I’m delighted to chat today with Jordan H. Bartlett, author of the wonderful fantasy series The Frean Chronicles. The latest novel in the series, Queen’s Catacombs, is available for pre-order now, with a publication date of March 14th, 2024.

What is the central message you hope readers take away from Queen’s Catacombs, the brilliant follow up to Contest of Queens?

That in all things, be kind. I hope that this novel shows that prejudice and division of people based on where they’re born, or what gender they are only makes us weaker as a whole. I hope that it makes people think about and re-evaluate their own prejudices and how they impact others. I hope my book shows that at the end of the day, people are people. Give one group power and how they shape the world might look different, but there will always be those who are corrupt, and there will always be those fighting for what’s right.

What’s your favorite scene in the book?

I loved so many scenes in this book for different reasons. I always love writing the Griffin-riding scenes as I feel like that’s where my imagination is allowed to soar (pardon the pun). Honestly, though I really loved the tavern scene in Amber’s chapter: “A Bard’s Lament.” It was fun to write, I loved the banter between Amber and Andromeda as they are such good balances for one another. I got to touch on Amber’s changing opinion about men joining the military, have her break up some treason, and write a folk tune. It was just a lot of fantastic elements all in one place.

Do you hide any secrets in the book that only a few people will find?

I guess you’ll just have to read to find out… but I feel like a lot of my books are just easter eggs about my life and what I like! Yves’s entrance and his opening line is a nod to my favourite movie, The Count of Monte Cristo. His ditty about the Two Wolves is a nod to my yoga teacher training. A lot of the names have deeper meanings and origins. For example, Bruna Leschi is named for the Italian mathematician and architect: Filippo Brunelleschi (that’s also why her son’s name is Phillip). The palace goldsmith who we never actually meet is called Master Aestos “call me Heph” (Hephaestos being the blacksmith of Mount Olympus). I think I like to weave in things important and interesting to me in my stories and just hope that others find it just as interesting.

What is your writing process?

I like to experience my story in my heart and in my bones before I put pen to paper and fingers to keys. When I’m figuring out a story, I often go on long walks, hikes, kayaks, or car rides by myself and just let my brain run through the plot, the characters, what I need to keep in mind, what I want to avoid. Then I write out the outline from start to finish in a notebook. At this stage there’s a lot of editing that happens. After that, I write chapter by chapter that first draft and have found that I will often wave goodbye to many aspects of my best laid plan! The main plot points stay the same but I often find different ways to get there. A story evolves at each stage and I really do believe that it’s not finished until it’s published. There’s always room to tweak things that don’t work, or rework scenes for more impact.

Another part of my writing process is research, and while I do use Google to my advantage, I prefer to take field trips and pick up new hobbies so I can experience what my characters experience and write about it better. For example, I’ve picked up hobbies like tarot reading and the violin because Jacs plays the fiddle, and my next protagonist has a fortune-telling side hustle. I went for a fieldtrip to the herbarium in Calgary and spoke with the head of the department for over an hour about how to collect plant samples and document them for a botanist character. I have visited more castles than I can name in the UK to get a sense of what castle living looks like. I think it’s one of my favorite parts of writing, trying new things so I can put something I’m passionate about in the books. 

What are you working on now?

I’m just finishing up the third and final installment in this series: Queendom Come (out March 2025), and when I’m finished that, I’ll be editing my next novel about pirates! I’m so excited for both of these projects. Queendom Come will wrap up Jacs’s fight to bring balance to her Queendom and tackle the evil organization that threatens to spread darkness across the realms. My pirate novel is about the banished daughter of a legendary pirate queen who battles the seas and creatures of myth with an unlikely sidekick and an ex-flame to regain her honour and return to her mother’s crew. 

Where can readers purchase your published work?

Anywhere! I recommend ordering through your local bookstore or library before you go anywhere else because the big shops don’t need your money. But here are the links to all the different places you can find Contest of Queens: https://books2read.com/u/3JEJnX

Queen’s Catacombs: https://books2read.com/b/mK79MB

Where can readers find you on social media?

Website: www.jordanhbartlett.com

Instagram: @jordanhbartlett

Podcast: Author Nook with Jordan H Bartlett (on Spotify) https://open.spotify.com/show/0raNo3hWR5X9vovD7tcspt?si=bef5735bea3d44b9

What is your official author bio?

New Zealand-born, Canadian Jordan Bartlett grew up reading books about boys for boys. She struggled to find that strong female heroine that she could relate to. While empowering female characters are more prevalent in recent literature, they are often found in worlds dominated by men. Bartlett wrote Contest of Queens and Queen’s Catacombs to create a world asking “what if” where females are the default gender.

Bartlett holds degrees in Psychology, English, and a Master’s of Science degree in Speech and Language Pathology. Throughout her English degree, she focused her studies in the areas of children’s literature and the role of women in literature throughout history. It is this affinity for fairy tales mixed with her desire to breathe life into compelling, unique, and ultimately flawed female characters in a world where they have not been tethered that she hopes to flip fantasy tropes and challenge gendered expectations in young adult readers—while keeping the levity of a fairy tale. 

When she is not writing, Bartlett works as a Speech Language Pathologist and is a certified yoga instructor. Any other free time is spent hiking, biking, and kayaking in the mountains and lakes of her backyard. She has devoured literature all her life and is honored to add to the world’s library.

What is the synopsis of your novel?

Winning the crown was only the beginning.

Jacs, now the rightful Queen of Frea, seems to be Queen in title alone. She scrambles to learn the customs and traditions of a Realm she had only read about in books. The Council of Four have her firmly under their thumb, and their ideas for the Queendom are oppressive and outdated. Their knowledge of her mother and Master Leschi’s whereabouts is the only leverage they need to make the new Queen dance to their tune.

Jacs is determined to find those who were taken from her and do what’s right for her Queendom. But in her search for answers, Jacs uncovers a much darker truth from the Queendom’s past that will forever change its future.

What was the most challenging part about writing a matriarchal world?

The language. Oh nelly, as a Speech Language Pathologist and an English major I was not expecting words to fail me, but the English language, I discovered, is patriarchal in nature. So many things I didn’t expect needed to be renamed or reworded. Specifically the titles – many of the female titles we have did not carry the same power behind them. For example, in our world we have Lord and Lady, so to simply switch the power of these two would not convey the same message to the reader given the reader expectations, plus I wanted to leave it more open for same gender couples. That’s where Lord and Genteel came from. Lord is gendered female, and Genteel is the gender-neutral term for a Lord’s spouse.  Also, balancing the language and the power dynamics in a heterosexual kissing scene was way more complicated than it should be! Who makes the first move? Who is being acted upon? How is it described? What are my world’s expectations on how that should look?

Thank you so much, Jordan, and congratulations on your upcoming book launch!