by Jeff Wheeler
An epic story arc began to take shape in my mind, not a trilogy, but a five-book series. I began to envision the flying cities (don’t you just love little Cosette singing “Castle on a Cloud” from Les Mis?), which I’d already invented in my Landmoor series. Floating boulders also appeared in The Wretched of Muirwood. And, of course, the Bhikhu are from my Mirrowen series. I didn’t want to write a steampunk novel and use machinery and zeppelins to approximate technology. Instead, all the wonders of this world have their basis in the magic system of my Muirwood books. Storm Glass is set hundreds of years after the Covenant of Muirwood series. I used the name Fitzempress to denote the direct descendants of Maia and Collier and Fitzroy to denote descendants of the other kings.
This is not a continuation of the Muirwood stories, however. It’s something altogether new, which is why I gave it a new name: the Harbinger Series. You don’t need to have read the other series to understand this one. It will be a great entry point to my fiction for new readers.
I’ve never tried writing a series on such an epic scale before. As all these delicious ideas began to flow in my mind, I began to mix some more historical elements into it, as I usually do. For example, the term “storm glass” and its use by the historical Admiral Fitzroy were teased in with the invention of the barometer. I also invented Cettie, who represents one edge of society, and Sera, who comes from another hierarchy. I wanted both protagonists. They’ll both be featured throughout the series, but in some books one will get more focus than the other.
So please indulge me in my journey into a period of history I’ve come to love so much. I’ve tried to take something old and remake it into something new. My world isn’t as pleasant as Austen’s England. Social ruin isn’t the only risk, and failure can have terrible consequences. And when different worlds collide, many unexpected things will happen.
I hope you love experiencing this new world.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Most of the time, these acknowledgment blurbs rarely get read as the author thanks the team who helped make this book happen. But in this case, I need to call special attention to services rendered above and beyond. There is a great quote in the first Harry Potter book that I love where Dumbledore says, “It takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to our enemies, but just as much to stand up to our friends.” After turning in the first version of Storm Glass to my editors, Jason Kirk and Angela Polidoro, both had the courage and candor to speak up and tell me that the book could be much better than it was. It has been a long time since I have had to so thoroughly rework a manuscript. Their instincts were spot-on and helped make the characters richer, the setting more stunning, and this story the best it could be . . . and the version you’ve just read. So thank you, Jason and Angela, for your mighty editorial chops, your relentlessly helpful suggestions, and for being a critical part in making my books so successful.
I’d also like to thank Wanda, my excellent copyeditor, and my early readers who help motivate me and continue to support my work: Robin, Shannon, Emily, Isabelle, Sunil, Travis, and Dan. I hope you continue to enjoy the magic of this world!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Photo © 2016 Mica Sloan
Jeff Wheeler is the Wall Street Journal bestselling author of the Kingfountain Series, as well as the Muirwood and Mirrowen novels. He took an early retirement from his career at Intel in 2014 to write full-time. He is a husband, father of five, and devout member of his church. He lives in the Rocky Mountains and is the founder of Deep Magic: The E-zine of Clean Fantasy and Science Fiction. Find out more about Deep Magic at www.deepmagic.co, and visit Jeff’s many worlds at jeff-wheeler.com.
