Power, Duty, and Loyalty
The Mantle of the Past follows the inhabitants of a vast kingdom where their king has died, who now face an uncertain future as different factions battle for control. What was the inspiration for the setup of your story?
I studied history at university and the ancient mediterranean has always fascinated me. Tales from the history of Greece and Rome as well as kingdoms such as Egypt and the Achaemenid empire are where I get most of my inspiration and so often in their stories it is when the strong ruler falls that their history changes. I wanted to explore that situation myself.
I find the world you created in this novel brimming with possibilities. Where did the inspiration for the setting come from and how did it change as you were writing?
Kolgennon is largely inspired by the ancient mediterranean in the classical and hellenistic periods as I have always enjoyed the history, but also the literature that we have from that period. I wanted to create a world that felt familiar, but also somehow alien to a modern reader, with a hint of the classical epic in the stories I told there. As I wrote I found more and more of my inspiration coming from different cultures of the ancient world, it started as very heavily inspired by the Greeks, but I increasingly found myself drawn to Egypt, Persia and many other places and cultures for ideas and concepts. I think I also found myself delving into myths and legends more than just history as I developed my ideas further as well.
What were some themes that were important for you to explore in this book?
I wanted to explore power and the pull of duty and loyalty, but the major theme was to look at the absence of those. Tekolger, the all conquering king, is deliberately presented as almost the main protagonist in the story, but has died before the book begins. So there is a void where the hero should be, I found that a fascinating idea to study, what happens when the hero is gone and others have to pick up the pieces? Is his legacy a good thing, or has he just created problems for the world?
When will book two be available? Can you give us an idea of where that book will take readers?
I am working on book two right now, but i think it will be a while before I am finished yet. Maybe in a year or so. It will take readers deeper into the heart of the empire of the Doldun, but also further explore some of the more metaphysical elements of Kolgennon and perhaps answer some of the questions that are implied in the fringes of the first book.
Author Links: GoodReads | X | Website
The dust has only just begun to settle on the conquests of Tekolger, King of the Doldun, who exploded out of the east to forge an empire not seen since before the ancient cataclysm known as the Dusk. His body has not yet been brought home, his armies have not yet returned from his final campaign, but already plots have begun, factions are forming, and rivalries ancient and new are starting to stir.
All the while old powers thought long passed into memory, or simply fictions of fevered imaginations, are once again troubling the minds of men and showing themselves on the fringes of civilisation.
Will the rise of the Doldun prove to be a false dawn? Or will the conquests of the King usher in a new age of peace and prosperity for Kolgennon.
Original source: https://literarytitan.com/2024/07/25/power-duty-and-loyalty/
Leave a Reply