Welcome to the last stop on my release week virtual tour to introduce “The Priest” to the world!
Thank you for coming and a big thanks to Dani for hosting!
I’ve talked a little about my boys, Tas and Girik, and the archetypes, tropes, and pop-culture inspiration behind them already, but that’s just the framework to build on. Ultimately my characters’ personalities, foibles, strengths, and weaknesses all come from me, either parts of my own personality, parts of my experience… or parts I wish I had!
(not those parts, people)
Like many authors, I’ve been asked which characters are most like me, or the characters that I identify most closely with. And, like those authors, my response is, “That’s a hard one.” ALL my heroes are imbued with qualities I admire, and whether or not I happen to share those qualities out in the world, they’re still a part of me.
There’s the quiet hero, like Girik. He’s the strong, steadfast, silent type who’s loyal and generous to a fault, but not particularly flashy. Like the me on the outside, he’s more than happy to stay out of the limelight and cheer for others who want to be in it, because success and fame are two very different animals. But, of course, our hero wouldn’t be human if he didn’t have a few foibles too, and some of them are the very things that make him the hero he is. As my hubby might tell you, stubbornness isn’t always the superpower I make it out to be. Our hero not thinking of himself first and refusing to back down can be hard on the people who love him and want him to be safe… or who maybe want him to listen to reason and not get another rescue dog when they already have three.
Ahem.
So, yeah, Girik’s personality hits a little closer to home on more than one front- looking in from the outside anyway. But that doesn’t mean Tas isn’t in there somewhere too- hidden deep, deep down in a rarely visited, cobweb-ridden corridor. Tas reaches into the land of ‘I wish I had’… or maybe the land of ‘be careful what you wish for.’ I’m not sure which. Tas is my passionate, driven, soldier of faith- a true believer, even if fate has smacked him upside the head with the proverbial board. He’s the guy up on the stage or podium fully accepting of his role as hero, with all the sacrifices and struggles that entails. Most people have at least one moment in life where they imagine themselves in the limelight. It’s usually a good moment, since it’s purely fantasy and you can control the outcome. Tas is that long-neglected bit that allows me to live the fantasy out safely and without, you know, all those people. Heh.
So if you meet me in person, you may not be able to see Tas- or any of a number of my other characters- but, trust me, they’re in there, well-hidden and crying out for one day in the sunshine.
Thus, the answer to the question of who’s the most like me is ALL, depending on the day of the week, what life has thrown at me, my mood, or how much I’ve had to drink. That is the wonder of the written word. You get a peek into the crowded inner courtyard of my mind, before all those poor guys get shoved back into their cells.
… Buuuuuut, I’ll add just a little bonus peek beyond our two heroes.
If someone were to, say, ask me who was the most fun to write, instead of the most like me, I’d have to say it’s Brynthalon, the gender-fluid, shapeshifting, snarky, vain, Riftspawn demon with a heart of gold (somewhere tucked away deep down). Bryn’s the character who gets to say and do all the things I’d say and do if I didn’t have to worry about consequences. Bryn’s my answer to the question: If I could pick any body to inhabit, what would it be? That is to say, it would be a body that doesn’t always have to be the same- that can change as often as I want it to. Bryn is the most fun to write because there are no limitations. He’s a he when he feels like it, and she’s a she or neither at any other time. Bryn’s bitchy and whiny but a badass when needed, and his/her motivations are entirely his/her own and don’t change because of the body he/she currently inhabits. Bryn is always Bryn, for good or ill and that’s never a bad thing to be.
Title: The Priest
Series: Chronicles of the Riftlands, Book Two
Author: Rowan McAllister
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: September 10, 2019
Blurb:
Brother Tasnerek, one of the infamous Thirty-Six stone bearers, is facing a dangerous crisis of faith after uncovering a secret that could shake the foundations of the Brotherhood of Harot. When Tas is sent to protect a tiny village on the edge of Rassa’s borders from Riftspawn, he struggles to resume his duties, risking his life and the lives of those around him.
Girik has always been an outsider, but to help his sick mother, he agrees to be the village’s offering in a painful ritual deemed necessary by the Brotherhood. But when the priest has a crisis of conscience, Girik offers his help to untangle a web of lies—even if it means getting closer than he ever imagined and committing sacrilege in the process.
With a monster lurking in the forest, a wandering mage mysteriously appearing, and more secrets awakening to unravel the truths of their world, Tas and Girik must make grave decisions. A life without danger seems a far-off hope, but love just might be theirs… if they survive.
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Rowan McAllister is an unapologetically romantic jack of all trades and a sucker for good food, good cocktails, rich fibers, a great beat, and anything else that indulges the senses. In addition to a continuing love affair with words, she likes to play with textiles, metal, wood, stone, and whatever other interesting scraps of life she can get her hands on. She lives in the woods, on the very edge of suburbia—where civilization drops off and nature takes over—sharing her home with her patient, loving, and grounded husband, three furry rescues, and a whole lot of books, booze, and fabric. Her chosen family is a madcap collection of people as diverse as her interests, all of whom act as her muses in so many ways, and she would be lost without them. Whether her stories have a historical, fantasy, or contemporary setting, they always feature characters who still believe in true love, happy endings, and the oft-underappreciated value of sarcasm.
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