My friend Suzanne de Montigny hit upon doing interviews with characters, specifically, the antagonists of our respective books.
Antagonists are necessary otherwise the story goes like this:
Once upon a time, there was a princess.
She grew up, got married, and everyone was happy.
The End.
Pretty dull. Stories are driven by the poor choices and the bad acts of shallow characters, weak people, stubborn people, greedy creatures darker or sharper than we'd hope to know in our own circle of friends. Thus, the villain becomes critical to the story, driving the action. So who are these difficult people that make everything follow? We decided to do a villain (excuse me) antagonist exchange.
With this as a prelude, I give you an interview from my encounter with The Shadow of the Unicorn: The Legacy.
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Today
I’m interviewing a most curious man. He’s dressed in long, hand-woven gowns,
has a long beard and hair. What did you say your name was?
It’s Ishmael. What’s happened? Where am I?
Well,
I opened up Suzanne de Montigny’s The
Shadow of the Unicorn: The Legacy and out you popped.
But where’s the town? Where are the people?
I have to prove to them the unicorns are real flesh.
Pardon?
Okay, okay, let me start from the
beginning. My wife, Adiva, and our little girl, Ali, were happy living in
another land when a giant fireball swept through the sky one night changing our
world into a barren desert. We gathered up what we could salvage and journeyed
to a beautiful valley that was lush and green, and there, with the help of the
other survivors, began building a new life.
Then
what happened?
There were these creatures there – most
beautiful creatures. Unicorns. They’re like horses only more delicate and they
have this horn.
Yes,
I’ve heard they existed long ago.
Well I’m a merchant, and I saw potential to
become rich if only I could train them. But they were so stupid I couldn’t even
lead them around on a halter.
You
beat them?
Of course. They’re just animals. They don’t know any better. I nearly
gave up except that the plague hit our town. My own daughter Ali was dying and
I was worried I’d catch the disease. Then Adiva carried her to the holding pen
where one of the mares touched her with her horn. And that’s when I realized
the unicorns had healing powers in their horns.
Did
you say you were worried you’d catch the disease?
Of course. Who wouldn’t be?
But
she was your daughter.
Doesn’t matter. She survived. And so did a
lot of other people because of that mare. I figured out the reason I couldn’t
train the unicorns was because whenever I beat them, they’d heal each other
just as soon as I’d turn around. So I separated her and beat her into
submission.
After
she saved your daughter’s life?
Hey, it’s just a dumb animal. Gotta show
them who’s boss, right? Then I led her into town where I cured dozens of people.
The town was so happy they made a statue of me.
And
what happened to the mare?
She died. But it was okay because I had
lots more to choose from.
And
what happened to them?
They all died too. After a while I realized
it would just be a lot easier to saw off their horns.
Like
what they do in Africa to rhinos and elephants?
Umm, where? It doesn’t matter. Like I say, they’re
just animals.
But
they’re not just animals. They were unique and so far as I know, there aren’t
any left in the world?
There aren’t?
No.
It’s the same with rhinos and elephants. They’re nearly extinct because, like
you, all poachers care about money.
Money? What’s that?
Gold?
But…
No
buts. I’m closing the book and hoping you’ll meet your fate.
No, wait…
The Shadow of the Unicorn: The Legacy, top ratings and the Kindle Book of the Week. It’s also a finalist in
the Orangeberry Hall of Fame Awards. Leave a comment for a chance to win an
e-book copy. Here are the links:
5 comments:
This concept is inspired. The whole interview is charming, full of life, joy..Don't label me a nut but I sense the creative power of the Holy Spirit in your writing, attitude and life
from a mother of nine
Oh, Melanie, you are so sweet. Thank you.
Really love this idea!
This interview is loads of fun! Never seen anything like it before. Love it. :-)
Thanks you guys.
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