C. E. Bernard

Autorin der PALACE-Saga

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Sei furchtlos - die Palace-Saga

»Der bildstarke Stoff ruft ganz klar: große Leinwand!«

Silvia Feist emotion (07.03.2018).

Über die Autorin Über das Buch Events Kontakt Weitere Projekte English

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»Was mich wirklich fasziniert hat, ist, wie detailgenau diese Welt beschrieben ist.«

Andrea Gerk / Deutschlandfunk Kultur

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christinebernardwrites

7 DAYS TO GO My lovelies, We have so much to cel 7 DAYS TO GO

My lovelies,

We have so much to celebrate today. Only one week to go until the release of DAS LIED DER NACHT! Next Monday, it will be in every bookshop. Speaking of: The bookshops have reopened! @goetheundschweitzer can expect a visit from me very soon! Last but very decidedly not least: It is International Woman’s Day! Look at these two women, C E Bernard and her tireless assistant, making sure nearly 250 pre-ordered copies are signed for you! This one took two hours, and the greatest care.

On this International Woman’s Day, and on every other day of the year, I would like to celebrate all the amazing women in my life: My mother (who carefully watches that I treat the women right in my books when she reads my drafts, and rightly so!), my grandmothers (who gifted me my author name), my colleague and co-teacher @r.v.lightwood who is a lightning strike in the class room, my assisstant @captainofathens (whom I do call “my Captain” in real life), my fellow workers and fierce women at Eutopia, our co-working space, @rala.vom.wald & @leovrwn & @maria.horschig — and I am sure you are sick of hearing about them (and so are they, I am sure), my triumvirate of glory, @theresecoen @clkpages @beatricelampe , who would captain the Enterprise like Kirk, Spock and Bones never could have. Let me also take this opportunity to celebrate all the women working tirelessly behind the scenes at @blanvalet.verlag , especially in the PR and marketing departments, especially in this week leading up to the launch. Rebekka, Lilli, Lea, Berit, Astrid, Friederike — I see you and the excellent work you do, and I thank my lucky stars for you!

The book industry is a woman’s business — except of course in higher and highest management. Door are opening, though. The same is true (and in no small part thanks to these women) for the fantasy genre. Someone like me, writing a high fantasy book, being lead title? That would not have happened a decade ago. Not like this. I am very grateful to all the women who have come before me, and who have made it possible for me to get where I am. I am standing on their shoulders. Thank you. #cebernard #daslieddernacht #internationalwomensday
NOCH BIS SONNTAG 1 VON 5 HÖRBÜCHERN VON DAS LIED NOCH BIS SONNTAG 1 VON 5 HÖRBÜCHERN VON DAS LIED DER NACHT GEWINNEN

Es ist Freitag, ihr Lieben. Das heisst auch: Es ist Wochenende! Und am Montag machen in ganz Deutschland die Buchhandlungen wieder auf. Juhuu! 🥳🥳🥳🍾🍾🍾

Habt ihr am Wochenende etwas Schönes vor? Ich werde schick italienisch zu Abend essen und am Sonntag eine Brückenrunde laufen. Und wisst ihr, was ich noch tun werde? Die Gewinner:innen von 1 von 5 Hörbuchdownloads von DAS LIED DER NACHT auslosen! 🖤⭐️⚔️ Ihr wollt mit in den Lostopf? Dann schickt mir bis Sonntag, den 7.3., 23:59 Uhr, eine Bestätigung (Screenshot), dass ihr DAS LIED DER NACHT vorbestellt habt, als private Nachricht hier auf Instagram. Als kleines Dankeschön an alle Vorbesteller ❤️ Alle weiteren Informationen und Teilnahmebedingungen findet ihr in meinem Post vom 23. Februar 2021. Fürchtet nicht die Dunkelheit, und ergebt euch nicht der Furcht, meine lieben Wanderer. #daslieddernacht #cebernard #hörbuch #buchgewinnspiel #hörbuchgewinnspiel #oliversiebeck @randomhouseaudio.verlag
NUR NOCH 2 WOCHEN BIS DAS LIED DER NACHT ERSCHEINT NUR NOCH 2 WOCHEN BIS DAS LIED DER NACHT ERSCHEINT / LIVESTREAM MIT @thelizagrimm UND @christinebernardwrites DIESEN MITTWOCH, 3.2., 19 UHR 

