Courtesy of Martha Wells
New York Times bestselling author Martha Wells began writing her first book “The Element of Fire” shortly after graduating from Texas A&M University in 1986 with an anthropology degree. She always loved fantasy books, movies and TV shows, but when she put pen to paper the spark caught fire.
Courtesy of Martha Wells
Martha’s latest book, “The Book of Ile-Rien,” is a revised collection of two of her first published works both taking place in the kingdom of Ile-Rien but following different storylines. “The Element of Fire” follows Thomas Boniface, captain of the Queen’s guard, as he seeks to protect the kingdom from the shadowy intentions of the King’s sorcerous half-sister who unexpectedly comes to court. “The Death of the Necromancer” follows Nicholas Valiarde, a nobleman turned master thief, who steals from the rich to fund a quest for vengeance that is put on hold to investigate a dark magic permeating the streets of Ile-Rien.
“‘The Element of Fire’ and ‘Death of the Necromancer’ along with a couple of my first full books had all gone out of print,” Martha says. “[My publisher] wanted to get it back into print in paperback and ebook and do a new edition. And I just thought that would be a great opportunity to revisit [these stories] and re-edit them and bring them up to the standard that I write today because my writing has changed a lot over the past 30 years.”
The biggest change in her writing over the years stems from how much more comfortable she feels putting herself on the page, Martha says.
“Genres like science fiction, fantasy, mystery and romance deal with a lot of tropes that people use in different ways, but one of the things that really makes each book new and unique is what the writer brings to it,” Martha says. “The more of yourself you bring to [the writing process], the better [the book] is going to be.”
Though “The Book of Ile-Rien” is a revision of Martha’s older stories, the original plot and characters remain intact. The biggest difference in this new version is the diction and verbiage used, Martha says.
“I might have given a slightly different spin on [dialogue, world-building and descriptions] to be more accurate,” Martha says. “Or I didn't know how to express a thought back then and now I do.”
Being able to understand how a world shapes the people who live in it and the empathy to understand a person’s motivations is one of the keys to making a character that feels grounded in a story. Being a Fort Worth native and putting her roots down in Bryan/College Station in the 80s, the Brazos Valley has served as inspiration for her world-building, Martha says.
“I think the history in this area and in most of the state, particularly in places like Galveston Island, where you can see the layers of history that are still there [inspires me],” Martha says. “[You can see] how it affects the way people change and how the world changes as it goes along. [The Brazos Valley] is a really good place [to see that]. The whole area from the hill country, down to the coast [lets you] really see how history affects everything.”
For readers looking to get into fantasy books with rich world-building and grounded characters, look no further.
“‘The Book of Ile-Rien’ is probably a good place to start,” Martha says. “It depends on what kind of fantasy and science fiction you like. There's so many options of [books that are] adventures, more quiet stories or [books with] a lot of world-building. The best way is to do what I did when I was a kid and look at the covers and whatever cover appeals to you, see what it's about, read the first page and see if it grabs your attention.”
“The Book of Ile-Rien” is available on Amazon and wherever books are sold. Signed copies are available at Hyperbole Bookstore at 1275 Arrington Rd. Ste. 102. Call (979) 422-3427 or email hyperbolebookstore@gmail.com to check the availability of in-store signed copies. Visit marthawells.com and follow @marthawellswriter on Instagram to learn more about Martha and stay up to date on new works, events and appearances.
