The Lady Macbeth Interview: Part Two

An interview with Susan Fraser King by Susan/Miranda

Welcome back for Part Two of our interview with Wench Susan Fraser King, celebrating the publication of her new historical novel, Lady Macbeth: A Novel.  Today Susan chats with the other Susan (fellow-Wench Susan/Miranda) about several topics that not only relate to her extraordinary book, but that are also near and dear to WordWenches readers--including the story behind the beautiful cover, and Gerard Butler. Read on, read on...and please be sure to leave a comment. Susan will send a signed ARC of Lady Macbeth to a reader chosen from those who post (here or in Part One of the interview)!

SHS: Lady Macbeth is written in first person, yet you vary the tenses. Can you tell us why you chose to do that?

SFK: I wrote the prologue and a couple of ending chapters in first person/present tense, and the rest of the book in first person/past tense. The first person/present tense worked well to frame her story in the present moment, when we see Gruadh, not yet old, looking back on her life from a pivotal moment of decision. The story swings back around to present time toward the end, when she must resolve her dilemma. I loved playing with the tenses, and actually had more of that in the manuscript….but my editor figured Less Is More.

And after writing several third-person/two viewpoint novels, I felt real freedom with the first person voice. It came easily, and parts of the book wrote very quickly because of it. Once I got inside the character's head, she did the talking, and all I had to do was type. Well, sort of. Luckily she had a lot to say about her time and her life. 

SHS:  Lady Macbeth has a beautiful dust jacket.  Since we’re always fascinated by cover art here at the Wenches, could you tell us a bit about the art on your cover, and how it was chosen?

SFK: Cover art, fun question! Gorgeous art covers are a staple of the bigger historicals, but there aren’t any conventionally beautiful portraits of 11th century women to choose from. The publisher thought early medieval art (such as The Bayeux Tapestry, which is more or less current to the novel) seemed too academic, including a rare image of an 11th c. queen, Queen Emma of England: an ink drawing for her encomium (praise book). I love it, with its Byzantine linear style and generic elements typical in 11th c. art; but has that academic feel. It also has a touch of medieval goofiness, an innocence of imagery prevalent in medieval art, but authentic 11th c. art was a no-go for the cover.

I yearned for a pre-Raphaelite cover, and bombarded my editor with images, but the publisher and art dept. wanted a different look. The first pass was a white silhouette of a raven on a branch against a dark background. Real different; that lasted about a week, since it evoked Shakespeare’s Lady Macbeth, not mine. The next cover, a castle with a hawk in flight, is on the ARCs. Later the art dept. removed the hawk, saturated the colors, enlarged and clarified the whole image.

The final cover is beautiful, I think, and evokes the book’s atmosphere, though there are no stone castles in the story. The castle is Eilean Donan, which is probably THE most photographed castle in Scotland. I’ve taken many photos of it myself from that same angle (standing in the car park, with the gift shop off to the right!). Familiarity aside, I think it works very well for this book, and the golden sky looks great. The overall presentation is lovely, with Celtic design touches and quality details. (Has anyone seen the extra detail under the jacket??)

SHS: The role of Lady Macbeth in Shakespeare’s play has been a favorite of many great actresses ever since it was written.  If you were casting Gruadh, what actress would you choose to play her?  Any ideas of who’d make a good Macbeth?

SFK: This story would be such a cool movie…as long as I’m daydreaming, I can think of several choices in Hollywood, but many of them are *cough* a bit too old for the roles. The obvious choices for Lady Gruadh might be Keira Knightley or Scarlett Johanssen, since Rue is a very young woman for much of the book. Though I’d love to see Sophia Myles (who played Isolde in Tristan and Isolde – just redo that movie into Lady Macbeth, and I’d be happy!), or even Michelle Williams, who has strength and grace (come to think of it, Heath Ledger, gone far too soon, would have been a great young Macbeth). My yummiest picks for Macbeth would be Jude Law, Russell Crowe, or Gerard Butler—I think they’re all suited for him. Daniel Day-Lewis would be a great Thorfin the Raven-Feeder (Macbeth's cousin and Lady Macbeth's foe)!

So my picks would be Sophia Myles and Gerard Butler, I think. I’d love to know what you all think -- which actors would fit Macbeth and Lady Gruadh?

SHS: Do you see any sequels to Lady Macbeth, following other characters from the book?  What’s next for Susan Fraser King?

