In his mind’s eye, he watches Gadzooks lick the pencil tip. Slowly, but steadily, the dragon starts to write.
H … E … L … L … O
“Hello,” mutters David, and opens his eyes.
Gadzooks is sitting on Elizabeth’s grave.
Hrrr! he says, and blows the perfect smoke ring.
It drifts upward and catches in David’s nostrils.
The scent of dragon fire.
Powerful.
Real.
THE END
• Which is your favorite character in the series?
I usually split this up into two categories — human and dragon. Let’s deal with the human first. It’s very hard for me not to choose David, as he is based on me when I was a young man. If the series had gone no further than Fire Star, I probably would have chosen him. Of course, there are many characters I could opt for. Gwilanna has been fantastic to write — villains always are. And Anders Bergstrom intrigues me as much now as he ever did in Icefire. But the human I really like is Zanna (and her “alternative” in Fire World, Rosa). She has a lot to deal with throughout the series. I love her spirit, particularly the way she copes with David’s disappearance in The Fire Eternal. And she’s a great mum. I would have loved to have met her when I was David’s age!
As for the dragons. I’m in danger of being seriously scorched here by the ones I leave out. Seriously, I love them all. They make me laugh and cry in equal measure. Sentiment says I should pick Grace, because she will probably never get over having her ears broken by David. In the end, if I’m forced into a corner, it comes down to two. Gretel is just brilliant. Her feistiness, especially in Icefire, is legendary. I like the way you can never be quite sure about her and how she thinks the other Pennykettle dragons are “useless.” But even she would forgive me for choosing the one and only Gadzooks as my favorite. How could a writer not choose the writing dragon? Notice that The Fire Ascending is dedicated to him. That just about says it all.
• Which is your favorite book in the series?
Again, very, very difficult to choose. For a long time I would have picked The Fire Within, because it’s not a book about squirrels and it’s not a book about dragons; it’s a book about creativity and where ideas come from — a subject close to a writer’s heart. When I wrote Dark Fire, that took over as my favorite for a while. It has so many lovely twists and turns and it was great to write about Gawaine, the queen dragon, coming out of stasis. Then came Fire World, and my feelings changed again. At the end of Dark Fire, I knew I had to come up with something spectacular to explain the ending at Scuffenbury Hill. It was a real gamble to dive into the alternative world of Co:pern:ica, but boy was it good fun! A small number of readers just didn’t get it. But those that did couldn’t praise it enough. I absolutely adore Fire World. I don’t think it’s the best book of the series, but it is my favorite — just.
• So which book is the best of the series for you?
The Fire Ascending, without a doubt. It wraps everything up so beautifully. Again, I took risks. I knew I wanted to go back in time and examine the story of Guinevere and Gawain, but I wasn’t expecting to write a 20,000 word chunk of prehistory without any chapter breaks, that didn’t include any of the known characters (or barely any), and introduced a villain we hadn’t met before! That spirit of adventure set the tone for the rest of the book. It was just a question then of how to mix the old with the new and bring everything to a satisfying conclusion. I think The Fire Ascending contains some of the best bits of writing I’ve ever done.
• Where did you get your character names from? Are they made up or did you choose any of them in homage to anything else?
