Today, I have a guest post from Wendy Delsol, author of famous Stork series! :)
Destiny, Prophecy, and Karma
In fact, the very creative spark for the series has to do
with destiny. Years ago, on the TV show Unsolved Mysteries, there was a story
about a very young boy who claimed pre-birth memories of hovering and choosing
his mother. Yes! Choosing! This rocked my world. And it got me thinking that we
normally consider the soul from a post-death perspective. But what about
pre-birth? Much later, when brainstorming for something fresh in the YA
paranormal genre, I tweaked the idea to invent my human Storks, white witches charged
with pairing souls and mothers. And when
Candlewick Press asked me to provide an author’s quote for Stork’s book jacket, this was my response: “The concept of destiny
is fascinating, as is the idea of magic. It’s fun to think that we’re fated—or chosen—to
be with those we love.”
But I don’t personally believe that we are helpless puppets
to the forces of destiny and prophecy. Nor do I think any self-respecting
protagonist should be powerless or without free will. Ever! And this is where,
for me, karma comes in. Hulda, my wise leader of the Storks is one of the
books’ prophets and sums it up best: “Karma is the turning of the wheel and is
very important to the ancient religions of the Orient. Is much like fate, but
they believe karma is our will as we swim in the river of our past and present.
We cannot change the course of the river, but the strokes of our swim influence
our destination.”
Note: I made up the bit about the
river (fiction is such a lovely thing). The Storks have their own cosmology,
after all. It has roots in Norse mythology, but I may have dropped a realm (or
two) if they didn’t serve my purpose.
And the idea of destiny sure gives an author some excellent
material when it comes time to flesh out a love interest. Katla and Jack first
met when they were just ten years old. Katla was visiting her grandparents at
the time, and Jack was instantly smitten. Present day, he recalls the
experience (in Stork): “It’s hard to
explain,” he said, “but from the moment I laid eyes on you skating, I felt this
unshakable sense of fate, or destiny, or whatever you want to call it.”
In Flock, Jinky—a
character who is equal parts wise and wiseass—says to Katla: “As spiritual
beings, we have to act on our premonitions. To ignore a gift, to not rise to
the calling, is a willful defiance of our true purpose. For us, there is no
coincidence, no chance.”
In the end, Katla’s journey is to embrace her gift, to
accept the journey it requires, and to kick butt when butt-kicking’s necessary.
Happy reading!
Thank you for stopping by my blog, Wendy! Destiny
and prophecy have always been hot topic in YAs. And instant-smitten is
just soo cute! ;)
You can learn more about Wendy Delsol here:
Grab your copy of Flock!
The climactic
conclusion of a supernatural romantic trilogy starring a savvy,
sharp-tongued heroine who taps into ancient Norse secrets.
After surviving her (shall we say) intense adventure in Iceland, Katla is psyched to be back for a blissfully uneventful senior year of homecoming and fashion explorations. But her hopes of dodging unfinished business are dashed by the arrival of two Icelandic exchange students: Marik, an oddly alluring merman-in-disguise, and Jinky, a tough gypsy girl. It seems Katla not only enraged the Snow Queen by rescuing her boyfriend, Jack, she also was tricked into promising her frail baby sister to the water queen — and Marik has come to collect. What’s worse, Katla doesn’t dare confide in anyone lest she endanger them, so even her soul mate, Jack, is growing suspicious. And now Katla’s stork dreams, her guide for matching babies with mothers, have become strange and menacing as well. Hold on for a thrilling finale as the heroine of Stork and Frost calls on her wits (and her wit) to protect those she loves and face a final mythic disaster.
After surviving her (shall we say) intense adventure in Iceland, Katla is psyched to be back for a blissfully uneventful senior year of homecoming and fashion explorations. But her hopes of dodging unfinished business are dashed by the arrival of two Icelandic exchange students: Marik, an oddly alluring merman-in-disguise, and Jinky, a tough gypsy girl. It seems Katla not only enraged the Snow Queen by rescuing her boyfriend, Jack, she also was tricked into promising her frail baby sister to the water queen — and Marik has come to collect. What’s worse, Katla doesn’t dare confide in anyone lest she endanger them, so even her soul mate, Jack, is growing suspicious. And now Katla’s stork dreams, her guide for matching babies with mothers, have become strange and menacing as well. Hold on for a thrilling finale as the heroine of Stork and Frost calls on her wits (and her wit) to protect those she loves and face a final mythic disaster.
Thanks for reading! <3 Have a wonderful Friday, everyone! :)
