We all have dreams. Sometimes they come true; sometimes, not. And in the case of the latter, the “not” part can come from any number of things: a lack of talent, a lack of opportunity…
But in Melissa Olthoff’s new fantasy novel Rise From Ruin (paperback, Kindle), the main character has her dreams shattered by a prank. Well, sort of shattered.
To find out what I’m talking about, and why I’m hedging, check out the following email interview with Olthoff, in which she discusses what inspired and influenced this novel.
To start, what is Rise From Ruin about, and when and where does it take place?
I love to describe Rise From Ruin as Dragonriders Of Pern meets the griffins of Valdemar in a post-apocalyptic fantasy. It’s about a country at war with its aggressive neighboring country, and a young woman determined to make a difference — even if her original dream is forever out of reach. And, of course, there are dragons and griffins and the riders who bond with them in an unbreakable entanglement of souls.
More than anything else, Rise From Ruin is about the sacrifices soldiers make. Not for lofty ideals like defending their country or making a difference, though those are very much also true. It’s about the bonds that are forged between them and the lengths they’ll go to for their brothers and sisters in arms, whether they’re human or dragon or griffin. As one of the characters says to my main character Harper Tavros, “We fight and we bleed and we die protecting these people, but let me tell you a secret… We don’t do it for them. We do it for each other.”
While I’m sadly not actually a dragon or griffin rider (I’m still waiting for my green dragon), I am a veteran of the USAF, and I put a lot of the things I experienced as an active duty officer into this story. Not the boring bits, because nobody wants to hear about all the paperwork I had to do, but the heart and soul of serving in the military hopefully shines through.
As for the second half of your question, I’m afraid if I told you when and more importantly where the story takes place that it would be a little too spoilery. And while I never come right out and tell you the answer, readers can definitely pick up on the hints and figure it out (and isn’t that half the fun of reading a good story?).
Where did you get the idea for Rise From Ruin, and how different is the finished story from what you originally conceived?
Oh my goodness, now that’s a bit of a long story.
Baen holds an annual blind contest called the Baen Fantasy Adventure Award. About a week before the 2023 contest deadline, I went to sleep feeling very content that I wasn’t going to enter that year. I had no ideas and no time and I wasn’t going to stress about it. Maybe next year, I told myself. Well, the next morning, an utterly ridiculous griffin popped into my head, and I wrote [a short story called] “Fall From Grace” in two days. My last-second story about a dragon rider cadet who accidentally bonded to a griffin thanks to a prank gone wrong ended up taking second place — and the characters wouldn’t leave me alone. Rise From Ruin was born from that short story.
The first two adult sci-fi and fantasy novels I read as a teenager were Dragonflight by Anne McCaffrey, and The Black Gryphon by Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon. Both novels had a big impact on my life (I know I’m not the only one who joined the Air Force because they always wanted to be a dragonrider and had to settle for airplanes or helicopters). As one of my author friends said, if wishing could have brought me to those hatching sands, I’d be a green rider. And then I thought, what if you were this close to achieving that dream…and you ended up bonded to a griffin instead?
The bones of that original idea are still present in the finished novel, but certain things changed along the way. [Baen’s] Toni Weisskopf is one of the best editors in the business, and her developmental edits were invaluable.
I’m also beyond fortunate in my author friends, who provided helpful inputs that made the story so much better than the first draft. But that’s the thing about a first draft — its only purpose is to exist. It’s what we do with it after that can turn a good story into something great.
So, is there a reason Harper becomes soul bonded to a griffin because of a prank as opposed to a drunken dare gone wrong or some other way?
The short answer is because she was involved in a prank war with her best friends who shall henceforth be known as the three morons.
The longer answer has to do with the fact that they were in a military academy, and they only had so much leeway for goofing off. I’m currently writing a short story that gives you a glimpse at just when that prank war started. It involves mud and pink dye.
Also, why a griffin and not, say, a giant chicken or a really, really big bug?
Because griffins are awesome!
