Through the Oracle's Mist by Aedan Byrnes – Guest Post + Giveaway

Through the Oracle’s Mist by Aedan Byrnes

In the blackest night, with the moon and stars to guide him, she would always be there waiting…

Cyrenna thought she died the day she watched Tynan and his brothers jump through the banishment portal in an act of solidarity with Rigor. Little did she know, it would be the first of many deaths she would experience in her quest to claim his heart. She would surrender not only her immortal soul, but a mortal one repeatedly. Through a deal with the great Oracle, she has multiple mortal lifetimes to change the direction of her future and have a chance with Tynan.

Her journey spans the ages from the GenPei War in Japan and the Silk Road west, to Cromwell, the Three Kingdoms and modern times, bringing her one step closer to forever until she makes a misstep. Then, the burden falls to Tynan. The only thing that is absolute is her fervent hope that he will come, but there’s one big problem.

Through it all, he doesn’t so much as know her name.

Naming Characters
Aedan Byrnes

I don’t know that there is a right or wrong way to name characters. Is there conventional wisdom on it? Who would know? I know that JK Rowling uses names that are indicative or base meaning supportive of the character she is naming. I myself would have no notion on many of the names I’ve used of the base meaning, if there is a base meaning, or perhaps if it’s ever been used as a name before. I have been known to pull up lists of names from different sources to find a name I like, but often that is for the flow of the name in a series or segment of the story, not for the meaning of it.

The exception to this, is when Tynan calls Michiko, ‘Mejawen’ which translates to ‘my little warrior’ but that was added to the story long after those chapters were written and set aside. Rigor, for example has a longer name that hasn’t been revealed yet and took me days to come up with. I believe it is an old name that he has eventually landed with, kind of, but again, it was pen and paper playing with letters more so than seeking a name that had inference to the character. I had the names for the brothers before I knew their stories, so I had Asmodai in the tale long before he was known as “Ass”.

I think I probably do the naming thing backwards compared to most. I know the names of all eleven of the Pietre warriors from the current generation even though I know that there are a few of them who will not be known beyond their name. Their story is just not part of my plan, but I know their names anyway. That said, perhaps there is a subconscious lull to naming characters before you write or as you write they show up an announce to you who they are.

Perhaps it is that the character names for me are known ahead because that is how I will recognize their stories when they come. Perhaps there is a part of my mind that needs that visceral connection to piece the tales together as I see them unfold and to know who it is that is speaking to me or through me. Really, who’s to say? It is rare that I go back and change a name once I know it. I have been known too to get a sense of a name and jot it in my journal for somewhere down the road having no idea if it will ever be used. The list is quite long. Does that then mean I have that many stories to tell?

Maybe it does.

Thanks so much for letting me blather on about character names. I don’t know if you’ve gained any
insight into them or if I learned anything more about why I do what I do with names, but it’s been an interesting adventure for me to wonder at. I hope for you too. Keep in touch! I’m on goodreads, though not often.

Thanks so much for stopping by, Aedan! I enjoyed reading your guest post on naming characters, and I’m sure my readers enjoyed it as well. It’s always fun to ‘see’ inside an author’s mind. 🙂

About the Author

There is no simple description for Aedan Byrnes. Obsessive, dreamer, reclusive, compulsive, outdoorsman and wordsmith would be among the list if one were started. The displaced Gael lives in the upper Midwest with family between jaunts wherever the road takes him. A frequent traveler, he is as likely to be found rock climbing or spelunking as sitting fireside dreaming or aimlessly floating away.

A lifelong lover of words and writing, he claims a diverse reading appetite and his writing reflects the myriad influences. A self-proclaimed ‘reader’s writer’, he looks for the emotional and the sensory in word combinations, not just the visceral comprehension of phrases in the stories he crafts and his love of all things literary shines through.

https://www.facebook.com/#!/AedanByrnes

Twitter: @AedanByrnes

fan made video trailer: http://youtu.be/wdW5BBP6wcs

http://www.cafepress.com/AuthorAedanByrnes

Aedan will be awarding to one randomly drawn commenter: a journal from his CafePress storefront, a charm and leather bracelet made for the story and a custom cover shepherd hook style bookmark made by Stone Soup Designs for Through the Oracle’s Mist. The bracelet leather colors and the journal cover may differ from the photo. Awesome!! Just leave a comment on this post for Aedan for your chance to win. After you comment here, be sure to click the tour banner at the top of the post to follow the tour and leave comments at other tour spots to increase your chance of winning.

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