Interview: Jodi Lamm, author of Titan Magic

Jodi Lamm, author of Titan Magic, recently shared an awesome excerpt of her book with us, and gave 2 of you the chance to win (which is still going on, by the way, so if you haven't already, go enter!).
Today Jodi is stopping by to chat with us about Titan Magic and its upcoming sequel, some of her favorite and least favorite fairy tale bits, and how Titan Magic's Maddy could take down a fairy tale villain without breaking a sweat.
Check it out below!

---

Alright, I'm dying to know: When can we expect the follow-up to Titan Magic, and what can we expect from it?

I plan to publish Titan Magic: Body and Soul this summer. I'm shooting for June or July. In the sequel, you can expect to see much more of Kaspar, meet a few new characters, and learn a lot more about Marcus' history.

Titan Magic, while not a fairy tale retelling, does have aspects of fairy tales and is rooted deeply in folklore - does the sequel/follow-up touch on fairy tales in any way?

It does. The magic in it is still inspired by Jewish and Gnostic legends, although we delve a bit more into the Gnostic aspect in book two.

As much as we may love any particular tale, each has its own "problematic" aspects (for me, I can't get over the fact that Prince Charming has to find Cinderella, the glorious love of his life, by matching up her feet. I mean, really?). Which problematic aspect of a tale really gets under your skin?

I dislike "Sleeping Beauty" because the princess does nothing. She's worse than a prize; she's basically a dead body. Same with "Snow White," I guess. I don't like that these women are comatose and the men have to just take them in order to wake them.

Which fairy tale would you most like to spend 24 hours inside of, and which the least?

I would most like to spend 24 hours in the secret other-world of "The Twelve Dancing Princesses." It just sounds like such a beautiful, haunting place. I would least like to spend time in the world where Clever Jack traps Death. A world without death sounds pleasant on the surface, but when the reality of it becomes apparent—that nothing can die: no plant or animal for food, no human being who is suffering—it seems more like a hellish nightmare.

Normally I ask "If you could merge any two fairy tales (introduce the characters, combine the worlds, etc), which would they be and what would result" but this time I'd like to know what would happen if you were to introduce Maddy to a fairy tale character?

I'd love to introduce her to any of the monsters. Giants, ogres, dragons, evil djinn, or the Erlkönig. I'm terrible, I know. But Maddy is strong, and she's getting stronger. I just know she could take some of them down. Really, she and Kaspar would make excellent vampire hunters. Especially Kaspar. For reasons.

Someone gives you a key ring and says you can open any door you want, save one. Then they leave you alone with all those keys and doors. What do you do?

I would probably do exactly as they say. I'm a paranoid person, convinced someone is always watching. I'd be pretty sure they had a hidden camera in the walls somewhere and were just testing me or something.

You have a fairy godmother who is granting you one perfect day: what does that entail?

Fireflies.

Your favorite obscure (or less well-known) fairy tale?

I'm mad for "The Juniper Tree." I discovered it long ago while working in a nursing home, and I never forgot it. I love the combination of innocence and brutality in it.
[Misty says: Yessss!]

Most overrated fairy tale?

I don't think I could name one that's overrated. I love them all. These are stories composed by thousands of people collectively over time. They're part of our identity, part of what makes us human. Retelling them is just the continuation of an ancient tradition. And I think people are starting to tell the more obscure stories again, which is so cool. I saw a "Bluebeard" retelling recently. And I just read a book about Koschei the Deathless by Catherynne M. Valente, which had me looking up stories about him and learning all about new folkloric creatures. Discovering new stories is something I will never get tired of.

QUICKFIRE FUN STUFF:
This or That:
- Evil Queen or Wicked Witch?
Evil Queen, of course.
- Seven League Boots or Glass Slippers?
Seven League Boots. I like to travel.
- Castle or Cottage?
Castle. Castles are awesome.
- Talking Birds or Talking Mice?
I have a talking bird, and he's the cutest thing ever, so I'm going to have to go with birds.
- Hans Christian Andersen or the Brothers Grimm?
The Grimm brothers. They did the world a huge service by collecting and recording all those folktales.

Would You Rather:
- have a prince who makes out with your, um...corpse, essentially, or a prince who can only remember who you are by your shoe size?
I'm going with Prince Shoe-Size. I'm not a fan of guys who make out with unconscious women.
- face 3 Billy Goats Gruff or 3 Bears from Goldilocks?
Billy Goats.
- be able to spin straw into gold or have precious gems drop from your lips when you speak?
Straw into gold. The other talent is unfortunately not controllable, and it sounds kind of painful.
- be cursed with blindness (Rapunzel) or knife-like pain when you walk (Little Mermaid)?
Ooh. I think I'd rather have difficulty walking than be blind. I rely on my sight way too much. Although, Rapunzel did have a much better ending than the poor mermaid.

Thanks for stopping by Jodi!
As for the rest of you, if I haven't made it clear already, you need to read Titan Magic.
For realsies.

[And the ebook is only $2.99!! Didn't you hear me say "for realsies"?]

Click here to go back to the Fairy Tale Fortnight Main Page,
where you can access the schedule! Or go here to get involved!
Credit to these awesome Deviants for our button [ 1, 2 & 3]!