March Question

In your fantasy series, you always write about people who have magical talents. Have you ever thought about writing a book in any of those worlds with a protagonist who has no magical abilities?

That is something I’ve considered, and I certainly haven’t ruled it out, and in saying that, I’m not just paying lip-service to the idea. I have several ideas along those lines, but they’re not yet developed enough for me to say any more… or, frankly, even to determine whether they would be workable. But it is something I’m been mulling over for several years.

5 thoughts on “March Question”

  1. Sam says:

    This is actually something I’ve wondered about for a while. What would it be look to be someone with ambition and no magical ability in a world such as Recluce, where your rivals possess abilities you do not in particular perhaps most devastatingly the ability to sense your state of mind?

    I was thinking about how a few of your series have your magic wielders acting as kingmakers, ie. Quaeryt to Bhayar. Sort of Merlin to King Arthur.

    I wondered what happens if Arthur and Merlin come to disagree. What if they both have good intentions but are ideologically divided? And what if Arthur is afraid of Merlin and therefore afraid to oppose him because of Merlin’s power? Merlin put him on the throne and could perhaps remove him just as easily.

    What would it be like to be a ruler in Recluce surrounded by wizards and mages who can almost read your thoughts and sense any hostile intent towards them and to know this? How paralyzing would it be?

    1. Al. Padavano says:

      I nearly tossed your books sir after the magic engineer. I like your books and enjoy them. Nevertheless the callous abandonment of the mare meriwhen still to this day fills me with anger. Perhaps your characters do not have the courage for example of the centurion who chose to die with his people at Herculaneum rather than run . Or maybe it’s because I share pride in him and would not be proud of Dorrin. But then I am a child of Cannae and Lepanto you obviously are not.

  2. Raymond Soper says:

    I like this question, but I wonder if you put someone with no magic, but also unable to be affected by magic.

    1. In a way, that’s a form of magic, and they’d certainly be able to be influenced by other forms of persuasion and force.

  3. Reid Sweatman says:

    How about shifting the commanding center, to use Henry James’ term? Have a powerful mage, but make a non-magician who’s close to him/her be the viewpoint character. Worked a treat for Mary Renault in “The Persian Boy.”

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