Gillian Bronte Adams

YA Epic Fantasy Author

Brothers, Side by Side

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Brothers Side by Side Born on the plains, a farmer’s sons
and brothers the same, raised on promises…
we’d stay that way.
As boys we believed, summers at the sea
we were free to become men of good will…
side by side. “By Your Side” House of Heroes Sunset falls over the battlefield, blood red streaking the sky in mimicry of the bloodstained, flame-ridden plain below. And as the shades of night descend, two armored figures meet amidst the dead and the dying, cast battered swords from weary hands, and grip one another’s shoulders. It is done. The battle is won. And they are both still alive. The halls of unforgettable story telling are filled with epic battles, hard won fights, and brother tales. Whether the main players are actually brothers, or simply brothers-at-heart, there’s just something about a good brother story that grips us by the heart and won’t let us go. Just off the top of my head, I can list a good half dozen tremendous brother pairs from novels, films, history:

  • Merlin and Arthur, BBC’s Merlin TV series
  • David and Jonathan, the Bible
  • Dean and Sam Winchester, Supernatural TV series
  • Sherlock and Watson, many awesome interpretations over the years
  • Thor and Loki, Marvel-verse
  • Legolas and Gimli, The Lord of the Rings
  • Steve Rogers and Bucky, Captain America
  • Fred and George Weasley, the Harry Potter series

I could keep going for at least another ten minutes. Daresay I could pull another half dozen out of The Lord of the Rings alone. One of my favorite books, Enemy Brothers, is a tremendous brother tale set in Great Britain during WWII. (Actually, what makes it even more spectacular is the author penned the novel before the end of WWII was anywhere in sight! Knowing that just makes every awesome heart-wrenching scene in the book that much more incredible. If you haven’t read it … you should.) I rediscovered my love for brother tales recently while writing a short story, Shattered Ice. Despite its shortness—clocks in right around 1,000 words (an earth-shattering feat for me)—I fell in love with Ren and Tal and would be thrilled to explore their story more at some point in the future. I suppose I just love sibling tales in general. The bond between siblings, the complexities of their relationships, and the protectiveness they feel for one another are near and dear to my heart. So I find brother tales, brother-sister tales, and even sister tales especially enjoyable. Somehow though, sister tales rarely possess the same power that brother tales do. I won’t say a sister tale can’t be done well—I’ll admit to enjoying Disney’s Frozen as much as the next person—but somehow there never seems to be the same raw depth, heart, and strength to the story. So what is it about a good brother story that strikes so deep? I pondered this question over the past few days, racking my brain for the answer. To be honest, I don’t know. But I can speculate. I wonder if it in part has to do with the fact that if there’s one person you know—or think you know—better than yourself growing up, it’s your sibling. The little quirks and idiosyncrasies you’d let slide in others, somehow seem so much bigger in the person you’ve known since you—or they—were born. You know their faults … and they know yours too. And sometimes, they tell you the painful truth. You can pretend to all the world … but a sibling? Well, they’ll see right through your thickest mask. But despite the conflict that occasionally sparks when y’all rub crossways, you still manage to love one another. Even if you show it in strange ways at times. Somehow, I think good brother tales seem to capture this bond in a deep, heartfelt, “I’d die for you” kind of way, without coming across as cheesy or contrived. Even when the brothers are not brothers by blood. Sure, it’s a bit of a tall order. But I can think of dozens of tales and brother pairs that fit the bill. And I can’t wait to discover some more. What do you think? What are your favorite brother tales and sibling pairs? Do you have a favorite brothers’ moment?

