Welcome to Conversations with Fairy Whisperers, AnnMarie! We are excited to have you over here in our space to connect the Folkloric Fantasy and fairy tale retellings readership with the creators of the stories they love. Tell us about yourself, what is the backstory of you becoming an author and how did you begin writing stories in the Folkloric Fantasy genre specifically?

Hi, I’m so excited to get to be interviewed on your amazing blog! My name is AnnMarie Pavese (pah-vay-see) and I currently live up in the mountains of Arizona.

As to how So Sang the Dawn came to be, it started as a project I never set out to publish. I had been writing various story scenes for a while, using it as a creative outlet and a form of therapy to help sort out some heavy loss I had been dealing with in my early 20s. I had worked on scenes and chapters in secret for two years without sharing them with anyone, until one day I hesitantly showed some of what I had written to a cousin of mine who had also been dabbling in writing at the time. She was really touched by the scenes I had shared, and told me that there was something special about my story. She was confident that if I would share it with other people, it would impact them in a really unique way.

So I decided to make So Sang the Dawn into an actual story. It took five years to write the book, and I published it in 2017 when I was 26. Now, eight years later, I’ve rewritten the entire book, while keeping the plot, the characters, and the themes intact, and have been able to add so many great elements to the story that early-twenties me didn’t have the skillset for.

Republishing So Sang the Dawn now in 2026 really does feel like publishing it for the first time, and I’m so happy and excited to see how people are impacted by this beautiful story I originally never set out to tell.

Of all the styles and formats Folkloric Fantasy and retellings come in—pictorial, screen, graphic, illustrated, or written—which do you most favour?

I would definitely have to say my favorite version of Folkloric Fantasy is a combination of illustrated and written. I’ve always been inspired by that style, and while there’s not much room for illustrations in the current version of So Sang the Dawn, it’s still my dream to one day hire an artist to create ilI’ve always been really interested in folklore and mythologies. There’s something so fascinating about them. I think it would be hard to pick a specific favorite, because the older I get, the more I appreciate studying lore and legends from all different cultures. I think looking at all cultures as a whole is what makes folklore so interesting to me, because I love to see the differences between them, and especially the similarities where cultures and people groups cross.

If I had to pick a few favorites, I’ve always been interested in Norse mythology, and, living in the United States, Native American culture and mythology has always been really fascinating to me.

Whilst not a traditional retelling, you have taken elements and themes from traditional Western folklore to integrate them into your novel, what would you consider are the joys and challenges of adapting such a large folkloric compilation into a new creation?

If So Sang the Dawn is known for one thing, it’s being massive. I find that I absolutely love working with a story and a series this size, because when there are no limits, the possibilities of what I can explore as a storyteller are endless. That said, writing a story on such a massive scale definitely has its challenges, and one of the hardest things for me is keeping all of the tiny details straight. When you write stories that are easily three or even four times the size of traditional stories, it can be really, really tough to remember everything and keep it straight.

One of the ways I help myself do this is by collecting up all the scenes in the book that are of a similar nature and isolating them while I write and edit them. For example, I used to pull all of Aurora’s conversations with Warlord Seigan (the villain) from the entire book, and work on just those chapters for months at a time. This ensured that every time Aurora spoke with him, his motivation, mood, wording choices, and mannerisms were the same across the book. Then, when I was satisfied with those scenes, I would put them all back into their respective places throughout the book and read them in context. And then usually edit them again, and rinse and repeat. But that’s a system that works really well for me, because I can isolate anything in that way: descriptions, dialogue, side characters, battle scenes, etc., and ensure that those elements are cohesive every time they show up.

So Sang the Dawn includes a story thematically similar to “Beauty and the Beast,” my favourite tale. How did you come across the idea for this story, and what can you tell us about its creative process?

I really love this question. There are so many beautiful themes threaded throughout my book, and one of the main elements I knew that I wanted to weave into the story from the very beginning was the concept of unconditional love. It’s something that I’ve experienced in my own life, both the lack of and the presence of, and it’s something that’s really interesting to me: how a person can love someone so deeply that nothing can shatter or break that bond.

