Bookstores, Coffee Shops and Finding Connection: 5 Questions for Travis Balderee
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Bookshops & Bonedust, the follow-up to Legends & Lattes, is just as cozy and warm as a night spent around the hearth, sharing stories of adventure. If you’re tired of battles and bloodshed, but love fantasy worlds, this is the book for you. Our gorgeous B&N Exclusive Edition of Bookshops & Bonedust featuring French flaps, illustrations by Travis, an exclusive map and in-world bonus content, is out now, and to celebrate, we sat down with Travis for a quick Q&A.
You have a background in audiobook narration and game development, and you
published your first book in 2022. What made you want to write your own book after
being the voice of so many other stories?
I’ve wanted to write novels since I was in high school, and there are a lot of failed attempts in my wake. Legends & Lattes was just the first one that I actually managed to complete. My friend and fellow narrator Aven Shore-Kind convinced me to take another crack at it in 2021 for National Novel Writing Month, on the condition that she write a book as well (and she did!). I also finally convinced myself that I didn’t need to write the Great American Novel, and that creating something simple to please myself and a friend or two was just fine.
After lending your voice to many other stories, you also narrated your own books —
what’s it like bringing your book to life in a different format?
It’s the easiest narration job in the world. I know what every character sounds like, how everything is pronounced, and exactly what the intent of each sentence is. Ease of narration is determined by how close you are to being on the same wavelength as the author, since so much of the work is predictive – anticipation of where the author will go next tonally. There’s no way to get closer than being the author yourself!
When you started writing the Legends & Lattes series, what came to you first — story,
character or narrative voice?
Initially it was a jokey concept – what if I wrote a Hallmark movie in a fantasy world? Shortly afterward, Viv came into being, along with her hopes and dreams – and her character determined the nature of the story. I actually expected the narrative voice to be more tongue in cheek, but after only a page it became obvious to me that her story was in earnest, and then things fell into place.
Did you always plan on writing a prequel to Legends & Lattes?
After completing the first draft of Legends & Lattes, I knew I wanted to write another book – but I expected it to be another standalone story in the same world, with a different main character. The original idea for book 2 was a sort of fantasy Murder-She-Wrote. Apparently I’m no Agatha Christie though – Scooby Doo is more in my wheelhouse, it seems. I only care about the weirdos in the van. After thrashing around through several alternate attempts, I finally found the story I wanted to tell, and it just happened to be best told from Viv’s point of view.
Between the coffee shop in Legends & Lattes and now a bookshop, you’ve brought
elements of our world into your fantasy world. How did you decide on what you would
bring into the fantasy world and how they would manifest in Thune and Murk?
Bookshops and coffee shops are the two public places where I have connected most with other people – and what I have craved more than anything the past few years is human connection. In retrospect, they were both easy choices.