Brian Lee Durfee: On Finishing a Fantasy Trilogy
Artist and author Brian Lee Durfee discusses what it felt like to write the final sentence in his Five Warrior Angels trilogy with his novel, The Lonesome Crown.
Brian Lee Durfee is an artist and writer raised in Fairbanks, Alaska, and Monroe, Utah. He has done illustrations for Wizards of the Coast, Middle-Earth Enterprises, Dungeons & Dragons, Humane Society Wildlife Land Trust (Denali National Park), and many more. His art has been featured in SPECTRUM 3: Best in Contemporary Fantastic Art and L. Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Vol IX.
He won the Arts for the Parks Grand Canyon Award and has a painting in the permanent collection of the Grand Canyon Visitors Center-Kolb Studio. Brian has written one epic horror novel along with the fantasy series, Five Warrior Angels. He lives in Salt Lake City. Find him on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
In this post, Brian discusses what it felt like to write the final sentence in his Five Warrior Angels trilogy with his novel, The Lonesome Crown, his hope for readers, and more!
Name: Brian Lee Durfee
Literary agent: Matt Bialer, Sanford J. Greenburger Associates
Book title: The Lonesome Crown
Publisher: Simon & Schuster/Saga Press
Release date: November 29, 2022
Genre/category: Fantasy
Previous titles: The Forgetting Moon (Five Warrior Angels #1); The Blackest Heart (Five Warrior Angels #2)
Elevator pitch for the book: A sweeping epic fantasy weaving both destiny and ancient magic in this masterful final novel in the beloved Five Warrior Angels trilogy from Brian Lee Durfee.
IndieBound | Bookshop | Amazon
[WD uses affiliate links.]
What prompted you to write this book?
What prompted me to write The Lonesome Crown? Well, it was book #3 in a three-book contract. I kinda had to get it done. But what prompted me to write the Five Warrior Angels Trilogy to begin with is a different story.
The first book that made me fall in love with reading was The Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks. I was about 12 years old, and it was the first book I ever purchased with my own money. About 100 pages into the book, I knew I wanted to be a fantasy author and I even knew what my fantasy books would be about.
I kept a litany of notes on the books I wanted to write from that day forward. It wasn’t until I was about 30 years old before I really started compiling those thousands of notes into a coherent story of some kind.
How long did it take to go from idea to publication? And did the idea change during the process?
Well, I reckon nearly 30 years. Like I said, the first germ of an idea came to me when I was about 12. The main plot twist and thematic ideas of the Five Warrior Angels trilogy have stayed the same since the start. But many details on character and story structure and such have changed over and over.
My editor at Saga Press, Joe Monti, made a few suggestions regarding the opening scenes of book #1, The Forgetting Moon, which really enhanced the story and opened up a myriad of other plotlines to play with. And those early bits of editing advice really made book #2, The Blackest Heart, flow spectacularly. The Blackest Heart ended up being everything I wanted it to be and more.
Were there any surprises or learning moments in the publishing process for this title?
Well, since The Lonesome Crown was book #3 of a huge trilogy, I was surprised at how I was able to fit the entire story into a mere 1,100 pages. I honestly thought it would be longer than that. Book #1 was 750 pages. Book #2 was 950 pages.
I really wasn’t sure if I could wrap up the story in the final book. But I am glad I did. I think the story is better for it, rather than extending out the series into another volume. That was a publishing decision and at the same time it was a learning experience—realizing I could edit my typically garrulous writing style down to a manageable level and still keep my vivid style.
Were there any surprises in the writing process for this book?
Speaking of the entire trilogy (and also book #3 The Lonesome Crown specifically), I felt a huge sense of relief when I typed in that last word. The books in this trilogy are all HUGE books. I spent a good 10 years of my life constructing this epic fantasy world and story. Just seeing that last word finally on the page filled me with a huge sense of relief and accomplishment.
Also, during the writing process and publishing process (other than those initial edits by Joe Monti on book #1), I was surprised by how unintrusive the editing process was. I had heard horror stories of authors having to rewrite entire books and change so many things plot-wise and character-wise just to appease the publisher. I experienced none of that. It couldn’t have gone smoother.
And then I was also surprised at the professionalism and heroic level of precision the copyeditors at Simon & Schuster gave to all three books. It was truly astonishing.
What do you hope readers will get out of your book?
I had fun writing the trilogy, so I want the reader to have a fun time reading the trilogy. Each novel is full of action and adventure and plot twists and interesting characters. Just have fun with it.
But on a more serious note, what can a reader take from the trilogy thematically? Faith should always be questioned. Doubting your own beliefs and the beliefs of others is a good and healthy thing. To blindly follow any dogma (religious or political) is dangerous. Question everything.
And anyone who discourages your questioning and your doubting should be avoided at all costs.
If you could share one piece of advice with other writers, what would it be?
Read. Read a lot. And read every genre. Plus read in the genre you are writing in! You will learn more about the writing process and storytelling by reading than you ever will from taking a class on the subject.
Then have a good work ethic. Write! Write! Write! And have confidence in yourself. Use your imagination. Throw every idea you have into the first draft. You can always edit out the bad ideas.
Keep notes. Write your ideas down. You will forget them. I think that’s 10 pieces of advice.
Robert Lee Brewer is Senior Editor of Writer's Digest, which includes managing the content on WritersDigest.com and programming virtual conferences. He's the author of 40 Plot Twist Prompts for Writers: Writing Ideas for Bending Stories in New Directions, The Complete Guide of Poetic Forms: 100+ Poetic Form Definitions and Examples for Poets, Poem-a-Day: 365 Poetry Writing Prompts for a Year of Poeming, and more. Also, he's the editor of Writer's Market, Poet's Market, and Guide to Literary Agents. Follow him on Twitter @robertleebrewer.