SFK: I’m working on a novel about the queen who followed Lady Macbeth on the throne of Scotland—Queen Margaret of Scotland, the Saxon-Hungarian princess who married Malcolm Canmore, had eight children with him (six of them kings and queens), and was later declared a saint. Historians often regard her as one of the most fascinating and influential medieval queens—she almost singlehandedly brought Celtic Scotland into the medieval era—and in many ways she is the opposite of Lady Macbeth, who was essentially the last Celtic queen Scotland ever had. While Margaret was pious, she was not always saintly, and she had a lot of fire and individuality. And—unlike Gruoch’s single Latin document—we know tons about Margaret, thanks to her biographer, her personal priest Turgot (who himself was captured and tortured by Normans before escaping north to join her). He idolized Margaret, but he dished the dirt on her, too (she stole gold from Malcolm’s treasury and dressed as a guy to sneak into church, among other adventures).

And it will be a sequel, in a way, since I get to bring Lady Macbeth back in this book. Historically it’s unknown when she died; by the dates, she could have been around during Malcolm and Margaret’s reign. At the end of her novel, Gruadh has not entirely resolved her dilemma (as I said to my editor, “Years later, she’s probably still pissed at Malcolm,” to which she replied, “Woh yeah!”). Gruadh’s goal will be to find some closure, as we say in our century—or maybe a spot of revenge, with Queen/Saint Margaret standing in her way. Watch for the book! 

Thank you, Susan.  And please let me add that I've already had the great pleasure of reading Lady Macbeth, and I recommend it highly!  For an excerpt, please check out Susan's web site. 

And be sure to post a comment or question for a chance at winning the signed ARC!

Comments

[Maggie Robinson]

Your cover truly is a thing of beauty.

Years ago my husband John and I (Maggie/Margaret)were in a pub in Edinburgh. We met three Scottish couples---each was named Margaret and John! The women told me about their namesake St. Margaret. Alas, I'm not saintly, but I look forward to your next book. Maybe something will rub off.

[RevMelinda]

Susan, the cover is gorgeous and I am so looking forward to reading what sounds like a book you were born to write.

(May I selfishly say that I hope Susan King/Sarah Gabriel will keep writing, too? I have tended not to go for Scotland-set novels but yours are wonderful and have converted me. . .)

[Maya]

the cover castle seems much more alluring in gold tones rather than blue - the art department made a great decision on that.

i also loved 'tristan and isolde', even though the story often departed from the version i was forced to read in a mild form of middle-high-German verse in high school. sophia myles was excellent, and imho, a great pick when hollywood comes knocking.

just saw gerard butler in 'beowulf and grendel' - he really does seem to be able to pull off convincing portrayals of all kinds of historical characters

[CJPrince]

I started the book this week, and am loving it so far. I agree that the cover art is beautiful and loved the surprise under the dust cover. It's very similar to a tattoo that I've been thinking about getting for about a year. I'm trying to decide where to put it. Someplace that won't sag, I'm thinking.

Side note : I was watching "African American Lives 2" on PBS a couple weeks ago. The African American genealogist/researcher who hosted the show talked about his own family's history and found that there was an Irish woman way back in his family tree. Through DNA profiling he was able to find out that he is decended from Niall of the Nine Hostages - just like Lady Mac and about a third of the population of Ireland today. Fascinating.

[margaret]

Queen--or to us Anglicans, Saint--Margaret is a personal heroine of mine, for numerous reasons. I'm so excited to know her story is next!

Congratulations on Lady Macbeth's publication and the glowing reviews!

[Susan/DC]

One of my regrets in this life is that I never made it to London to see Sean Bean in "Macbeth". The choice was to pay bills or go to London -- practicality won, to my longlasting regret. He would certainly have made a sexually compelling king.

[maryjoputney]

Even though I learned about this book very early in the process, I'm still fascinated by how the book came together. So few facts to produce such a story! But that's the historical novelist's gift--to use the era itself to help bring characters alive. Historical romance is easier!

Mary Jo. looking forward to that Mischievous Margaret

[Maureen]

Hi Susan,
Congratulations on the new book. My question is if you had to use three words to describe your Lady Macbeth what would they be?

[Cindi Hoppes]

I love the intensity that goes into your writing and research. I love the cover and have not seen the inside! Cindi

[Elaine McCarthy]

How about Viggo Mortensen for Macbeth? I don't have a nominee for Gruadh, I'm sorry to say. Too out of touch with the current young female stars.

Queen/Saint Margaret sounds like a follow-up. I'm looking forward to it.

[Elaine McCarthy]

How about Viggo Mortensen for Macbeth? I don't have a nominee for Gruadh, I'm sorry to say. Too out of touch with the current young female stars.

Queen/Saint Margaret sounds like a great follow-up. I'm looking forward to it.

[Santa]

Hello everyone. Please forgive me for posting so late on this thread. I was fortunate to have won an ARC of this marvelous treatment of Lady MacBeth a few months ago. Susan, this book was fantastic and I've been talking about it non-stop for weeks.

