Margaret Weis – Dragons of the Hourglass Mage Tour starts at BSCreview

When Wizards of the Coast came calling, asking if we would be interested in being a stop on the Margaret Weis online tour, we were happy to oblige.  We are huge fans of Margaret Weis, and she has always been helpful to us as a site in the past.  It is also 25 years of Dragonlance, that is a huge milestone.  Normally I tend to be the one asking the questions, but we decided to flip it up and get a little bit of a different take from one of our contributors, Philip McCall II, who asked the questions for this quick-stop interview.

PLMII:  It has been almost twenty-five years since the original publication of Dragons of Spring Dawning, which concluded the now beloved DRAGONLANCE Chronicles. How did it feel to return to Krynn once more and expand upon the trilogy that started it all?

MW:  It was really great! Like coming back home after a very long absence.

Upon reading The Lost Chronicles trilogy, I was able to ease back into a plotline I had read almost twenty years before, like it was only yesterday that I had read them. How were you able to build a synergy between the original chronicles and the lost chronicles?

We went back and reread what we’d written, of course, and the fans on the DL Nexus were a big help! The main problem was to try to fit into the timeline.

There have been so many titles produced for the world of DRAGONLANCE over the past twenty-five years. What made you decide now is the time to tell the stories of The Lost Chronicles?

Tracy and I and Peter Archer, the head of the Wizards book department at the time, were talking together during a book signing at Gen Con. I was saying that if I had my wish, I’d love to rewrite the DL Chronicles and put in everything we’d had to cut out. Tracy suggested that instead of doing that, we should simply write the parts we’d had to cut. Of course, we realized that our style has changed over twenty-five years and that these would read differently, also that we would refer to other books (such as Legends) which is why we recommend people read Chronicles first, and then read Lost Chronicles.

Many fans still think Sturm’s death in Dragon’s of Winter Night was a tragic loss and feel his tale was cut too far short. Looking back now do you think there are any events surrounding the core characters that you might change?

Sturm’s death was one of the most powerful moments in the book and necessary to the ultimate defeat of the Dark Queen. No, nothing I would change.

You have met so many fans over the years of the DRAGONLANCE series, how does it feel to have a new generation of fans enjoying your books?

This has been, as Tracy says, “a wonderful ride!”

Taking into account the vast lore that has been created for Krynn, how were you able to keep timelines and events in order to ensure continuity?

The fans on the DL Nexus have been an immense help, answering questions and looking up information. Thanks to Trampas Whiteman and all the people from all over the world on the Nexus message boards.

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Big thanks to Margaret Weis and Wizards of the Coast for making this happen!  Check out the Dragons of the Hourglass Mage and Dragonlance information below.

Dragons of the Hourglass Mage
The Companions are back and the balance of Krynn is at stake, in the magnificent conclusion to The Lost Chronicles. The world celebrates Spring Dawning. The War of the Lance is nearing its end—for good or ill. Krynn’s future has been written. People think they know how the story ends. But one night and one fateful decision by Raistlin Majere may change it all. Dragons of the Hourglass Mage has already spent two weeks on the New York Times best-seller list since its August 4th release.

Also be sure to check out this awesome A Guide to Dragonlance Novels file.  I cannot believe it has been 25 years.  Thanks to Weis and Hickman for introducing us (me) to Dragons of Autumn Twilight.  It is still one of my favorite fantasy novels, and I cannot understate what an impact it had on me as a reader and a person.