Australian fantasy writer Trudi Canavan, author of the Black Magician trilogy of novels, is interviewed in the Fantastic Women series by Karen Miller.
What drew you to writing speculative fiction?I've always been attracted to stories that contained a supernatural element. As a child it was fairy tales, myths and bible stories. As a teenager I was one of the first generations to enjoy books written for the 'young adult' market. The first Star Wars trilogy came out during those years, and later the BBC radio show of the Lord of the Rings led me to discover Tolkein's books. I can remember waiting impatiently for the release of each book of David Edding's Belgariad, which was so refreshingly light and funny compared to what had been done before, and the revelation that Feist's Magician was at the time.
