Because Mistress of the Wind is a retelling of the Scandinavian fairy tale East of the Sun, West of the Moon, I used Norse mythology throughout the story.
Trolls are an intergral part of Scandinavian myth and folklore, and there are plenty of trolls in Mistress of the Wind. But I also introduced two other folklore creatures which came from my imagination or which were a tweak of existing folklore.
The first of these is the yggren. . .
2/31: Kelly P's Blog - Guest Post
Mistress of the Wind is based on the fairy tale East of the Sun, West of the Moon, and as I researched it, I was enchanted by the number of unusual and interesting elements in the original tale. Thinking about how to deal with them in Mistress of the Wind, and de-constructing them for a better and deeper understanding of the original, inspired some of the storyline I wove into Mistress of the Wind.
+ Giveaway Breaking News for Indonesia - Guest Post
I don't write with music playing, I find it distracting, but I most definitely would go for my morning walk and listen to music that suited the mood of the story, and think about what I was going to write next. I find it interesting how music can so affect our moods and our tempo and pace.
1/1: Mel's Shelves - Review
She didn't realize, either, what powers she possessed until she decided to do her best to get Bjorn back. Bjorn is also very likable and they have a great connection. Then there are some secondary characters which add to the story and are fun to learn about. I enjoyed the second half of the book more than the first half and towards the end, I couldn't put it down.
The concept of a wind hag, the controller of the winds, was one that delighted me immediately. In the book Women Who Run With the Wolves, Clarissa Estes talks about hags and crones, including the Russian uber-hag, Baba-Yaga, as women of power and consequence. The word 'hag' generally has such negative connotations, but Estes introduced me to the idea that rather than a negative, it was a positive. Her ideas really resonated with me, so when I stumbled upon the Wind Hag folk tale, I was all over it. It just fit so well into the story, as seamlessly as if it was meant to be there.
+ Tressa's Wishful Endings - This or That
Read a book or watch TV?
Reading a book wins 90% of the time.
Get out of the house or stay at home?
I like to get out of the house, because I work from home, so it is the office and the house, and sometimes, I need a break.
Winter or summer?
Winter. I love boots, I love coming in to a warm house from the cold, and I love how green everything gets (winter in Western Australia is probably like summer in some parts of the world :))
1/3: Brooke Blogs - Guest Post
The challenge with Mistress of the Wind, given I wanted to remain true to the original fairy tale, was to give Astrid a good reason to go against Bjorn’s request to see him as a man.
The consequences of her doing so are huge, to both her and Bjorn, and I really had to create a compelling situation for her to act against his wishes. If she doesn’t do it, however, the story is over, they win and everyone lives happily ever after.
Unfortunately for them, they have to work a little harder for their happy ending than that.
1/5: Leeanna.me - Review
I thought this book was well-written and engaging, and I would check out the author’s next fairy tale retelling, THE GOLDEN APPLE, based on “The Princess on the Glass Hill.”
1/6: The Book Landers - Guest Post
I love being asked for a list of ten of my favorite fairy tales. There are so many great ones, and I'll probably head-smack myself in a couple of days because I left out a really good one, but here goes, in no particular order - and I've put in a link to a version of the fairy tale on the Sur La Lune Fairy Tale website, where there is one. It comes with annotations, and I really love the site, even if some of my favorites are a slightly different version to the one they have up there...
+ Deal Sharing Aunt - Interview
2. Where do you shop for books? What format?
I shop for print books at Amazon, Book Depository and my local Dymocks bookstore, and for ebooks on Amazon. Because I live in Australia, I can't always get the books I want in ebook format, because the rights for electronic book sales to Australia haven't been enabled, so I probably buy more print books than ebooks, but that isn't by choice, it's by necessity.
1/7: So Many Reads - Review
If you are fond of fairy tales and fantasy, you should check out Mistress of the Wind. I will admit that I have a tough time getting into fairy tales because it seems the walls on my imagination only allow me to go so far. However, Michelle’s writing is fantastic and she sets my mind free and helps me really visualize what is going on in the story.
