Making of a Legend
Azreya, Aztec Priestess, an Illustrated Mythology Legend
In this post I’ll talk about the making of a legend. In my most recent release I teamed up with mythological artist Matt Maes to create a new mythology legend, Azreya, Aztec Priestess. Azreya, Aztec Priestess is a book about a girl who doesn’t fit in. She’s thought to be marked by the gods. But she also has powers. She can see the future and when she sees what transpires when her people fail to make peace and come together, she sets out to change their fate. But will the Aztec kings believe her and reverse their path towards destruction?
Making of a Legend: Character
Creating this legendary tale started with an idea for a character. Matt always wanted to create a character named Azreya and when we looked up the meaning we found the name meant “powerful queen” or ‘warrior princess”. He also had the idea to give this character clairvoyant powers and perhaps because of these powers did not fit in with her people.
Making of a Legend: Setting
When we researched the name Azreya, we found it had Latin American or mesoamerican origin in some references. This gave us the idea to set Azreya’s character in the Aztec Empire. Using the Aztec Empire as a backdrop gave us access to the many gods and rich religion of the Aztecs. We had the idea of making Azreya’s powers originate from one of the gods. Tepeyollotl is the Aztec god of the darkness and it was thought to take the form of a jaguar. Making Azreya cursed by Tepeyollotl gave her the aspect of being an outsider and perhaps feared by others.
Making of a Legend: Plot
With Azreya’s character and the setting formed, we brainstormed ideas for a plot line. The most obvious seemed to be the history of the Aztec Empire’s fall to the Spanish and a mission to save the Aztec people from the invading Spanish. I developed a scenario where Azreya sees two paths for the Aztec people, one where they are conquered by the Spanish and another where they continue to live in peace as a people. She makes it her mission to saver her people from being overtaken by the Spanish. But can she succeed?
Making of a Legend: Voice
As with my other books it was really important to get the voice of Azreya, how you experience her story, right. After just a small amount of debate we landed on telling the story from Azreya’s voice. Using first person point of view gives the reader the experience of being Azreya, knowing her thoughts, feelings, fears, worries, heartache. Also it gives you the insight of the part of Azreya that is Tepeyollotl and what that means for her and how she experiences this aspect of herself.
Azreya, Aztec Priestess
Here’s more about Azreya, from the back cover…
For years, Azreya accepts her place as one cursed by the gods, but with foresight of an impending slaughter, she dares to attempt to reverse the Aztec people’s fate.
At the age of three, Azreya is placed in the care of a shaman, Nukpana, who promises to protect her. Servitude to the man who vowed to keep her dark side from emerging seemed a small price to pay until a special client visits. Azreya’s inner compass clashes with Nukpana’s wishes and her rage boils over.
With the demon just under the surface, she has no choice but to flee, only to find her own family refuses to take her in. Still unable to stand by and witness her people’s demise, Azreya pursues a quest to enlighten them. She faces many challenges—not the least of which is the monster hiding under her own skin.
Can Azreya control her inner beast and convince her people to break from age-old patterns, or will the Aztecs be vanquished by the enemy?
Journey back in time to unlock the secrets of the Aztec. Experience this illustrated novel with the following links today!
Book Links:
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3vsKx0P
Universal: https://books2read.com/u/bOzgpo
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/61654037-azreya-aztec-priestess
Happy Reading!
Tricia
Tricia Copeland believes in finding magic. She thinks magic infuses every aspect of our lives, whether it is the magic of falling in love, discovering a new passion, a beautiful sunset, or a book that transports us to another world. An avid runner and Georgia native, Tricia now lives with her family and four-legged friends in Colorado. Find all her titles from contemporary romance and fantasy, to dystopian fiction at www.triciacopeland.com.