Hello, everybody. Guess what? One of my favorite authors agreed to do an interview for my blog! Yey me!!
Now a bit of backstory for those of you who might not know her work. First off, she's AWESOME!! No really, she is! ^_^ Katica Locke is the author of the books "Broken Wings", "Breach", and "Mage Bound". As well as the author of numerous other books, short stories, and novellas. To find out more information on purchasing or to receive updates on Ms. Locke's works I suggest you visit Ms. Locke's website:
http://katicalocke.wordpress.com . There you can also find links to her facebook, tumblr, twitter, and smashwords. The website also includes her own blog and numerous "free reads" all of which are amazing. I encourage everyone to go out and buy and read Ms. Locke's work! DOOOO IIITTTT!!! ^_^
Okay so I got a little side tracked there... (>_>)
Sooo, let's get interviewing!
The Lost Signs: I'd like to start by saying thank you, thank you, thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to do this interview and welcome you to my blog. Also fangirl squee... *SQUUUEEEEE*
Katica Locke: Thank you so much for such a warm and enthusiastic welcome! I'm thrilled to be here.
TLS: Now Ms. Locke. Despite what some would consider "complications" on the business side of getting your work out to the people, you have a decidedly loyal fan base. Is there anything you'd like to say to, or about your fans that you may not have gotten the chance to say in the past?
KL: To all my fans, Thank You!! I try to say it as often as I can, because I know that without their love and support, I would not have the same drive to write these stories that I do. I've always been a writer, from the age of ten, but before I discovered that I could share my work online with other people, I rarely finished a story. I didn't feel the need to, because I already knew how it would end. Now, I have fans who want to know how the story ends, and I want to tell them. So again, thank you from the bottom of my heart. <3
TLS: Moving on to your works. The fantasy genre often includes the idea of True Love as being a form of magical, physical, or spiritual "whammy" that characters fall under or are compelled by. I've noticed in your works you tend to avoid this form of True Love instead portraying the truest love as one which is based on developing the relationships between your characters in very real and often seemingly small ways over time. In fact, in your book "Broken Wings" you deconstruct this trope in two ways, the first is comparing an insidious magical love with a love that grows naturally over time. The second is by showing, how, in the case of Soldias sidhe, instant forced attraction is actually very disturbing to those viewing it or feeling it. Was this intentionally done on your part?
KL: I wouldn't say that it was intentionally done. Not in the sense of sitting down with the intent to write a story that rails against True Love tropes. I just write what I feel. I believe that True Love is magic. Mages who can truly love can cast the most powerful spells. Love restores a damaged soul. Love can turn a man into a dragon. Love works miracles. Love is very important in my stories, because it is so hard to attain, and so hard to keep. That's all I ever really try to show in my stories, anything else is just me getting lucky.
TLS: Also, while many of your works contain fantasy elements they also contain science fiction elements, and a lot of your worlds have similar rules for how forces (physics and magic) work. I was wondering if your works all take place in the same "universe"?
KL: Yes, they do. Most of them take place on different planets, sometimes centuries apart, but it's all the same universe. Most of my stories have inside jokes or brief mentions of other worlds or characters in them. For example, in "Broken Wings", Jak mentions his great-great-uncle who owns a magic shop - who happens to be Lord Sactaren from "Magebound". In "Breach", Roan's brother shows up pretending to be a Detective Aris Kalavon - who is actually the detective who helped Julian from my Suburban Fantasy series.
TLS: In a few of your books you've made references to a galactic/universal government which mandates some worlds such as in "Breach" where some forms of transportation are outlawed on the planet the book takes place on because of the type of fuel they use, or in "Broken Wings" where Jak reveals to the reader that Earth is a restricted planet. Can you expand a bit on this governmental body? What it is or how it works compared to the governments of earth in real life?
KL: The governmental body that rules over all inhabited planets in the galaxy is called the Great Council and is a bit like the United Nations. Every sentient species is entitled to have a representative sit on the Council. Together they decide on laws and regulations. One such regulation is touched on in "Breach", where the burning of fossil fuels and major industrialization is restricted. The Council places technology restrictions on different planets, to keep them at different stages of growth, so that people can choose if they want to live in a big, futuristic city like Siva Delta on the planet Nethmalon, or if they'd rather live a quiet, pastoral life on Eshaedra. There are worlds at every level of technology, from primitive stone tools to advancements far beyond that of Earth. As a writer, this allows me to write in any setting while still maintaining the consistency of the universe that I built.
TLS: In your article about vampires (
http://katicalocke.wordpress.com/vampires/) you mention that you chose not to include the weakness to religious icons in their mythology because "it would seem strange for a vampire who had never heard of Christianity to be repelled by crosses and holy water.". However, religion does appear to exist in your universe. So my question would be considering the sci-fi nature of your work, which would place religion as a form of communal faith, in comparison to the fantasy nature of your works, which would place religion as a communal faith based on the reality of their existence( i.e. the gods really do or did exist), do the gods mentioned in your works exist within your universe and if so what are they doing?
KL: Good question. Religion isn't really something that I've delved very deeply into in my stories. I've mainly used them as worldbuilding scenery, because all fantasy universes have to have their own gods, right? The answer is yes, some of them do exist. Others are purely mythological figures that never existed. The human gods and goddesses do exist and are busy watching over a myriad of worlds -- anywhere the humans inhabit -- which is why they rarely get involved in human affairs. The goddess of the Werefolk, the Great Spirit, definitely exists and actually shows up in one of my books. I haven't decided if the faerie goddess, Elias, really exists. The gryphlian gods and goddesses are mythological, based on individuals that really lived long ago. Those are the only four widespread belief systems that I have worked out.