1/8: My Devotional Thoughts - Guest Post
Mistress of the Wind is such a great fairy tale because the heroine gets to take an amazing journey to find where her lover has been taken, and rescue him. But part of why I love the fairy tale East of the Sun, West of the Moon so much is because the physical journey she takes mirrors a spiritual journey of coming into her power and into her sense of self. So here are ten things you can discover about yourself on a quest – - Astrid certainly did...
1/10: Colorimetry - Review
Michelle Diener follows the fairy tale quite closely while weaving in the Norse mythology stuff. Right in the middle of the story there's a very big switcheroo... and this is where I expected things to get boring or fuzzy with lack of specific detail because... well, read the story. This is where Michelle totally won me over. The Norse mythology side fills in all the vagueness of the fairy tale and the second half of the book is even better than the first.
1/12: The Reading Diaries - Review
I think the author did a fantastic job creating a complex story that mixes fantasy with adventure and romance. It was one of those stories you just can’t put down if not for sleep I would have stayed up all night to finish even though I knew how it would play out. The characters are easy to connect with you can’t help rooting for Astrid on her journey. I enjoyed the book it was worth reading and I’m sure I’ll read it again.
+ Bookish Outsider - Review
Ms Diener's writing is delightful and so descriptive, especially in the latter half of the book when Astrid is traveling with the winds and I could have quite easily carried on reading for some time thanks to the wonderful world the characters inhabited brought to life by the author's writing style and obvious love of the original fairy tale.
1/13: The Wonderings of One Person - Interview
How has this story touched your life?
All my stories touch my life, because I live in the world of the story every day I write it, and I walk in the steps of the characters, and know them as well as I know myself. Mistress of the Wind is about magical things and enduring love and finding your strength. I love its depth and the world it is set in.
1/14: Dalene's Book Reviews - Interview
4) Why did you decide to write Mistress of the Wind?
I've always loved fairy tales. But when I was at university, doing research for a history paper on the witch hunts of the 17th Century, I came across a really interesting (but totally unrelated :)) journal full of articles on the meanings of fairy tales. It was fantastic, and mind-blowing. I suddenly saw the subversion in the tales...
1/15: A Backwards Story - Interview
What was the hardest scene/element to write in MISTRESS OF THE WIND? The easiest?
Definitely the hardest was working on a way to give Astrid, my heroine, a good reason to go against Bjorn's wishes to see him as a man. It has to happen, it is part of the story, but creating the conditions for her to do so in a way that didn't show her to be careless of what would happen to him was challenging.
The easiest scenes were between Astrid and the troll princess. I'm not sure if it is because I had such a clear idea of who each of them were and their motivations, but I loved writing those scenes and they came easily to me.
+ Books & Chocolate - Interview
What inspired you to become a writer?
It was a decision made a long time ago, and at its heart, has never really changed - I love books and love telling stories.
What the inspiration behind Mistress Of The Wind?
I love fairy tales, and the fairy tale East of the Sun West of the Moon has always been one of my absolute favorites. The idea of writing a book based on the fairy tale has been swirling through my head for many, many years.
1/16: Addicted Readers
For me, it was about revelling in the world I had fallen in love with in the original tale. Perhaps I could have contemplated shaking things up a lot more if I didn't adore the tale just as it is, but I do, and it was fun and satisfying to set Mistress of the Wind in that world. I felt like I was honouring the original.
1/17: Grand Finale
writes historical fiction. Her Susanna Horenbout & John Parker series, set in the court of Henry VIII, includes In a Treacherous Court, Keeper of the King's Secrets and In Defense of the Queen.
Michelle's other historical novels include Daughter of the Sky, The Emperor's Conspiracy and Banquet of Lies (loosely connected to The Emperor's Conspiracy).
Michelle's first fantasy novel, Mistress of the Wind, is set for a December 23, 2013, release.
Michelle was born in London, grew up in South Africa and currently lives in Australia with her husband and two children.
