Keira Gillett Author

Fierce Middle Grade Fantasy Reads

Zaria Fierce

Q: Did you have any specific people in mind when creating your characters?

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A: Not particularly, but that said I do base some of the conversations, situations, and reactions characters get into or say on my family. I think that’s why they ring so true to readers. We’ve all had at least one of these experiences.

Oh wait, just as I was about to wrap this question up it occurred to me that yes, it’s been suggested by beta readers who know me in real life that my puppy, Oskar was inspiration for Vingar, a character from the third book. I see a lot of him in parts of Vingar’s character, so you could say Vingar was based on my puppy. The beta reader also said because she saw the connection to Oskar that it was hard for her to see Vingar as a creature you wouldn’t want to be near, to touch, or have brush up against you. Then I showed her Eoghan’s illustration of Vingar. Once she saw that she totally understood. LOL Eoghan’s great at bringing the fantasy creatures in the series alive.

Zaria Fierce Themes: The Power of Good, and Why it Must Continue to Battle Evil

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NOTE: This post series may include spoilers from the Zaria Fierce Trilogy. If you hate spoilers, please read about the themes in Zaria Fierce after you have read the books.

The power of good plays a very important role in the Zaria Fierce Trilogy and is one of the trilogy’s core themes. It’s a beacon in the darkness; a guide to light the path of our bookish heroine, her friends, and readers.

The villain, Koll, is a dragon, and he is no friend. Dragons in the trilogy are a stand in for original evil. Koll, whose name literally means dark, is the first of all dragons. He represents the idea that there is something in the world that opposes God, good.

The power of dragons is animal magnetism, which can be best defined as mesmerism or hypnotism. It is a mere belief of power and not actual power. It is treachery, baseness, falseness, and evil. It would rob you of everything that makes you who you are and blind you to good.

Koll’s power, like all dragons, has no foundation or substance. He can only steal from others what they intentionally or unintentionally attributed to him. He can do this by subtle means as in the second book in the trilogy, where he influences Zaria’s thoughts and feelings, or overtly, as in the third book, where he transforms into his true form and uses it to intimidate Zaria.

To fight dragons you can neither be like them, for they are evil, nor can you use their weapons of deceit and trickery. You must recognize them in all their forms, and know who you are and hold to it. You can’t give into them or their suggestions, or you will be lost, blind, and left in darkness. It’s a miserable place to be as Zaria will tell you, because you will doubt yourself, your worth, your actions, and your heart.

Hector Woodworth explains best how you might recognize the differences in your heart compared to a dragon’s influence when taking to Zaria in the following scene from the third book:

“Princess,” Hector said, “Koll can’t take what you don’t give him. Remember his power is animal magnetism. It’s about convincing you he knows better, changing you into something else, and taking from you what you would not freely give. Know yourself and he will be unable to reach you. This is important. You can’t let him win.”

Zaria wanted to do that, but she wasn’t even fourteen yet. She didn’t know what she wanted to eat for breakfast from one day to the next, let alone know herself. It was too frustrating and impossible.

“How?” she demanded. “How do I do that?”

“Sometimes it’s easier to know what you’re not,” Hector said simply. “You’re not mean, or cruel, or evil, or guilty. You’re not prone to self-loathing.”

Every action has consequences. Zaria knows this because she’s experienced those consequences. To overcome past mistakes, she must be attentive and alert to the dangers around her. She must be her truest self and express it thoroughly to defeat Koll. This is no easy task or lesson to learn. So it is for those who dare to confront dragons that they will find the very best in themselves.

It is my hope that readers will gain a little of Zaria’s strength and take it with them when they leave the books to return to their daily lives. Everyone deserves to be a dragon slayer, to know they possess that bravery inside them, and can conquer all fear, obstacles, and opposition with kindness and love… and perhaps, just a little bit of magic.

Thus it is that good must win over evil, love over hatred, truth over error. Now and always.

Zaria Fierce Themes: The Success of Girl Power, and What it Takes to be a Hero

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NOTE: This post series may include spoilers from the Zaria Fierce Trilogy. If you hate spoilers, please read about the themes in Zaria Fierce after you have read the books.

It was important to me to have the main character be a girl in my Norwegian fantasy trilogy as girls are usually sidekicks in the popular fantasy adventure books that I love to read, and I thought it was important to flip the message. That a girl could be smart, well-read, girly, and still be adventurous and the heroine of her own story is only right.

Zaria Fierce came to me almost as if she were a real person. She was a friend I could relate to because we both loved books. She was smart and she always tried to do what is right, even when she didn’t always know what that was. She was also unfailingly kind and just a little bit shy because she moved a lot and never had more than one friend. Her best friends were books.

At the start of the trilogy, Zaria wanted to be more courageous, but never really found an opportunity to be so and thusly thought she wasn’t. She was normal and relatable, which made her accessible to both boys and girls, because I think a lot of children (and adults) feel that they lack in themselves the characteristics required to be a true hero. They want to prove themselves and are ready for adventure, but wonder when their life will reflect on the outside how they feel on the inside. Where’s the adventure and excitement? Where’s the opportunity to be brave and good and true?

