Well, here goes…
This is a blog devoted to a series of urban fantasy books I’m writing, the Thaumatology series. I’m planning to have the first of them, Thaumatology 101, “on the shelves” at Smashmouth by the end of this year, and the second one, Demon’s Moon, is in first draft.
In the world of Thaumatology, magic returned to Earth at the end of World War II in an event known as The Shattering, and supernatural beings walk the streets openly. Our heroin is a student of thaumatology, the science of magic, at London Metropolitan University, who lives with a half-succubus and a fairy in the Kennington district of London. Hired as a research assistant to help in the search for the fundamental particle of magic, all she has to do is make sure the thaumiton accelerators are synchronised and brave the horrors of academia. Should be easy, right?
Thaumatology 
Just finished your first book and wanted to leave a note about it. Well written story, enthralling characters, I personally love Lily, a lovely succubus character and quite a special one at that. I will have a review up soon, but this is the first novel with a succubus in it that I would give five out of five pitchforks to…
I do look forward to your next work and wish you much success with your writing!
Thanks, that’s much appreciated.
Lily’s background gets a little more explanation in Book 2, Demon’s Moon, which should be out by Christmas, I think. However, it’ll be Book 3 where Lily, and her past, really come to the fore.
I felt that she was well written in her mannerisms and the “things” that she does to Ceridwyn, and vice versa, were very much true to the actions and emotions that a succubus, especially a half would have… I have to admit that I am curious if the “true” succubi in your stories have horns and a tail but more so if they are truly evil or just interested in the joys of intimacy instead. I’ve never really seen them as being “evil” per se, but something a bit more in the grey area of the sides of light and dark…
I could also see a lot of places in the first story were you left quite a number of paths open for further explanation and exploration which I loved as well. I do have to admit that I have some questions with regards to the abilities of a succubus like Lily and I am curious if she would have the ability to form, or disappear, her clothing or other things she might need as a result of Ceridwyn and her relationship…. Odd thoughts but they come to mind…
Best Wishes
Tera
Demons in the Thaumatology universe are not evil per se, in fact no one really knows much about what their motivations are. They appear to be attracted to power and they are, mostly, rather lacking in empathy, which means they tend to act in a manner considered as evil, or at the very least amoral. Succubi could not do their “job” without an ability to understand the emotions of their victims, however, so they are actually among the more approachable of the demon species.
True succubi, as opposed to half ones like Lily, are able to take on any humanoid shape they need to, using their ability to sense the desires of a subject to assume a shape their victim would find attractive. What their native form is, no one really knows; they may not even have one. Lily’s father always assumed the form of a 20-something man when visiting her, but perhaps that’s just the form her mother found desirable, or the form Lily chose for her father figure. Real succubi have a few other powers Lily lacks, but I’m keeping those secret for later. 😉
Psychologically though, Lily likes sex, certainly, but true succubi are more like sex addicts. They draw power from their partners, sure, but they are driven to sexual activity by more than just a need for “food.” So, while they may kill or hurt people, it’s more due to basic nature than being malign. Describing that as evil would be like saying a wolf is evil for killing a hare.
In that case, assuming that the definition of evil is that one would have to do “true” evil, then in the case of succubi they might not actually be evil beings, just ones that happen to fixate themselves on something that the society, at least the human one, sees as evil or non-conforming…
It’s an interesting thought to ponder.
I would never ask for spoilers of the other powers they might have, though I do have to admit that the fact they do is quite interesting to me…
Getting off the Succubi for the moment, and pardon my questions, but there are some things about this universe that I am quite curious about…
Based on the story itself, it would appear that you are using scientific laws to limit the actual level of power that one might be able to produce for any one individual. This would, I assume, limit the powers of any one person to some level, whatever that may be. If that’s true, then is there a fixed upper limit?
The story mentions an event in the past, the Shattering, which altered the world. Will you ever explain more fully? I understood the changes as you wrote them in the story, but I do wonder at just how the rest of the world made out and how it changed in general reality. You have explained that, just to the smallest extent and it sounds like it is an interesting world.
One last question and I’ll try not to be a pain any further to you. I see that in your story you seem to be mixing various mythical themes from different cultures. Is there any one “dominant” one in your stories or are they all basically living together as it were?
Thank you for your time and good luck in your writing?
I don’t mind the questions. It’s nice to see someone taking an interest. I’ll answer what I can without breaking the suspense for later stories.
Human magicians are limited by their ability to generate power. If they can find an external source of thaumic energy to tap into, they can do much more than they could on their own, and groups can work together, sharing power to produce effects no individual could manage alone. Ceridwyn is an exception, and she has different limitations which will be explored in the next book. She’s really learning what she can do as she goes along.
There will be more detail on how the world is different from ours later. And I plan to do a few posts here explaining some of the differences. The one thing I have to keep remembering as I write is that Hollywood isn’t where all the films are made! It’s really hard not to put in film references that can’t have happened.
There isn’t a driving mythological theme. There is and will be a lot of Celtic myth, but book 2 features a mash-up of Roman and Norse mythology. Over in South America, there’s a war going on between the Catholic Brazillian state and the native cultures who live in the rain forest. In America and Australia the native religions and the magic they use are strong. Essentially, anything you know of from historical and modern mythology probably has some basis in fact there. Equally, the reality of those myths may not be quite what you expect.
And good luck with your writing too.
I’m coming a little late to your books, but I want to drop my opinion.
Wow! What a gorgeous combination of tropes. A Scientific base of magic, extraordinarily put into compelling stories. I never had the feeling you give too much of infodump.
Deep characters, lots of backstory. Thumbs up.
One question: I don’t quite understand “magic returned to Earth at the end of World War II” since even in the first book (I’ve read only the first and the second up to now) there are pointers to magical activities prior to this date.
Digging in my notes because it’s been a while since I had to worry about this…
There have been three main periods of magic on the Thaumatology Earth prior to the current one. (Or at least three we know about… Dinosaur sorcerers?)
The first began 73,000 years ago with the Toba Super-volcano eruption and continued through to about 32,000 years ago.
Thaumic energy levels increased again around 3000BC, ending in 800BC. This is the Golden Age of Greek myth.
Then there was another spike between 400AD and 515AD; the Dark Ages.
After that the baseline thaumic energy level for the world was low enough that most magical beings found it uncomfortable, or fatal, to be on Earth. Then there were the cataclysmic events of 1945. It starts on April 28th with the German Rift explosions, and can be said to end on August 6th when the Hiroshima bomb finally cracks open a huge rift along the Ring of Fire.
Hope that answers your question. If not, let me know.