Shoji here, I am so proud to introduce Natsuya’s new project which is coming out in the next month. The book is called grydscaen: sheer and it is the prequel to grydscaen: utopia. The story focuses on Lino Dejarre and his group of friends in art school. I wanted to turn the blog over to Natsuya today and get a little bit of the background on creation of the story and what sheer means to the series. Shall we get down to business with the questions? Welcome.
Thanks Shoji for letting me hijack your blog today. Yes, I am currently working on publication of grydscaen: sheer which talks about art school and Lino Dejarre and his friends freshman year before he joined the Psi Faction.
How did you come up with the title of your new book?
The title of the book is grydscaen: sheer and sheer stands for the colour the ballerina, the main character Arthenice’s tights. She is a ballerina at the same art school that Lino Dejarre and his best friend June attend. My sister asked me to write this book and I wanted to relay some of my time in college. The original story of sheer comes from a journal that I kept my sophomore year at college and both sheer and utopia are adaptations of the original journal entries and story I wrote then.
What is the main story about?
The main story of sheer is about a group of freshmen in art school that are part of the art crowd. The story focuses mainly on the ballerina Arthenice and Lino her friend and June the actress. It describes how artists get patrons which was not discussed in utopia. This is kind of the dark side of the art world that is covered in the story.
What inspired you to write this book?
My sister who always wanted to be a ballerina was taken out of dance lessons in high school by my parents. She regretted that and always dreamed of being a ballerina. I decided to write a book about it and relay my time in art school. This book is for my sister and also talks about eating disorders which is something my sister struggles with and is common in female dancers, especially classical ballerinas.
Another reason I wrote the book was because I wanted to write the entire grydscaen series and sheer was part of the story. sheer and the book that will follow grydscaen: idol are both backstory books that cover some of the background aspects of the rich grydscaen world. Where sheer dealt with the IHS music school in the City which had dance and fashion design, idol deals with musicians and the music school in the Echelons. Both schools are affiliated and partner with each other. I wanted to expand on the culture of grydscaen now that the main series is completed.
Who is the main character in the story?
The main character of the story is Arthenice Zidance the ballet dancer and freshman. She is shy, quiet, a brilliant dancer, unsure of herself, often depressed, self-deprecating and has anorexia. I wanted to show her struggles as she is in college studying dance and how those dynamics affect her experience.
Is this story based in reality or is it totally fiction?
The story is based in reality with some fiction sprinkled in. The characters in sheer are mostly the same ones in grydscaen: utopia just 2 years younger, 17 years old instead of 19 when utopia takes place. The characters are younger and so are their emotions and that makes them more volatile.
What comes next after sheer?
After sheer comes grydscaen: idol about Hibiki Sato and Takira Mizutani in IHS music school in the Echelons. Looking forward to showcasing the art in the grydscaen series and how it shapes the world.