Interview with Greg Keyes

Greg Keyes: (laughs) It was actually a subject of much debate, when I originally wrote the book the opening scene was Aspar in the Tavern. I finished the book and sort of looked it over and discussed it with Steve Saffell, my editor. We both thought there needed to be something a little more powerful that anchored the rest of the story more firmly to that past era and sort of lay down the idea that there was something bad that could be catching up with everyone. So, it was something I thought about a great deal, and didn’t really add that chapter until fairly late in the game. Interestingly enough, after I added it, the initial reaction were all positive, some of the fans of my other books read it and the chapter with the girls, and said they were glad I added that second chapter because that first one didn’t sound like me. Like a different kind of writer all together which made a couple of people nervous. But in the end, I thought it was still a good way to start the book.

GK: Thanks, good, that’s what I was hoping for.

GK: I did a good bit. For one thing, I sold this book on outlines. I sold the idea of the book more than I sold the book. In order to do that, the outlines had to be fairly detailed and fairly convincing, so I outlined all four books. But the funny thing about that is...once I have an outline I rarely follow it very closely, I tend to do my best thinking when I am writing not when I am reading. In the original outline, Aspar role was very minor, he shows up in the very beginning of the book, sees the Briar King, sees some bad things happening and really doesn’t do much more than that. Winna didn’t exist at all, a lot of the secondary characters I ended up liking a lot weren’t in the original outline at all. Some of the storylines weren’t there either. You know, I outline pretty thoroughly, but then I feel free not to follow that outline, if I think of something better while I am writing.

GK: I think that’s the only way to go about it. If you are working in a genre that is well established as Fantasy, it’s a genre I like, I grew up reading it and I have a lot of affection for it, that’s why I wanted to do it. I was hoping I could bring something new to it.

GK: I used to have a subscription to Locus, but I let it lapse, I check in there once in a while to see what’s going on. I don’t surf a lot to see what’s going on in the genre just because I don’t have that much time. I go to conventions and that kind of thing. Professionally, I like to think I know what’s going on, but it such a big field and there is a lot going on, its impossible. I really don’t spend a lot of time on the internet since it takes time away from writing. If I do go on the internet, it is just to check a quick question I can find somewhere out , rather than having to go to the library or order a book. Mostly I e-mail.

GK: Some of them yeah, but I am not sure if I am familiar with that particular critique, even though I did read something where Stover was saying he and I were "throwing rocks at the glass towers" or something like that. I think he was more referring to my earlier series, The Age of Unreason. I have read some of the authors and I agree. Even though there’s a missing step, I think between the Next Wave and whatever it is that’s going on now, there was this movement in the 80s where there was this vast entrada of female writers in the field who brought character to the fore, as opposed to plot or magical devices, but rather a concentration on character. It’s not soley but I think there was a good deal of that in the 80s and it was an important step in the evolution of the genre. At least for me because I certainly pay more attention to character, at least I like to think I do, than writers in 60s and 40s who were mostly interested in...

GK: ...big ideas plot. Slightly outside fantasy, I very much admire Asimov, but his interesting characters didn’t matter. His plot and ideas are put together well enough that you are interested anyway. I was recently talking to my French Editor and he recently went back and read the Foundation books and realized they were only one or two conversations. Most of his books were just conversations between 2 or 3 people. You don’t realize this because it seems like all kinds of things are going on, big battles or what have you. In fact it just a couple of people talking, which is really interesting when I looked back at it.

I certainly feel the genre has to have something new done to it, especially every 10 or 15 years. A lot of that has to do with paying attention to very basic things...how do people really act, what’s a new way to look at a situation or a storytelling.

GK: Obviously somebody likes it this stuff has a place, a big place in fact. I’d like try to do something a little new with the whole thing personally

GK: In fact, I never really...writers are a sensitive lot, generally speaking...an egotistical lot. There’s a lot of bruised feelings and jealousy and tough talking...amongst writers. I’ve never begrudged anybody like Jordan any of his success or Terry Brooks. They’ve brought the exposure of Fantasy to completely new levels, whether we think it’s everything it could be, they’ve certainly opened up the market. I can’t think of this as a bad thing.