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Originally posted by ElaineCunningham

For those who enjoy contemplating villainy, here's the third article in my ongoing exploration of villains.

http://www.elainecunningham.com/writing-about-writing/villains-as-protagonists/

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Originally posted by Sunderstone

When you were writing Realms how much ownership did you feel over characters like Arilyn, Danilo, Bronwyn, and Elaith? I know Ed created Elaith but you sure brought him to life.

Would you have been happy to see them used as major protagonist in another writer's stories? Or would you have wanted or did you have an exclusivity with them and some editorial input if they were used to protect your own story ideas?

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Originally posted by ElaineCunningham

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Originally posted by Sunderstone

When you were writing Realms how much ownership did you feel over characters like Arilyn, Danilo, Bronwyn, and Elaith? I know Ed created Elaith but you sure brought him to life.

Would you have been happy to see them used as major protagonist in another writer's stories? Or would you have wanted or did you have an exclusivity with them and some editorial input if they were used to protect your own story ideas?

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When I was writing in the Realms, it was understood that the protagonists you created would be "yours" to write about. With the exception of the unpublished SHORES OF DUSK by Mark Anthony, there simply wasn't a question about whether other writers could write stories focusing on Drizzt or Elminster or Cale or Danilo. And I think this was the right call. Maintaining continuity was difficult enough without having to keep track of what other people are doing with a particular character. Even with editorial oversight, it is very easy to introduce a variable that will derail a plot the original author had in mind, or even in progress. And having worked in the Star Wars extended universe, I know how difficult it can be to get a consistent voice for a character when multiple authors write their dialog.

As for Elaith, when I wrote ELFSHADOW, I was under the impression that his existence comprised a single paragraph in the module "Waterdeep and the North." I was not aware that he was a major player in Ed's home campaign. If I had known this, I wouldn't have grabbed the character and run away with him. Ed has always been unfailingly gracious about this and seemed quite happy with my interpretation of Elaith, but I have strong feelings about appropriating other people's characters and concepts.

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Originally posted by Sunderstone
When you and Ed collaborated on City of Splendors did you divide the writing along those lines? For example Ed handling the parts with Mirt, Khelban, Laeral, Piergerion etc., and you concentration on Elaith, Lark, the Drye family and so forth?

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Originally posted by ElaineCunningham

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Originally posted by Sunderstone
When you and Ed collaborated on City of Splendors did you divide the writing along those lines? For example Ed handling the parts with Mirt, Khelban, Laeral, Piergerion etc., and you concentration on Elaith, Lark, the Drye family and so forth?

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It was a little more complicated than that, but yes, we did divide up some of the characters. Everything was over-written a few times, with a final pass by Ed.

About that: We were told we could write up to 160,000 words--which we did--and then the editor asked him to cut 15,000. So. Yeah. That sort of thing is a one-person job.

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Originally posted by ElaineCunningham

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Originally posted by Seravin

Looks very sharp Elaine! I didn't even know you had an Everquest novel. I have to check that out.

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Yeah, EverQuest was an obscure and ill-fated project. The publishing company was a start-up, and it was sold while I was writing the book to a publisher that had no fantasy line whatsoever and zero interest in continuing this series. The EverQuest license expired the month my book was released, so what with one thing and another, no one saw any reason to promote or even really distribute the poor orphaned thing. It doesn't even LOOK like an EverQuest product, since the (first) publisher decided to go with a weird anime approach.

I think BLOOD RED HARP is one of my better stories, but it fell off the map shortly after publication. It's been OOP for quite a while now, so you might have trouble finding a copy.

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Originally posted by ElaineCunningham

Two things:

1). New blog post with a few words about cookies, also potentially applicable to shared-world fantasy fiction.

http://www.elainecunningham.com/writing-about-writing/__trashed/

2). A giveaway on the Facebook group Forgotten Realms Archives for a copy of Elfshadow in Spanish. Winner will be chosen on June 1 via random number generator.

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Originally posted by Sunderstone

Hi Elaine,

I have a couple of questions about Fyodor from the Starlight and Shadow series. First of all, I love the series as do all of your FR books.

Are the abilities he has as a Natural Beserker enhanced over the normal Rashemen Beserker? Was his condition unique or does it exist in FR lore that others have it? Was it something you created?

Thanks,

Sunderstone

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Originally posted by ElaineCunningham

As it happens, I will be going to Get Con 2017 after all. I will post my schedule as soon as it's nailed down. Hope to see many of you there!

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Originally posted by Wooly Rupert
On a more serious note, Danilo and Arilyn are two of my fave Realms characters, and part of the reason is because I can get into their heads (particularly Arilyn's) a lot more than I can with other characters.

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Originally posted by Irennan

Hello Elaine. Since a recent post made me wonder about something concerning Liriel, I thought I might as well ask you. After the end of Windwalker, she becomes a priestess of Mystra, because magic is her true call. However she can also still feel the song and call of Eilistraee. So, I was wondering how Liriel would feel about Eilistraee in the current era (we know that they're both alive). Would Liriel still *feel the Dark Dancer in some way, or Eilistraee have any meaning to her (I ask this because she first sought a sense of belonging in her and her followers, according to her thoughts at the end of the book).

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Originally posted by ElaineCunningham

Once upon a time, music was the focus of my life. I pursued an undergrad degree, taught for several years, and learned to play several instruments with varying degrees of proficiency. Since I was primarily a church musician, when I left that church, my focus shifted from music to other creative pursuits. Today I spend a great deal of time writing. It's what I've chosen to do, and I think it's a pretty good fit for my temperament, interests, and skill sets. But I still find a considerable amount of meaning in music. It's no longer my occupation and it takes up much less of my time than it used to, but I have not shut and sealed that door. I suspect that Liriel's sense of connection to Eilistraee is very similar.

The worship of Mystra satisfies Liriel's intellectual curiosity and her drive to excel. The Dark Maiden, however, speaks to her more emotional side: music, dance, sisterhood, and to the sheer joy of existence. So yes, she will feel the call of Eilistraee from time to time. Because we all have things that pertain to our lives, if not our livelihoods.

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Originally posted by Zana

That's a beautiful way to put it. It also just contributes to way I feel connected with Liriel she has an heart for two of my favorite deities. I can't help but wonder what life was like for her the during that 100 year MIA of both of them. Who would she turn too during that time?

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