Evan Winter's The Rage of Dragons series is African-inspired fantasy rooted in the real world
This episode originally aired on March 20, 2021.
Evan Winter is an author based in Markham, Ont. In his first fantasy novel, The Rage of Dragons, a world with an African-inspired setting is caught in an eternal war — and the book's main protagonist, Tau, is his people's only hope for survival.
Described as a mix of Game of Thrones and Gladiator, The Rage of Dragons follows Tau as he attempts to get revenge and become the greatest swordsman to ever live. The self-published book was a bestseller and was acquired and re-released by Orbit Books as part of a four-book deal. It is the first book in a planned series.
The latest in the series, The Fires of Vengeance, the main protagonist Tau and his Queen prepare for battle as they have to protect the capital and the Indigenous people of Xidda. CBC Books named Winter a 2020 writer to watch and The Rage of Dragons was on the Canada Reads 2020 longlist.
Winter spoke with The Next Chapter about writing the fantasy series.
Inspired by real world events
"The world of the novels is Xidda. It takes elements from our world, of course — it's almost impossible for me to imagine something so completely divorced from what we all know and how we exist.
"But at the same time, there are deep magics in this sort of universe that certain characters can access.
"There's a very rigid and overt caste system that plays a big part in sort of how people are viewed — and who has power and who does not. What I'm finding is that, as I move into book two and in book three, which I'm writing right now as part of the four book series, I'm doing more and more research.
It takes elements from our world, of course — it's almost impossible for me to imagine something so completely divorced from what we all know and how we exist.
"In the beginning, the story was a bit more personal and I could draw on my own experiences. I could draw on my own history, having grown up in Africa.
"Now, as I'm trying to get into the deeper sociopolitical issues that contribute to the warlike nature of all that's happening, the violence and the cycles of violence, I'm leaning more heavily on looking at academic papers or intellectual thought — so that I can hopefully express it in the narrative in a way that feels very real to how things actually work in our world."
Truth in storytelling
"It's very important for me to find some level of truth in the story that I'm telling. The main character in the entire series is Tau. He is a reluctant hero at the beginning. But then, after a series of very unfortunate and cruel events that happen to him, he changes his mind and decides to take a more active role in the shaping of his own destiny. The entire series is about what happens when somebody decides finally to stand up and say, 'Enough is enough! I won't take it anymore.'
It's very important for me to find some level of truth in the story that I'm telling.
"In one scene, Tau was doing a complex sword manoeuvre. What I do when writing such a scene is I act them out, so I can feel the energy of what's happening.
"But I pulled a muscle and wrenched my back! I was sitting at the computer chair and I'm swinging this imaginary sword as hard as I could. I was hunched over for the next day and a half — because I am not in Tau's shape!"
Evan Winter's comments have been edited for length and clarity.
