Interview with @magicbunni
https://archiveofourown.org/series/269389
- Username(s) we can find you under:
Magicbunni. Tracy Eire. - @magicbunni
- What Media do you create?
Well, this is a tough question. I'm a writer in my work-a-day life, and have a different writer name there. I'm a writer of fanfiction under Magicbunni, and that's been critical to me, fanfics. But I also write rather political mysteries and ghostly stories (but they're not too scary!) under Tracy Eire as well. Finally, I'm an artist who works in both watercolours and oils, so you'll find my paintings on the internet, or in galleries here, and overseas.
- Where can we find your work?
As magicbunni, you can find me on (the awesome) Archive of Our Own, Inkitt.com and FanFiction.net. Archive is my personal fave, though they don't allow you to talk about your, say, Amazon-published works there!
As Tracy Eire, I'm on Amazon, Twitter, Facebook, WordPress, and Instagram for now!
- What would you say you are best known for in the fandom?
I think I'm best known in the Tolkien fandom for my work on the Mirkwood Royals series. If you're not familiar, these are full length mystery novels about the Mirkwood and its Elvenking. The titles are: 'The Cord', 'Bind Them', and 'When the Company is True'.
- Do you have a favorite pairing?
Had to think about this one! My answer here would be that I don't. In canon, the closest would probably be Celeborn and Galadriel, but you might detect that from Celeborn falling apart without her in 'When the Company is True'. I'm usually just thinking in terms of big relationships. For example, I'm really intrigued by the connection between tough, cold Glorfindel, and astute and refined Elrond -- how does that happen? What does it look like? The interactions between Lusis and Bee (Osp) sucked me in. I love to write the tangled emotions between the Elvenking and his sons (adopted and otherwise). Love is complicated. Elves too.
- What other fandoms are you part of?
Lol! This is a fun one! I'd have to say I was once a part of the BBC Sherlock fandom, before that fandom imploded. But I also like Yuri on Ice, Noragami, Harry Potter, and Black Panther. I have unpublished fics of both Naruto and Avatar, so I suppose I should put those in! Lol!
- Any advice/words for others in the fandom?
I'm not sure I'd have anything of value! When I read Tolkien posts, I often feel like the junior member, in fact. However, as a writer, I can say 'If you're wondering whether you should write in this fandom, the answer is already yes'. It takes all kinds of writers, and all kinds of levels of experience to round a fandom out. Second thing, If you're going to write anything, whether fanfics or novels for publication, make sure you build a stable of music to back you up!
- If you could name a song (or two or three) that would describe you or your life, what would it be?
What I was listening to during the creation of the Mirkwood Royals series is probably more interesting, since I feel like some of those sentiments surely leaked into the work! To set this up: music can really put you in the zone, and once you no longer hear it, you're really in an open space, paying attention to what the story needs and listening to the characters. For example, during Bind Them, there was a strengthening of the relationship between tough-as-nails Lusis and (dangerously) intelligent King Thranduil. At one point, I found myself really propelled by 'I Want You To Know' by Zedd and Selena Gomez, for example. So here were all of these people writing me, wondering how Lusis really felt about King Thranduil, how the Elvenking felt about the Ranger, and I'm… saying as little of substance as I can, like you do. Meanwhile, I'm insistently listening to 'I want you to know that I'm all yours, you and me, we're the same force' in my ear while I'm writing. It was pretty wild. Likewise, I remember listening to 'Disarm You' with Ilsey and, I think, Kaskade -- that might have been The Cord -- and 'Pure Sunlight' (Laura Brehm and… a mess of talents) during 'When the Company is True'. If you listen to them, they're very direct, and that kind of current runs under my writing, I hope! Now, if you were to read certain passages (like the Mirkwood's first entry into Long Lake) to the right music, the cadence of the story matches the song quite a bit, because that's part of how I tweak my pacing. Music is a big deal to me.
Oh, I'm like a My Little Pony. Lol! I'd like that though. I love My Little Pony. :D Really, if you look at my oil paintings, those colours are my ballpark.
This changes! It's, for sure, a tough one for me. Many of the books I read could be considered research books, being that I'm a writer and artist. So, often, my favourite books would not be fiction! Lol! Latest fiction book is 'American Street'.
Hrm…. I saw the first movie in the LoTR trilogy 21 times, so I'd have to say that qualifies. The Hobbit, anywhere there's interaction with the elves -- love that! But I have personal faves too, like My Big, Fat, Greek Wedding, and series like Harry Potter. And, OMG, please don't end me for this, but Jem and the Holograms. I loved it, and what it was getting at, and would love to see more. Let me hide now…!
- Do you have a pet peeve?
Of course! But most of them are silly, and almost all of them are around grammar. :D The trick is to be a grown up. I'm always working on that!
- What country are you from?
I currently live in the USA, and that's going to have to do for this one!
- Who do you think you might have been in a past life?
A young, black, blues singer. This is not meant to annoy young, black, blues singers! But you asked!
- What do you like to do in your spare time other than create the media you work on?
Mostly, I write and edit books for myself and others. And I work toward publishing. And I paint a lot!
- When did you join the fandom?
Well, I feel very grateful to this fandom! I've met some incredible people in here, and am super-thankful for that. But I didn't join it early. Really, the Hobbit was out for some time before I stumbled my way into the thick of it. I was in the fandom for about four to six months before I started to wake up at night with the plot of The Cord in my head. Then it got worse: then I got lines! Lol! So I decided to write the story and see where it went. :)
- Do you have a favourite creation of yours you are especially proud of?
