Thursdays of Sword & Sorceress 27 – the Nathan Crowder interview

Our first Sword & Sorceress 27 interview is with Nathan Crowder.

1.) Tell us about yourself.

I’m a survivor of the great geek uprising of the 1980′s, originally from the Four Corners area of the American Southwest but now living in the Seattle area. I may wear wing-tips and ironic t-shirts, but I’ll always be a cowboy at heart. My dad was an existentialist philosopher librarian and my mom was a former teacher, so I grew up surrounded by books and a love of ideas. I write a bit of fantasy and sci-fi, but most of my published short fiction tends to be in the horror arena. I love music, architecture, film, comic books, and social justice. I could happily spend several nights a week with vintage cocktails and karaoke, and the following mornings at the coffeehouse putting words on the screen. I’m the proud father of two adult children who grew up strong, free, and weird. Finally, I have a cat named Shiva who manages my career in exchange for fresh kibble and occasional head-scritches.

2.) Why do you write?

In a nutshell, I write to see the stories that I’m not seeing anyone else write. No, that’s not quite the entire truth. That’s a cop out. The fact is that I have a hyper-active imagination. I’m constantly asking “What if?” I collect bits and pieces of the world around me. They rattle around in my brain, then two spark against each other creating an idea of, “Oh, THAT’S cool. What if…” And, of course, I have to answer that question. Writing is my way of doing it. It keeps me off the streets and helps me rationalize the outside world a bit.

3.) Sword & Sorceress is known for sword & sorcery centered around a strong female character. Is there any particular trick to writing strong female characters?

I don’t write female characters any differently than male characters. I just write characters. Each and every one should be a unique individual—or at least as unique as I can make them. They have their strengths and weaknesses, their hopes and fears, and they all have their own voice. I tend to write more male characters as a default, but I’ve written several where I felt the protagonist needed to be female for one reason or another. In this case, I liked the contrast of a young girl who wanted to be a dancer who was now the berserker tool of the Inside-Out God. She’s small, and once had the dreams typical of the girls of her culture, but she is by no means weak or defenseless. Siri Viraj is a force of nature.

4.) What would you say makes sword & sorcery different than other kinds of fantasy?

Sword & sorcery is more personal, less focused on huge world-turning events, and more involved in the immediate world of blood and steel.

5.) How do you think ebooks and the Internet will change the way we read & write?

I’ve heard a lot about the “death of publishing,” and I don’t buy it. Changing technologies have certainly made a huge impact on how books are marketed, published, and distributed, but there are so many more out there now. The traditional Gatekeepers of agents and publishers are giving way to the Gatekeepers of recommendation and word of mouth. A book doesn’t have to guarantee an audience of thousands to get published, so more and more niche books are seeing light, and new voices are given the chance to try their wings. Sure. There’s a lot of crap out there. But there was a lot of crap out there before, too. There are also a lot of amazing stories that might not have seen the light of day before. It’s an amazing time to be a writer and a reader.

6.) Tell us about your Sword & Sorceress story.

“Mahrut’s Road” gave me the chance to play with the concept of divine madness. Siri Viraj, the young protagonist, is the survivor of a high fever that put her into a coma when she was young. When she returned to wakefulness, she was indoctrinated into a religious order that reveres those touched by insanity. It begs the question, “Is Mahrut a real god, or is this just their culture’s way of dealing with those touched by mental illness? And ultimately, does it make a difference?” It allowed me to play with contrasts—a self-described “delicate little flower” who is a representative for rage and madness. And I’ve always wanted to see more fantasy set in non-western cultures like India, so that was a big influence on the flavor of my world.

7.) Can you share an excerpt from your Sword & Sorceress story?

Siri Viraj would have been a dancer if not for the will of the gods. As a child she wanted nothing more than to welcome the monsoon season, to twirl in the temple courtyard with flowers in her hair. Mahrut, the Inside-Out God had other ideas. A fever in her tenth year left her clinging to life; sent her on a silent journey on the Shadow Road. Siri finally awoke when the fever passed days later, reborn anew to unexplained visions and sudden fits of anger. The village elder knew the signs well. Mahrut, he of the red rage and madness, had staked his claim. Siri had been marked as one of his chosen.

As soon as she could walk again, the young girl was sent from her parent’s home to the temple of the Inside-Out God. She entered the priesthood of Mahrut where she trained for years as a priest before being released into the world for a life of service to the community.

8.) Recommend one other book or short story you have written that we should read.

“Odd Jobs” from Space Tramps, Flying Pen Press 2011.

9.) Recommend one non-fiction book that you haven’t written.

City of Quartz by Mike Davis. It’s a fascinating look at the history and sociology of Los Angeles, and with my interest in cities as living organisms, it has been my favorite for years.

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Thanks, Nathan, for the interview.

Check out our interviews with past S&S contributors – , , , Sword & Sorceress 25, and Sword & Sorceress 26.

And the novel featuring my Sword & Sorceress character, spy and assassin Caina Amalas, is now available for free in all ebook formats: Child of the Ghosts.

-JM