My lovelies,

Two weeks from today, this book hits the shelves in Germany. Your shelves, hopefully, and, who knows,  the booksellers may even have reopened by then already (a girl can dream, right?). ⭐️🖤⚔️ DAS LIED DER NACHT is a book that is very dear to me. I wrote it with all my heart, and all my passion, and all that I know of the world, and perhaps more importantly, all that I don’t know. It cost me, but it was well worth it. It has turned out to be the my perfect love letter to THE LORD OF THE RINGS. Kind people trying to do the right thing to the best of their abilities and wisdom, even though it may not be much.

If you want to hear me talk about the novel, I will be chatting with @thelizagrimm about it on her channel this Wednesday, 3rd March 2021, from 19h. Come by! Bring your questions! And your excitement. We’ve got you covered. And we’ll have whiskey. 

@thelizagrimm copy-edited books 1 and 2 of the WAYFARER saga, so she knows all about it. Meanwhile, I’m gearing up for the launch of DAS LIED DER NACHT and for the edit of book 3, DER KLANG DES FEUERS. It wasn’t painless to write; then again, most adventures come with a little pain. I cannot wait to find out what it will be like to edit. 

And then they’ll be finished. All they’ll need is to find their way to you. So that you may read them, and tell me what you think, and laugh and tremble and cry, maybe a little, while you read them. Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear, my fellow wanderers. #daslieddernacht #cebernard #wayfarersaga #bookstagram #bookevent #bookstagramgermany #femalefantasy #deutschephantastik #deutschephantastikautorinnen #deutschefantasy #fantasylesen #fantasy #fantasybooks #fantasybücherliebe #fantasybücher
Look who’s got the best assistant in the world. Look who’s got the best assistant in the world.

Today we shot another timelapse video for you. There were 250 more copies of DAS LIED DER NACHT to sign. All of you who pre-ordered with @buecherbuechse — your books have now been signed. The ladder served as our tripod. @mattsmattson and @noaconstrictoa as well as @maria.horschig provided invaluable help while wearing masks and keeping their distance. I invited everyone for vegan currywurst afterwards, likewise at the appropriate distance.

We do not talk about it nearly enough. We as authors. About all the people without whom our books wouldn’t exist. I think books should have intro sequences and credit rolls, just like films. @captainofathens has been by my side for more than two years now, working tirelessly for the books. She’s a gifted writer herself, and one of her short stories will become available this year in the beloved @drachenmondverlag anthology, to which I’ll be also contributing. She is an expert on fairy-tales, currently finishing up her postgraduate degree in English Literatures and Cultures with a thesis on female villains in contemporary fairytale retellings. And she can moderate an event like it is nobody’s business.

So this is a thank-you post. Thank you, Lisa. Thank you to everyone who is making this wonderful, mad success possible. Thank you to @theresecoen and @beatricelampe (always). Thank you to everyone at @blanvalet.verlag , thank you to the @buecherbuechse , thank you to you, my fellow wanderers. Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear. 

Speaking of thank yous: My give-away is still going strong. If you pre-order DAS LIED DER NACHT before Sunday 7th March, you can win a download of the audiobook, read by the brilliant Oliver Siebeck. See my previous post for details, and have a great weekend, my lovelies. #daslieddernacht #cebernard #thankyou #penhaligon #authorlife #drachenmond #behindthescenes #writinglife #booksigning #signiertebücher #bookstagram #bücherwurm
GEWINNSPIEL / GIVE-AWAY How long does it take to GEWINNSPIEL / GIVE-AWAY

How long does it take to sign almost 100 books?
Longer than 25 seconds.
I sped it up for you. My favourite moment? When the chair comes in. The first half of this signing was tough on my back.

