1.- Could you introduce yourself to Jamreads’ readers?
Hello! I’m Modupe / M H Ayinde, author of A Song of Legends Lost, which is the first book in an epic fantasy trilogy, and my debut. I usually describe this novel as “Final Fantasy summons but ancestors.” It features battles, monsters, underdogs, working-class protagonists, and hopefully a few twists readers won’t see coming. It’s my chonky, sprawling, multi-POV exploration of heritage, history, and ancestor magic. I’ve also written some short fiction, and I’m an all-round nerd of many stripes.  

2.- When did you start writing? And when did you start working on your craft for being published?
I started writing at the age of four, with my own superhero stories featuring friends and family. (I was a big Spider-Man fan as a small kid.) I haven’t really stopped since, but for years I didn’t see it as a career that was open to me, so I didn’t really think about pursuing publication. I was in my mid-twenties when I decided it was all I wanted to do (after a series of jobs my heart just wasn’t in, and the realisation that I’d never find a career I wanted as much as I wanted this.) Over the 17 years that followed, I wrote four novels alongside my day jobs, but only sent about 10 query letters to agents. I struggled a lot with confidence and seeing a place for myself, so with each book after one or two rejections, I’d think, “well, that’s obviously rubbish… into the bin it goes, time to start over!” I will say, though, that in all that time, the universe A Song of Legends Lost takes place in remained with me, and I dipped in and out of it.  

3.- Could you tell us a bit about the influences that inspired you to write A Song of Legends Lost (and the Invoker Trilogy by extension)?
I set out to write the kind of book I wanted to read, which is an epic fantasy in the tradition of those big, complex 80s and 90s series, but one that reflected my reality and explored themes of class and colonialism. Two things in particular inspired what followed: my love for the Final Fantasy video games (and the summons ability in particular) and that part in THE RETURN OF THE KING when Aragorn summons the army of the dead (my favourite bit of THE LORD OF THE RINGS.) I wanted to create a world inspired by multiple real-world cultures as they would have been if they were untouched by colonialism, and once I started thinking about what those cultures would all have in common, I realised ancestor veneration is something that was once common the world over. In addition, I love the lost, advanced civilisations trope, though I wasn’t sure how it fit into the themes of this world until I read a tweet by N K Jemisin that made everything click into place. (I won’t repeat it here as it’s a bit of a spoiler.)

4.- You won the 2021 Future World Prize. Could you tell us more about this experience and how it has influenced your career?
I was in the process of trying to find a literary agent with A SONG OF LEGENDS LOST when I was shortlisted for the Future Worlds Prize. I honestly didn’t think I stood a chance of winning because I thought the judges would be looking for something with more mainstream appeal, and my book was very much epic fantasy. So it came as a big surprise when I won. The competition, which was founded by Ben Aaronovitch and Adjoa Andoh, certainly opened many doors for me and brought me attention I would not have received otherwise. But most importantly for me, the existence of the prize was validating because it reminded me voices like mine have value, so it really lit a fire of determination under me.

5.- Did the A Song of Legends Lost manuscript change much since its inception to the final published version?
Yes, it did. I probably spent about five years writing and rewriting the book that eventually became A SONG OF LEGENDS LOST. I had most aspects of the world in place, but couldn’t quite get the characters and story right. The core story was there – the greybloods, Temi, and Tunji, the Scathed, and clans. Jinao, Elari, and Runt were there too, although their characters evolved and changed. I probably would have spent forever just spinning those wheels and never being satisfied if I didn’t start writing short fiction, and learn that people did enjoy my words, and also that I could finish a thing and be satisfied with it. So then I set myself a deadline and got the book done! It hasn’t changed a great deal since that point, however – so the version I queried and also entered into the Future Worlds Prize is only slightly different from the version that was published. 

6.- In A Song of Legends Lost we have an ambitious epic fantasy proposal. Did you find challenging to keep track of all the POVs while writing?
I tend to write the POVs separately – so I write one character’s arc from start to finish before moving onto the next, and I then put them together near the end of the drafting process. I’ll keep notes along the way about how what they do affects the other characters, so I can incorporate this when I come to the next character. I’m mostly a pantser / discovery writer, so I prefer having only a very loose outline and letting the character lead the way. I also do a detailed summary of each chapter after I have a complete draft, which I use to keep everything in line during the editing process. So I don’t find it particularly hard to keep track of the POVs myself, but it is more of a challenge to ensure I’m giving the reader enough information to enable them to keep up, too! 

7.- Which one of your characters would you say it is your favourite, and why?
My favourite character is Father Boleo, the morally grey monk who is this world’s equivalent of a wizard. He’s grumpy and impatient, but he’s also loyal, tenacious, and intelligent. I find his snarkiness and irritability come easily to me, and he is probably the character I most enjoy writing. He was also the last POV character to join the final cast, so perhaps that has something to do with it, too.

8.- I’m curious, but which pieces of media would you recommend to readers of A Song of Legends Lost?
For books, I would recommend THE BROKEN EARTH trilogy - that’s not to say they have a lot in common, but this trilogy was a huge influence on me, and features a lost civilisation of sorts. I’d also recommend the Final Fantasy games (no surprise there!) as well as the video game Grandia. The Studio Ghibli movies Castle in the Sky and Nausicaa were a huge source of visual inspiration to me, and some book series that I’d maybe say you might enjoy if you enjoy this book include THE BURNING series by Evan Winter and THE DROWNING EMPIRE trilogy by Andrea Stewart. And I always recommend THE ACACIA TRILOGY by David Anthony Durham. That series is one of my all-time faves and not enough people have read it. 

9.- What does M. H. Ayinde like to do in her free time?
I run several times a week, which is my main way to de-stress. I also watch a lot of TV and movies, and then shout about my favourites on social media. I’m a gamer, although I don’t get to play nearly as much as I used to since having three kids, and nowadays I find myself returning to the comforts of old video games rather than trying new ones. I also like yoga, indoor climbing, cooking, and poker (although again, I don’t get to play regularly any more.)

10.- What can we expect from M. H. Ayinde in the future?
I’m currently finishing up structural edits of Book 2 of The Invoker Trilogy, which should be out next spring. This book is a bit darker, with more about the greybloods, more about how the ancestral realm works, and a lot more battles! Then I’ll be getting stuck into the final part of the trilogy. I’m also in the process of planning out a spin-off standalone book, and a separate epic fantasy trilogy.