Rebecca Yarros took the Roundhouse by storm on Monday the 24th of June, when a room full of devoted readers gathered to hear her speak about the writing process of her latest novels, Fourth Wing and Iron Flame, both a part of the Empyrean series. Her third novel, Onyx Storm, is set for release on the 21st of January 2025.
According to Rebecca, the Taylor Swift songs that best describe this next instalment are ‘Who’s Afraid of Little Old Me’ on from The Tortured Poets Department, and ‘So it Goes’ from Reputation.
It can be inferred that Onyx Storm will not go easy on readers, with *spoiler alert!* almost certain heartbreak like that of Liam’s untimely death in Fourth Wing. Rebecca’s declaration that she is not afraid to hurt us created a reluctantly excitable crowd and triggered my avoidance issues. Below, I’ll detail the most memorable moments of Rebecca’s panel with Rhiannon Joyce from the Shameless Book Club.
1. Rebecca knows exactly how the series will end.
She said something to the effect of, “If I look off into the distance I can see the exact scene of how it ends in my head.” She also did say she deviated from who originally dies. I can’t tell if that’s good or horrifying.
2. She declined to comment on if she had considered a prequel, and said she will save that one.
If we chant it enough times, perhaps a prequel will materialise. Never underestimate the power of nagging an artist of any kind for a version of their art. The number of artists that have released previously unreleased songs is sizeable. So, I hope (assume) there will be a prequel.
3. The extent of the hatred for Dain was unexpected, she says.
The crowd genuinely revolted to this answer.
4. She declined to comment on who she would cast for Violet and Xayden, as she wants them to be anyone who embodies the character.
Rebecca also said it is important for her to be very close to the production of the series as she knows what is important for the fans. Currently, Amazon MGM Studios owns the rights to Fourth Wing and the four (two untitled and unreleased) other books, as it’s due to be a five-book series. Rebecca is an executive producer.
5. She isn’t very active online, for the sake of her mental health.
Rebecca emphasised that it is important she is seen through her family’s (and people who know her) eyes. She also doesn’t want to be influenced by fan theories… but she says some are very creative.
6. She never expected Fourth Wing to blow up, and only hoped it would sell.
Her editor claimed it would be the “next Hunger Games”, but she wasn’t as convinced.
7. Her least favourite character to write is Varrish, and her favourite is probably Ridoc.
Rebecca also said Xaden was an “easy answer.” She gave a shout-out to the characters Scarlet and Jameison from one of her prior books, The Things We Leave Unfinished. This is a romance, not a fantasy novel, but a good book nonetheless. I speak as someone who’s read it.
On her writing process
Rebecca said the hardest scene to write was the battle scene in Fourth Wing because she wasn’t used to writing fantasy and originally made it very brief. She may have also been crying while writing it.
Her inspiration for Fourth Wing came from a love of the ‘fated trope’, especially with dragons. The military background Rebecca has, with her family growing up and with her husband, was also a significant influence in writing the story. A dislike for the ‘enemies to lovers’ trope in contemporary fiction was also a decider for the fantasy setting.
She says that character arcs are not hard to develop because they are all people in her head, and she can hear all their voices. Props to fiction writers for being the only people that can proudly declare this into a microphone. She found Violet the easiest character to write, as she identifies the most closely with her.
And finally, she said that the reason she rewrote Liam back into Iron Flame briefly was because Violet was thinking of the person who had protected her most when she really needed it. You could taste the bitterness in the room when she said this.
For those whose knowledge of the books consists of only this article, Violet, the protagonist, was in the middle of being tortured because she refused to surrender vital information. Her delirious mind caused her to hallucinate that a character, Liam, was there helping her despite his death in the first book. Everyone is still very sensitive. Also spoiler alert.
It was a wonderful night at Roundhouse, and I highly recommend Rebecca Yarros’s books to readers, specifically Fourth Wing for fantasy readers, and The Things We Leave Unfinished for romance readers. The Empyrean series continues on the 21st of January with the release of Onyx Storm.
Lilya Murray is a second-year student at UNSW studying a Bachelor of Media majoring in Communications and Journalism. She is extremely passionate about anything related to music, and loves going to shows. She joined Blitz because of an innate ability to never shut up about anything she likes. Fun fact: she has followed a band on tour to three shows in three states in five days. She also can't wait to do it again.
