Author's Comments
Masques was the first book I ever attempted to write. I'd never read any books on
writing, nor talked to anyone who knew the first thing about constructing a novel. All I had was a
life spent reading obsessively and the conviction that I knew how to tell a story. Wolf was the
first character I drew up, mainly because he had starred, in one form or another, in many of the
stories I'd made up through the years. I knew I wasn't skilled enough to take upon myself the
task of writing a believable male viewpoint character, so I needed a female lead. I tried several of them. The innocent young miss so beloved by the series romances of the late seventies, early
eighties was mincemeat when confronted by Wolf. The hardened warrior maid clashed with him
horribly. Humor, I thought, was the only way to deal with a man scarred inside and out the way
Wolf was. Aralorn had humor and toughness with a dash of competence and some real
limitations to play off of Wolf's impressive, if almost uncontrollable abilities.
There are, of course, things I would change about Masques, explanations I'd clarify, scenes I'd add to improve the overall pacing. I wish my writing skills had been up to the level of the characters; in fact I wrote a sequel, just so I could do them justice. The sequel hasn't yet seen the light of day, but I don't intend for it to stay locked in my trunk forever.
