Fantasy author James Barclay is rapidly becoming a firm favourite with UK heroic fantasy fans and has a total of eight novels and one novella on his list of published titles to-date. His latest book was Shout For the Dead [Amazon], the second part of his Ascendents of Estorea duology, and following that he recently announced that for his next book he would be making a return to his previous and best-known world: Balaia, home of the motley band of mercenary warriors and mages known as The Raven.The new novel will be called Ravensoul and is scheduled for publication in June 2008 by Gollancz Books in the UK. We asked intrepid reporter - and chief moderator of the James Barclay Forum - Lizzy Hill to put on her best fan-knowledge head, drop James a line, and see what she could find out for us.UKSFBN: Could you start by giving us a quick outline of the new book, Ravensoul?James Barclay: "The world is under threat (isn't it always?). But this time, not merely Balaia, home to men, elves and Wesmen, but Beshara, the dragon realm - the dead dimension where souls travel to find peace - and even that of the old enemy, the demons. Attacked by a race vastly more powerful who desire to harvest mana for their own ends. If they cannot be stopped, the entire dimensional cluster will be reduced to dust and memories."Enter The Raven, both the living and the dead, to try and save their homeland one last time. This time though, the odds against are further stacked by scepticism, opportunism, fear and greed."If The Raven are to succeed, if anyone is to be saved, they must trust to that which has seen them through so many desperate times: themselves and their Code. Ravensoul is about love and honour reaching out beyond the boundaries of life and death; it is about how greed and the lust for power can threaten the lives of everyone; and it is about how the right thing to do is not always the expected course..."UKSFBN: David Gemmell was your mentor and friend. On your myspace blog you have something David said: "When for all others hope is gone and despair and defeat inevitable, for a hero there is always something that can be done". Is this the premise for Ravensoul?James Barclay: "It was certainly a central consideration. I write heroic action fantasy, so heroes are terribly important. David and I had plenty of conversations on the nature of heroism and how we expressed it in our books and that was something that always stuck with me. It is on the wall by my desk as a way to maintain focus too."There is a nod in David's direction with this book and it is my way of paying homage, if you like, to a great storyteller and great friend. Not that I'm trying to write a Gemmell book, by the way, I'll leave that to Stella who has done such a great job with the end of the Troy series. But his thoughts on heroism, honour and love have had their effect on me and I want to reflect that in my approach this time."UKSFBN: Why did you decide to return to the Raven?James Barclay: "It's a funny thing. When I finished Demonstorm, although it was 'the end' there was still something niggling away. I was always very careful never to say never about a return to The Raven and this book is a result of an idea that has been germinating ever since Demonstorm was finished."I've said many times that I don't want to write one too many books about The Raven and the pressure is on to make sure Ravensoul is not that. I think it'll surprise fans of The Raven and it is a genuine continuation of the series; and, I think, a satisfying final chapter."UKSFBN: Death and the afterlife played a key part in Demonstorm and will in Ravensoul; what are your views on reincarnation and the possibility of an afterlife?James Barclay: "I think they are both fascinating concepts but I also think on a personal level that it is a waste of time to run your life assuming either of them awaits you. What happens after death is the ultimate fear of the unknown so I don't bother thinking about it much (other than when I'm writing). I'd rather spend my time trying to do the best I can right now and what happens after just happens."If you believe your actions in life affect what happens after death, I've no problem with that, I just don't think that should drive you – if you think about it, it means that any good deed you perform is for selfish motives. What you should be doing, of course, is good deeds because they are good deeds and because others benefit. The reward should be the knowledge that you have improved the lot of another to whatever degree."See how everything eventually returns to a discussion on the nature of heroism?"Actually, to go off at a tangent. What I've just said here will attract comment that I am being naïve about the nature of humanity. And maybe I am. But what offends me is that it is sometimes seen as pointless and embarrassing to discuss the essential goodness of people. And it shouldn't be. And what's more, when you look, you find more people are altruists than you might think. It's just that by their very nature, they don't feel the need to tell everyone how wonderful they are. They just get on with it."UKSFBN: How do you feel the experience gained from writing the Ascendants books, a very different type of book, has helped Ravensoul?James Barclay: "Organisationally, it has helped a great deal. The Ascendants books were two big sprawling adventures that needed very close attention to make sure story and plot stayed on course. I'm using the techniques I developed to help with Ravensoul. On a more basic level, two more books down the line makes me more experienced. I'm sure everything I've learned, consciously or not, will be applied to the new book."Oh, and it also taught me that writing large books is exhausting and that I should give it a rest for a bit ."UKSFBN: You are renowned for your knack of keeping a reader on their toes by happily killing off even your major characters. Do you always know who you will kill off when you start a book or is the process more organic and you wait to see where the fight goes?James Barclay: "You make it sound so clinical . I always have an idea who will survive to the end of a book and who will not. I don't necessarily know in which battle a victim will fall. Sometimes, the story can lead you to an inevitable conclusion and it is there that the character must die. At other times, I plan it more carefully as there are those times when the death of one changes the course of the story, and that must always be done at the right time."I'd like to point out that I don't kill off people just for shock value. That is gratuitous. But the worlds in which I write are very dangerous and if you march around the place with a sword or a bunch of spells during times of war, you are going to be at enormous risk no matter how good you are. Death comes in an instant and, referring to paintball above, one mistake, one unexpected twist, and that's the end."UKSFBN: What's next, after Ravensoul?James Barclay: "The glib answer to that is 'Christmas'. But that probably wasn't the answer you wanted. I'm working on a young adult series that I and (mostly) my agent are trying to place with a publisher. Great fun to write and a whole different challenge. I hope it sees the light of day as I'm very excited about it."Everything is possibilities right now. I'm talking to my publisher, Gollancz, about a new fantasy series we've been edging around for quite some time. I've another concept forming for a yet different fantasy idea and have a (shock-horror) stand-alone fantasy I'd love to write too."And to avoid being collared by Pete Crowther at PS Publishing, I'm still working on a another novella for him. This is also a dream to write as it's a comedy fantasy, or at least, that's what it's supposed to be."Plenty to be considered. And then there's the feature film I'm acting in. That is an ace from being green-lit and hopefully will shoot either at the end of this year or early next year. I'll not want for things to do, that's for sure."Thank you James, and thank you, Lizzy! You can find out everything you could possibly want to know about James Barclay over at his official website, and James Barclay, join in with the conversation at the James Barclay Forum. Pre-ordering information for Ravensoul can be found at Amazon.co.uk.
Pour se divertir, il y a tout de même largement mieux !
puisque, je le redis encore, je début en la matière et n'ai donc pas beaucoup d'exemples sous la main... La richesse d'un Tolkien est absolue et indiscutable, et c'est en cherchant cela que que je suis tombée dans "La Roue du temps" néanmoins, je ne peux m'empêcher de trouver le style de Jordan parfois pesant, longuet, étirant au maximum la patience du lecteur et le suspense... Je ne défends là pas seulement les "Ravens" ou le travail de Barclay mais celui des romanciers qui savent, comme tu le dis, créer une évasion pure et simple, directe, sans forcément créer également des codes nouveaux et s'éloigner suffisamment des chemins tracés de la Fantasy (allusion ici au constant argument que vous faites de l'omniprésente influence des jeux de rôles).Après les goûts et les couleurs....
) ça casse pas trois pattes à un canard ! Bon ça se lit vite ça se bastonne dans tout les sens, ça fait un bon scénario de Donjon et Dragon mais ca manque quand même cruellement de crédibilité et d'envergure. Mais au final ca fait un divertissement pas désagréable, a mettre dans la même case qu'un Swartzenneger ! 