Now, even though she’s girly and bookish, Zaria is no damsel in distress. After all, she’s stood up to a nasty river-troll and gotten away, but she does need help from her friends. She isn’t an island and neither are her fans. Being a heroine doesn’t mean you have to be alone against the world. She isn’t alone and that’s abundantly clear when her friend goes missing and his other friends include her in the search for him. They form a tight-knit group and together they do their best to rescue him.

Additionally, being a heroine doesn’t mean you have to be brave from the start. Zaria isn’t. Things scare her and they continue to scare her throughout the books, but she perseveres and keeps going. That’s courage, and not only does she learn that she possesses it, but I hope her readers realize it of themselves, too.

It’s not always about facing down a bad guy, sometimes it’s about facing yourself. Being a heroine (or hero) is about finding out what you’re made of, continuing when hope is scarce, and the fervent desire to always do good and to be good. It’s about growing up, taking risks, not giving in to negative influences, and being true to yourself along the way.

I think that’s the reason for the success of the books. It’s not simply girl power, although it’s in there. Everybody wants their chance to shine. Everybody wonders how they’ll react when they face the world’s dragons. If you’re like Zaria, you’ll find that you had it in you all along. That’s the message I want readers to take away. That’s the hope I wish to give them.

Q: Have you always known how the Zaria Fierce Trilogy would end or has it changed since you first started the trilogy?

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A: I’ve always known.

Before Zaria’s story could be written I had to find out what her adventures would be, but I always knew her character arc would be the journey from timidity to bravery.

When the story came I knew how book one of the trilogy would end, and how the last book would end. Everything in between was a vague blank white space. I let the story and characters tell me what would happen as I wrote.

Events in book two clued me in on new scenes that would happen in the final book, but the final showdown and its outcome and fallout have always been known.

Zaria Fierce Themes: The Secret of Moral Courage, and How to Find it Within Yourself

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NOTE: This post series may include spoilers from the Zaria Fierce Trilogy. If you hate spoilers, please read about the themes in Zaria Fierce after you have read the books.

There’s a time or two in the books when Zaria is tempted to give up, to give in, and to go home, defeated. The lesson she learns is to not to give into those false desires. They’re ones we all seem to get from time to time about the various projects and relationships in our lives. There might come a time where it makes perfect sense to do just that, but not if it leaves you feeling defeated. Victory is the goal, but a victory over what?

False suggestions about what you’re worth and what you’re capable of doing. This boils down to two ideas:

  1. The idea that you’re not good enough.
  2. The idea that you can’t do enough good.

In the first suggestion, you might be tempted to pass the buck, thinking someone is better for the job. If Zaria had capitulated to those suggestions, which Koll gave her over and over, terrible things could have happened with consequences far more dire than making mistakes. It’s important to try, but it’s also important to be wise about how you try. Zaria will learn that when she puts her heart into the tasks at hand she can’t lose.

In the second suggestion, you might be tempted to not do all that you can do, thinking your efforts are wasted. Should the raindrop say, “I can’t water the whole earth therefore I will not fall,” the whole earth would be parched, for none would do their part. Zaria is not alone in her endeavors and because of that, she finds time and again with their help, the desire to do all she can and to be the best she can be.

Zaria’s desire to do good and to be good are her saving grace again and again. This is a message for all, because it speaks to us all, reminding us where our true strength lies – in ourselves, in our desires. The time to turn back in our pursuits is never when a dragon yells at us that we should. That’s the time when we should vigorously press forward; that’s how we’ll meet our dreams and be a light to others.

References:

What if the little rain should say,
‘So small a drop as I
Can ne’er refresh a drooping earth,
I’ll tarry in the sky.’

Pul. 4:3-6

Zaria Fierce Themes: The Balance of True Friendships

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NOTE: This post series may include spoilers from the Zaria Fierce Trilogy. If you hate spoilers, please read about the themes in Zaria Fierce after you have read the books.

Friendships are important to the story of Zaria Fierce. For a girl whose best friends were usually books, the cast of her story grows from one to six by the end of the trilogy. Everyone brings something to the table. Each friend is important to the telling, because they do not face off against dragons alone. They must fight together. All along the journey they support one another and are true friends. They cheer each other up, tease one another, learn from each other, and stick together through thick and thin.

If I were to say the main characteristic or attribute they shared with the group, it would be this:

  • Zaria – Kindness
  • Christoffer – Goodwill
  • Aleks – Direction
  • Geirr – Rationality
  • Filip – Loyalty
  • Henrik – Patience

Not to mention the other characters the children interact with along the way who were equally important to the journey, good or bad. I’ve included some of these characters below and their main characteristic:

  • Hector – Wisdom
  • Madam Brown – Service
  • Helena – Altruistic
  • Oskar – Prudence
  • Olaf – Trickery
  • Kafirr – Opportunistic
  • Floki – Disloyalty
  • Koll – Evil

This isn’t to limit any of these characters from any other attributes, but it’s a starting place to understand what drives them throughout the books. How would you define these characters? Share in the comments!