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“Dark Star Burning, Ash Falls White”: Amélie Wen Zhao talks Chinese myths and magic Blending Chinese folklore and wuxia to build a whole new story world

“Dark Star Burning, Ash Falls White”: Amélie Wen Zhao talks Chinese myths and magic Blending Chinese folklore and wuxia to build a whole new story world

by Summer Brooks | December 10, 2023 Leave a Comment

https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/www.writersafterdark.com/media/shows/WritersAD_132_231210.mp3

Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 35:15 — 32.7MB)

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Fantasy author Amélie Wen Zhao talks about her newest book, Dark Star Burning, Ash Falls White, the concluding volume of her “Song of the Last Kingdom” duology (coming January 2, 2024).

Inspired by mythology from ancient China with some historical elements mixed in, the duology is based in a colonized land whose magic has been hidden to protect it from the colonizing peoples, and Amélie talks about developing the demon gods and their interactions with the world, how the magic system is based on Qi (the energy living beings possess), and more.

She also talks about the music she writes to, and for this series her playlist is loaded with soundtracks from Chinese wuxia and xianxia because of the ethereal nature of the music (and with curtains drawn to make the room as dark as possible!)

The art and illustrations for the books and characters are incredible, and seeing this adapted into graphic novels or animation would be absolutely gorgeous.

Website: ameliezhao.com
Instagram: @ameliewenzhao
TikTok: @ameliewenzhao
Twitter: @ameliewenzhao

Dark Star Burning, Ash Falls White Song of Silver, Flame Like Night

What legends and fables from other cultures intrigue you? Let us know! Send Summer an email, or have your say in the comments below!

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Filed Under: Podcast Tagged With: fantasy

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