Julia Barrett's World

Anny is an author of erotic fantasy. She just contracted for Book Six of her Mystic Valley Series, Blue Paradise. We recently had the most interesting discussion…

Let’s talk fantasy.

What attracts you to the genre?

I believe the thing that attracts me the most about the genre is the ability to create something totally new-the ability to create a mythos, a culture, a belief system, a new world (including flora and fauna). Think about how entranced people are with the new world created for Avatar. I am the “creator” every single day.

How do your characters pop into your head and evolve?

My characters evolve over a very long time. I’ve spent thirty years with my characters for the Mystic Valley series. Though I only began writing the stories four years ago, I’ve spent my life getting to know them. They are nothing like they were in the beginning. There were many compromises necessary before I could write their stories. And there will be more. Some of those compromises were necessary due to publishers guidelines. Others were simply changes the characters went through as they matured and evolved. “New” characters are usually pretty “old” for me. I’ve walked around with a huge cast populating my head for many, many years…just waiting for their turns in the spotlight.

How do you build your world…do you plan it out or does it just come to you?

I would estimate I spend about six to eight months planning a new world. I usually start by drawing a very basic map of the shape of the landmasses. Then I add mountains, lakes and rivers. And only then can I decide where the towns and villages would be placed logically. With the first version more or less complete, I start working on the overall culture. Are the people hunter/gatherers or farmers? What type of commerce do they have? What type of government, monetary system, and religion? What is their belief system? If there’s more than one, how do they differ? What type of oaths do they swear? What type of healing system/science and technology do they have? How is the flora and fauna of the world connected? Finally, I start developing the individual villages, deciding on building style, transportation, personal technology (how do they cook? what type of sanitary arrangements do they have? how do their markets work?) In that process I decide who lives in each village, what they look like, what skills they have, what their history is, and what type of clothing they wear. At each stage, I have forms I fill in so that I have them for reference. All of them go in my “bible” for that book (or series). When the initial stages are complete, I usually start thinking about story ideas. As I allow the story idea to gel in my head, I also let the world settle around me for a little while. Often I will put everything aside while I work on another project. When I get back to this new world, they may be changes or…additions. During the second round I will refine the world and it’s rules. This is a critical stage because once you’ve decided the rules for your world, your story’s characters must conform to the rules. Careful thought must go into deciding what gifts, talents, and limitations the characters will deal with. Finally, I start to write. I may not settle into the story until three or four trial chapters. I may have to begin all over at the beginning. But by the time I’ve reached this point, I pretty much know my world. Does all of this information make it into the book? Of course not. But if you write a contemporary novel, consider how much of the extraneous information you are aware of regarding our world will actually make it into your novel.

Do you like…hear your characters speak to you?

In some fashion. Some more than others. Some are very pushy. Others are shy and difficult to understand. Sad to say some I allowed to hide behind a superficial mask. For those, I did not do my best. I believe some were not ready to tell me their story. As I’ve developed as a writer, I’ve learned how to listen more carefully.

Do your stories head off in directions you never imagined?

Absolutely. The WORLD is planned meticulously. The story…well, I’m a consummate pantster. Occasionally, my characters careen off the road and we never get back on track. Chrysanthemum is a primary example of a story zooming off into the wilderness. It bounced off track at the second paragraph and never, ever made it back. By the second page I knew it never would. But there is a certain freedom in letting the characters do what they will while you as the writer stand on the sidelines alternately wringing your hands in dismay and wildly cheering their audacity.

Anny’s books can be found here: http://www.annycook.com/

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