TLS: Switching from gods to science, how much do you feel real life science comes into play when creating your worlds and the species that inhabit them? Is it more an issue with certain creations/characters than it is with others (i.e. the dracs inability to mix genetically with other species[broken wings] versus the goblins being able to mix with fae [slave to the crown])?
KL: I try to use real life science in my stories whenever possible. I feel it lends realism to the fantastical and helps the reader suspend their disbelief. I did a unicorn birthing scene in one of my books, and I researched horse pregnancy and complications in order to make it as realistic as possible. Often, real science will give me ideas for stories, like the two races of gryphons, which evolved from golden gryphons into black and white due to leucisim and melanism and selective breeding. The science becomes more of an issue when dealing with non-human characters. The more alien the character, the better I have to understand them, because everything about them must be described to the reader.
TLS: Understanding characters is important from a writers perspective, i've noticed. As a reader I've also noticed that you have what appears to be an exceedingly strong grasp of your characters which makes for incredibly engaging reading. Relationships are relationships, but as a woman how do you approach the thoughts, feelings, and physicality behind your male characters? Is it observational extrapolation, sympathy (putting yourself in their shoes), research, etc.?
KL: Hmm, that’s an interesting question. I’m not sure there’s a simple answer, either. I suppose it’s a combination of observation, sympathy, and research, plus a lot of imagination. Writing romantic relationships for me goes beyond just being a woman writing about men. I don’t have much experience in those kind of relationships at all (probably TMI, lol), so it’s all about making it up and hoping I get it right. I read a lot, so I’m able to use what I read to allow me to put myself into my characters’ minds, and I do feel what they’re feeling. As far as specifically being a woman writing about men, I write about a lot of different kinds of people, vampires and dragons and faeries, and they’re all unique in their own way, just like real people are all different. I try to avoid the common stereotypes that women have regarding men, because I regard men as just another type of people, and they’re all different, and however I write them, as long as I give them reasonable actions and motivations and feelings, hopefully they’ll ring true with my readers.
TLS: Well said. As a member of the LGBTQ community I should chide myself for asking such a sexist question. (>_<) Speaking of the LGBTQ community, your books contain all sorts of people, in all sorts of relationships, with all sorts of orientations. One such character, rarely seen as not a running joke in other authors works, would be Darike. Would you mind sharing a bit about this character and his place in fey society? Namely, given the way Izeri acts in "Broken Wings" and "Moonlight" fae appear to have different modes of dress for males and females, leading me to discount the idea that Darike is simply "a fae, who like all fae believe clothes to be clothes" since that does not appear to be the case given Izeri's reaction to Darike's presence. Given Darike's form of dress and relationship with Zaiden, i wonder if he considers himself to be transgendered or a transvestite/cross dresser since the two are quite different and how this relates to his place in fey society? Also are any of these things related to his glamour, and what would his glamour happen to be?
KL: Oh, that's another interesting question. Darike came into being on the spur of the moment, just a whim, really. I didn't have any idea what I would do with him, I just wanted some more variety at the university. While his wardrobe choices are unusual for his species and he does get some grief for it, he is certainly not comic relief, or like you said, a running joke. He identifies as male, is physically male, and enjoys being male, he just likes wearing female clothing, partly because of the attention it gets him (he has really great legs ^_^), but also because it just feels good to him. He likes the way he looks. It does not, as far I know, have anything to do with his glamour. He is a brionaid fey - a dream faerie. His glamour allows him to enter the dreams of a sleeping person and manipulate the dreams. Make him mad and he'll literally give you nightmares.
TLS: Speaking of glamour, your work uses a lot of color. In fact quite a few of your systems use color as a sort of identifier. What's that all about?
KL: Lol, I like colors! I tried to be an artist, but I can't draw or paint to save my life, so I use words to paint my pictures instead. I like color because it's almost universal. Unless someone is blind, they know what red, or blue, or green looks like. It makes it easier for me to create my worlds in my readers' imaginations. Colors also carry their own subliminal meanings. Red can mean stop, danger, hot, anger, or love. Blue can be sad, cold, or calm. It's kind of a shortcut for putting ideas into the readers' minds without actually having to say it.
TLS: Last question I promise! Characters in your works have a very subtle way of speaking. So going completely off track, I'd like to ask if, with a last name like Locke, you've had a lot of people make Key innuendos or jokes about you, and if so has it lost all sense of originality, lol? (^_^)
KL: Actually, unless they're doing it behind my back, I can't say I've ever had anyone make a Key joke about me. I must be doing something wrong. XD
TLS: Sorry that took so long, and thank you so much once more for stopping by and doing an interview with me. Hopefully your fans out there will enjoy hearing these questions answered and other interviewers or reviewers will have a bit more information to add to their write ups. Would you like to say anything else to the readers?
KL: Anytime! That was wonderful. I'd just like to say thank you for being such a gracious host. I'd also like to thank the readers, and I hope I wasn't too boring, lol!
TLS: Until next time, ya'll!! (^_^)
Katica Locke can be found on her website, http://katicalocke.wordpress.com.
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Update 9/17/2014: Added the new version of the cover for "Mage Bound" and changed purchasing link from Amazon to Smashwords.