In Fanfic, as magicbunni, that would probably be 'The Witch's Heart'. I really didn't edit the first part of that fic. It's stream of consciousness. Oddly, though, I've been very sick recently and re-read the Mirkwood Royals series during that time, and I found it very comforting. I was shocked by that. So I'm proud there! But, also, really, The Dead Set, and the work that went into the world- and character-building in that book (I love stick-in-the-mud Rowan, bright Six, and the team)! :) As an artist, probably Dryad - Autumn, For Dear Life, and The Grand Banks. But I realize value also depends on what readers and viewers like, really! The author or artist can really only just put things out there. The rest is up to you / us.
- Do you have a favourite fictional character, besides Thranduil of course?
This is going to sound trite, but Sherlock Holmes. The inventiveness, the cleverness described in Thranduil, appealed to me for the same reason as Holmes does, actually. I also liked Severus Snape for this reason, because he was very bright to keep up the ploy of Death Eater as he did, though, sadly, he was also often as cruel to others as he was to himself. I was often annoyed by the fact so few of these smarties were women, which might be what made me create characters like Pamela Merriweather, and Reese Eyre, in my Sherlock fics. I laugh because *nothing* could be further from Lusis than these other women (though by degrees). Lusis usually solves problems by short arbitration followed with repeated hitting with a sharp stick. Lol! Actually, that sounds like something Eithahawn would aside while sorting mail, really. But I think it takes all kinds. :)
- Are you self-taught or did you go to art-school?
I'm self-taught when it comes to art and creative writing. People-taught, really -- that is, I put things out there and try to gage the reaction. So, say, if I was getting feedback that pacing was too fast, I wrote down PACING in my notebooks, as a weakness to mind. It's a little more self-driven for me when it comes to art, though. I really only paint what I feel like.
- Which artists have influenced your style? and/ or Which are your favourite artists?
Artists? My big three would be Camilla d'Errico, Lioba Bruckner, and Ania Tomicka. I really want my artwork to become more like theirs in the future. For writers, this is tougher still! But probably Tanya Huff and C.J. Cherryh. If you've read any of their writing, you can see little shadows of their influence in my books. And probably Marie Lu, lately, if you haven't read her.
Oh, I don't do commissions, right now. I'm not sure I'd be very good at them -- what do you think? As for writing, maybe I should take up a patreon site and write Thranduil fic installments for my patreons? Lol…! I'm not sure of the legality of that, really! Copyrights. You have to keep your wits about you. :)
- Could you tell us a bit about the new book you are currently writing? Your painting of the beautiful male faerie intrigues me…
This is a development I've been really nervous about bringing up in the fandom. I'll be publishing a book with some familiar original characters, which has to do with a council of men leveraging a long-hidden Kingdom for undisclosed purposes. Really, this allows me to dig into mythos familiar to folks who've read my works in ways I couldn't before, because I really didn't, I suppose, 'own' the mythos. It's mystery, and that faerie character has a central role in the book. I'm really just laying down groundwork in the first book or books (undecided) -- it's nothing that fans of my fanfics would need to go to, though that's their call for sure! But I'm shocked that you landed on this so quickly! Well spotted!
- Was Arwen going to come into play as a character in the future of the series? Was the joining between Thranduil and Lusis an actual marriage? Cause I believed the elves when they were all its an ally/friendship thing. Is it supposed to be romantic? if so it went over my head -_-;
Yes, you can believe the elves when they say it's a Companionship thing. It was a hasty event in the book, and Thranduil was of two minds on it. When I read it back I think it might have stressed him out, given his history of loss. It does not *have* to be romantic. It does mean a greater degree of trust and confidence. There are hints that the same ritual once took place between another pair of elves in the story. Oh, and I get this question about Arwen a lot! XD
- The big question ... Will Thranduil marry his Istari? Is he as smart as Thingol, and will he hold on to his Maia? Everything indicates that he loves her and she is crazy about him ... I know that you will not respond to this clearly, but my hope is recorded!
I've asked myself this question too. Thranduil and the Yellow Istari are united in Companionship (the rules and terms of that should be fun, and, clearly Lusis is doing it wrong), but I wonder if there will be some twist or turn of a plot that could cause such a union. I keep thinking of how Thranduil must feel about his wife. And then about his people. These are twin tensions in his life….
1) Why have you decided to write the Mirkwood Royals?
Well, I couldn't help but write 'The Cord', and, from there, I felt like I wasn't finished, and so I ended up with 'Bind Them' (referring to the masterplan to bind both Elrond and Thranduil in 'darkness'). Honestly, I would wake up with ideas and scenes and all sorts of things running through my head. It was impossible to ignore, and, seeing as I was coming into a holiday at the time, I decided to just give it a shot.
2) May I ask if you are going to continue the Mirkwood Royals?
Now, my standard answer to this is 'I have no plans'. But my sister is very keen to see a continuation, and so I'm likely going to write a continuation.
3) If other Elves appear? We had Glorfindel in the Bind them. What about Haldir? Is there any possibility he could appear?
I think I'm too tied to his death scene I've seen so many times on film… but I'm a big fan of that particular Marchwarden and there are some real possibilities, due to Celeborn having stormed into Mirkwood, beside-himself about his wife's departure. So…. In any case, I do have some big appearances planned.
Thank you @magicbunni! Amazing interview! - #TeamThranduil - #DailyThranduilProject
