7 fun facts about Rage of the Raven Queen
Today marks one week since the launch of Rage of the Raven Queen! Here are seven fun, behind-the-scenes facts from the making of the book.
1. Briana’s transformation
Briana features prominently in Rage of the Raven Queen, even more than in Son of the Thunder Goddess. When I started writing the first book, Briana was originally going to be a man, an old grizzled warrior who had somehow offended the gods and was living in exile. As I was working on the first draft, however, I realized that this character worked much better as a woman. Briana is partly inspired by Scáthach, the legendary woman warrior who trains the warrior hero Cú Chulainn in Irish Mythology.
2. Divine inspirations
All of the gods in this series are rooted in mythology—mostly Celtic, some Norse, and a bit of Greek.
The Bodtha
The Bodtha is inspired by the Morrigan, one of the coolest Gaelic deities. In Irish mythology, The Morrigan is associated with war, death, fate, and crows. Together with Badb and Macha, she forms a trio of war goddesses, which, in some stories, are three manifestations of the same goddess.
In Rage of the Raven Queen, the Bodtha is goddess of war, death, and terror. She commands a host of fierce women warriors called the Ravens, and her winged crows scour the land for enemies.
Gaillag
Gaillag, the thunder goddess, is less clearly based on any one real mythological deity. Her name is inspired by Cailleach, a Gaelic goddess associated with storms. She is also a subversion of the traditional depiction of thunder deities as male—think Zeus (Greek), Thor (Norse) and Taranis (Celtic).
Gaillag was an antagonist in Son of the Thunder Goddess, but remained mostly in the background, as the instigator behind her son, Saorlach. In Rage of the Raven Queen, she plays a much more prominent role and drives much of the plot in her attempt to destroy Athewain.
3. My soundtrack
I usually listen to film and video game music to sharpen my focus while writing. The more intense it is, the better. For this book, my playlists included a lot of Dark Souls 3, Bloodborne, Skyrim, and The Thirteenth Warrior. Dark, aggressive orchestral music like this helps me channel the right energy for battle scenes and other epic moments.
4. Writing challenge
With each book I write, I try to focus on one really challenging aspect that will stretch me as a writer. For Son of the Thunder Goddess, it was condensing an epic story into a 20,000-word novella. For Rage of the Raven Queen, I tackled the difficult task of depicting the gods as engaging, relatable characters without diminishing their divinity. I also explored the Maker more deeply, leaning into the tension between a monotheistic god (or, more accurately, monolatrous) and a polytheistic pantheon. Gods like Gaillag and the Bodtha were tricky to write, but it’s even more challenging to depict an invisible, all-powerful god in a way that feels compelling.
5. A new POV: Elath the druid
In addition to Athewain, Rage of the Raven Queen introduces a new POV character: Elath, a druid and poet who accompanies Gaillag on her quest for revenge and gets a front-row seat to all the drama and conflict between the gods. Because these books are set in an oral culture analogous to the world of Pre-Roman Britain, I avoid using terminology that only makes sense in a literate context. So, instead of Elath “writing” a poem for Gaillag, he instead “creates,” “shapes,” “fashions,” or “sings.”
6. Cappuccino fuel
I wrote much of the book, including the majority of the climax, at Disko, a great, cozy cafe in Cambridge with the best cappuccinos. The extra boost of caffeine helped get me through some long, grueling writing sessions.
7. Deleted scenes
There was originally a whole side plot in the second act involving Athewain saving the Theuda from a monstrous river god named Raedyr. After I wrote it out, I ended up deciding this distracted from the plot and I cut this character from the book entirely. I added the Annamduos (soul-stealer) instead which I think fits the story much better.
If you haven’t picked up Rage of the Raven Queen yet, these facts are just the tip of the iceberg. Dive into the story and see what else awaits.