Wednesday, May 25, 2011

Prince Kayin From the Harun Tribe

In Travels to Fahdamin-Ra, Prince Kayin from the Harun tribe is the first person the kids meet in Fahdamin-Ra. That is, the prince and his host of bodyguards. When I first started writing the character of Kayin, I decided to make him obnoxious, as the only son of a king could be. He is there to insult Celestine, so she can discover her powers when Kayin makes her angry and she accidentlly turns him into a pig. He also is the bad guy, the one the lovely Jetta was supposed to marry, but she turns him down for the mysterious Tor instead.

I must admit that I liked writing Kayin into scenes so he could be a snob and start arguments. As the book progressed, I made him soften a little because no matter what the Creators do, the Harun people want to please them. Kayin is also a young guy - about 20 years old, so he is not as rigid as his father. Also, he started opening up a little when Ka-puki and Nas-sor came to Harun for the tribal exchange, and he started to teach them. Nas-sor is a typical Jabulani male, quiet and easygoing. Ka-puki is not a typical Jabulani woman, so Kayin liked her right away.

My friend Guinevere loved Prince Kayin when she read the first book, and after listening to her rhapsodize about him, I changed my mind about how I was going to treat his character in Across the Savannah. When Joel and Celestine planned to travel across the savannah on their journey, I decided Kayin had to go with them. Because he liked Ka-puki, I decided an inter-tribal romance had to blossom, and let their relationship carry through the story while they dealt with its consequences. Now, Kayin is a likable character, who seems to have grown up quickly.

In the third book in the series, which I am writing now, Kayin goes back to being a minor, though important, character. He will appear from time to time until the end of the fourth book. There are a few characters that I will not change - they will always be disagreeable, but Kayin is an example of how a good woman can change a guy's life.

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