force, so I have asked for some fog on the cover. There are also the undead spirit beings suggested by the title. It’s set in Vanar University and this time, there’s more of the city of Vanar in the story, including the Undercity and the volcanic peak on the edge of the city. And there’s a dragon too. So lots of options there for possible backdrops.
I’ll leave you with the image I sent as a possible background, which may or not appear on the cover depending on what the designer chooses. It depicts the mood of the book in a way. A threat from imposters, invading revenants, the fog, and a new location in Vanar: the Undercity.
Games inspire me as a writer, that’s how I get away with playing them. In my free time only of course, because I know from past experience that it’s possible to quite easily lose 8-12+ hours in a game. I get sore eyes nowadays, so I stop sooner.
It was in World of Warcraft that my fantasy characters first existed before they made it into novels. Ortense, Rollo, Hagar, and Inco were all originally World of Warcraft avatars. They have also appeared in some of the other games I’ve played: Lord of The Rings Online, Rift, and Archeage. The latter is the one I’m playing right now.
Things are quieter in Archeage than they were in 2014 when the game launched. It’s on its third publisher and down to two servers in the EU, and two in the US. I’m not sure how many there are in Asia. It’s a Korean game.
But I still love building, farming, and trading and that’s why I play it. I did the grinding for gear back in 2015 and took part in dungeons, raids, PVP (player vs player), even arenas, but I’m too old and slow for all that now. I’ll stick to growing potatoes.
Here are a few pictures of the houses and farms I have over the last 7 years; on and off as I haven’t played constantly.
Building and designing your farm is fun in an open world as it’s possible to see and visit neighbours’ properties too. You can even visit properties on the other continent too, but watch they don’t attack you. I was once robbed on my own farm by a hostile player from the other continent. After that, I learned not to leave my trade packs unprotected.
A few people have turned their homes into inns or cafes and made visitors welcome and there are some creative architects who added all sorts of design effects. The person below has created a whole village of their own unique style.
I enjoy the festivals and events where you can earn coins and use them to buy collectables like pets, furniture, lighting, accessories, decorations, clothing, and even Christmas trees. I’ve often wondered what it is that is so addictive about games. I’ve heard theories about how we get to be heroes and greater people than we are in real life.
That makes sense. But I also think that it’s a creative outlet, especially in the more sandbox games–a term that describes games that give more choices rather than pre-determined paths that must be followed. And in Archeage at least, I enjoy the colour and beauty of the game. The oriental houses and temples of Villanelle, the white beaches of Sandeep, the vertiginous roads of Rookbourne, and the dreamy but monster-ridden landscapes of Auroria.
Archeage can be a very different game depending on how you play. The players with the most time (probably full-time players), may have top-level gear and take part in conquering new territory and fighting sieges and wars with other nations. Below is a ship battle on one of my guild’s warships in the early days of the game. Our ship went down and we lost that fight.
When you begin the game you can be Nuian or Haranyan, which are similar to western and eastern peoples and each has their own continent. But later, you can go into exile and turn pirate if you wish. There are six different races: human, elf, and dwarf on Nuia. Human, Firran (cat people), or Warborn (demon people) on Haranya.
Would I recommend the game to new players now? Well, it’s eight years old so I guess it’s not as up to date graphics-wise. There is a fresh start server specifically for new players or old ones wanting to start anew, but I’m not on it so I can’t comment on whether it’s going well. Levelling is very easy up to level fifty now on the legacy servers, so you can fly through that. The end game can be a bit of a grind and one of the main criticisms of Archeage was by PVP players who disliked the pay to win aspect. Personally, I’m not much of a PVPer, but I found the RNG (random number generator) aspect of gearing up, annoying.
I enjoyed the game nevertheless and didn’t spend much money, but you do have to be a paying subscriber to have land and housing. It’s the open-world housing that makes Archeage special.
An Archeage 2 is on the cards in the near future. One source said later this year, but others say 2024. There’s no reliable information as far as I can see. We can expect upgraded graphics as the game will run on Unreal Engine 5. I’ve heard that Archeage 2 will also be a prequel to Archeage, so it will be based on the continent of Auroria. Another interesting idea is player townships and a more integrated trading, housing, and crafting system. I think I’d like to see more of an achievement path for those of us who want to be merchants, crafters, and farmers rather than just the combat heroes. To be fair, there is already much more of that in Archeage than many MMOs.
