You’re absolutely fine! Everyone appreciated the shout-out.
Also thank you for all of your support and encouragement!
It’s funny that you mention “orientalism” because I’m familiar with Edward Said’s work and very conscious of how indelicate depictions of non-western cultures can be. My intention is definitely to provide a nuanced view of every culture (and their inspirations) to the best of my ability.
You’re very correct about both the complexity and the metanarrative. I’ve tried to artfully layer meaning and foreshadowing in different ways, some of it quite veiled. As mentioned in the other itch post, ‘getting it’ isn’t required to enjoy the work, but it’s there for those who enjoy reading into things. (I encourage it!)
On Aerran x Ravy: I probably spent 40+ hours writing and rewriting that godforsaken scene lmao. Some feedback has been it’s belaboring the point and could be expressed more simply, and I don’t necessarily disagree? But the belaboring is trying to accomplish a lot of things: Characterize Aerran and his big brain opaqueness, metacomment on complexity, and as you stated, leave the scene with unresolved tension to capitalize on later.
On Darek: (I did not realize that about his name, but it works!) I’m glad he came off the way you’ve described. He’s definitely supposed to be a character with unclear motivations. I don’t want to say more lest I give away too much.
On Crown: You have characterized him very well, and we’ll definitely be digging more into all of that in chapters 3B/4.
On Kavir: Exactly.
I love that you spent so much time thinking about all this. It’s why I put so much effort into being really specific with construction often down to the word. It’s unfortunate when it doesn’t land, but it’s soooo satisfying when it does and I get feedback like this. Thank you!