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Carol Berg is a fantasy author of large, complex worlds full of intrigue and fantastical settings. Her world-building and mythology creations are second to none.
"In a land torn apart by civil war, pestilence, and shaky alliances, a man branded a traitor ends up in a place he never expected..."
Breath and Bone was winner of the 2009 Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature. Flesh and Spirit was a finalist for the 2008 Colorado Book Award.
Publishers Weekly says of Breath and Bone:
"Replete with magic-powered machinations, secret societies and doomsday divinations, the emotionally intense second volume of Berg's intrigue-laden Lighthouse Duet (after 2007's Flesh and Spirit) concludes the story of Valen, a sorcerer who finds himself at the center of a looming conflict that could cast the realms of both humankind and the feylike Danae into a nightmarish dark age. Caught between the maneuverings of the enigmatic Osriel, bastard prince of Evanore, and apocalypse priestess Sila Diaglou, Valen must determine which perceived villain is less evil. Although billed as an epic fantasy, this duology is more accurately an intimate, character-driven journey of redemption and self-discovery. Valen's heroic quest to unlock the secrets of his heritage and save a world from destruction suffers from languorous pacing throughout and may discourage readers who like their fantasy fast and furious, but fans of Marion Zimmer Bradley's Avalon sequence and Sharon Shinn will be rewarded."
Here is part 2 of Carol Berg's interview:
Pat: How did you first become interested in writing? How did it start? Idea? Dream? Then what?
Carol: Though a lifelong reader, I never imagined I could write a story. I didn’t even like writing! One reason I majored in math in college was to avoid writing papers. But around 1989, a friend and I were talking over lunch about a book we’d just read. The upshot of our book discussion was an agreement to start writing email letters in character – that wasn’t like writing a whole story. Over the next year and a half we sent 32 letters each and built a whole story. The writing was awful, but the story wasn’t bad. She didn’t have time to do more, but I couldn’t quit. I wrote for about eight years just for fun, never imagining anyone else would ever want to read my stuff.
Pat: Where do you write? Desk? Home? Coffeeshop? Toilet?
Carol: Most of the time I write on my laptop at home. Sometimes in my office. Sometimes on the couch in front of our west windows (the ones that face the Rocky Mountains.) Sometimes on the deck. Sometimes at a coffee shop (like when they were putting a new roof on our house last week.) Sometimes at a funky little hotel up in the mountain town of Fairplay with some writer friends.
Pat: Are you a plotter or a pantser? Is it completely formed in your head before you write or do you follow blindly along? Do you use outlines or flowcharts to help you map out your plots? How do you write?
Carol: Almost all my novels have started with an idea about a character in a situation:
- a roguish runaway sorcerer left wounded outside a monastery, holding only a book of maps said to show the way into the realm of angels.
- a musician who could sing visions, but who was thrown into prison at the height of his fame and doesn’t know why.
- an arrogant prince destined for greatness, who needs to fall very low before he can be worthy of it.
As soon as I have enough of an idea about the setting and the starting point to move ahead, I start writing, developing the story as I go along. I don’t outline or use any kind of writing software. But I do take notes as I go about chronology, customs, language, and plot elements, including things that need to happen. I usually have some idea about how the story will end, but how I’m going to get there is a mystery. Ideas pop up along the way. That keeps life interesting.
Pat: How many drafts do you make of a book before it is finalized? And how much of a change is there between the first draft and the finished product?
Carol: I really don’t do drafts. I spiral through the book, rereading and editing the previous day’s (or week’s) pages before I start writing again each day. By the time I get to the end of the book, the earlier chapters are pretty solid. Also by that time, I’m usually right on my deadline. I send the manuscript off to my editor, keeping a long list of things I want to do when she sends me her revision notes. I love revision and feel I do some of my best work in the revision cycle.
Pat: What techniques do you use to write to your standard?
Carol: I pay attention to every word, every sentence, every paragraph. I read every word on the screen, on paper, and aloud. You see and hear different problems in each mode. I do a lot of hard thinking about characters – what do they want, why do they make the choices they do, what do they feel, are their reactions believable?
Pat: Every writer hears this constantly, but I think with Speculative Fiction authors, it really means something when we ask: "Where do you get your ideas?"
Carol: As I mentioned before, I almost always start with a character in a situation. These just come to me. A few come to me as what ifs? The Lighthouse books (my Mythopoeic Fantasy Award winners Flesh and Spirit and Breath and Bone) arose from an essay I heard on National Public Radio called “The Last Lighthouse.” It wasn’t the subject matter, but the title that I found evocative.
Lighthouses can be a warning away from danger or a welcoming to safe harbor. The image of a lighthouse also recalled a situation from a historical novel I had once read about a young soldier in Roman Britain. He stood in the lighthouse at Dover watching the last Roman ship leaving Britain. All that thinking made me wonder if there was anyone who had the scope of vision to understand what the contraction of the Roman Empire meant for western Europe. What ifs are fodder for speculative fiction writers! My story wasn’t about Britain or Rome or western Europe, but about a kingdom on the brink of an abyss…and a fellow who didn’t want anything to do with it.
Pat: How long have you been actively writing?
Carol: Since about 1989. I sold my first books in 1999 and have been writing professionally – under deadline! – since then.
Pat: Who is your inspiration?
Carol: The great storytellers who wrote the books I’ve enjoyed my whole life. When I need to remember the kind of story I’m aiming for, I peek into Ellen Kushner’s Thomas the Rhymer or Edith Pargeter’s The Heaven Tree or Mary Stewart’s Merlin books like The Crystal Cave.
Pat: Did you have encouragement in the early days, and if so who and what did you write?
Carol: My husband, Pete, has always encouraged me to pursue whatever intrigues me, and has turned into my biggest cheerleader. Couldn’t have done it without that kind of support. The friend who got me started is still my muse – advisor, consultant, perceptive questioner, supporter. And most definitely my youngest son, Andrew. Back when he was in junior high, he would come in and say, “Mom, have you written any more of that story? Read it to me.” There’s nothing more encouraging than that.
Pat: What is your favorite book(s) or character(s)?
Carol: Too many to name. I love great heroes and heroines and great villains. People who are not all good, not all bad. People who might have gone the other way had circumstances been different.
Pat: Who's writing style does your work most resemble? (or do you want to resemble? Or do you want to resemble anyone?)
Carol: I definitely want to be recognized for my own style. But I have no problem telling readers that my books should appeal to readers of Mary Stewart, Mary Renault, Guy Gavriel Kay, Robin Hobb, and other writers of complex historical or fantasy adventures with a slightly literary bent.
Pat: Are you an avid reader? How important do you think reading and reading well is to a writer? Do you read your contemporaries?
Carol: I have always been an avid reader. I think reading is the single most important education for a writer. Reading good writing across many genres, not just one’s own. Reading bad writing, too. I do read my contemporaries, but not as much as I would if I weren’t writing. I am more likely to read outside the field right now.
Pat: What is your goal in writing? Has it changed since you started?
Carol: To tell a good story, the kind of story I would enjoy reading. Hasn’t changed a bit.
Pat: Would you rather write a book that sells millions of copies, but have it be "Celebrity Fluff" -- or write an award winning novel that no one reads? And why does it matter?
Carol: I’ve been honored to win several notable awards, while maintaining a modest, but loyal readership. Of course I would love to have a million readers, but I want to write books that I can pick up and say, “Damn! I’m proud of this.”
Tomorrow, part 3 of Carol Berg's interview.
Read more about The Lighthouse Duet: Flesh and Spirit and Breath and Bone.
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