A Dystopian Science Fiction Novel
Date Published: 03-25-2025
Interview with Stella Atrium
What is your favorite part of the book?
Thanks for the opportunity to talk about THE MATRIX OPAL, Book 1 of the second series about how tribes learn to ban together on a small mining planet in the galaxy’s Westend.
My favorite part is the theme around Bybiis the beastmaster who has talent but struggles to find her place among the tribes. She is self-taught without a mentor and worries that her potential is untapped with no real education. She’s selfish to the extreme, but generous in an off-handed way. I always want her to succeed, but I keep placing obstacles in her path for testing.
Does your book have a lesson? Moral?
We were exploring how women survive in a crisis zone. How they provide care for the tribal kids and pool their resources for safety and commerce, using the tools at hand.
I wanted to break out of the princess-or-evil-queen mold and show a diverse group of women in all roles in society.
Are your characters based off real people or did they all come entirely from your imagination?
The stories are set on distant Dolvia, but we see the same exploitation by corporations and resistance from the resident tribes. Leaders emerge on merit, and some who buy the elections, so the problems of society are similar to our problems. I added some unusual animals and hedge magic so the world has features that can only be found there.
Of all the characters you have created, which is your favorite and why?
Some characters surprise me as they take larger roles from one book to the next. In THE MATRIX OPAL Ariseng emerges as an important addition to the roster. She can create wards for protection, for hiding, for healing, for sending away an enemy. I especially like how other characters respond to her talents, including Kristos el Arrivi, a warrior who becomes her lover.
What character in your book are you least likely to get along with?
Well... Bybiis is selfish like me, so I enjoy our time together. Dulcinea the diplomat uses her looks to gain advantage. She acts kindly toward other women, but as a ploy to be accepted in the group. I feel like I would avoid her more than avoiding Bybiis.
What would the main character in your book have to say about you?
As the main character, Ariseng is skeptical and a problem-solver. She demands a price for making her wards and doesn’t worry about whose nose is out-of-joint. She refuses to ‘get into the harness’ as a follower of Bybiis and goes her own way, a trait that I’ve been accused of for my whole life!
Do you want each book to stand on its own, or are you trying to build a body of work with connections between each book?
There are connections among the books as we watch the tribes bind together against a larger enemy. THE MATRIX OPAL (Editor’s Pick from BookLife) offers a good entry place into the saga. Then go back and read the first series to see how the characters came to know each other and their places in the struggle.
About the Author
“I grew up with all brothers, so I knew about women from stories and from school. What I found at school wasn’t anything like in the stories, so I set out to learn why.”
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