Serendipity Reviews: What inspired me to write by DB Nielsen

Keepers of Genesis, by DB Nielsen is a gripping new epic adventure series perfect for fans of Twilight and A Discovery of Witches. A magical blend of romance, fantasy and fascinating ancient history, this captivating four-part series is already enthralling a legion of young adult readers and crossover fiction fans alike. As the second part, SCROLL publishes this week I am joined by the author Denise who shares her inspiration for the series.

Inspiration to write comes from many different sources – from dreams, history, inspirational authors, conversations with friends and fellow authors, favourite books and films… The simplest thing can lead to a great story or idea, a twist in the plot or development of a character. It’s difficult pinpointing just one source of inspiration, so I’ll take you through some of the things that inspired me to write the series…

One of the reasons I wrote SEED was the desire to see stronger young female characters in (paranormal) romance novels. Many female teen protagonists are ‘blank slates’ – the kind of characters that allow readers to imprint their own personalities upon them but without any real strengths of their own (like Bella Swan or Anastacia Steele). And I didn’t just want a ‘sidekick’ like Hermione Granger as a foil for the hero (though Hermione is more my type of female protagonist) but a young woman who was an equal to the male protagonist; smart, assertive, resilient, capable, honourable, and so forth.

I figured that such a female would be able to attract the hero – especially if he was immortal, he’d be quite particular about the kind of woman he would share his life and love with – and if he could fall in love with her then so could readers. I wanted strong role models for young adult readers – someone that they could relate to, empathise with and want to be like.

I also happen to love history – especially ancient history – so I was inspired to write a novel which included historical facts in the same vein as the Steve Berry or Dan Brown novels (but, of course, with romance). I have tried to ensure the history is as accurate as possible as I often find that authors misrepresent ‘facts’ or choose to focus on an obscure theory to build drama and create controversy (such as in The Da Vinci Code).

I figured that readers might be interested in learning something new (about the old) and can even travel with Sage and Saffron to the various places mentioned in the novels; to visit the museums and libraries and cathedrals … for instance, the artefacts of ancient Mesopotamia can be viewed at the British Museum (be careful not to blink – the clay tablets are not much bigger than a smartphone) and the Louvre (which features in both SEED and SCROLL); you can book a tour to visit the Vatican Secret Archives (the library is now open to tourists) and even a ‘ghost tour’ of the catacombs of Rome and Paris; and pop over to London or Paris for a cup of tea at its famous tea salons. Why not take a copy of the novel with you when having afternoon tea at Mariage Frères in Paris or Claridge’s in London? You might see me there…

I was also inspired to write the novel when, at university, I had to read for an assessment Dante’s Divine Comedy. It made me wonder about the war in the heavens between Lucifer and God and the First Fall … which made me wonder about the history of Angels … and, in turn, the Nephilim. So instead of writing about vampires (which I still love to read about ever since reading Dracula in my teenage years) or wizards and elves (ditto for The Lord of the Rings), I decided to write a series on the Nephilim. And as for the history of angels … there are many detailed books on Angelology for those who might be interested in learning more.

And, lastly, I simply love the classics – everything from Austen to Stoker. I particularly love Shakespeare’s plays, classical mythology (from the Greek myths to King Arthur and Merlin) and the modern classics of such authors as Harper Lee and James Joyce. I even love reading poetry. And that’s why there’s so many literary allusions in my novels…