13 Legends: Interview with Jon Eastman & Stuart Thomas

What drew you to the world of Arthurian legends? 

STUART: Of course, as a Brit, the Arthur stories were just something I grew up with. I don’t remember a time when I wasn’t interested in the legends. I remember, growing up, there was a whole series of Arthur movies shown on BBC 2 on consecutive afternoons. I was maybe 8. I totally fell for the whole saga.

But, in all honesty, I hadn’t given much thought to Arthur et al in a while. When Jon suggested we give the stories a whole new spin, I was instantly hooked once again, reconnected to the core components of the myths – the themes, the characters, the works. It was like meeting old friends, going into the project, and what I’ve really enjoyed is that we’ve taken the various characters and given them new angles, new dimensions.

I’m particularly pleased with what we’ve done with the women. Guinevere and Morgan Le Fay have always fascinated me, but they’ve often been under-explored or used simply as foils for the male characters. We’ve tried to give them new blood, while still hanging on to their innate qualities.

What I love about the Camelot stories is that they’re universal and timeless – they still say something relevant. These myths will never lose their potency and if we have added even a little to their power in our re-telling, and I think we have, then I’m happy!

JON: Aside from the swords and magic – which are always a big plus for me – the Arthurian myths are vast, sprawling tales brimming with the conflicts of war and human failings, and are riddled with contradictions from the various works that exist. They are, therefore, perfect fodder for a writer to take their own stab at!

That said, my personal aim is not to preserve some version of the Arthurian canon, but instead, to tell an epic, engaging story that’s as fun to write as I hope it is to read.

Is there anything else you would like to add?

 STUART: BACK US ON KICKSTARTER! We’re doing great but the more pledges we get, the more money we can put into the series. We have 12 volumes to go. We want to tell the whole story – and every cent, every dollar helps us get there!!

JON: What Stuart said!