I’ll definitely give Archeage 2 a try, so perhaps I should think of upgrading my old gaming PC. What games do you enjoy?
One night when I was visiting my daughter, we went for a spooky walk around some of the colleges. Once again, I have to apologise for the photo quality. These were taken on a phone which was not quite as good as the one I now have.
This was so enjoyable, that I might try it in another city.
Pictured above: Top: Newnham college in autumn and a detail of King’s College, Cambridge.
In the East of England, there’s a city famous all over the world for its university. I’m writing about Cambridge today because it’s the inspiration for Vanar University. There are many colleges in Cambridge, a good number of which are situated along the river Cam. The river which cuts through the centre of the city is arguably one of the things that makes Cambridge special, and it certainly makes for some dreamy photo opportunities.
Some of the colleges are away from the river, including the one I’m focusing on for this article. I got to know this college quite well as my daughter read English there from 2015-18.
When I created Navar University, it was Newnham College that helped make the picture in my mind. Newnham is a girls-only college, of Cambridge University, founded in 1871, and renowned for its Queen-Anne style red brick buildings. Many famous women including the American poet, Sylvia Plath, English actress, Emma Thompson, and English primatologist, Jane Goodall have attended this college.
There are six things about Newnham that inspired Vanar University:
1. Newnham’s large quadrangles
My map of Vanar University was modelled on the large quadrangles of Newnham. The beautiful red brick Victorian buildings and the lovely gardens are a real attraction of this college. Unlike some of the more snooty Cambridge colleges, Newnham allows people to walk on the grass and the gardens are open to the public. The Newnham gardens are a lovely place to chill out and picnic in the summer.
2. The Serpentine
The Serpentine is a long corridor that allows students to walk from one part of Vanar University all the way to the far end without stepping outside. This becomes important in Book Two which I am editing at this time. I cannot take the credit for this idea, as Newnham thought of it first. The college was designed with a long corridor that allows Newnhamites to walk from one part of the university to another without going outside in inclement weather. The reason for this was apparently to protect its students and staff from the rain. I would hazard a guess that it’d also work well for not having to go out in the dark either. The corridor is famous for being the second-longest continuous corridor in Europe:
“Newnham is a series of elegant halls linked by corridors and set around the College’s gardens. The corridors are an important feature of the College and Newnham is believed to be home to the second longest continuous corridor in Europe.”
https://newn.cam.ac.uk/newnham-news/8538/
3. Noq’s portal: The Antique Mirror
Many of Newnham’s student rooms contain old and antique furniture. I borrowed this idea for the mirror in Hagar’s room in Requiem. It’s the ornate mirror that is on the cover of the book and Noq’s portal into Vanar University.
4. The Room Ballot
Not all universities do this, but Newnham has a room ballot. Like a kind of lottery. Those drawn first, get to choose their room first. First years are generally the lowest on the ballot, and third years are the highest, usually. Other factors are taken into account. For instance, if you got a good room in your first or second year, then you won’t be so high on the ballot as those who didn’t when it comes to the final year. The most sought after rooms tend to be the larger rooms with balconies. See pictures below for the one of the balcony room and the view from the room.
5. The Beautiful Gardens
Newnham’s lovely gardens have changed over the years and now they also have areas that have been allowed to grow into wildflower meadows important for insects and wildlife. They even have a campus badger. There are still the more traditional and classical gardens, but it’s nice to see some experimentation. I particularly liked the tall architectural planting in the picture below. However, the gardens change from one year to the next, so it may look completely different this year. I had these lovely gardens and the large old trees in mind when I created Vanar University’s Upper Court and Summer Court gardens.
