Heksenat
Læs Aniston.dk's interview med Deborah Harkness, og vind et eksemplar af "Heksenat".
"Heksenat" er Deborah Harkness' debutroman, der er fyldt med historie, magi og spænding, og som handler om den forbudte kærlighed mellem en heks og en 1500 år gammel vampyr.
Aniston.dk har talt med den roste forfatter om forfatterskabet og den nye roman, som netop er udkommet på dansk.
Deborah Harkness om sit forfatterskab
Your business card already says History Professor and Wine-blogger. What made you write a book?
It wasn't a conscious decision, but a happy accident. I've written two non-fiction books, so I'm not a complete stranger to writing. But writing fiction wasn't something I'd ever really considered.
In fact, I didn't tell anyone that I was writing fiction until six weeks had passed and I had more than a dozen chapters. I was surprised!
En verden fyldt med vampyrer
'A Discovery of Witches' (Heksenat red.) is about witches and vampires. Can the world never get enough of vampyres?
Vampires are relative newcomers among the supernatural creatures who have fascinated readers.
The word 'vampire' wasn't even used in most western European countries until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
Before that, readers were far more interested in ghosts, devils, witches, daemons (and demons), and exotic hybrid creatures like dragons and the basilisk. The appeal of all these creatures — and vampires, too — is that they help to explain the inexplicable.
Readers and writers are given the opportunity to suspend belief and wonder How do I know there aren't witches? And even more important What if there are?
Aniston.dk har talt med den roste forfatter om forfatterskabet og den nye roman, som netop er udkommet på dansk.
Deborah Harkness om sit forfatterskab
Your business card already says History Professor and Wine-blogger. What made you write a book?
It wasn't a conscious decision, but a happy accident. I've written two non-fiction books, so I'm not a complete stranger to writing. But writing fiction wasn't something I'd ever really considered.
In fact, I didn't tell anyone that I was writing fiction until six weeks had passed and I had more than a dozen chapters. I was surprised!
En verden fyldt med vampyrer
'A Discovery of Witches' (Heksenat red.) is about witches and vampires. Can the world never get enough of vampyres?
Vampires are relative newcomers among the supernatural creatures who have fascinated readers.
The word 'vampire' wasn't even used in most western European countries until the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
Before that, readers were far more interested in ghosts, devils, witches, daemons (and demons), and exotic hybrid creatures like dragons and the basilisk. The appeal of all these creatures — and vampires, too — is that they help to explain the inexplicable.
Readers and writers are given the opportunity to suspend belief and wonder How do I know there aren't witches? And even more important What if there are?
Karakterer du kan identificere dig med
Why would you recommend your book to the readers of Aniston.dk?
My goal with "A Discovery of Witches" was to write a fairly tale that spoke to adult issues and concerns. I tried to create characters who were strange—yet strangely familiar.
Many of us will recognize ourselves in Diana, who has so much power but is afraid to use it.
Others will empathize with Matthew's inability to let go of his 1500-year past — even though we have less of a past to worry about!
And still more will wonder, while riding the train or sitting in a meeting, if that strange creature opposite just might be a daemon or a vampire.
Inspirationen
What or who inspired you to write your book?
It's pretty hard not to notice the popular preoccupation with witches, vampires, and things that go bump in the night. But we aren't the first to be fascinated with these creatures.
Today, we often imagine them into fantastic otherworlds, but the people I study believed that such magical beings were living alongside them in this world. So I started thinking, if there are vampires and witches, what do they do for a living — and what strange stories do humans tell to explain away the evidence of their presence?
A Discovery of Witches began with the answers to these questions as I essentially reimagined our modern world through the eyes of medieval and Renaissance people.
Kærlighed mellem heks og vampyr
Do you think that the Diana and Matthew would have fallen in love, if they had been humans like you and me?
I do. They are drawn to each other primarily because of their intelligence — something that would have been true even if they weren't witch and vampire.
En succeshistorie
Your book has been a great succes in the USA. Are you surprised about this?
Nobody expects such a warm response so yes, I was surprised.
Actually, that's an understatement. Even people who claimed they were tired of witches and vampires liked the book.
We all still read fiction about humans, even though there are millions of titles on that subject.
I'm glad editors and publishers had a sense that my novel would be a welcome addition to the stores already on the shelves, and that readers have agreed.
Flere bøger på vej
Will we be lucky to read something by you again some day?
I always imagined the story of Diana and Metthew in three episodes, and I'm currently working on the second book.
"Heksenat" er udkommet på dansk fra Lindhardt og Ringhof den 26. april 2011.
Vind "Heksenat"
Du har nu chancen for at vinde et eksemplar af "Heksenat" lige her på Aniston.dk frem til den 15. maj 2011.
Se her, hvordan du deltager i konkurrencen.
Why would you recommend your book to the readers of Aniston.dk?
My goal with "A Discovery of Witches" was to write a fairly tale that spoke to adult issues and concerns. I tried to create characters who were strange—yet strangely familiar.
Many of us will recognize ourselves in Diana, who has so much power but is afraid to use it.
Others will empathize with Matthew's inability to let go of his 1500-year past — even though we have less of a past to worry about!
And still more will wonder, while riding the train or sitting in a meeting, if that strange creature opposite just might be a daemon or a vampire.
Inspirationen
What or who inspired you to write your book?
It's pretty hard not to notice the popular preoccupation with witches, vampires, and things that go bump in the night. But we aren't the first to be fascinated with these creatures.
Today, we often imagine them into fantastic otherworlds, but the people I study believed that such magical beings were living alongside them in this world. So I started thinking, if there are vampires and witches, what do they do for a living — and what strange stories do humans tell to explain away the evidence of their presence?
A Discovery of Witches began with the answers to these questions as I essentially reimagined our modern world through the eyes of medieval and Renaissance people.
Kærlighed mellem heks og vampyr
Do you think that the Diana and Matthew would have fallen in love, if they had been humans like you and me?
I do. They are drawn to each other primarily because of their intelligence — something that would have been true even if they weren't witch and vampire.
En succeshistorie
Your book has been a great succes in the USA. Are you surprised about this?
Nobody expects such a warm response so yes, I was surprised.
Actually, that's an understatement. Even people who claimed they were tired of witches and vampires liked the book.
We all still read fiction about humans, even though there are millions of titles on that subject.
I'm glad editors and publishers had a sense that my novel would be a welcome addition to the stores already on the shelves, and that readers have agreed.
Flere bøger på vej
Will we be lucky to read something by you again some day?
I always imagined the story of Diana and Metthew in three episodes, and I'm currently working on the second book.
"Heksenat" er udkommet på dansk fra Lindhardt og Ringhof den 26. april 2011.
Vind "Heksenat"
Du har nu chancen for at vinde et eksemplar af "Heksenat" lige her på Aniston.dk frem til den 15. maj 2011.
Se her, hvordan du deltager i konkurrencen.
