Curtis L. Cornell is the author of Leprechauns, Unicorns and Mark Kurrian. The former Santa Maria resident recently took some time to talk with the Sun about his latest book, which begins as 11-year-old Max Garret learns his mom is critically ill. A good friend of the family, Mark Kurrian, then reveals himself to be from the world of Serenium and tells Max to travel with him there to rescue two unicorns so they may obtain a unicorn horn to heal the boy’s mother. The two battle creatures and monsters, as well as the land itself, on an epic and adventurous journey to the castle of the wicked ruler Kedron Lorcan.
The book will be part of a series, with five books directly related to the entire world of Serenium in the planning stages. Curtis said each book will have its own tale and beginning and ending, but will create a sense of wonder and mystery, prompting the reader to want to further explore the land’s different characters, places, and time periods. The second book should be out this year.
SUN: What are some of your favorite aspects about the main character, Mark Kurrian?
CORNELL: Mark Kurrian is always there for you. He is loyal and trustworthy. He also has some cool powers, but because of Kedron Lorcan, he has to be careful using them because magic is banned in most parts of Serenium—unless it is evil magic.
SUN: What about Max Garrett?
CORNELL: Max is very faithful and loving. But what I like most about him is his perseverance through all the hardships they endure. And they endure a lot in this novel, but he goes forward and presses on.
SUN: Do any characters in the book have attributes or characteristics similar to your own?
CORNELL: I try to live a life to love and help others and see that as a mission in life. So overall, I guess just the qualities to persevere and help one another would be similar attributes. But overall, I tried to create characteristics and emotions in these characters that all people can relate to. I think that is why so many people enjoy the book, because you get to experience what the characters experience and really feel what they feel along their journey: the sad parts, the triumphs, the suspense and fear.
SUN: On your website, it says that the book was inspired when a friend of yours referred to another friend as a made-up character that everyone can see. Is Mark Kurrian a made-up character in the book, or can everyone see him?
CORNELL: Everyone in the book can see the Mark Kurrian character and in that sense he is very real, though you just find out some things about him in this novel. You will find out even more about him in some of the ones to come. So there is some sense of mystery I give to this character, just like one gets with the real-life Mark Kurrian. Though the story itself is completely fictional … or is it?
SUN: Curtis, are you a made-up character that everyone can see?
CORNELL: Ha ha. I hope I am not made up. It is fun while writing, though, how into your world you get. My brother asked me if it is hard to come out of Serenium, and it really is when I get into writing it and even reading it. Even though I know what will happen, I enjoy the story so much every time.
SUN: What’s Serenium like?
CORNELL: Serenium is similar to many fantasy lands and fairytale lands, being primarily made up of woodlands, dark forests, kingdoms, and seas. There are some more tropical island places as well. In the beginning, one is introduced to the friendlier places of Serenium, but as they move on, the world grows more and more treacherous and dark. This story takes place at this present time in Serenium, and some of the other novels will tell a story from before or after this time, so they will get to see even more areas of Serenium, as well as different time periods.
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SUN: Tell us about the bad guy, Kedron Lorcan.
CORNELL: I cannot give too much away, and this story does not tell as much as others will about Kedron Lorcan. But he is evil through and through. He lives for power at the expense of all others and tries to force all others to serve him. In this story, he is at a very powerful state in his reign over the land. His character, however, really does have more complexities and a very interesting back story, which you will eventually come to find out about in a future book.
SUN: If Lorcan was in a battle with Darth Vader, who would win?
CORNELL: Lorcan is really bad. But I don’t think anyone compares to Darth Vader. He is an icon, and I love the Star Wars stories. But hopefully someday my characters will be that well known. As in Star Wars or Lord of the Rings, this series does carry the overall good vs. evil theme.
SUN: Answer this question: “If you liked (blank) you’ll like Leprechauns, Unicorns and Mark Kurrian.”
CORNELL: I usually say it is a lot like The Hobbit and the whole series will be somewhat like a Lord of the Rings tale. It is also like The Chronicles of Narnia in the sense that they go to a different world and the series will be in different time periods of Serenium. But I think the action and adventure and drama is more like a Lord of the Rings fantasy genre. Not to compare my works with the great J.R.R. Tolkien, but those stories were an inspiration, as were many classic adventure stories I read growing up [like] Treasure Island and Three Musketeers. There are a lot of daring heroics involved, especially from my pirate character, Peg-Leg Bill.
SUN: You said you wrote this book as you were battling Wilm’s Tumor, and writing this book helped you through the process. Can you expand on that?
CORNELL: Well, I have enjoyed writing for a long time, and since I had to go through chemotherapy, I decided to finally write this story I had wanted to write for a couple years. I couldn’t go outside much, so on weeks I felt well enough, I wrote. There are [such] themes in this story as perseverance, as I have mentioned, and even though these were going to be in there, it came out more meaningful to me, as I had to persevere through my own trials. Another overall theme is to take life day-to-day and do what you can with each day.
Everybody can see Arts Editor Shelly Cone. Contact her at scone@santamariasun.com.
This article appears in Jan 12-19, 2012.
