Duncan Lay Interview

Sometimes a simple trip to the shops can send life in a surprising new direction.

Having devoured George R. R. Martin’s A Game of Thrones, I was eagerly set on purchasing the next book in the series when I bumped into Australian author Duncan Lay at a book signing. His patter was so convincing that I bought his first novel The Wounded Guardian on the spot and he even signed it as a lucky charm for my own publishing quest.

A couple of months later I’m still entrenched in his rollicking adventures and still haven’t returned to A Song of Fire and Ice. I’d say that was a successful book signing!

Duncan was kind enough to give up some time for a quick interview, so today we sit down (virtually) to talk books, bookstores and fantasy.

The Wounded Guardian was your first published book, but not the first novel you wrote. What came before? Was it always fantasy?

No, not always! I had tried to write many different genres, from contemporary to humour to science fiction to fantasy. For several years I tried to get a novel published about a small country town that’s slowly dying, so invents a bushranger to bring in the tourists, the media descends, the politicians go mad and it all goes haywire. But it wasn’t until I was older, had seen some more of life and had a couple of children, that I was able to come up with characters that were rich enough and interesting enough for a major publisher to get involved.

At which point you landed a dream 3-book Harper Voyager deal! How did that come about?

Through hard work and good luck. The luck part came when a literary agent had the manuscript for The Wounded Guardian blow everywhere and had to ask me to send her a new printed copy. She felt a little guilty, so gave me some great advice when she told me she was going on maternity leave and couldn’t spend more time on it. That advice led me to rewrite it to the point where HarperCollins became interested, then I worked on it for another year to get it right before they offered me the deal.

Your battle scenes have been compared to the late, great David Gemmell, which must bring a smile to your face every time you hear it. Which authors have influenced you the most?

Gemmell, for showing me that fantasy doesn’t have to have the full cast of singing elves and dancing dwarves. I interviewed Raymond E Feist in 2002 and he inspired me as well – it turns out we approach the writing process in a very similar manner (giving the characters control of the plot) and that really inspired me to put aside the bushranger story and try fantasy.

Martil, the reluctant warrior in the Dragon Sword Histories, is a fascinating and ultimately darker hero than many fantasy readers may be used to. His title as the ‘Butcher of Bellic’ reminded me of the Bosnian/Serbian conflict in the mid-1990s. Was this a deliberate theme you set out to explore? How uncomfortable was it tackling the story from his point of view?

That was absolutely a deliberate theme! I read a review of a book written by more than 100 Dutch soldiers, who were present at the terrible massacre at Srebrenica. They were given a deadly choice: fight and die, or lay down your weapons, walk away and trust that the civilians would be protected. They walked away and the civilians were slaughtered. In this book, they wrote how their lives had been destroyed and they wished they could go back and make that choice again, this time to fight and die, for their lives were ruined by that one decision. That, to me, was a hugely powerful emotion and one I wanted to explore. As this was a deliberate decision, it was easy to tackle the story from his point of view.

Do you try to layer themes into all your stories from the outset, or do you find them evolving as you write?

I do try and put as many themes as possible into my stories, as I like them to appeal to different people on different levels. I begin with as many as I think of but add more during the writing process.

The relationship in your first book between Martil and the young girl Karia was absolutely perfect. I also loved that it formed the heart and soul of the story, at the expense of the usual warrior/Queen romance. How much did being a father yourself influence this relationship?

You have to have some truth in any story. Perhaps especially in a fantasy story. This was the heart of the story, as you say, and I always wanted it to be that way. That’s not to say I am like Martil any more than my daughter is like Karia. But obviously it had a massive influence.

You have two children and a day job working for a national newspaper. How on earth do you find time to write?!

I write on the train, to and from work. This gives me all the time I need and allows me to have time with the family when I get home. It is the perfect way to use my travel time for me, rather than resent it.

You’re reaching the end of a tour for your latest book. Tell us about Bridge of Swords.

Bridge of Swords explores relationships between fathers and children once again, but up and down the generations, rather than just one relationship between a father and a daughter. At its heart it examines the question we must all face – do we follow the beliefs and path laid down for us by our parents or do we find our own way in the world?

It begins with a warrior on the run. He’s discovered the secret to a 300-year-old mystery. He’s being hunted by his own people, frantically trying to get back to his children and, just when he thinks it can’t get any worse, he runs into a young couple who want to use him as their hero in their land’s fight for freedom: Huw, a bard, who’s learned a terrible secret about a brutal King, and a young dancer, Rhiannon, who only ever wanted to perform but it turns out she has the hidden power that will change everything.

As well as promoting this book, you’re also on a quest to Save Our Bookstores—talking to as many people as possible about how important bookstores are. Let’s pretend I need convincing, what would you tell me?

As the recent “sock puppet” scandal in the UK has shown, as well as the eBook The Day the Kindle Died, you cannot trust much of what you read on Amazon. Bookstores exist to celebrate books and help readers find new authors. Amazon doesn’t promote Australian authors and only promotes the books publishers pay them to promote. Without bookstores, new authors will struggle to be found. We will all end up paying far more for books – and only those books Amazon thinks will make it more money. Amazon encourages people to use bookstores to find the books they want – then buy on Amazon. Obviously that cannot work in the long term.

Writers, by their very nature, are reserved. Yet your proactive and enthusiastic street-level approach to book signings blew me away. What’s your secret?

Being passionate about my books! I have discovered that people love to meet authors and like to talk to authors but if the author is sitting behind a desk that creates a barrier that people are reluctant to cross. I break that barrier by reaching out. I ask if they like reading first. If they say yes then I explain I am an Australian author and these are my books. It is up to them to step up after that. You cannot force people but if you remove the barriers, they are more than happy to talk about books. I then tell them about my work and if that’s appealing to them, they can buy. If not, I let them walk away with a smile and a wave.

Have you ever had a particularly bad day when you wanted to pack it in and try something completely different?

Not really. I love writing and have done so since I was a small child. As for the touring, I take a real “glass half full” attitude. One nice person and a great chat about books equals at least 10 knockbacks. Each person I meet inspires me to meet another.

Finally, and feel free to interpret this any way you want, why fantasy?

Why not? Fantasy is a unique genre that allows you to take elements from everything else and mix it together. Historical fiction, humour, commentary about society, thoughts on the human condition, reflections on people’s attitudes – you can mix and match all of those and wrap it up in an exciting story. You have no boundaries but your own imagination. So why would you write anything else?

Many thanks to Duncan for the chat. His latest book, Bridge of Swords, is out now.

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