Dragonguard: Six Dragons Six "W"s

What is Dragonguard?

Dragonguard is an eight book series written ASH -- that's me. It's a high fantasy adventure about noble born young adults (18-24) wrapped up in a coming civil war between two of the five royal houses.

The titular kingdom is the only kingdom in the realm in possession and control of dragons. The nobility live above the commoners quite literally in skyscrapers and suspended castles. All of these highborn are given dragons from a young age so that they can go through puperty with their dragons. Dragons and humans soul bond for life. When the bonding of their souls is particularly strong, the human is granted the power of a dragon, making them a Dragon Knight.

There are six types of dragons in the kingdom, and each royal house rides a different type. The dragons of Dragonguard are elemental, with the six owned dragons being fire, storm, night, silent, ice, and wind. Yes, it's not just the basic elements, and if you're curious about what powers night and silent dragons have, I'll talk about them if there's any interest shown. The Wind Dragons are not rode by highborn nobility, rather they are ridden by the most trusted members of the kingdom's religious order, the Order of Windsong.

Who are the heroes of Dragonguard?

Well, they're not heroes, not yet anyway. We start the story with six POV characters:

Maelstrom "Mael" Redtail: Eighteen year-old archer, a Tail in the King's Dragon -- Dragonguard's standing military. He's a little too severe for his own good, but while his stoicism keeps him from opening up, he's willing to break the law for his friends and family. He rides on Gleam, a ten year old young adult Fire Dragon. Gleam is a generally happy dragon but he likes to get into trouble and tends to have tunnel vision. Mael starts the story dealing with a death in the family that he feels responsible for.

Shurri "Soulless" Shoalward: Tall, rigid, and brooding, Shurri lives a life of forced isolation. She devotes her life to becoming a Dragon Knight, the one way for her to regain favor in the kingdom and prove that there's nothing wrong with riding a dragon of the opposite gender. The twenty year old Egg is known derisively as Soulless for the crime of her childhood. She rides on the great dragon Cedia. While Shurri is tall and muscular, Cedia is massive. He's an arrogant Storm Dragon made large from centuries of selective breeding. More stubborn than even his rider, Cedia never turns down a challenge. Shurri's adventure starts with her finally getting to squire for an all powerful Dragon Knight.

Basil Pepperborn: Debonair lawman of the Kingdom, Basil isn't planning beyond tomorrow. At the raw age of twenty-four, he's given up on the virtue of the nobility, the sanctity of laws, and the value of love. His companion is the Silent Dragon Boots. Boots, like Basil, is a bit of a showoff. His playful nature makes him fly with pizzazz and live with a flourish. Rising tensions in the kingdom bring Basil back to the one woman he ever loved.

Kaeric "Pageripper" Quillborn: This eighteen year-old rapscallion doesn't have a title, he dropped out of a prestigious ordinant school, and spends his days sequestered in the halls of a library. Born to the royal house of wisdom, Kaeric wants to spend his time fighting and seeks to prove the military value of Night Dragons. Grumpa, Kaeric's Night Dragon, hates fighting. The simple pacifist is happy to sit by his pet carps and watch them swim when he jostles the water. Neither Mael or Cherryl could say how they became friends with Kaeric, but he's too enthusiastic to get rid of now.

Lisette Whitefoot: One of two accomplices to Shurri's infamous egg swap, the naturally timid girl distanced herself from the incident. At the age of twenty, she's now an Edler of the Old Ways, letting her keep the traditions of her people alive. An accomplished dancer, singer, and axe fighter, Marcia embodies the proud history of the northern nation, Soujern. She's close with her Ice Dragon, Crystal. Crystal elegant and attentive, always on the lookout for trouble or food. She has a bit of a silly streak that helps thaw Marcia's icy heart. With tensions rising in Dragonguard, she's opted to debut to look for a husband that could forge a powerful alliance.

Cherryl Bloom: Middle child to a family of nine, Cherryl always had a hard time standing out or making a name for herself. She's opted for a simple life as an Edler of the Hunt and plans on a life married to Mael. Everyone but Mael seems to know she feels this way, but she's content to be his friend, even if it means dealing with Kaeric's antics. Cherryl rides the austere Fire Dragon Frei. Frei takes her role as a mount and guardian seriously, and has little patience for games. But if something looks tasty or piques her curiousity, Frei will drop her serious airs.

