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by C. Bailey Sims
Title: Candlewax
About The Book: 384 pages
Expected publication: April 3rd 2012
Published by: Terabyte Press
A medieval masterpiece of adventure, romance and horror, younger readers of Paolini and Cashore will gobble up this award-winning debut.
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What is in a name?
by C. Bailey Sims
Coming up with names for characters is one of the cool parts about
being a writer. In Candlewax, there is a blend of real and unique
names.
I used some classic names to create a sense of the story as placed in
the continuum of our sense of me-dieval reality. (Unless you have a
time machine, none of here will experience medieval reality, but we do
have a sense of it through history, film and books).
Catherine, William, Conrad, Sebastian, Bessie, George, etc. are all
very familiar names to most of us. They give Candlewax a foot in the
real world. I especially like Bessie and her father George’s last
name: Brine. They come from Swiggins, the heart of Lackanay, and they
are indeed the salt of the earth—warm, honest, strong, and good.
Cyril is a also a real name, but less familiar. And no, it’s not
CRY-uhl! Cyril (pronounced SEER-uhl) sounds a bit more exotic than
John or Joe, which is great, because Cyril comes from an exotic land
where burning trees illuminate the landscape at night. "Cyril" means
lordly ruler or gem and comes from ancient Greece (with other
spellings). By the way, if
you read Candlewax all the way through thinking Cyril was pronounced
CRY-uhl, don’t feel bad. When I read Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s
Stone aloud to my boys, I murdered Hermione’s name! (HER mee own). Ha!
I guess I wasn’t alone because I remember a broadcast of the author
politely informing the world at large that it was (her MY oh nee).
Imagine my surprise! I’ve included a pronunciation guide in Candlewax
to help readers.
Candlewax has plenty of original names. The necessity is to make each
made-up name sound like it is the only possible name that character or
place could have had. The name has to have the right flavor when you
pronounce it. It has to conjure up qualities. Made-up names can be
dangerous if they don’t fit, there are too many of them, or they’re
just plain wrong.
The huge, legendary fairrier cat named Spelopokos
(rhymes with Galapagos) is a main character of the book. Spelopokos
sounds Greek. At 732-years old, this amazing fairrier cat needed a
wise, powerful name, and yet, those close to him are permitted to
address him as Pokos and scratch him behind the ears. The other
fairrier cats also have regal, multi-syllable names, befitting their
noble hauteur. (Don’t forget that if/when you enter the “Name a
Fairrier Cat Cub Contest” by Terabyte Press! I’ll be using the winning
name in the sequel to Candlewax, Tabrek. Learn more about the Name a
Fairrier Cat Contest at http://www.cbaileysims.com/win.html.)
Sometimes I think I have made up a name only to find that it exists in
the real world. Like Menard, Cyril’s counselor. I was driving in
Vermont near the Canadian border when I ran across “Menard’s Garage.”
Funny how life imitates art.
About The Author
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| Photo Credit to Shannon Hicks |
You can see the author via these links
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See the OTHER Stops on the tour!
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Giveaway is for those who are NOT apart of the tour! All winners will be notified via email and their name will be posted here on this page.
8 Lucky winners will win Secret Prizes of Crystals from the book.
PICTURES COMING SOON SO INTICE YOU!
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