Yesterday I shared my first book thoughts post and now it is time to talk to Anne Dölleri herself, the author of Anbatar: Legacy of the Blood Guard. Since reading the book last year, we have shared our mutual love for Terry Goodkind’s Sword of Truth series (which I plan to reread someday soon). Anne lives in Germany and has published two fantasy novels and a growing thriller series. It’s always an honor to connect with authors who are from other continents, me being in North America. People just find each other.
Anne never dreamed of becoming an author. Yet, she always had a thing for beautiful words and brave fictional characters. Holding a pen in her hand was natural for her. It began with a poem; the poem became a short story. Short stories became novellas and suddenly there was this book in her closet… She does not plan to write, she just writes. Isn’t that the kind of fluidity in thought we all strive for?
Apart from her love for tragic heroes, heroic villains and those who are a bit of both, she loves her regular job as a gardener, and the power of music.
It was wonderful to connect with her! Enjoy the interview, and get some insights about the book, without any spoilers! 🙂 The graphic below summarizes my thoughts on the book. Click to navigate to the book thoughts post which goes in depth.
- What was the moment when the idea of the book first came to be?
Honestly, I have no idea. I can’t even tell when and why I started writing. But I always had a very vivid imagination. I loved creating characters in my head and send them into one adventure after another. Nareth was in fact my very first book character. I know him since I am 13 years old. So, I guess one can say that this was the time when Nareth first came to be. The episode of his life that is set in “Anbatar” is not that old.
- I speak English and Hindi and know that some words do not have translation at all. This novel is originally in German. Did you find any differences between the English and German editions?
Not really. I loved to read my own text in another language because suddenly I wasn’t that routine-blinded anymore. It was like reading my own book as if it had been written by someone else. But there was no scene where I felt like my translator couldn’t deliver the right words to describe what I had in mind. The only difficulty was a rhyme that Ilion makes up to mock Nareth. It was very difficult to transport the humor in his words and the rhyme without changing the meaning of his little poem.
- What are some fantasy series that inspired you to write this novel?
I grew up alongside so many awesome books and characters. The ones who affected me the most are probably by Terry Goodkind (The Sword of Truth), Kristen Britain (The Green Rider Series) and Naomi Novik (Temeraire). What might be seen in my own work from these books is the very character-based writing. I am telling my story through the eyes of my main character. And I believe this is what I adapted from the writers above.
- The world that Anbatar is set in has a rich history of its own with Sameriers, Seers and older cities. Have you explored these settings in other books or plan to write more novels set there?
I would love to further explore Nareth’s world, but to be honest, at the moment I am preoccupied with so many other things, that I have a hard time to keep writing. So, I hope there will be more one day, but this will definitely take some time. At the moment Anbatar is the only book set in this world that has been translated.
- What are Sameriers inspired by? Are they part of already existing mythology or something new that you created?
Sameriers are something I created for the novel. I have a weakness for determined, maybe even driven men. So I needed a fighter that was also quite strong due to his emotions and his will to act but also vulnerable because of his strong beliefs and explosive nature. That’s how the race of the Sameriers came to be. In short, one could describe them as a rare group of men that are dangerous in their rage and endangered by the aftermath of it.
- I loved the diverse set of characters in this book. Through Nareth, Asrodin, Akesha, Mesedo, Yaron and others, you touch upon not only the complexity of politics and peace treaties but also how hard it is to recover from war times. What research did you have to pursue to write this novel?
I am a bit scared to admit it, but: none. I am really lazy when it comes to research. Maybe that’s why I prefer the fantasy genre that much. Of course every book needs some research at some point to prevent logic errors, like “how long can a person stay conscious when he/she had been wounded in that way” or “how far can you travel by horse in one day” and so on. But I am not a person to read a book or a whole bunch of them to model my world. Actually, I envy authors that are determined and curious enough to do so!
- Nareth shares a special relationship with Keni, the little thief that he meets when he first comes to Anabatar. Apart from Nareth’s character building, was there another reason to highlight this relationship?
No, even Nareth’s character building was only a positive side effect Keni had. At first, Keni was only planned as Nareth’s initial contact. But the naughty little thief turned out to be a great counterpart for Nareth’s soldier-like disciplined attitude. To be honest, Nareth grew very fond of the little guy. So he found his way into the story, and turned out to be an awesome character from the beginning of the book until the very last chapter.
- What would you tell your younger self when it comes to writing?
May I reverse the question? My younger self wasn’t a perfect writer of course, but a very good storyteller. I was really good at just sitting down and keep writing until the very last word. Due to all the things I have learned about correct writing I lost somewhat of that ability. I guess if my former self could talk it would slap me and say
Stop thinking, start writing.
Hope you enjoyed this interview with Anne and will pick up her standalone fantasy book, Anbatar: Legacy of the Blood Guard. You can connect with Anne on instagram.
** Anbatar: Legacy of the Blood Guard is now out in stores so get a copy and let me know what you think! Let’s have a book-discussion! **
Amazon Print
Amazon Kindle
(available on Kindle Unlimited)
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Cover image: Photo by Sandra Ahn Mode on Unsplash
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