It’s also entirely possible that our main character Harper a.k.a. Harpy spends half the story calling her griffin a fancy chicken and an overgrown peacock…
It sounds like Rise From Ruin is a fantasy story. But what kind of fantasy story is it?
I’m a big fan of different genres, and I have so much fun taking what I love from each and blending it into something new. So I ended up with a story that is very much adventure fantasy, with post-apocalyptic elements, broad hints of sci-fi, and a military academy setting (for the first half of the novel at least).
Rise From Ruin is your tenth novel, but only the second that’s fantasy. Why did you decide to write Rise From Ruin as a fantasy story as opposed to a sci-fi one in which, say, a pilot accidentally mind bonds with a cargo ship when she really wanted to pilot a fighter?
Funny you should ask that question. Because in my Salvage Bunny series, Kailey Jackson 100% ends up bonded to an alien warship thanks to the “magic” of a neural link that can’t be undone for reasons. Spoilery reasons.
As for Rise From Ruin, the first character who popped into my head was a griffin. You may direct all follow up questions as to why he demanded a post-apocalyptic fantasy setting to him.
Seriously though, do you guys want to know a secret? I grew up reading sci-fi and fantasy, discovered urban fantasy as a teenager, fell in love with paranormal romance (pun absolutely intended) in college, enjoyed the heck out of space opera as a young adult…you get the drift. The main reason so many of my previously published novels are on the sci-fi side of the house is that’s where my opportunities lay (huge thanks to Chris Kennedy Publishing for those amazing opportunities). And as we previously discussed, I’m a big fan of blending genres, so you definitely get tropes and vibes from genres other than fantasy in Rise From Ruin.
Speaking of your other novels, are there any writers, or specific stories, that had a big influence on Rise From Ruin but not on anything else you’ve written?
I know I already said it above, but it bears repeating — Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders Of Pern and Mercedes Lackey and Larry Dixon’s The Mage War novels had such a huge influence on Rise From Ruin. It is very much a love letter to two of my first loves in genre fiction, and I will always credit those amazing authors for influencing generations of readers and authors, myself very much included!
As for my other novels, I can look at certain things and go, oh, I do that because of Mercedes Lackey or Lois McMaster Bujold (another big influence!) or Jim Butcher or Patricia Briggs or Ilona Andrews or countless other masters of our craft. I love catching those little things that I’ve picked up from reading.
What about non-literary influences? Was Rise From Ruin influenced by any movies, TV shows, or games? Because soul bonding with dragons immediately made me think of that Rick & Morty episode.
Sadly, I haven’t had much time for adult TV in years. However, I still know all the songs from My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic thanks to my daughter’s obsession, and I have watched every episode of Voltron: Legendary Defender at least three times with my son. I don’t think either of those shows had an influence on Rise From Ruin, but I’m a firm believer in the Power of Friendship, and believe it or not, both of those shows did a fine job of showcasing that concept to younger viewers.
…okay, fine, I freaking loved Voltron, and some of those My Little Pony songs are downright catchy. I said what I said!
And what about your two dogs? How, if at all, did they influence Rise From Ruin?
Ah, my wonderful German Shedders, I mean Shepherds. Remy Remington and Finnigan Finn a.k.a. Remy and Finn. They’re both a delight and they love to keep me company while I write. In fact, both dogs are currently laying on either side of my desk chair. If only Finn wasn’t farting constantly…
Neither really had an influence on Rise From Ruin, as both dragons and griffins are very much sapient creatures whereas dogs are more like eternal toddlers. Who shed. A lot. Did I mention they shed? However, there’s a lot of the world left unexplored, and if such a thing as dragons and griffins exist, why not dire wolves or cù-sìth companions? Hmm…now there’s an idea!
Remy Remington, Finnigan Finn
Now, fantasy novels are sometimes stand-alone stories, and sometimes part of a larger sagas. What is Rise From Ruin? Is it a stand-alone novel or the start of a series?
See above about the characters not leaving me alone!
