Frequently Asked Questions
Questions about The Tapestry

  • How many books will be in The Tapestry?

    The Tapestry is currently scheduled to be four volumes. Originally it was conceived as three, but having written the second book, I realized that there are simply too many themes, characters, and settings I would like to explore to wrap it all up in three volumes. I've also sketched out plans for several prequels that would take place in the late Renaissance/early Baroque periods, but those are still in the early planning stages.


  • What were your goals when you set out to write this series?

    I kept it simple--I wanted to craft a book that I would enjoy. I've always been an avid reader and devoured all kinds of stories, but the ones that stand out definitely share certain traits regardless of their genre...

    CHARACTER-DRIVEN: In my opinion, great characters are by far the most vital ingredients to a story. An engaging plot will snag readers once, but readers will revisit great characters again and again until they are part of the family. I'm not ashamed to say that I'm involved with Gandalf and Gus McCrae and Lyra and Charlotte and Ishmael and Maturin and the many other great characters that have come to inhabit my being. In that spirit, I hope that Max McDaniels, David Menlo or even Mum (the beast!) will come to claim a little corner of their own in someone else's affections.

    AN INTENSE, VISUAL EXPERIENCE: It's my goal to craft an emotionally satisfying journey for my readers--a story with scenes that are cozy, funny, mysterious, exhilarating, or even terrifying. As a visual person, I spend lots of time picturing the story-- how things would happen--before I ever tap a key. The next challenge is to translate my mental movie into the written word. Hopefully, this results in streamlined prose that is both stimulating and unaffected.

    A BIT OF HEFT: While an intense, visual experience is very nice, it can also lead to the literary equivalent of Armageddon if it isn't tempered with some grit and depth. THE TAPESTRY is not a popcorn book. While it offers up plenty of laughs and thrills, it also explores some darker themes using a backdrop of mythology, history, and my own creations.


  • Who is the target audience for The Tapestry?

    Ideally, anyone who enjoys a good story, but I don't really write for a particular age group. The books themselves are substantial things--each more than 400 pages--encompassing subject matter, language, and themes that are probably most appropriate for readers ten and older. Then again, I've known some precocious eight and nine year olds who have tackled it straightaway, so I try to shy away from arbitrary classifications.


  • Why did you choose to call the series The Tapestry?

    For several reasons. Tapestries often tell a story, they are carefully woven together, and they represent an age and art form that's important to my tale. Also, and most obviously, it is Max's vision of the tapestry at the museum that begins the series.


  • What differentiates The Tapestry from other fantasy books and series?

    A few things, I hope. When most people hear 'fantasy' they think 'magic' and while there is 'magic' in THE TAPESTRY, it's not a book defined solely by spells and wizardry. Far from it. In addition, this series offers substantial threads of science fiction, world history, mythology and folklore from many cultures. I think of it as the literary equivalent of a fusion restaurant--a pinch of this genre, a dash of that genre delivered with an undercurrent of realism. I'll cross my fingers that readers are treated to a world that they find spectacular and scary and real.

    Another major differentiator, in my opinion, is that the author also illustrates these books. In our era of ever increasing specialization, the author/illustrator is a dying breed and I'm hopeful that readers will appreciate a creative work whose words and pictures both stem from one source.


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