Hello everyone! Today I’m bringing you an interview with a special guest – the lovely Katja Labonté from Canada. This should have been posted a long time ago, but I wanted to update my website and read her book A Noble Comfort first. (You can read my review here.)

So . . . without further ado, let’s get started. My questions will be in bold and her answers in purple.

Hi, Katja, and welcome to the blog! First of all, can you tell us what made you decide to sign up for the Cornerstone Series?

Hello, Phoebe! Thank you so much for having me; I really appreciate it. 🙂 You know what’s funny is, I didn’t intend to sign up at all at first. I thought of it but decided against it at once, and it wasn’t until a few days or even weeks in that I changed my mind. I was really struggling with a lot of perfection paralysis and self-doubt, and I was afraid that if I did wrote a novella for the series, people would hate it and tear it to shreds. It was during a conversation with Madisyn Carlin, my friend who was co-organizer for the series, that she heard I’d always wanted to write a fairytale retelling and insisted that I should write one for the series—that I shouldn’t let fear hold me back, and so forth. Being someone who’s easily convinced (and, let’s be honest, has FOMO), I gave in and signed up… and here we are! 😉

I saw on another interview that you took inspiration from a lot of historical eras. Would you say that one era inspired you more than the others?

Well, let’s see. I was heavily inspired by 16th and 17th century France—Cardinal Richelieu, Louis XIII, religious persecutions, war-torn lands, brilliant courts, political struggles… I think that probably played the heaviest role in creating Tokulniòs and the world in A Noble Comfort.

What do you think was your biggest challenge in writing ANC?

Self-doubt/fear, 100%. I was so worried that it was a pointless, silly story; that nobody would like it; that it wouldn’t do any good, or be taken seriously, or even be considered good. I was terrified that people would despise or reject me over it. It sounds dramatic, but it’s true. I was so sure I’d be shown up as a fake, a phony writer, a hypocrite who critiqued books but couldn’t write them. That fear made me wait till the last minute to write and prepare it, which put a whole bunch of unnecessary stress and expense on me, and had me take publishing choices that I wish I hadn’t.

(Ngl, I have a LOT of trouble with imposter syndrome. On bad days I sometimes ask myself why in the world I ever thought I could write. 🥲)

Did you have any initial plans that ended up taking a wildly different direction?

Well, I wrote out the plot of ANC fairly early on, after reading The Blue Bird. I basically just copied TBB’s plot and then added changes that came to me, inspired by The Three Musketeers or my own imagination. I don’t usually write plots, or plot at all, but for this retelling I decided to, and I think when I actually wrote the story I stayed pretty true to my original idea. The main bones did, anyhow. Small variations happened; but the biggest changes, I think, were that K & C ended up having way less interaction than planned (because #wordcountissues) and didn’t have the courtship I intended them to have; Constanza was to be crowned queen much earlier on because of a revolt and with no help from the Inseparables; and Kenneth + Constanza fought and almost didn’t make up. (Yes, I, who despise misunderstanding tropes, nearly wrote one. The horror!). Oh, and originally, Alexios and Thalassa were to end up as a couple, too.

Do you have a favorite memory associated with writing ANC?

Do I? *scans memory doubtfully* I remember when I actually sat down and wrote the first chapter, I was absolutely enchanted and adored it. It was my first inkling that maybe this would end up okay overall. I also remember having such fun researching the tiger scene (it’s a lot harder to find information on how to fight a tiger than you’d think). Mostly I enjoyed everything after writing, though. I can’t really remember much about the writing process—I was so fearfully busy and stressed.

(If I ever need to write a tiger fight I know who to call now. 😆)

Do you have a favorite scene or snippet that you’d like to share?

I would love to! Oh, dear, it’s so hard to pick (I almost went with the fight between Lord Frédéric and Lord Stéfanos, because I love it SO MUCH), but here’s one scene I really enjoy.

Azaziah reached across for Kenneth’s reins. “I’ll keep the horses; you investigate.”

“Why?” demanded the other, eyeing the thick snow with disfavour.

“You’re younger.”

“Only by three years. And I’m also a king.”

“I could be one too; you don’t know.”

“I beg pardon for contradicting, your presumed majesty, but there are no other kingdoms lying about here with missing monarchs—”

“Besides, we agreed not to stand upon any rank if you joined us, and you agreed to consider me your leader.”

“Exactly. Leaders should lead. It’s in the name itself, O king.”

