Q&A: Juliet Marillier’s Prickle Moon

Bestselling fantasy author and valued WU contributor Juliet Marillier’s latest release, Prickle Moon, is garnering big buzz and advanced praise. Prickle Moon is an anthology of Juliet’s short fiction, including some new stories.

Magical, diverse, hopeful tales: Juliet Marillier’s “Prickle Moon” delivers masterly storytelling by a master storyteller.
~Gemmell Morningstar Award winner, Helen Lowe.

She sang them in, verse by verse, name by sweet name …” So begins Prickle Moon, Juliet Marillier’s first collection of short stories, and what stories they are. Each tale, whether inflected by fantasy, horror or science fiction, is powerful. Each bears the bones of its fairytale ancestors, inviting you to sit by the fire and hear stories at once timeless and ancient, yet shot through with the silver veins of modern life. Entertaining and enchanting, lyrical and lovely, Marillier will sing you in, too.
~Award-winning fantasy author, Angela Slatter.

Marillier’s fans will be delighted to see that her skills are as applicable to the short form as they are to the novel.
~Publishers’ Weekly.

We are excited to have her talk about Prickle Moon, and share her writing process. Enjoy!

Q: What’s the premise of your new book? 

Prickle Moon is a departure for me. I’ve written fifteen novels, but this is my first collection of short fiction. The book contains nine previously published stories including the Sevenwaters novella, ’Twixt Firelight and Water, and five new ones. The stories are a blend of historical and contemporary fantasy with a strong flavor of folklore and fairy tale. The title comes from the first story in the collection, which is about an old Scottish wise woman faced with an impossible moral choice. It features a clan of hedgehogs. If that sounds a bit like a children’s story, don’t be fooled – this is a book for adult readers.

Q: What would you like people to know about the stories themselves? 

There’s quite a variety of style and voice within the collection. Many of the stories were first published in anthologies by various authors, and some were written to fit the theme of a particular anthology. But overall there are unifying themes of love and loss, family, ancestors, natural magic, courage and hope. I’m especially proud of  By Bone-Light, a contemporary version of the Russian fairy tale Vasilissa the Fair. I had a great time creating a modern-day BabaYaga.

Q: What unique challenges did this book pose for you, if any? 

As a novelist, I find the short form quite demanding. The new stories I wrote for this collection took a lot of crafting. The title story came to me in a powerful dream during a visit to my birthplace of Dunedin, New Zealand last year. Dunedin is physically very similar to parts of Scotland, and when I was growing up there we had hedgehogs at the bottom of the garden. The Angel of Death, a story about the clearing of a puppy mill (an intensive dog breeding facility) was the hardest piece to write. I didn’t pull any punches about the sights, sounds and smells of such a place, nor the emotional fallout for both rescuer and rescued. The shutting down of puppy mills is a cause I am passionate about, and I hope this story will draw attention to the plight of the breeding animals kept in such facilities. 

Another challenge was deciding which stories to include in the collection and which to leave out, as well as what the best order would be. I did this in cooperation with my editor at Ticonderoga Publications. The collection starts with historical fantasy and ends with contemporary fantasy, with four romance stories (two historical and two contemporary) bridging the gap. I think it works!

Q: What has been the most rewarding aspect of having written this book? 

Prickle Moon has been a rewarding project in so many ways. Working with an independent small press (Ticonderoga specializes in science fiction and fantasy) has been a very different experience for me, as my novels are published by some of the so-called ‘big six’. I’ve really enjoyed working in such close partnership with my publisher and editor, and with local artist Pia Ravenari who created the beautiful cover for Prickle Moon. I have her original art work framed on my wall. And I’ve loved the opportunity to put old and new stories together and to realize the same themes run through all.

Prickle Moon is published by Ticonderoga Publications in hardback, trade paperback and e-book editions. The release date is April 4. The book can be ordered direct from the publisher at indiebooksonline.com. If you don’t live in Australia or New Zealand, check the usual online booksellers after the release date, as you should find Prickle Moon available without the additional cost of shipping from Down Under.

Writer Unboxed

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