At first glance Goddess Fire may seem a complex mythic fantasy, but at its core is the basic human condition: a struggle for survival. Twenty years previous, a great plague strikes the land of Egira, killing off most of the men and leaving the land without leadership. Rescuers come in the form of the Vleth, 7' tall women with strange powers, mind readers who convince the Egirans and the Sylvani race who founded the great Egiran cities that they are there for the good of all. In short order, they enslave the men, create an army from the lowest class of Egiran women, whom they call Dames, and train them to be fighters. The Dames in turn strip the Sylvani of their basic rights and force them to yield to the Vleth's supreme power. 
About the Author Shelley Awad was born in Windsor, Ontario in 1958 and currently lives nearby in Tecumseh with her husband, Mitch. She has one son, Aaron, who is completing his PhD in chemistry at the University of Windsor. She received her Journalism Diploma from St. Clair College in Windsor. In 1999, Shelley opened her own greenhouse business, Backyard Greenhouses, specializing in residential and commercial greenhouses that she continues to sell across North America. |  |
Depending on how many protagonists you have in your story, how does Setting change, influence, motivate or stagnate each of them? If only one protagonist, how does her/his perception of place add a dimension to the story that is unique and original?Camera in hand, Valerie McCormick stepped from the bus into intense daylight. She put on her sunglasses and crossed the grass to the edge of the hill. Seattle's skyline loomed in the distance like a giant sandcastle. Closer in, waves rocked elegant yachts, sailboats, and cruisers docked at brown scribbled wharves, jutting along the waterfront. Fifty feet below her, a chain linked fence enclosed acres of quiet warehouses, buildings, and small sheds in both directions. Just inside the gate was the marina office.
Sounds of rain tapping on the patio doors pulled Valerie like a kingfisher to water. After the first two dry weeks of April, the rain cascading down the concrete structures and the darkened glass, made everything look untarnished. Traffic moved below, and people scurried down the sidewalks like ants searching for spilt sugar. Beyond mankind and his impressive towers were things more regal: hazy-gray sky, fir trees, ocean, and snow-capped mountains.
The city was beautiful. Valerie hated it.
"... insane ... " somebody behind her said.
Insane?
HAROLD N. WALTERS  The Southern Gazette |
Author, Joylene Nowell Butler, lived in Prince George for nearly 20 years. Now she lives near Vanderhoof, still in the same neck of the woods. 