Rise From Ruin is a complete story in and of itself. No cliffhangers or abrupt endings, though I definitely leave plenty of threads dangling for book two — which I’ll be starting in the next month or so. I plan for the initial arc to be a trilogy, with another trilogy planned after that, and then there’s the other set of characters kicking around in my mind that would be great for a new series within the universe. Oooh, and the anthology I’d love to do…you get the picture. I intend to write in this world for as long as I’m able to because I love it so much.
So this first trilogy is in the Griffin Corps series. Those first three books and the second trilogy after will feature Harper Tavros as the main character, and keep the same cast of characters. I’ve got another trilogy brewing in the back of my mind that’s set in a different time period with a whole new main character and cast of characters, but that’s still very much in the planning stages. Jace Benning has to wait his turn, because there’s only so much room for all those wonderful voices in my head (and yes, my husband thinks I’m certifiable, but I’m having fun so it’s fine).
And do you know what the other books in the first trilogy will be called, or when they’ll be out?
I have a working title for book two, but I’ll keep that one to myself for now as it’s a little spoilery. No release dates as of yet, but I’ll be sure to keep everyone posted.
Earlier I asked if Rise From Ruin was influenced by any movies, TV shows, or games. But to flip things around, do you think Rise From Ruin could work as a movie, a TV show, or a game?
Oh my goodness, I would die from sheer happiness if my novel was ever made into a movie or TV show (says every author ever).
I think it could work really well as a movie, especially with how far CGI and special effects have come in the past decade. Considering that the book is a chonker and already broken into two parts, it could even be two movies. I’d totally be fine with that, ha! It would definitely work as a TV show too, and while I’m not a gamer, I bet it would be a lot of fun in that format as well! What kind of rider will you be…
And if someone wanted to make a movie or TV show based on Rise From Ruin, who would you want them to cast as Harper and the other main characters?
This is usually a pretty difficult question for me, because my brain immediately checks out. Actors? Never heard of a single actor in my life, sorry. It’s like when you go to the doctor’s office and they as if you have any questions. Nothing but white noise.
One character told me right away who he is though. Major Zeddemore, the Dragon Detachment Commander of Fort Ashfall, would 100% be played by Idris Elba [Thor] if there’s any justice in this world. As for Harper Tavros, I think Sadie Sink [Stranger Things] might be a good fit. I thought she killed that role.
So, is there anything else you think potential readers need to know about Rise From Ruin?
I’m a firm believer in the Power of Friendship, found family, and the good guys triumphing over evil, and I believe that those ideals have a place in adult fiction, not just in the Saturday morning cartoons we grew up with. No matter how dark things get, there’s always hope in my stories and joy (also snarky banter because heck yes!). Even though Rise From Ruin involves war and heartbreak and loss, it very much also has hope and joy and characters that I hope you’ll love as much as I do.
There’s two words that I need you guys to remember for me before you read Rise From Ruin: Never alone. Because once you’re a bonded rider, you are never alone again. And isn’t that the main draw of being a dragon (or griffin) rider? A partner who will always be at your side, who will never judge you (even if they’re laughing their feathered tail off at you), who will never abandon you, who will always understand you? And make fun of you? Wait…
Sorry, my griffin just had to have the last word there. [laughs]
Finally, if someone enjoys Rise From Ruin, which of your earlier novels would you suggest they check out while waiting for the second book to come out?
If you like found family and the Power of Friendship (and sharp stabby things), then I’d recommend my Salvage Bunny series. If I had to pinpoint my influences on this one, I’d say it’s Voltron meets Evie from The Mummy in an explosive space opera with white knight mercenaries and mischievous space foxes. It has a lot of the same themes as Rise From Ruin, and the bonus of an unintentional bond between a girl and her warship (not until book 2…minor spoilers). The first book, Sunrise Over Shippo, was my very first novel and it’s a lot of fun seeing how far I’ve developed as a writer in four years. It’s also one of my favorite stories, and I hope readers enjoy Kailey’s adventures as she figures out what she would do to save her home.
