Gary Richardson Author Blog

Today, I would like to introduce everyone to Asbin Firehammer. Asbin marks a dramatic change in character development for me given Asbin's very different characteristics. Up to this point, many of the story's main characters had shared a number of traits with me personally, both physically and mentally, but with Asbin, I was forced to look for inspiration beyond myself.

Asbin Firehammer is the first person Riorik, Nordahs, and Hugh encounter after their decision to flee their posts in the ranger's guild. Asbin first appears in The Ascension Legacy - Book 2: A Legend Confirmed. Unlike the other main characters in the story up to this point, Asbin is female. This is not an all male driven story like The Hobbit or The Lord of the Rings. Likewise, I chose to embrace the opposite sex in my story rather than make an attempt to disguise it as part of the plot like The Lord of the Rings or Mulan. Asbin's femininity was on full display from the moment her character was first introduced

Shortly after the release of my first book, The Ascension Legacy - Book 1: The Shamed Ranger, I created a blog that provided basic introductions to the three central characters (read it here). With this post, I don’t want to repeat that introduction but rather hope to discuss the different inspirations that helped me to form Riorik as an individual and his personality. Not so much who he is as a character in the book as it relates to its plot but which of my experiences he is based on.