6. The Libary
Cambridge University has many wonderful libraries, and a few are open to the public. The lovely entrance doors to the Newnham library inspired the entrance to the Vanar University library, which is probably Hagar’s favourite place as she spends half her life there. For the interior of Vanar’s library, I borrowed a bit from the Gladstone Library which is not in Cambridge, but in North Wales near to where I used to live. But perhaps I write another post about that beautiful library another time. By the way, I apologise for the quality of some of these photos. I had to resurrect an old phone to retrieve them.
So there we have it. The closest thing to Vanar University in the real world. Let me know if you ever visit Cambridge 🙂
First impressions while watching the first episode in the series: Rollercoaster ride. Emotional. Breathtaking scenery and sets, loved Emond’s Field and Shadar Logoth. The characterisation was very good.
Warning: Minor spoilers in this review, although I do not talk at length about the plot.
Detailed review: Barney Harris who played Mat was better than expected. I thought he might not have been up to the part seeing as he left the show at the end of the first series, but actually, he interpreted Mat well. He made for a wily and snarky Mat, whose dry commentary brings some welcome humour. In fact, I felt that all of the main actors were good in role.
Favourites for me right from the start are Moraine, Lan, and Mat, and Nynaeve is as caustic as she is in the books, but a bit more likeable. The Trollocs battle in Emond’s Field was off-screen in the novel but probably the biggest slice of action in the first episodes. I felt emotional when Moraine performed magic against the trollocs and loved the effects and style of the magic casting. It’s just how I imagined it. It reminded me of how caster characters play in the gaming world in that they are a bit squishy when casting powerful magic because of the time it takes. It made the need for the warder obvious. I prefer this to unrealistic fast magic that has no cost. In fact, it’s very clear that her use of magic costs her. And Rosamund Pike is a great actress.
I noticed every diversion from the books as I re-read the first book very recently. Some changes are necessary as the book was not written for the screen. Some I wondered about, like Moraine’s wounding, but I guess it made for greater drama. I felt that the trollocs and fades were suitably terrifying but faster moving and closer on the heels of the protagonists than I imagined in the books. This upping of the action is all about satisfying modern audiences. Personally, I would have liked a bit less violence and blood. It’s definitely not suitable for children, although I feel that Jordan’s world should have been closer to Lord of the Rings than the darker Game of Thrones.
Overall, I forgave most of the changes and really enjoyed seeing this world come to life. A first episode is always difficult. I found my suspension of disbelief most stretched when Moraine asked the four to follow her out of Emond’s Field, telling them they must leave immediately. They and their families barely put up a fight. Of course, Rand certainly puts up a fight later and that kind of conflict is real. On the other hand, an improvement on the novel was the early introduction to the white cloaks and the threat they pose to Aes Sedai. And although I wonder how they keep their whites so white, the costume choice does give them a crazy kind of KKK look. The weaving in of the Manetheren story through a song also worked well and didn’t feel like an obvious expository diversion.
I was fully invested by episode three and have heard a lot of fans say they enjoy the first three chapters more on a second watching, probably because by then they’ve gotten over decrying the changes. In episode three, Thom Merrilin finally makes an appearance and his song about the breaking of the world gave me chills. Good casting for him and yes the patches are on the inside of his cloak. Let’s face it he might have looked a bit of a fool otherwise. When reading the book I was unable to imagine those patches looking cool on the outside. I do hope they weave more song into the series as so far they nailed it, and song is so much a part of the books.
A lot of money and hard work has gone into this, and so far, this is a good adaptation. I like that they’ve aged it up and modernised it. It’s no easy task as the story goes on for fourteen books and a prequel. While GoT felt like it was written for screen adaptation (Martin is a screenwriter after all), Jordan’s books were certainly not. There’s been some harsh reviewing already, occasionally by journalists who dislike the fantasy genre, which doesn’t really make for an objective critique. Also, it’s far too early to judge the whole series.
I’m hooked and looking forwards to seeing more. And while books and screen comparisons are inevitable, it’s a bit like comparing potatoes and apples.
It looks amazing. Little more than 3 weeks to go and we will find out. I need to watch this trailer a few more times to let it all sink in. 🙂 You can drag it with your mouse to see ‘behind the picture. Try it when ‘the Dark One’ is mentioned.
Below is more new content from Amazon on Moraine’s quest:
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