REBECCA Brown was finding talking about her support for Scottish independence frustrating.
It’s a topic the 27-year-old became passionate about in the lead-up to the referendum in 2014 when she was first afforded the opportunity to vote.
“A lot of people in my circle landed on the opposite end of the spectrum to me,” Brown told The National.
“Young people had just been given the right to vote but people would dismiss what I was trying to say because I was young.”
Luckily, Brown (above) has now find the perfect solution to put forward her thoughts on the matter in the form of her new fantasy novel Song of the Stag.
Getting started
Reading and writing has always been a hobby for Brown, starting in her primary school days with “some A4 paper and little drawings” as she puts it herself.
“It’s something I enjoyed and my parents and teachers encouraged me. When I got older, I started reading novels and taking it more seriously.
“I ended up doing a degree in English and creative writing to try pursuing that.”
As with many authors, Brown initially struggled to break through and says she had a few stop-start books where she got a couple of chapters in before stopping.
However, when lockdown hit, she had the chance to finish the book which would ultimately go onto become the Song of the Stag.
An allegory for independence
The Dundee-born author says she has always been a fantasy novel, particularly because it offers the chance to explore the history or politics of a given nation through a fictional means.
Set in a fantasy reimagining of Scotland, the novel’s central character Cait moves to the country’s capital Thorterknock after her partner is recruited to fight the “Storran Separatists”.
“When she moves there, she realises life isn’t the same for everyone and inevitably becomes involved with the movement,” she added.
Brown explains that the novel was born out of frustration at people dismissing her arguments for Yes in 2014.
“To start with, it was more of a manifesto in the guise of a fantasy novel focusing a lot on making the arguments for independence,” she says.
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“But as I wrote, the genre and format made it more compelling to look into the feeling and the passion for autonomy in general.
“It became much more of an exploration of those big ideas of patriotism and the more I was writing I felt it was easier to convey those themes.”
Good timing
It’s safe to say that, from Brown’s point of view, the novel has been released at a good time given the questions surrounding the Yes movement after the General Election.
It also neatly coincides with the 10-year anniversary of the 2014 referendum.
UK and Scottish politics haven’t exactly been short on big moments this past decade though and the author says there were moments she wishes she was finished.
“Whether it’s Brexit or the SNP’s position in government, I have often thought ‘oh god I wish this book was out’ because it might have been a good point but it shows there’s no end to those moments cropping up.”
Brown added: “I can’t definitively say I’ve converted anyone but I’d like to think I have at some point.
“It gives people an avenue into looking at topics like this which can be intimidating if they just don’t understand where to get started.
“Speaking about fantasy specifically, it’s a great genre to explore issues like this. Independence is obviously a contentious topic and still continues to be but exploring it like this helps to focus on the value and justice behind it all.”
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