The Grand Illusion
When Last of the First was released a week ago, I was pleased and elated. Only once before have I written four books with the same main character. [For those who don’t know or recall, I wrote five books in The Imager Portfolio about Quaeryt.] It’s work, if rewarding work, to spend all that time with one character, particularly in fitting that character into an existing history while making it interesting.
Then I began to get comments, and they were good comments, for the most part [no matter how hard authors work, there’s always something that falls short for some readers, usually, thankfully, a small percentage].
But I noticed something about many of those comments. Some readers wanted more about early Cyad and Cyador. Several asked for a book set in the Rational Stars. Another wanted more background on the book of poetry mentioned through several books. Another group wanted a book about Saryalth. Another wanted an entire novel about Kiedral, and another wanted a novel about Alyiakal after he becomes emperor.
Then I realized, even more than I had previously, that I’ve created enough intriguing characters that there’s no possible way that I can tell all the stories arising out of Alyiakal’s books, let alone do justice to the possible stories of other intriguing non-protagonists in other Recluce books.
All I can say is that I’ll continue to do the best that I can, for as long as I can, but remember, I’m not exactly a spring chicken, as the saying goes.
And if you’re looking for still more possibilities for new books, you could always do another Imager Portfolio series exploring the fall of the Naedarans and the founding of Khel (not to mention finally explaining the bit about the dreaded black rabbit). I’m assuming you’re thinking the Naedarans are a parallel to ancient Rome with a similar level of technology, albeit enhanced by imaging.
I’ve always been interested in this as well.
I also think a story about an imager who has to keep themselves hidden on one of the other landmasses could be really interesting. One of the field operatives.
“All I can say is that I’ll continue to do the best that I can, for as long as I can, but remember, I’m not exactly a spring chicken, as the saying goes.”
To be honest, this is one of the ways you continue to impress me deeply. Heinlein’s last novel, written when he was 80, was pretty much childhood reminiscence. Louis L’Amour’s last, written about the same age, has the hero endlessly second-guess himself. The last novel I read of CJ Cherryh’s I enjoyed more than the two books I just mentioned…but I’d swear that, for all the train trips in it, the hero spends the entire novel sitting down.
Your prose and storytelling remain as vivid and vital as when you were decades younger. You’re amazing. (Sorry to gush. But credit where credit is due. Overdue.)
(From the commenter formerly known as KevinJ)
You write the books and we will happily keep reading them.
You reliably write about interesting protagonists, have interesting plots, and produce well-developed, fascinating worlds.
And, please keep writing both fantasy and science fiction!
Just a heartfelt thank you. You are one of five authors I read that I order each new book as it comes along. 1 in F&SF,1 in SF, 2 in mysteries, 1 western/mystery.
Again thank you for all that you write.
I may not be alone in having enjoyed your books about Cerryl (after having been the reasonable one of the villain team in The Magic Engineer), becoming the hero of his own story and setting Freehaven on a constructive path for a few centuries. It also set out why many people could believe in the White Wizards as a force for good.
Frankly, about 70 years is probably the best anyone can expect to set up a structure with enough inbuilt institutional memory to remember that the 11th commandment should not be “thou shalt be found out,” but rather “thou shalt not take the mickey.”
I will happily share “Hey, would love to see X.” But try my best to just enjoy whatever you do choose to tell. I was delighted for the last part of Last of the First for the same reason I enjoyed all of Rhen’s third book in Imager.
That said, I also try to acknowledge that while there’s lots of other things I would find interesting, you tend to try and show the points in your world’s history that show good people moving the needle. Example being that I’m deeply curious how we get from a Cyador like Alyiakal’s or Lorn’s where there’s some misogyny but women still can get somewhat ahead or hold power all the way to Nylan’s time where it’s fallen so far into a horrible place.
But seeing those slides couldn’t help but be a sad ending and I think that’d make such a book feel very off.
Ultimately, I am happy to accept each novel you right and look forward to them. 🙂
I finished reading Last of the First yesterday and enjoyed it very much indeed. Thank you for the hours upon hours of reading pleasure you’ve given me over the years!
When I was reading “Last of the First, at the end of chapter LIII, about the disappearance of Lorah and the fate of the daughters of Kaarstyn and Illspaena, I said to myself “Well there’s a sequel.”.
I think there’s much more to day of Alyiakal. Who gets the traitor bird, what happens with Lorah and the formal emperors’ children. I loved these stories and will miss reading about all the characters as they’ve become almost like friends.