Only a few more weeks to spring
Frequently Asked Questions about Trivium: the Lovers
Q: Are the terms Gwyddien, Ddwyryd and Myrrddin actual dictionary terms?
A: After meeting Finn's friends, Billie queries the Web to discover more about Gwyddiens, Ddwyrds and Myrrddins. After reading select articles, she questions her sanity.
The term, Gwyddien, refers to the legendary Welsh Magician, Gwydion, from the Mabinogion. He is responsible for the creation of Blodeuwedd. In his honor, I thought it only fitting to endow my family of mages with his surname.
Ddwyryd is the name of Finn's fellowship. The word for 'druid' in the Welsh language is 'derwydd.' I thought by varying the spelling, it made for a interesting collective noun. There is a Dwyryd River and a Dwyryd estuary in Wales.
In his book, Celtic Myths and Legends, T.W. Rolleston tells us that before it was inhabited, Britain was called Clas Myrddin ( Myrrddin's Enclosure) in one of the Welsh Triads. Myrrddin was a sky or sun deity.
In her novel 'The Mists of Avalon.' Marion Zimmer Bradley uses the term Merlin to mean the high position of her Archdruid rather than an actual name. I believe Arthur's magician Merlin was also known as Myrrddin Emrys and so, the leadership title in Finn's Ddwyryd collective becomes the Myrrddin in the Trivium series
Q: Is Mr. Gaspar's Botanica in the Warehouse District an actual place?
A: No, it is not. However, Gaspar's botanica in Trivium: the Lovers is modeled on a very popular Botanica in the Mid-City run by a fascinating man named Mr. Felix.
Q: Are the Anole Lizards an actual species?
A: Indeed, they are. Not only are they prevalent in Trivium: the Lovers, they are ubiquitous to Southeast Louisiana and the New Orleans Metro area. Walk along the street and you'll see them skittering along the pavement, crawling up brick facades and sunning themselves on wooden porches. There are green anole, Anolis carolilnensis and brown anole,Anolis sagrei.
Q: How many Sibyls served as Apollo's Priestesses?
A: There were ten sibyls in all. The Persian, the Libyan, the Delphic, the Cimmerian, the Erythraean, the Samian, the Cumaean, the Hellespontine, the Phrygian (at Ancyra) and the Tiburtine. In Trivium: the Lovers, I focus on the Cumae Sibyl.
Q: Is Lucia's slang authentic?
A; Yes. l used The Victorian Dictionary of Slang and Phrase by J. Redding Ware to authenticate Lucia's colorful language throughout Trivium: the Lovers
Q: Is the Moon Calendar based on the 2020 Moon Phases
A; Yes. it is. I chose the 2020 moon phases because they fit with my scenario. Halloween conveniently fell on a full moon. That full moon was the second full moon in one calendar month--what is known as a blue moon. Nonetheless, the novel Trivium is not bound by any date. 2020 was plagued by the COVID-19 virus which does not play a part in Trivium: the Lovers at all.
