Tour the Novel

On this tour you can visit all the places from A Child of Great Promise, with bits of background information.

The Cenobitum

This is the photo that inspired my idea of the cenobitum where Talysse was raised. I altered the design a little bit, adding a wall. It was the isolation, plus the tower itself, that were the key elements. The word cenobitum is derived from the Old French cenobite, which means a monk who lives in common with other monks. Its converse is eremite, from which we get the word hermit. I wanted Talysse to be in a place that was similar to a monastery but wasn’t one, and similar to a school but wasn’t one.

The French word for lighthouse is pharos, a word descended from a small island just off Alexandria, Egypt. There an enormous lighthouse was erected that became so famous, it was counted as one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

The Camargue

This region of southern France is so visually remarkable, I knew I had to set at least part of the story here. People have mined sea salt here for a thousand years or more. While much of the salt is the familiar white, there is also the pink color that comes from the minerals in the soil of some of the salt pans. This makes for some gorgeous photographs.

 

Les Gardiens and the Camargue Horses

As memorable as is the setting, it was the pictures of the horses of the Camargue, and most especially the cowboys who tend them, that convinced me I had to use this area in my story. I’ve written elsewhere about the gardiens, so I’ll simply let the pictures do the talking here.

 

Continue to the next stage of the tour: Arles and the wagoneers