On Friday, I will be signing another 220, your orders at @buecherbuechse ❤️ This time, I’ll start in the chair. Only three weeks to go until DAS LIED DER NACHT is released. Pre-order now under the link in my bio or at your favourite bookseller. And if you do, this give-away is for you:

GIVE-AWAY / GEWINNSPIEL:

I am organising a give-away for everyone who has pre-ordered, as a thank you in these uncertain times. 🖤 If you pre-order DAS LIED DER NACHT until Sunday, 7th March 2021, and send me a receipt (screenshot/bill) in a private message here on instagram, you will be entered into a prize draw to win 1 OF 5 DOWNLOADS OF THE AUDIO BOOK OF DAS LIED DER NACHT! It is read beautifully by Oliver Siebeck, who also read the WITCHER novels. Just listening to him read gave me goose bumps. I promise you, it is a piece of art.

WAS MUSS ICH TUN?
1. Bestell DAS LIED DER NACHT vor
2. Schicke mir bis Sonntag, den 7.3., 23:59 Uhr, deine Bestellbestätigung als private Nachricht auf Instagram
3. Daumen drücken!
4. Wenn ihr mögt und mich unterstützen wollt, gebt dem Beitrag ein ❤️ & teilt ihn ⭐️

Ich hoffe, so kann ich euch ein kleines Dankeschön aussprechen. A propos klein: Hier folgt das Kleingedruckte. Fürchtet keine Dunkelheit, und ergebt euch nicht der Furcht.

Der Rechtsweg ist ausgeschlossen. Angehörige der Autorin sind von der Teilnahme ausgeschlossen. Alle Angaben ohne Gewähr. Instagram hat keine Verbindung zu diesem Gewinnspiel. Der Gewinn wird in Form eines Downloadlinks verschickt, der 14 Tage gültig ist. Wird der Link nicht innerhalb des Zeitraums genutzt, verfällt der Gewinn. Der Link wird ausschliesslich auf Instagram verschickt, in derselben privaten Unterhaltung, in der auch die Bestellbestätigung geschickt wurde. Das Los entscheidet. Der Gewinn ist nicht auszahlbar. #daslieddernacht #cebernard #bringlichtinsdunkel #hörbuch #hörbuchverlosung #hörbuchgewinnspiel #oliversiebeck #buchverlosung #buchgewinnspiel #bookstagram #booksigning
My lovelies, Look how many books there are. The My lovelies,
 
Look how many books there are. The @buecherbuechse has e-mailed @blanvalet.verlag and me to tell us that DAS LIED DER NACHT has broken a record: I will be signing almost 250 copies for you next week. Thank you to everyone who ordered a copy. It makes me incredibly happy to know that you are out there, and looking forward to this book, especially in these times that sometimes seem very dark.

Of course you can still pre-order DAS LIED DER NACHT, wherever you like, and I would be thrilled if you did. I am thinking about putting together a giveaway for all those who have pre-ordered. Is there anything you’d like in particular as a prize?

Do let me know until the end of the week if you like, because this is the final countdown: DAS LIED DER NACHT will be hitting shelves in 18 days. Where do you buy your books at the moment? @thalia_buchhandlungen or @amazon_buch ? Your local bookseller? Are they delivered or do you go and pick them up? Somewhere else entirely?

I am using a mix of all available channels. I’ve ordered a few books from Amazon or Thalia in 2021, some from my excellent local bookseller just down the street, THE ART OF BOOKS in Bonn. Most of my orders are still placed with my favourite bookseller, though, where I am an exceedingly loyal customer, @goetheundschweitzer in Bonn. Just yesterday I went to pick up a couple of books I’d ordered, and buying a third one at the door that I’d spotted in the window. I had a chat with one of the booksellers, about the Rhine flooding, about walks, about looking forward to the cinemas and the opera reopening ... We were speaking of what gives us joy. A wise thing to do, I think, in the midst of this pandemic. Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear, my fellow wanderers. Only 18 days to go. #daslieddernacht #cebernard #feuerschwestern #palaceofglass #seifurchtlos #weyd #caer #wayfarersaga #weydderwayfarer #caerdiebardin #coverlove #coverliebe #bookstagram #bookworm #bücherwurm #authorlife #instabook #instabooks #signedbooks #signededitions
My fellow wanderers, ihr Lieben, Gestern habe ich My fellow wanderers, ihr Lieben,

