Leisl Kaberry is the author of the novel Journey of Destiny, the first in her Titanian Chronicles series. She lives in Kitimat, Northern British Columbia.
Q: What inspired you to write the Titanian Chronicles, and how did you create your cast of characters?
A: What first inspired me to write Titanian Chronicles was simply a screensaver I had on my computer at the time of a massive green moon overlooking a small beach with palm trees leaning over the water.
I imagined who would be sitting there on the water’s edge, what troubling thoughts would be going through their mind and what was going on in their life.
So I wrote a scene… which turned into a chapter and by the time I was done writing that chapter I had figured out the main plot of the trilogy.
Characters were created as I came across them in the story, for the most part. There were some (like the Warlord) that I envisioned from the start and developed more along the way.
The three protagonists I took a lot of time to consider and craft their personalities at the start, their likes and dislikes as well as their strengths and faults and then along with that I got a great deal of joy out of growing them along the way.
Q: How did you come up with the world in which the series is set?
A: It all began in a kingdom, the Kingdom of Tebelligan, which is where the elves reside.
I drew the area very early and figured out the lay of the land but as the main characters leave Tebelligan I really had to figure out what the rest of the continent looked like so that their adventuring would make sense and the time it took them to get to places, etc.
So I drew a map of the whole Mainland of Marrapassa (the main continent) and named the areas, figured out each region’s environment and even the general climate. Some areas were inspired by places I have traveled, like the Island Norvak, which was very much inspired by some of the terrain and climate of Iceland.
Q: Did you know how the books would end before you started writing them, or did you make many changes along the way?
A: I did know how the first book would end originally but then I got to a certain point in the story and realised the book had achieved what it set out to do and that it made more sense to conclude it there and write where it was going into the second book.
However, the basic idea for the end of the second and third I knew and was always working towards… this is always with little changes because I like the fluidity of writing and allowing the story to evolve and go where it makes sense.
Q: What do you hope readers take away from the novels?
A: Well, first and foremost I want my readers to have a chance to escape into a different world and to become a part of it for a short time. And for me there is nothing better than sinking your teeth into a good story so I want them to enjoy it.
Beyond that I think there are different things people could get from it but I guess it would be cool if readers cottoned onto a message that everybody makes mistakes, nobody’s perfect, and that real relationships are strengthened when one can look beyond an individual’s faults.
And that, yes, everyone makes mistakes, but everyone can change, evolve, grow, and become a better version of themselves… if they want to.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: Right now I’m working on bringing out the first book of the next trilogy. It is based in the same world but 20 years beyond the first series and it follows three new main characters; however, the protagonists from the first series appear as secondary characters. Essentially the story continues through new points of view and adventures.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: Recently I had all three books come out on audible. I really love being able to listen to books while I drive or do housework so I totally get why audiobooks are so popular.
I felt the need to include mine and I’m really happy with them because my narrator, Paul Metcalfe, really brings the books to life.
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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