of copper and blades

author's note

  i was a few chapters into of copper and blades when i realised i wanted to break away from the conventional pattern all my other silk and steel novels had followed so far: i didn't, couldn't see justine and gabriel in a romantic light. i could see them being respected allies, people who knew each other well, but always platonically. it didn't seem right to force them together after that, so i decided to write of copper and blades to present a strong partnership between two young generals instead.

  i've always thought modern young adult fics are often lacking in non-romantic, platonic opposite sex relations, so i decided to throw my attempt at two platonic characters instead. 

  of copper and blades is unlike the earlier two fics of the series. while those took place predominantly in sai and the scarlet palace, of copper and blades breaks away from that location and instead explores another place i've long wanted to write about: gira. gira is geographically and somewhat culturally inspired by singapore, but i based its unique political situation off a few other fictional and real life locations, namely dc's gotham city and the kowloon city walled park. 

  we'll go back to gira after myrina's book, which is next after ocab. it's already been written and has been lying in wait for some time, and i cannot wait to share it with you all.

  i'm aware that it's been a long, long ride. it's been more than two years since i started writing the first book of this series, and from then to now (july 30th as i write this, but a bit later when you'd all see it), there's already been eight more books that followed the sable spy. the silk and steel chronicles now number nine in total, and there are at least three confirmed more, all of which shall be based in gira. the main characters, we've already met in this fic: iolanthe's siblings fayette and adrian, the enigmatic darynne, and naeva, a character who has already appeared in multiple other books in this series as a minor character. as of current i'm unsure if i'll continue the series afterwards. 

  so, to those of you who have stuck with me through all this time, all these novels in this series, thank you. during the course of this series, i've gone from a young, inexperienced and unconfident writer to a wattys winning writer with more than ten completed novels, and i don't think i could have done it without all your kind comments and encouragement. from the bottom of my heart, thank you. thank you to any of you who decided to pick up this book and keep reading until the end, thank you to all of you who voted and commented and those of you silent readers. all of your encouragement has been felt.

  with this i put an end to of copper and blades, but i'm sure the characters' adventures are far from over. my plans for this series are ever-shifting, so you'll all have to see what comes next :)

  happy reading!