A Word Please

Welcome to another Tell me one thing… feature! Today’s character guest is brought to you by author Lynda Williams. Our guest’s name is Di Mon, Liege Monitum, and his letter is M. Here he is to introduce himself:

I appear in the first three books of the Okal Rel Saga by Lynda Williams, published by Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing. They are: Part 1: The Courtesan Prince (that’s not me), Part 2: Righteous Anger, and Part 3: Pretenders. I appear on the cover of Part 3: Pretenders. As the 103rd liege of Monitum, I take my duty as the custodian of our liberal intellectual traditions as seriously as my court role as advisor to the Vrellish houses and kingmaker for the empire. Since I am also a liege of Fountain Court, I had no choice but to channel my Vrellish nature into becoming a sword champion able to defend the Monatese position under Sword Law. People say I have a Vrellish temper beneath my civilized Monatese demeanor. Perhaps. If so, it is not the trait I am most proud of. I have always venerated the late Ava Ameron, and seek to serve his agenda in my heart, although I must accept compromises with honor to navigate the world of the Demish court. I have a very good friend, named Ranar, who is from the world of Rire which is totally alien to ours. My ability to accept him and work with him, mind to mind, even though he is alien and technically a commoner since he isn’t a Sevolite, is a testament to the intellectual flexibility of my Monatese heritage.

Now let’s get to the spilling of the secrets! Tell me one thing about you that is…

Magnificent: I am a historian by training, committed to the study of mankind’s follies in the interests of improving our future. I can see beyond the happenstance of my social position to view the larger scope of existence and see things from the point of view of others. (Ranar: He does have a great mind. He is also magnificently Vrellish as a physical being: intense, sudden, fast and masterful.)

Maladjusted: I cannot afford such luxuries. (Ranar: Why I am able to say things, here, that we’d both rather die than discuss in public, I don’t know. But the truth is Di Mon’s a homosexual in a seriously homophobic culture driven by religiously underpinned ideas of reproductive determinism. I respect his reasons for secrecy. But resent his self-doubts about our relationship, and himself. Although somehow he never manages to view me as sla – the Gelack word for perverted.)

Mysterious: Monitum’s relationship with the exiled Lorels makes us all mysterious. A liege of Monitum, in particular, always has secrets shared only with his or her inheritors. (Ranar: He’s so in the habit of keeping the truth to himself, he hardly recognizes if when it’s out in the open for discussion. Fortunately, I’m a trained debater.)

Mean: Under Sword Law, it is expected anyone who stands against you stands prepared to kill or die. (Ranar: I can accept Sword Law, as an anthropologist. Why can’t I accept Di Mon will kill without regret?)

Mischievous: A Fountain Court liege has no time for frivolity. (Ranar: I swear he derives a subtle pleasure from disconcerting me.)

Monotonous: It is my obligation to record affairs of state in the Monatese logs, handwritten, in English. Adhering to tradition is how we keep faith with the past. (Ranar: He also loves to take apart Reetion info technology and is a wizard with Sevolite nervecloth. I think the logs are kept the way they are for security reasons as much as sentimental ones.)

Mettlesome: Bravery is a Sevolite birthright. Spirited? Hardly. (Ranar: Once he decides something has to happen, it does. He prevaricates a lot, but once he’s committed it’s 100%. The bravery would be stirring, except I fear it’s wrapped up in a latent death wish connected either to his maladjustment to his sexual preference or possible a general depressive tendency.)

Merry: I can enjoy myself as well as the next liege. (Ranar: I wish. He seems to feel it’s his duty to be grim and pessimistic most of the time. But there have been moments.)

Malicious: I can kill even the innocent when the greater good demands the sacrifice, but take no pleasure in the torment of the guilty even if richly deserved. Retribution should be swift and simple. (Ranar: True, but damn you for that later. And what of the schemes that played out years beyond your death? And the burden of responsibility you placed on Erien? It is to those who loved you most you were most cruel and yet we cling to the connection, as if your expectations keep you with us, watching to make sure we serve the cause you were not prepared to give up even in death.)

Memorable: I do not expect to be long remembered. Ameron is the legend. I was his servant. Time erases the details of politics and leaves only the high points standing tall. (Ranar: No liege of Monitum left such a mark on his people, nor the universe.)

Intrigued by Di Mon? Here’s a look at the pages he lives within:

Back from exile to claim the throne of Sevildom, Ev’rel must play the frail princess with the Demish to claim power as she is tempted by her feelings for her ex-mentor Di Mon. But does she love him or hate him? Disillusioned by Ev’rel’s warped sexuality, but desperate to secure her as a leader, Di Mon is terrified she will discover the equally forbidden bond between himself and the young Reetion, Ranar. An unwilling contender for the throne, Ev’rel’s beautiful, battered son Amel longs for friendship with tom-boy Ayrium, who has been sent to court to put down her sword and don a dress to win court allies for her rebel alliance. Ayrium meets a peculiar, reclusive scholar from Monitum and worries romance will distract her from her true agenda. Will her inconvenient love interest change everything for everyone?

And now to introduce Di Mon’s author, Lynda Williams:

Lynda Williams is the author of the Okal Rel Saga and author or editor of works in the associated Okal Rel Legacies series. She is married with three daughters, has two masters degrees and has worked as a journalist, university and college instructor, educational technologist and educational project coordinator. Lynda features weekly on the Clarion Blog as the host of the ‘Writer’s Craft’ and is membership coordinator of Broad Universe.

You can learn more about Lynda and her writing in the following places:

http://www.okalrel.org/books.html
http://twitter.com/okalrelsrv
http://clarionfoundation.wordpress.com/tag/lynda-williams/
http://www.dkj-online.com/okalrel/

Lynda is quite the prolific author! Here’s a look at all her books on Amazon:

Thanks for reading.

Tags: author interviews, character guests, Edge Science Fiction and Fantasy Publishing, fantasy authors, Fantasy novels, Guest Authors, Lynda Williams, Okal Rel Saga, Sci-Fi authors, Sci-Fi novels, Tell me one thing