If you’ve taken a look at the cover of my new book, South Breaks, you probably noticed that symbol hovering above the title. It looks a bit like a compass rose with some extras, right?
That’s on purpose. Every single item in it has a meaning. Let me explain.
South Breaks and the Winds
South is the name of one of the four Winds who live in each House*. The others are West, East and North (obviously). And yes, they are named after the cardinal directions and not much else. Their job is to provide energy to the Pillars when those work their magic.
In the symbol, the Winds are represented by the pointy parts. And if you look closely at the image above, you’ll see that the one pointing down is golden, unlike the other three. That’s because this book is about South.
Of course, the stories will show that Winds are by no means limited to handling plain energy. Often they have a special power that has been suppressed by the Priests overseeing each House and the powerful people living in one.
South can handle energy, of course, and she makes it into shields. She’s also learning to use her energy to heal. I won’t spoil the special powers of the other Winds just yet, you’ll have to wait for the books to come out. (They are already written.)
*A House consists of eight people, four Winds and four Pillars. Each year, one House dies and a new House is founded. There are 25 Houses, set around the Sacred Square in the center of Holy City. (And that is as much world-building as I’ll inflict on you here.)
South Breaks and the Pillars
Now, the other half of each House is made up of Pillars. That’s the generic term for elemental mages, and unlike the Winds, the mages’ names actually reflect the kind of magic they can use.
The four Pillars are Moon, Sun, Sky and Earth. In the symbol, they are represented by the blobs between the cardinal points. If you look very closely, those blogs have little symbols on them that show the element aligned with each Pillar.
Let me lay it out for you, though, to spare your eyes: Moons handle water in any shape and form. Suns do heat and fire, Skys handle lightning and electricity, and Earths deal with rock and plants.
Their elements and their personalities match to a degree. Moons are often gentle and look for harmony. Suns are joyful, shiny people who love life, while Sky are often mischievous and volatile. Some Skys tend to brood or break rules on purpose. Earths on the other hand lean towards being calm, grounded and nurturing.
I want to read South Breaks!
Nothing simpler than that. For South Breaks, you can choose between several stores for the ebook and there is a print version available on Amazon:
Is there more than just South Breaks?
Oh, yes! You can also get to know West very soon as the second Wind in my series, I’m finalizing the book right now. I already have set up a link (it only points to the preorder on Amazon at the moment, but that will change very soon).
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