“Hurry and go, before it gets dark, Bluebird,” retorted Azaziah, ending the matter as he snatched the reins from Kenneth’s unresisting hand.

The younger man grimaced but dismounted agilely and marched down the hill without a shred of caution. Azaziah’s fingers pricked. The boy was surely not trying to remain unseen, was he? Wariness was simply not his strong suit; perhaps Azaziah should have gone himself instead…

Cupping his hands around his mouth, Kenneth bellowed a resounding, “Halloo-oo-oo!”

Azaziah groaned.

But no gruff, weapon-laden man-at-arms appeared. Perfect silence reigned. Azaziah shifted uneasily in the saddle. This boded ill for their chances of finding the princess. If she were here, she was incapacitated in some way. Or the adversary was lying in ambush while that fool of a Kenneth circled the old ruin, peering up at the windows that stretched above his head and occasionally letting loose a piercing whistle that would have summoned the deafest of pots.

Suddenly he stopped and craned his neck back, staring fixedly at a second-storey window. Then he caught up a handful of snow and hurtled it towards the pane. Azaziah jumped to the ground and threw the reins over a tree limb, hastily securing them before hurrying after his friend. “What is it?” he called as he drew near.

“Don’t know. It’s a woman, but she doesn’t seem dark.” Kenneth readied another snowball, but the window swung open and the lady-in-waiting’s golden head appeared.

“What is it?” she asked unenthusiastically.

Her flat voice staggered both men. Kenneth found his words first and retorted bluntly, “Well, I don’t know; perhaps I might interest you in a rescue operation?”

Was there any music or songs that really inspired you?

The short answer is no. xD But there was some music I played over and over as I wrote… [link] And there are two songs that I connect very much to the MCs. This one for Thalassa, and this one for Azaziah.

(I love all those choices! I’ll have to remember that ambient one next time I write. 😊)

I know it’s unfair to make an author choose a favorite character, so I won’t ask you that. But did you have any characters that you especially related to or enjoyed writing?

Well, Thalassa was—is—essentially me, so I definitely related to her. There is very little we differ in, if anything. Penuel was not someone I related to but he was quite fun to write—except for when he wasn’t because I felt insecure writing him, haha. There were some minor characters I enjoyed writing too, like Korinna, and Lord Nicholas…

I know the Inseparables were based on the Three Musketeers, and Penuel was inspired by Brian Jacques’ Long Patrol hares (Redwall forever!). Did any of the other characters have special inspiration behind them?

Oh, yes, so many! Constanza is inspired by Queen Anne and Constance Bonacieux from The Three Musketeers. Fiorella is inspired by Milady de Winter from TTM. Cellach de Quottine is inspired partly by Cardinal Richelieu of France, partly by Frollo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame, and partly by Citoyen Chauvelin from the Scarlet Pimpernel books. Lord Arnault is inspired by Lord Anthony from the Scarlet Pimpernel books too, while Lord Frédéric is inspired by d’Artagnan and Frederick the Great. Lord Stéfanos is inspired by Mr. Havisham from Little Lord Fauntleroy, and Lord Cornelius is inspired by Cornelius the elephant advisor in “Babar.” Old Tadhg is inspired by Malachi Bone from The Settlers in Canada. Duchess Evanthia is based partly on Miss Lavendar from Anne of Avonlea, Grandmaman from Heidi, and a dear family friend of mine… and believe it or not, I’ve left out some folks!

(Wow, that’s a lot! You took inspo from Babar?! I love that 😍)

Do you plan on writing more stories about the characters from ANC?

Oh, don’t I! I have two sequels vaguely planned (tentatively called An Honourable Assistance, which will cover religious persecution, set in Eatié, and retell The Wild Swans + Dumas’ Marguerite of Valois, and A Gentle Solace, which will retell both Musketeers and Marguerite—because they’re big and I definitely have elements I didn’t touch on—as well as a French fairytale called La Biche au bois, and will be about Tokulniòs being invaded by the “Vikings”), and I’d love to write them ASAP. It’s a toss-up between them and my WWII novel, Something Bright in All. I suspect I’ll either write both at once, or whichever one my audience wants most (aka whichever one I can convince someone to brainstorm with me and read along as I write).

(Ooh, I can’t wait!)

*****

Well, folks, that’s all! Hope you enjoyed it (and I REALLY hope y’all go check out ANC, ’cause you should. You really should 😉). Thank you, Katja, for dropping in!