The theme of unconditional love is something you see woven all throughout So Sang the Dawn. The biggest example of this is the relationship between Aurora and Raine. But you can also see it between Aurora and Saoirse, Aurora and Eysa, and Aurora and Fordrin and Merryn, the tavern keepers. In all of these situations, Aurora is definitely the “beast” character. She causes a lot of hurt to the people around her for the sake of survival, and unwillingly betrays the people she loves.

There is also a very physical “beast” aspect of Aurora that, without giving away too much, is present from the very first page of the book, with the black lion that haunts her dreams. And I really loved exploring what unconditional love would look like in the context of not only betrayal, but in a setting where the beast in Aurora was very real and very dangerous to the people around her.

Speaking of unconditional love, what struck me the most upon reading your book was the strong bond between the main character and her best friend, a true Womance as I would call it. Most stories in this genre and for this age range tend to focus on romance as the default important relationship, what motivated you to explore functional and healthy feminine dynamics instead?

I love the word “Womance”! I’ve always been drawn to a good bromance in storytelling, but you’re right: we don’t have near enough womances depicted!

I think that, in and of itself, is one of the reasons I wanted to write a relationship dynamic like Aurora and Raine’s. Fiction and Fantasy stories are usually so focused on romance, and recently, it seems that the majority of the romances depicted in books aren’t just unhealthy or unrealistic, they’re toxic, warped, and unsettling. And unfortunately, those seem to be the norm now.

I wanted to deviate from the modern standards and show love from a different angle. I wanted to write a relationship between two girls whose friendship was as pure as it is unbreakable. And because Aurora isn’t hyper-fixated on a romance throughout the book, the focus of the story could be much larger, and we could spend more time on her relationship with Raine, and also on the many other relationships and friendships around her. And, as readers, we have an anchor throughout the hardest moments in the book, knowing that at the end of every trial, Aurora will still have that deep, unbreakable bond with Raine that never changes.

Another aspect of the book I found fascinating was that you invented a new language for the inhabitants of this world that sounds reminiscent of Old Norse. What’s the story behind the creation of the Valthan speech?

I’m so glad that you loved the fantasy language! Despite the fact that I wanted to implement a fictional language into the culture of Frostholm very early on, I put off writing the language for about a year because I thought it would be a hard, horrible process. But one day, I just decided to start writing out words. I wrote hundreds of them in a notebook, and then went back and matched them to the English words that fit the sounds of the fantasy words in my head. And I found that I really enjoyed constructing the language. It’s definitely a very different creative process than story writing, but that’s what I love about it.

Currently, Valthan has over 1,200 words, and it’s growing all the time as I continue to add to it. Nearly all the dialogue in So Sang the Dawn can be translated into Valthan, and all almost all of the character names are rooted in the language, too.

Most people point out the fact that Valthan sounds very Old Norse-adjacent, and you would be correct! While I didn’t base the language on Old Norse specifically, I’ve hidden nods to it throughout Valthan, like the word fjord or the name Asbjörn. I love the way Valthan has developed, and while it sounds like a language that could easily exist in our real world, it also very much has its own sounds and really stands on its own.

It’s my dream to someday release a special edition dictionary of the language so people can play with the words themselves and maybe even learn to make a language of their own.

Sounds grand! The language could evolve into one of those fictional languages so well-crafted that they have their own dictionaries and grammar guides in future books. And, on that, I heard that there’s a sequel coming with more of Aurora and Raine’s story. How many books do you plan to write in this world and what can you tell about what we can expect from them?

So Sang the Dawn is book one in a series that will be named after the first book. Right now, I have plans to write twelve books in this series (I know!!!), which I’m incredibly excited about. I plan to go with a unique structure for the series in how the books are laid out. There will be six main books that follow the main plot and conflict of So Sang the Dawn, all told through Aurora’s eyes. And in between each of those main books will come a sort of “bridge” book, where we don’t fully leave the main plot, but we get to experience that part of the story through the eyes of one of the side characters.

So following this book will come the first of those side character stories, and it will be from the perspective of Raine. Her story will pick up right after her tragic separation from Aurora, and we’ll follow her through her time in Rathmar and get to see what she was doing and experiencing while on her own. Because of her missing leg, she won’t follow a warrior path like Aurora did, and will instead end up standing as cupbearer for Warlord Seigan. She’ll also spend a lot of time with Saoirse the healer, and even get to apprentice under her for a time and learn how to be a healer. We’ll also get to see her learn to walk again, we’ll see where her new prosthetic leg comes from, and get to see her take archery lessons from Helja.

