#tu ask

The process behind TFTF was the most organic one I’ve ever had writing. The inspiration, as I’ve explained before, came when I was in Budapest, where I learned that the Hungarian language, like the Finnish and Japanese, have Magyar roots. I also visited a cave church with a stature of the first Queen of Hungary, who has definite Magyar traits; broad cheekbones, almond shaped eyes, long black hair. The Magyar people were one of the major Asiatic tribes that roamed Mongolia, Russia and Hungary before Europeans arrived, and this history was so new to me, so intriguing, that I couldn’t wait to work with it in whatever way I could. 

So, in order to build up the culture of Merse’s clan, I began by researching Magyar culture. There were very few websites about it, but I managed to gather extensive knowledge on naming traditions and the Magyar pantheon. Because it fascinated me so much, I was carried away – I read about Caucasian mummies found in Northwest China from several hundred years B.C.; I read about the rich ecological life around Lake Baikal and how in Ancient times it was a trade hotspot; I blended my knowledge on Magyar culture with knowledge from other tribes that were known to roam Siberia and Mongolia in ancient times, and learned about the ties between the Ancient Mongols and the Ancient Turkic peoples. With that knowledge, I managed to extend on my Magyar pantheon and folklore with ancient Asiatic-Turkic beliefs. 

Then, I had to learn about climate. I read up on Lake Baikal, on Northern Chinese nature, googled topographic and climate maps of Siberia and Mongolia. I did this as I went – starting with the place of Gezte and Merse’s meeting and following them north, drawing and redrawing routes that would take them to a place that matched my ending scene in climate and weather conditions. I especially used google maps, both the image function so that I could build a visual setting before writing out a scene, and also the “route” function so that I could somewhat calculate how long it would take to cross a certain distance. 

This was the research aspect, and it’s what took up by far the most time. There were long nights where my head felt like it was exploding or I wanted to cry because I got something wrong that messed up the entire plot, and I had to go back and rewrite tiny details to make it correct again. 

The process of actually writing it, however, was so easy. Gezte’s character was amazingly clear to me – she’s more of a concept, all of the characters are, and getting into her head was never an issue. I was drawn into the world without any effort, I just arrived there, the plot unfolded before me, and I just had to do my best to keep up. I think that’s why it’s so short, I felt like I was sprinting to keep up with myself, my fingers didn’t move fast enough over the keyboard. 

It’s the first book that I’ve loved all the way through. It’s not flawless, but I’m proud of it, and I’ve never doubted it. Usually, when I’m finished, I hate the story and my writing and that’s what launches me into a new project, but with this one I’m kind of stuck. I can’t leave it behind, I feel like I’m not done with it. I can’t escape it and I miss the days that I spent writing it.