I love your choice of actors for the movie version of the book. Suffice it to say that I'd go see Gerard Butler read a grocery list and adding Daniel Day Lewis (brilliant pick) is just icing on the cake. Ditto for the choosing Sophia.

I am also excited to hear about you next book.

Thanks for picking my name the last time. Whoever gets an ARC of this is going to LOVE it!

[Janga]

Like Santa, I am late to post, but I have been waiting until I finished the book. You set yourself a formidable task, Susan, but your reclamation of Lady Macbeth is powerful. I especially loved Gruadh's becoming Rue with all the rich connotations of that word.

The teacher in me is dominant now as I think about my reading. I am itching to teach your book. It would be so interesting to pair it with Shakespeare's Macbeth or with Christine de Pizan's Book of the City of Ladies. Since my semi-retirement, I am teaching only writing courses, but I have an idea that I am mulling over. If it pans out, I will let you know. In the meantime, I am giving a copy of Lady Macbeth to a friend who is a still-teaching Medievalist with a high recommendation to read it for pleasure and as a possible classroom text.

[Sharon]

Congratulations, Susan, on all the wonderful reviews. Can't wait to get my copy.

[Susan Sarah]

What interesting comments, thank you! Sorry to chime in late myself, the week has been busier than usual, but I've been keeping up with the posts.

It's good to hear from a few of you who have read Gruadh's book. It's also great to know that Q/St Margaret isn't a totally obscure pick for a historical novel. Her story is fascinating, and I hope to do it justice.

So funny about all the Margarets, Maggie R.--and Margaret P. E. too! She's a particularly beloved historical figure in Scotland, though she was not born Scottish, which is one of the intriguing things about her.

In no particular order --
Thank you, Santa (oooh I love your name), for your comments on the ARC. The reviews are good, and I breathe a huge sigh of relief with each one, but what means the most to any author is to know that the readers are enjoying the story. :)

Janga, I'd be so honored if the book was ever used as a classroom text (in our area the 9th grade studies Macbeth), or even listed as recommended reading for high schools and colleges. Please feel free to e-mail me through my website if you'd like.

CJ, I wouldn't mind having a triple spiral tattoo myself. If you get one, let me know. Until I work up the nerve (needles, ugh), I've settled for a beautiful silver triple spiral pendant that I wear a lot.
So interesting about Niall of the Nine Hostages and the African American descendent, however did they figure that out!! Do they have Niall's DNA--?

Elaine, Viggo Mortenson would be a GREAT choice for Macbeth! Oh yes.
And as SusanDC says, Sean Bean would have been perfect too, in his day. Some of the best actors for these characters are too old to play them, but what does THAT matter--it's a daydream and we can pick whoever we want! I agree with Maya, I'd watch Gerard Butler read his grocery list, his parking ticket, anything. *g*

Thanks, Melinda, I'd love to continue writing historical romance too, along with the mainstream historicals. I have a new Sarah Gabriel in the works, though I don't know the pub date yet. In the meantime, there's a big backlist...!

Speaking of which -- one of my first books as Susan King, ANGEL KNIGHT, is being reissued in March 2008, and will be exclusively available at CVS drugstores, with a new cover, new font and design, and a great price at $4.99. It should be in CVS stores everywhere! Let me know if you see it out there. :)

Maureen, interesting question.
Hmm, three words to describe my Lady Macbeth...tenacious, loyal, impulsive. And young. Four words! Anyone else want to try?

A BIG shout out to the T'Other Wench Susan for posting the interview and fielding the questions for me while I was away from my desk this week. The Susans stick together!

~Susan Sarah

[Susan Sarah]

Did I say Margaret P.E., I meant Margaret E. P., as in Evans Porter. Sorry!

I plead starving-for-dinner at the time, but I'm better now. *g*

Susan

[ariana]

I think it's so interesting when authors talk about which actors/actresses they would cast as their characters. I'm always compelled to reread the book again and try to envision the actor/actress in the role.

[jeanette]

Alan Rickman is my pick for Thorfin Raven Feeder although I like the idea of Daniel Day Lewis as well. It was a tough decision. *g*

[jeanette]

Alan Rickman is my pick for Thorfin Raven Feeder although I like the idea of Daniel Day Lewis as well. It was a tough decision. *g*

[Lori]

I haven't even read Lady MacBeth yet, and already I'm salivating for the next novel about Queen Margaret!

[Susan Sarah]

Jeanette - Oh yeah, Alan Rickman would be a great Thorfin!!

Lori - I hope you'll like both Lady Macbeth and Margaret (though the Margaret will be a longer wait *g*). And to answer the question you posted on the first part of the interview -- sure, if you want to quote bits of the interview on your blog when you've read the book, that would be great. Thanks!

Susan Sarah

[Lori]

Thank you Susan/Sarah!
And good reads are worth the wait!