The only two characters that weren’t entirely made up are David and Zanna. David is a name I’ve always liked and wouldn’t have minded being called. Zanna came about after I met a girl at a signing who called herself that. She was a Goth and very striking. I asked her if “Zanna” was an eastern European name, to which she replied, “No, it’s short for Suzanna, you …” I won’t repeat the rest! I thought it was such a cool name and immediately wrote it into Icefire. Nearly all the other names, including Gadzooks, just floated into my consciousness when their character was first introduced. It rarely takes me more than a minute to find something I like or that seems appropriate. And the character will soon tell you if the name is wrong; they dig their heels in and refuse to be written. I was really struck with Ingavar (the polar bear), because it conjures up an image of a hugely powerful and courageous bear. It was always good fun making up names for the Inuit characters. Tootega was my favorite. Voss was interesting. I wanted to give the opening section of The Fire Ascending a vaguely Scandinavian feel. I typed “Norway” into Google and one of the first words I saw was “Voss” (an area of Norway). I liked it and it stuck. Henry Bacon, I have to confess, is a slight homage to Mr. Curry, the annoying neighbor in the Paddington Bear books. Curry? Bacon? See the connection? Many people have asked if the use of the names Gawain, Guinevere, and Arthur is some kind of nod to the Arthurian legends. No, not at all. I just liked the sound of them. Gawain, particularly, is a wonderful title for a dragon. And why do all the dragon names begin with a “G”? Well, read Dark Fire or Jay’s Rain & Fire guidebook! The answer’s in there.
• When did you know how the series was going to end? Did you plan it from near the beginning?
There’s an old saying that goes, “every story is as long as it needs to be.” I don’t think anyone quite expected seven books at a time when trilogies were all the rage, but I always felt that if the story was there, I would be happy to continue adding to the series. I did consider writing The Fire Ascending as two books, where book one would have dealt with the historical stuff (Agawin, Grella, etc.) and book two, the Ix inversion. But after a little discussion with my editors, we felt that one volume would be enough. I did cut out a long history of Co:pern:ica that might yet turn up in a revised edition of Rain & Fire, and I would have seriously liked to have dedicated more chapters to Gwilanna’s illumination to Gawain. But I’d rather people have a book, not a doorstop. I’m happy with the way things worked out. As for the ending, would you believe I didn’t know the exact ending until a few days before I wrote it? I decided from the start (well, from Icefire onward) that I would write these books “organically.” In other words, I wouldn’t plan them at all, but would just let them take me wherever they wanted to go, to keep them “true” to what David does when he writes Snigger and the Nutbeast for Lucy. With every book, I always knew what the beginning would be, and I had a vague idea of the ending. Everything in between was an adventure! It’s a scary way to write, but for me, it’s the only real way to do it. I placed my faith in the universe — and let Gadzooks do the rest! Of course, there is a great responsibility on a writer to wrap up a big series in a satisfactory manner. I’m well-known for leaving dreadful cliff-hangers at the end of my books. I couldn’t allow that to happen with The Fire Ascending. It had to have a definite end and it had to be good, but more than that, it had to be different. I came up with the idea of the interview sequence before I started the book, but didn’t tell anyone except Jay about it until it was done. I’m absolutely thrilled with the way it came out. It puts the whole series into perspective and is both funny and moving in equal measure. The closing lines didn’t really come to me until very near the end. What I like about them is how they address the two main themes of the series, i.e., the power of the mind to create ideas and whether dragons exist — or not.
• What have been the highs and lows of the series?
It’s been a delight to unwrap so much wonderful story. As I said above, when you write the way I do, you’re never quite sure what’s going to happen. So it’s really exciting when fantastic scenes pop up out of nowhere. Developing the covers has been another thrill. Angelo [Rinaldi] has done a fabulous job with the artwork, which has become iconic. My favorite cover is The Fire Eternal (love the planet in the eye), closely followed by Fire World. Someone jo
kingly suggested that I couldn’t write any more books because we’ve run out of colors! Pink dragon, anyone? Maybe not. If I had a low at all, it would be the feeling that over a period of years, books like these tend to be taken for granted. People see three, four, five come out and assume they know what they’re getting. My answer to that would be, read Fire World. How many series take a complete sideways step, six books in, and manage to pull it off? I’m sometimes told, as well, that the plots are confusing or complicated. Yes, they are, probably because of the way the books are written. And maybe it’s partly due to the fact that my two favorite television series were The X Files and Twin Peaks, which had so many layers of intrigue that it was virtually impossible to finish them conclusively. I learned a lesson there. I think The Fire Ascending does have a strong conclusion, one which brings the whole series together.
• What will you miss most about writing the series?
