A few weeks ago I popped down to Bakka Phoenix at Harbord & Spadina to catch a chat with Sebastien de Castell, Miles Cameron and Nicholas Eames (above, left to right) about their novels, fantasy writing, and how to offend GRRM fans by accident. It was a quaint space, wall to wall with fantasy and genre fiction, and a slew of interested fans at attention as the trio discussed finer aspects of the craft and quipped about coffee.

I once went to see Dave Gibbons speak about WATCHMEN, but this was different because he was the artist and his crowd were aspiring artists. Seeing authors discuss books live is a great way to get interested in their work, because – at least with these three – their general intelligence, depth of research, and ease with which they speak in front of a crowd draws you in. Cameron had clearly done this the most, and often wanted to tread into deeper subject matter, while Eames was the opposite – throwing one liners about while taking a humble approach – or just being so. de Castell, for his part, offered the lion’s share of the most interesting stories, as well as the best advice. He’s also dashing.

All in all, I learned a bunch and had a nice time. Got my copy of Kings of the Wyld signed and had a nice chat with Eames. Picked up Traitor’s Blade as well. Apologies to Miles Cameron – my wife made me promise to only buy one book!

Next time I’ll have to sneak my way out to the dinner they mentioned they were attending afterward – ostensibly to eat.