Fantasy Reflections: Step Aside Samwise

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Welcome, ladies and gents! Step right this way for another mind-boggling fantasy reflection guaranteed to get the old brain cells moving … and stop hair loss. Disclaimer: this post was penned in a spurt of mad creativity fueled by an overabundance of coffee and Dr. Pepper. Consider yourself warned. Fantasy Reflections11.1 No, I’m afraid I can’t tell what the quest is beforehand. Top secret and all that. Must take precautions. Obviously how you decide to go about said death-defying quest will influence your decision on which fantasy creature to choose as a companion. If you prefer stealth mode, I can almost guarantee Smaug is not the best choice. Good try though. A- for effort. I plan to start my quest in stealth mode and see how far I get before my cover is blow—because, let’s face it, covers are almost always blown. One that happens, I’ll race in with guns blazing—swords flashing—to finish the quest and save the day … Mounted on Shadowfax. Yes, I would choose him for my companion. Who wouldn’t want to ride one of the Mearas? A horse swift as the wind, capable of covering vast distances with a speed that would kill a lesser beast. The lone steed to stand undaunted before the arrival of the Witchking. Aye, Shadowfax is the companion for me. Wind in my hair, face to the sky, faithful steed beneath, I’d gladly face any perils the road has to offer. How about you? Who or what would you choose as your fantasy creature companion?

I am an artist

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Wordcrafting has always been my chosen course of study. From a young age, I would stay up late into the night carving fantasy worlds from the bedrock of imagination and transforming them with each stroke of the keypad into words on a computer screen. There are few things more satisfying that untangling the knotted mass of plot threads in your head and slowly unraveling them on the page in just the right order . . . so when you look back, you can see the many colored strands drawing you to the glorious resolution on the final page. I love the written word. And yet, although nothing could ever make me wish myself free of the call of the pen, there are times when I’m heartily—woefully—jealous of a completely different talent. I wish I was an artist. There are so many incredibly talented people out there who can take the images in their heads and faithfully reproduce them in magnificent explosions of color and ink. Beautiful. Orderly. Breathtaking. My own attempts frequently resemble explosions of a far less pleasing sort.
I am in awe of the artist’s ability. It’s a talent all its own. Oh I can get by with a sketch pad and pencil … and a horde of erasers at my beck and call. Whenever the mood takes me, I’ll pluck out my old sketchpad and work to keep my hand and eye in “practice.” Mainly characters or scenes that I’m working on. This past week, in a fit of mad courage, I started experimenting with watercolors. And amidst the wild mass of colors and scattered brushes and splattered paint, I realized at last … That I am an artist. Oh I may not possess the skill with a paint and brush that some do … nor the ability to capture life on a pad with a few strokes of a pen. Nor can I compose melodies or lyrics that will set your heart on fire and your soul yearning for what is to come. I am an artist of a different sort. Words are my paint and my song. As a writer, I etch a little piece of my heart into every page. I strive to capture both beauty and truth, reality and hope in print. DSCN2215edited Books are so much more than rigid lines of black and white ink marching endlessly across the pages. They are things of wondrous color and beauty. The wildest dreams of a wild imagination … grounded in reality.
Whenever I think of the writing process, I cannot help recalling this scene from William Goldman’s The Princess Bride about artistry at work:

Domingo slept only when he dropped from exhaustion. He ate only when Inigo forced him to. He studied, fretted, complained. He never should have taken the job; it was impossible.
The next day he would be flying; he never should have taken the job; it was to simple to be worth his labors.
Joy to despair, joy to despair, day to day, hour to hour …
One night Inigo woke to find his father seated. Staring. Calm. Inigo followed the stare. The six fingered sword was done. Even in the hut’s darkness, it glistened.
“At last,” Domingo whispered. He could not take his eyes from the glory of the sword. “After a liftetime. Inigo. Inigo. I am an artist.”

I may not have reached the level of artistry Domingo reached when he created the six fingered sword. But if nothing else, I am an artist in the making, and I can be content with that. How about you? Do consider yourself an artist, whether you paint with words or a brush, or create music with lyrics or instrument?

Fantasy Reflections: Seeing Doubles?

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I must admit, I get so fiendishly excited when Friday rolls around and I realize it’s time for another Fantasy Reflections post. Nothing like a good mind-bending exercise to strengthen your imagination muscles. This question may not be quite so much of a poser as last time, and perhaps not quite so wild and crazy, but it does requires a bit more inner-reflection.
Fantasy Reflections

The question: Is there a fantasy character that could serve as your double, either in personality, temperament, or appearance?