After Raine’s story, we’ll go back to the main series, and pick up on the main plot through Aurora’s eyes once again. That book, called So Sang the Dawn: Deep Sky, will open on Aurora and Raine while still in Canaan’s mountain camp. The main focus of Deep Sky will be Aurora and Raine recovering from their time in Rathmar, and we’ll see Aurora returning to the city of Ru’em to find out the fate of all of her friends, and find out her own fate, as she turns herself in and stands trial for all of the things she did while living her betrayal in Ru’em.

After Deep Sky, we’ll move back to the point of view of one of the side characters for a time, although I haven’t revealed who it is yet. Keep an eye out for future announcements from my Instagram page if you want to know who it will be!

Twelve books is a lot! Do you ever see yourself writing something different, like a fairy tale retelling?

As I’m sure you’ve guessed by now, I have years of work ahead of me to write such a massive series. I also have so many other stories I want to tell from within the story world of So Sang the Dawn that don’t fit in the main series. I joke that I’ll probably be writing stories in Frostholm until I’m 90.

Having said that, fairy tales and folklore stories still hold a huge place in my heart, as they really were one of the earliest types of stories I connected with as a little girl. I always thought it would be really fun to tackle a fairy tale retelling, and if I ever had the time, I would love to write a retelling of The Wild Swans by Hans Christian Andersen.

If there was a Hall of Fame for retold fairy tales or myths, which would you consider the best retold stories books and why are they worthy of inclusion in said Hall of Fame?

I’m not sure if these books belong in an official Hall of Fame, but I have a great memory of a set of books I owned as a kid. They were called Tall Tales and the books themselves were only about four inches wide, but probably over a foot tall in length, visually showing just how “tall” the tales were. They were filled with fairy tales and folklore from all different sources, and had all kinds of neat artwork illustrated throughout the pages. I can remember my mom reading to me out of those books as a little girl, and I think one reason the stories stuck with me was because of how unique the physical books were. I also remember laying on the floor and listening to fairy tales and short stories on my mother’s record player: she had a huge collection of vinyls, most of them stories, and I have the best memories of that.

As to a modern author who does really amazing retellings, I’d have to give that honor to my dear friend Savannah Jezowski. She writes so many good books, and one of my favorites is her short story called When Ravens Fall, that’s a Beauty and the Beast retelling with a Norse-inspired culture! I can’t imagine anything that could beat that!

Is there an author who you view as a role model for your own writing?

The answer to this question is almost obvious, in a way. Just about anyone who interacts with my writing says that it feels very Chronicles of Narnia. And they would be correct! A lot of authors and stories have influenced my style and storytelling, but one of my favorites is definitely C. S. Lewis.

The Chronicles of Narnia was one of my favorite stories as a kid, and long before I ever considered becoming a writer, I loved the idea of doing what Lewis did. Crafting a world that everyone from all walks of life could love and enjoy, while also being impacted by very real truths and themes. One of the strongest similarities between So Sang the Dawn and The Chronicles of Narnia that people point out, is how much my character Asbjörn the Great White Bear feels like Aslan. I absolutely love that people think of Asbjörn that way, and definitely take it as a compliment.

However, for me Asbjörn wasn’t about rewriting Aslan, or using Aslan as a trope to attract readers. In one sense, I do love that I get to use Asbjörn as a nod of respect to C. S. Lewis, one of the most legendary authors in my opinion. But, at his core, Asbjörn isn’t just Aslan in bear form. He’s the very spirit of the One who found me in my hardest moments and sat with me in the dark, staying close to me and keeping me warm and safe. In that way, Lewis and I are the same, for bringing the God we know and love into our storytelling, where anyone and everyone can find him, and can know that they, too, are deeply loved. And I’m truly honored that I get to be compared to C. S. Lewis for that.

Thank you, AnnMarie! We look forward to the publication of the sequel, and all the other books that will follow.

And now we close our interesting talk with an update on the book giveaway for “So Sang the Dawn” we are hosting here: “A Tale Transformed” is happy to announce that the Fairy Picker Wheel has chosen a winner! The fortunate reader below shall collect a nice paperback copy of the book, a lovely accompanying decorative object courtesy of the author, and plenty of fairy dust.