With the pending publication of Nightborn: Coldfire Rising, we had a nice back-and-forth with C.S. Friedman. We talk about the The Coldfire Trilogy, the new book, and the world as a whole. Take a read then go out and get a copy of Nightborn!
Any time I bring up The Coldfire Trilogy in online discussions or social media or see mention of it, I get nothing but positive commentary from fans and published writers like Peter Brett, Django Wexler, and Brad Beaulieu. 25+ years later, why do you think this story has endured so long?
Well, aside from the fact that it’s just a damn good story, I think there are three elements that people find particularly memorable:
First, the setting. The “magical element”—the fae– is a force as natural to Erna as air, water, and fire, and equally uncontrollable. Like those elements it can be channeled for human purpose, but it never ceases to be dangerous. And since it reflects human fears and desires, it provides a disturbing insight into humanity’s multi-layered consciousness, as well as a unique set of challenges. How do you protect yourself from dark gods of your own creation? Add to that the vampiric element—all fae-creatures naturally feed upon their makers —and you have a volatile force that can invoke both beauty and horror—sometimes combined.
Gerald Tarrant is Faustian figure who embodies that that dichotomy. His obsession with the fae has transformed him from a champion of faith to its ultimate nemesis. Elegant, sophisticated, and terrifyingly amoral, he is Erna’s version of Lucifer, a beautiful angel cast out of heaven by his own actions. Unrepentant, he attracts us as much as he repels us, for he speaks to the potential for darkness in all of us. If such a man can lose his way, what hope do the rest of us have?
Once circumstances force him to ally with the warrior-priest Damien Vryce, the Trilogy becomes a tale not only of adventure, but of spiritual corruption. Our fascination with such stories is evidenced by the popularity of shows such as Breaking Bad, wherein decent people slowly lost touch with their better selves. In this case the relationship is best summed up by Tarrant, as he explains to Vryce how it will destroy him:
For you I’ve become the most subtle creature of all: a civilized evil, genteel and seductive. An evil you endure because you need its service—even though that very endurance plucks loose the underpinnings of your morality. An evil that causes you to question the very definitions of your identity, that blurs the line between dark and light until you’re no longer certain which is which, or how the two are divided. –That’s what you fear most of all, priest. Waking up one morning, and no longer knowing who or what you are.
These are the elements that my readers have told me they find most compelling, with the result that Black Sun Rising was recently named one of the 22 Best Grimdark Fantasy Books of all Time. (www.mostrecommendedbooks.com)
What is your elevator pitch/TV guide Pitch for Nightborn, either to readers of Coldfire or brand new readers?
A group of Terrans attempt to establish a colony on an Earth-like world, only to discover that an unseen force is bringing their nightmares to life. In their struggle to survive they will be forced to combine modern science and ancient mystical traditions, and one man may have to make an unthinkable sacrifice to save the colony.
You made a return to the world of The Coldfire Trilogy with Dominion, why go back to the beginning with Nightborn?
The story of Erna’s Founding is central to the Trilogy; a shortened version of it is featured in the prologue to When True Night Falls. These are the events which imprinted the fae with humanity’s essence, setting the stage for everything that follows. Dominion shows us the world that resulted, so very different from what the colonists intended.
How much of Nightborn incorporates what transpired in Dominion?
Dominion takes place centuries later, after human nightmares have contaminated the fae and the trappings of sorcery have been harnessed to control it. Through Gerald Tarrant’s eyes we see what Erna has become, and the nightmare creatures that have been birthed by humanity’s darker instincts. Both are parts of a greater tapestry, the story of humanity’s gradual adaptation to the fae, and the fae’s adaptation to humans.
How much trepidation did you feel when you decided to reveal humanity’s origins on the planet of Erna?
None at all. The colony’s Terran history has always been an intrinsic element of the story, and it is part of Erna’s appeal to readers. The fact that the characters who are struggling to tame the fae are descended from our own world allows us to relate to their struggle on an intimate level. And the climax of the Trilogy deals with forces set in motion by the events in Nightborn. So the colony’s origin has been part of the story since day one.
Your works range between fantasy, science fiction, and horror, often in the same book or series. While Coldfire had that science fictional background, many would consider the books to be more firmly on the fantasy / dark fantasy side of the speculative fiction tree. Were you always itching to reveal more of the science fictional origins of this world/saga?