Evil twins. Doppelgangers. Clones. Kindred spirits. Any or all of the above would serve to answer this question.

This question does require a good bit of thought. I hesitate to put down the first answer that comes to mind, because – let’s be honest – this character is scads cooler than I am. We have some similarities, to be sure – personality and temperament. And I like to think that if I were to be written as a character, and painted with a very kindly brush of medieval epicness, we just might be mistaken for sisters, if not doubles.

Who is it, you ask?

I am talking of Eoywn, daughter of Eomund, Shield-Maiden of Rohan.

Sigh.

I knew I shouldn’t have said that out loud. Pray stop your snickering. Did no one tell you how rude that is? If nothing else, one can dream!

How about you? Which fantasy character could serve as your double?

As always, answer in the comments and please feel free to chat back and forth amongst yourselves! That’s what makes the Fantasy Reflections so much fun! If you like, you can copy the image or idea to your blog and carry the conversation over there as well. Please just link back to my post. Thanks!

Fantasy Reflections: Identity Theft

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I’m quite excited about today’s Fantasy Reflection question. (Excuse me a maniacal laugh) Put on your thinking caps, ladies and gents. This one is a real poser.
Fantasy Reflections: Identity Theft

Tough one, isn’t it?

Fantasy characters tend to have it pretty rough. Rarely is life all sunshine and daisies. It generally leans more toward battle and bloodshed and good versus evil and some pretty nasty dark lords. There is a cruel class of people out there – commonly known as authors – who take a disturbing level of pleasure in subjecting their characters (and readers’ hearts) to trials and torments that would drive any sane man bonkers.

Answering this question is like choosing your own form of torture.

You could choose to be the really cool character … but generally the more special abilities you have, and the higher you rank on the boring to awesome scale, the worse villains you have to face.

Caution aside, I would have to choose Vin from The Final Empire series by Brandon Sanderson. True, her life is a wee bit miserable at the start. And she is fighting a hopelessly losing battle. And well … it can be a bit depressing. But those are minor details! Her Mistborn abilities totally make up for it! ;)

How about you? Who would you choose to become?

As always, you can answer in the comments and please feel free to chat in and amongst yourselves! That’s what makes this whole reflections series fun! If you’d like, you can copy the image to your blog and carry the conversation over there as well. Please just link back to my post. Thanks!

Fantasy Reflections: Pack Your Bag, It’s Moving Day!

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Here’s a Fantasy Reflection question to start off your morning.

If you could pick any fantasy world to live in, where would you move?

I always have a hard time answering these right off the bat. So I like to think of the question like coffee. You have to let it percolate for a bit, stewing in the back of your mind, until you can come up with an answer.

Now picking a fantasy world to visit wouldn’t be that tough. There’s scads of places I’d love to visit. But picking one to move to is a wee bit more difficult. So many pros and cons to consider. I mean, there’s usually some sort of major disturbance happening in the fantasy world at the time of the novel, so they’re not always the sort of place you’d want to move a family.

My first thought was the world of Roshar from Brandon Sanderson’s Way of Kings, since I’m reading it right now. It’s a fascinating world, really. Such a unique place, full of interesting people, and the magics of Surgebinding and Shardwielding. Until you get to the part where you discover it’s a world decimated by high storms with hints of a terrible devastation approaching.

Perhaps I’d better not move there.

I’m afraid my answer to this question will have to be a tie between Middle Earth and Narnia. I visited Middle Earth first of all and Narnia soon after, so for me, moving to either Middle Earth or Narnia would feel like returning home after a long absence.

Perhaps I’ll have a winter home in one and a vacation home in the other?

We’re dreaming, so anything is possible. :)

How about you? Where would you like to move most of all?

Answer in the comments! Or if you’d like, you can copy the picture to your blog and start the discussion over there as well. All I ask is that you link back to my blog in your post. Thanks! :)

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