When does Dragonguard take place?

654 years after the founding of the kingdom, which doesn't tell you a lot since it's a fictional world.

I can tell you that I started working on this series in May of 2010. Since then I've seen a lot of elements of my story show up in other popular works, and it's been frustrating. Still I kept working on the story slowly, going through many drafts between writing other stories. I've always believed in the success of this project so I'm committing to putting out all eight books of the series.

Where does Dragonguard take place?

On the western side of the fictional continent of Rindell. The east and west side of the the continent are divided by a massive mountain range.

Within the stories, most of the action happens in major cities.

The cities of Dragonguard are built around massive towers and architectural masterpieces that suspend castles above the ground. Their vast wealth is supported by an infrastructure reinforced by a fast-moving winged supply chain. Highborn live in the towers, and many of the towers are dedicated manors controlled by a single royal family. They possess stables for dragons and other winged beasts of burden, as well as a retinue of servants to provide for their many demands. The top of most towers support roofshops that are taxed to support the family, while the merchants make considerably more as they frequently overcharge. Every city has a rich history, many having survived the rise and fall of several nations, and have a kind of character that sets them apart from others.

How did Dragonguard come to be?

Dragonguard was formed from the remnants of several nations and kingdoms. The Dire Sage Empire was dominating the region with superior tactics, technology, and wealth. But the wise Emperor Chase IV proposed an alliance with the eastern theocracy and the southern nation. They would form a new nation that stratified possession of the dragons and control every dragon in the world. As an ultimate show of faith, Emperor Chase IV sacrificed his title and throne to favor whatever ruler the Order of Windsong chose. Thus King Io, first and last of his name, came to rule the young kingdom. Though it would take four hundred years to control seven types of dragons.

How the story came to be in my head? Well, that's a little different.

I was playing around with Mount & Blade and I thought about how much cooler the game would be if everyone was flying around on dragons instead of riding horses. I went on to create the five houses and sixth lost house as well as the major plot points. In this early stage a lot of the events in my mind were centered around strategy and tactics, but as I came to define the characters the focus shifted to their personal journeys. I had to completely restart the story about five times before it had the right amount of character and action, and I'm really happy with how far the series has evolved.

Why did I create Dragonguard?

I don't start stories with an objective, I just get an impression of a world, or a concept and I run with it. The more I like the project, the closer it is to being complete, and if I finish a novel I then have to decide if this is something people actually want to read. I suppose a more meaningful question is why I stuck with Dragonguard.

I've given up on the project a few times. Earlier drafts had everything from third person present, to a story so slice-of-life that there weren't any stakes. I've been too technical, too vague, and more problems than I can even recall, so I didn't always have a positive reception to the project. But ever since I was a child I wanted a story where humans and dragons were interconnected. I liked the idea of Dragon Knights, and I liked my take on elemental dragons, and that kept my interest. There were aspects in How to Train Your Dragon, Avatar the Last Airbender, and even A Song of Ice and Fire that really made me feel embarrassed about the project, but it helped to know that I wasn't influenced by them and I never set out to copy their work. My influences were TSR's Council of Wyrms, Mount & Blade, and nearly ten years of roleplaying mainly in urban fantasy. It was a setting better than any I'd made before because I had the experience of world building details large and small. I believed in this project because similar things continued to not only be successful, but they were also well received.

I reworked it one last time, rewriting about 40% just to make sure everything flowed together and served the themes of the first book. I edited everything and it finally felt like a book. I queried literary agents interested in fantasy, but time and again I got form rejections. The more I looked into the market, the more I learned that fantasy didn't really include dragons anymore. My book was more or less unmarketable to the professionals. It was time to quit.

But I didn't.

I had to know if it was my prose or the market keeping me back. I got some feedback that I honestly should've paid for, and it was consistently positive. If my readers enjoyed my book and I enjoyed my book, then my book wasn't the problem. Maybe fantasy readers weren't interested in reading stories about dragons, but that could change in time. Stories similar to Dragonguard had been successful the entire time I've been working on it. I figured if dragons became trendy and I had four or six books out, then they'd have more to read and love what was there. Besides, after nine years, I hadn't given up on the project for a reason.