Kate Heartfield is the author who’s works include The Magician’s Workshop and Armed in Her Fashion. Her debut novel won Canada’s Aurora Award, and her novellas, stories and games have been shortlisted for the Nebula, Locus, Crawford, Sunburst and Aurora awards. We caught up with her to ask questions about her latest mix of history and fantasy, The Embroidered Book.
How would you pitch The Embroidered Book to a big-shot Hollywood Movie producer who’s about to tuck into a big sandwich?
The Embroidered Book is a story about Marie Antoinette, queen of France, and her sister Charlotte, queen of Naples, as rival magicians. As teenagers, they’re sent to hostile courts to marry men they’ve never met, and over the coming decades, they’ll sacrifice everything to survive. Behind the actual wars and political earthquakes of the 18th century is a hidden world of magic and secret societies. It’s a book about how women wield power, and how history remembers – or misremembers – their achievements.
It’s quite a big book – why do we keep coming back to epic fantasy?
Big book, big hair, big dresses, big politics and big magic! I love short books too, but there’s something special about sinking into a world and staying there for a while. Stories are ultimately about change, and when that change is happening on the scale of something like the French Revolution, it takes some time to tell.
Why do we keep telling stories inspired by the French Revolution?
It’s such a fascinating period, and I think we can’t help but see the parallels to our own time. The 18th century was an age of marvels and a moment of such hope and possibility. Liberty, equality and fraternity were within our grasp – and yet it was also a time when science was being put to the service of racism and imperialism, and when demagogues used the hopes of the people to enrich themselves and set themselves up as tyrants.
It’s 2022, why are we still obsessed with Royalty?
It’s the dresses! Well, maybe it’s more than that. There’s a sense that a royal family belongs to everyone, somehow, and some comfort in that historical continuity (even when dynasties are broken or cobbled together). And I think there’s something grimly fascinating about the fact that the people who are in the best position to make things better – whether they’re royalty or just billionaires – usually don’t. Also, let’s face it, court politics are always fascinating to watch.
Why fantasy? Why Magic?
For me, looking at the world through a kaleidoscope is a way to get a new perspective. Fantasy shows us how truly weird reality is. And magic, to me, is the perfect metaphor for power. It expands and enriches those ‘what if’ questions that drive all fiction. And it’s a fun challenge to write.
Why does history based fantasy tend toward the grim and dark?
As Tom Stoppard’s Player said in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, ‘We can’t give you love and rhetoric without the blood. Blood is compulsory.’ There’s definitely some blood in The Embroidered Book, but there’s also a bright shining thread running through the novel: the love between two sisters. And there’s some romance too. To my mind, the best historical fiction holds a mirror to the full range of human experience.
What other periods of history fascinate you?
All of them! I seem to be drawn to periods of intense political, economic and social change: the Enlightenment, the Industrial Revolution, the Hundred Years War, the Renaissance, the transition from the Roman Empire to its successors. So far, my focus has been on Europe and (to a lesser extent) North America.
What other genres would you like to tackle?
My novella Alice Payne Arrives began in my mind as a mystery – but being me, I added a generous dose of time travel. At some point, though, it would be fun to write a classic murder mystery, without science fiction or supernatural elements.
Has the world of fantasy writing become more accessible?
At a fundamental level, I think all fiction is fantasy: it all asks to imagine a set of events that didn’t happen and might not ever happen. Of course, some plot elements place greater demands on our imagination than others! I do think that the world of fantasy has opened up to ever more readers in recent years – and I hope the continues to open up to more writers from all backgrounds. It’s an exciting time to be a reader.
What are you reading at the moment? What was the last book you enjoyed?
I’ve been doing a lot of research for my current work in progress, so I’ve been immersed in non-fiction. My most recent fiction reads were two science fiction novels, both of which I highly recommend: S.B. Divya’s Machinehood, and Light Years From Home by Mike Chen. Both of them have characters who will stay with me, and really fascinating and timely ideas and settings.
Apart from reading, what was the last good bit of media you experienced?
I’m late to the Peaky Blinders train but totally on board. What an amazing show with outstanding writing and performances. My favourite film from last year was The Green Knight, which was such a glorious interpretation of a very old and very weird story. I’ve also really been enjoying the series The Great, which is a completely off the wall look at female power in the 18th century, coming at some of the same themes as The Embroidered Book but from a different angle.
Dragons or Space-stations?
If I have to choose, dragons. But dragons on a space station is a very good story prompt.
Ball Gowns or Board Games?
I have gone bowling in a prom dress, but I have never played board games in a ball gown. Time to rectify that. I do play board games a lot, so that’s my pick, even though my kid beats me nine times out of ten.
Doctor Who or Doctor No?
Doctor Who! Number 11, for preference.
Truth or Beauty?
I think my queens, Charlotte and Antoinette, would fall on different sides of this one. I’m team Charlotte: Truth every time.
The Embroidered Book is out now, via all good book-sellers.