The Trilogy is an epic fantasy in style and tone, so I had to be very careful to keep its SF elements in the background. Now Nightborn has given me a chance to expand upon that part of the story, and reveal to readers how and why the world changed so drastically.
Is Nightborn your final say/stamp on the Coldfire world?
On the contrary, I hope it will be the first installment in a series of new stories, centered around pivotal events in Ernan history. Some will involve characters readers are familiar with—such as Gerald Tarrant and the Iezu Karril—while others will focus on people and events that that were only hinted in the Trilogy.
The Coldfire timeline on my website maps out all those events so readers can see how they fit together, producing a narrative tapestry that I hope to be weaving for years to come. (Please note, that is a work in progress.) You can find it at https://www.csfriedman.com/novels/coldfire-trilogy/
In many ways, The Coldfire Trilogy was ahead of its time in the murkier depiction of good v. evil compared to the more traditional dichotomy presented in the genre in the late 1980s & early 1990s. Some might even consider these books to be a precursor to the Grimdark movement of the genre of the early 2000s. Were you setting out to break those traditional conventions and sort of darken the heroes and shed a more empathetic light on the villains?
I wanted to blur the line between good and evil because that dichotomy is the very essence of the human condition. There is no clear black-and-white in our world, no pure good or evil, and no easy answer to moral questions. Too few books explored that part of the human psyche.
You’ve revisited a few of your past works beyond Coldfire, including both This Alien Shore and In Conquest Born. Do you have plans to revisit The Magister Trilogy or The Madness Season?
I’ve promised my fans that my next few books will be focused on Coldfire and Outworlds. After that, who knows?
A lot of your work has a theme of vampirism, whether the soul-sucking variety in Coldfire the “alien” kind in The Madness Season and you’ve written in the world of RPG Vampire: The Masquerade. What about the concept of the vampire fascinates you?
Nearly half of all animal species on earth are parasites, and interaction with them has shaped human society from the beginning. When our primitive ancestors experienced weakness or lethargy with no visible cause, they had no physical explanation for it, so they created supernatural ones. Spirits of the dead were draining them of vitality while they slept. Someone had cursed them with an evil eye, causing their strength to bleed away. A supernatural creature was stealing their blood, or their semen, or their breath, or some other vital essence. Such vampiric creatures appear in the folklore of many different cultures, and persist in superstitions today.
What more fearsome monsters could there be than a parasite which takes on human form and walks among us, pretending to be human?
Whether a vampiric character exists to embody ancient legends or defy them, his appearance stirs a visceral response in the human psyche, and as a writer I am delighted to manipulate that.
Would you consider writing a more direct, “traditional” vampire novel that is formerly entrenched as a horror/gothic novel or is playing with the concept of vampires or evoking vampiristic elements in other settings more fun to you?
Someone once asked me why I liked to write science fiction. I answered, because that genre allows me to write any kind of story I want, while simultaneously exploring questions about human nature and man’s relationship with the universe. Why limit oneself to a traditional narrative, when the horizons of speculative fiction are limitless?
Not to mention, since I’ve promised my fans more Coldfire and Outworlds stories, I think they’d draw and quarter me if I set those projects aside to write something else ?
One of the elements of the trilogy that originally drew me to the books are Michael Whelan’s gorgeous covers. How important do you feel his lovely artwork was pulling readers to the series?
Many Coldfire fans have told me the reason they picked up my books in the first place was that they were drawn to Michael’s magnificent artwork. For Nightborn, I’m delighted to have found an artist, Jeszika Le Vye, whose art is not only beautiful in its own right, but a perfect complement to Michael’s paintings. I’m very excited about working with her in the future as we develop the Coldfire mythos.
You’ve seen quite a lot in your writing career, is there a piece of advice you ignored early in your career you wished you had taken to heart?
I wish that after the Magister Trilogy was completed I had taken my editor’s advice and returned to Coldfire and Outworlds series. I spent the early years of my career experimenting with different styles and genres, and I think I’m a better writer for it, but I think that was the point at which I should have turned my focus back to the worlds my readers loved the most. 20-20 hindsight.
Any last words for readers?
I love to hear from readers, and invite everyone to come join my Facebook page, where they can learn about my current projects and chat with me. Those who would like to support my writing are invited to do so through my Patreon page, and join the community I’m building there. Oh, and there is Coldfire merchandise on Redbubble (shop name csfriedman). Read Nightborn!
Thank you so much for your time and giving readers some insight into the books and your fascinating world!
© 2023 Rob H. Bedford & SFFWorld.com
