Themes that Inspired The Necromancer
Salutations readers!
Necromancer was a difficult book for me to write. Not just because writing a book is hard, which it is. But I mean specifically in the non-traditional sense. While writing the Necromancer, I tried to incorporate themes of loss, grief, and healing into the book, and while writing this book I've had to deal with loss and grief myself. As an author, this is gold because it gave me something real to write about, but as an individual, I felt scared, lost, and hopeless a lot of the time.
One thing that I think is important to bring up relating to this topic, I believe that anyone and everyone experiences loss and grief even if they haven't had a close friend or loved one pass away. Mourning the loss of childhood as one grows into responsibility or lamenting a friend moving away to bigger and better things can bring on similar feelings to losing a loved one. Loss is not just about death, but about the fear of impermanence. We as humans struggle to grapple with change as it is by definition unknown and that is something we can't predict and something that we can't control. Naturally, that is frightening. In addition to the fear that comes with change, we can oftentimes become obsessed with how things once were. Being nostalgic about playing Super Mario on the Nintendo 64 is one thing, but when someone becomes obsessed over a past relationship to the point that they stop enjoying what they have now it becomes unhealthy.
Among all the changes that we experience in life, death is the most permanent and inevitable. It comes for us all and the steady march of time brings us closer to the grave and no matter what you believe in, it can be scary. These are heavy topics to cover in a young adult fantasy book, I know, but I think it's important for everyone to grapple with these difficult emotions early on. Dealing with those emotions is the only true way of finding healing. Reading my book will not provide solutions to people dealing with loss, grief, or fear of death. But reading my book will make you think about those things and how you feel about them (hopefully in a fun and exciting way). It's up to the reader after that to sit down and figure out what they are feeling and what to do.
My one bit of advice on dealing with heavy emotions like these: Do not deal with them alone. Confide in a parent, brother, sister, spouse, someone else that you trust. They can help you to understand your own feelings and learn to come to terms with them. Dealing with these kinds of feelings alone can lead to spiraling thoughts that can lead to depression or anxiety, but talking about your fears and worries with someone you love can lead to healing, peace, and building an even stronger relationship.
I know this blog has been kind of a heavy one, but thank you anyways for reading! If there is one thing you took away from this message I hope it is to go spend time with your loved ones! Tell them how much you appreciate them because even if nothing is truly permanent, what you have now is still pretty great!