I’ve lived with these characters for over ten years. It’s going to seem odd not writing about them. I’ve always felt happy in Wayward Crescent and will miss visiting the kitchen at number forty-two. I can see Bonnington at his food bowl as I type this. More than anything, I will miss the Pennykettle dragons. Their innocence and humor and occasional mischievous behavior were always a joy to experience. I used to believe I was better at writing domestic dramas than full-on fantasy. Part one of The Fire Ascending has changed my mind about that. But although I could see me writing another book about dragons, it almost certainly wouldn’t be about those dragons. There is a degree of sadness about that. But no matter what else I do, I will always be associated with David, Gadzooks, and the Dragons’ Den, which is fine by me. They have made me what I am and I would miss telling their stories at school visits — not that they’ll ever let me ignore them (they’re hrrring in my ear even now …).
• What won’t you miss?
Writing a lengthy series like this brings its own kind of pressures. To keep the momentum going, the books have to be delivered regularly. That has not always been easy. I could have written a different ending to Dark Fire and quit the series there, but it would have left too many unanswered questions. I could never have put the Chronicles away without feeling entirely happy about the ending. Other than that, I don’t think there’s anything I would miss. These books opened me up to a new genre. They have taken me to places in the world I might never have visited otherwise, and brought me into contact with lots of wonderful people. But I guess the last word should go to the fans. I’ve had thousands of messages over the years from boys and girls (and, yes, many “grown-ups”) who’ve told me the books are amazing and even life-changing. That’s a humbling feeling when you get right down to it. I want to thank them all and say I hope you enjoyed the conclusion. One day, we will get a movie (or three) for you. Then you can say you were there at the beginning, before the whole world knew the meaning of hrrr!
Chris d’Lacey
January 2012
Chris d’Lacey is the author of several highly acclaimed books for children and young adults, including the Last Dragon Chronicles: The Fire Within, Icefire, Fire Star, The Fire Eternal, Dark Fire, Fire World, and The Fire Ascending. He has also written The Dragons of Wayward Crescent books, including Gruffen and Gauge.
Chris lives with his wife in Devon, England. Visit www.scholastic.com/lastdragonchronicles to learn more about Chris and his dragons, or Chris’s own website, www.icefire.co.uk.
Also by Chris d’Lacey
The Last Dragon Chronicles
The Fire Within
Icefire
Fire Star
The Fire Eternal
Dark Fire
Fire World
The Dragons of Wayward Crescent
Gruffen
Gauge
Text copyright © 2012 by Chris d’Lacey
Cover illustration © 2012 by Angelo Rinaldi
Frontispiece illustration © 2012 by Tim Rose
First published in 2012 in Great Britain by Orchard Books.
Orchard Books is a division of Hachette Children’s Books, a Hachette Livre UK company. All rights reserved. Published by Orchard Books, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., 557 Broadway, New York, New York 10012, by arrangement with Scholastic Ltd. ORCHARD BOOKS and design are registered trademarks of Watts Publishing Group, Ltd., used under license. SCHOLASTIC and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc.
LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
d’Lacey, Chris.
The fire ascending / Chris d’Lacey. — 1st Scholastic ed.
p. cm. — (Last dragon chronicles; bk. 7)
Summary: Young Agawin, apprentice to the healer Yolen, finds that his life is linked to that of the last of the dragons of the Wearle of Hautuuslanden, Galen, and he must journey far in time and space to protect the future of dragonkind.
ISBN 978-0-545-40216-3 (jacketed hardcover) 1. Dragons — Juvenile fiction. 2. Magic — Juvenile fiction. 3. Quests (Expeditions) — Juvenile fiction. [1. Dragons — Fiction.2. Magic — Fiction. 3. Voyages and travels — Fiction. 4. Fantasy.] I. Title.
PZ7.D6475Fd 2012
813.6 — dc23
2012003120
First Scholastic edition, May 2012
e-ISBN 978-0-545-50458-4
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., Attention: Permissions Department, 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.
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