You probably thought this was a clever title, but I assure you that I have had a chance to interview a dragon. Seriously. Vern’s the star of the brand-new Magic, Mensa & Mayhem, by Karina Fabian, (I posted my review here) and I think he was only helping Karina market her book when he agreed to let me interview him. All the same, I enjoyed the interview, and I hope you do too.
Vern, tell us a little about yourself. For one thing, you’re not, er, human, are you?
Got it one. I’m a North African Faerie Wyvern. (And please don’t any “expert” tell me wyverns lack legs–that’s a Mundane classification, not the Faerie.)
I was created at the beginning of the world from the greatest of God’s imaginings. You could say I’ve been around awhile. Dragons are androgynous and immortal, so there’s always a set number of us around, sometimes in various stages of regeneration after some idiot knight has made a show of cold steel and hot testosterone, or some villagers decided they didn’t like catering to us. It’s actually calmed down some of late. (Like centuries–keep in mind my age.)
About 900 years ago, St. George — God bless him, the magically overdeveloped pain-in-the-tail — caught me in a holy spell, took away all my dragon greatness — from height to flight, magic to wisdom — and gave me one chance to earn it all back by serving God and His creatures through the Faerie Catholic Church. I’ve been a faithful employee ever since. I’ve done it all from Pope’s pet to Warrior of Christ. Right now, I’m working on the Mundane side of the Gap as a private problem solver. My partner is a mage/nun, Sister Grace. DragonEye, PI — that’s us.
You’ve been published before. Tell us what it’s like to have your first book out. Do you have to wear sunglasses now when you go out in public? They don’t fit on my nose. Frankly, my friends are more excited about it than I am. I’m the stuff of legends, after all. However, it is nice to get some good press in the Mundane world for a change.
Explain a little about your relationship with Karina, Vern. Does she do her job well, in your opinion? What would you have her improve? Karina’s doing fine. Of course, I would have been happier if she hadn’t chosen one of our most embarrassing, annoying cases for our first novel, but I’m just chalking it up to humility training.
When I read Magic, Mensa & Mayhem, I was really intrigued by the similarities — and differences — in Catholicism. Can you expound on that? Faerie Catholicism is at once more pervasive and more traditional while at the same time more accepting of cultural practices. After all, we deal with demigods as a reality not a mythology, and some of them are excellent leaders. They know their place, or we put them back in theirs. Some worship practices are adapted, like meditation in the Eastern cultures, especially. However, the Trinity, the Sacraments, the Mass — all very similar.
People are always interested (or shocked, enraged, pleased) to learn that Martin Luther never left the Church. Trust me, the Faerie have the same reactions when they learn about the Protestant Revolution here. Our history was simply different; some of the abuses he railed against here did not exist in Faerie. By the same token, he didn’t have the opportunity to rail against the Church like he did here. There was a quite a battle between Good and Evil going on there. You could say he brought about some changes that your church didn’t get around to until Vatican II. Maybe I’ll tell Karina about it sometime.
When it comes down to it, we are a church within the Universal Church, serving God according to His Plan.
What’s your greatest frustration with Catholics on our side of the Gap? You’re so casual about your faith. In Faerie, you don’t separate faith and politics, business practices, etc. Even worse (and this isn’t a Catholic view, but your world’s), you are upset that the Faerie humans should separate religion from everything else. We’ve all come to understand that Mundane humans –while not a different species–are not the same as Faerie humans. Still, it makes for a lot of misunderstandings between the dimensions. That annoys the dragon because I end up involved in those disputes. Still, keeps me employed.
Will you be making any appearances near us, Vern? How can people connect with you, if they’re interested in more information? I’ve got a website, www.dragoneyepi.net. You can contact me there, join my forums, or register on the website and get my newsletter, “A Dragon’s Eye View.” There are also some other stories for sale on the website. Click on the cover art for more about each one.
Many thanks to Vern and Karina. Be sure to check out Vern’s website and don’t miss his adventures in the brand-new Magic, Mensa & Mayhem!