Gestern habe ich fast hundert Exemplare von DAS LIED DER NACHT signieren dürfen. Für meinen Verlag, für Buchhandlungen in der ganzen Republik. So konnte ich das Buch zum ersten Mal in den Händen halten. Es hat denselben schimmernden Finish wie die PALACE-Romane, es glänzt, glitzert und strahlt im Licht. Das finde ich sehr angemessen für ein Buch, in dem es darum geht, Licht ins Dunkel zu bringen. Eine Kerze ins Fenster zu stellen, ein Lied in der Nacht zu singen, eine Geschichte von Hoffnung in der dunkelsten Stunde zu erzählen, und dass das alles verändern kann. 

Auf dem Foto seht ihr eine sehr glückliche Autorin. Ich kann es kaum abwarten, bis ihr Weyd und Caer kennenlernt, die ihr hoffentlich genauso sehr ins Herz schließt wie Rea, Robin, Ninon, Blanc, René und den Comte aus den PALACE-Romanen. Ich habe Caer, Weyd und ihre Freunde mit derselben Liebe erschaffen. Sie und ich sind weit gewandert im letzten Jahr, wir haben gekämpft und gelitten, mit der Angst, mit der Dunkelheit, miteinander. Wir haben gelacht, sehr oft, wir haben geweint, wir haben gegessen und sind geritten und haben neue Städte gesehen und Pfade beschritten, die längst vergessen waren.

Bald werdet ihr diese Pfade mit ihnen beschreiten. Ich hoffe, ihr lacht so viel mit ihnen wie ich. Ich hoffe, ihr weint auch ein wenig, denn nicht alle Tränen sind von Übel, wie Gandalf uns lehrt. Ich hoffe, ihr kommt mit ihnen auf die Reise, und dass sie eure Freunde werden, so wie sie meine sind. 

Am 15.3. erscheint DAS LIED DER NACHT. Noch heute, am Samstag, den 13.2., könnt ihr ein signiertes Exemplar bei der @buecherbuechse vorbestellen. Und den ganzen Februar hindurch könnt ihr ein Exemplar in eurer Lieblingsbuchhandlung vorbestellen. Das freut uns Autorinnen sehr, und die Buchhandlungen obendrein, jetzt, wo sie nicht geöffnet haben können. Stellt ein Licht ins Fenster. Singt ein Lied, wenn es dunkel wird. Vertraut einer Geschichte, wenn die Stunden dunkel sind. Kommt mit, #feuerschwestern, Wanderer. Wir brechen auf, Licht ins Dunkel zu bringen. #daslieddernacht #cebernard #palaceofglass #wayfarersaga #seifurchtlos
TEA TALK + LESUNG AM DONNERSTAG, 19 UHR Ihr Liebe TEA TALK + LESUNG AM DONNERSTAG, 19 UHR

Ihr Lieben,

Am Donnerstag, den 11.2.2021 um 19 Uhr könnt ihr @christian.handel und mich live zur #wohnzimmerlesung aus unseren neuen Büchern auf Instagram treffen! 🖤 Exklusiv lesen wir kurze Stücke aus DAS LIED DER NACHT und I AM ELEKTRA vor,  sprechen über die Bücher und beantworten eure Fragen, moderiert von der umwerfenden @captainofathens . Wie immer beim #teatalk : Mit Tee, mit Klartext, mit viel Herz und vor allen Dingen: mit euch! 

Ich freue mich sehr darauf, euch am Donnerstag um 19 Uhr zu sehen und euch alle Fragen zu DAS LIED DER NACHT zu beantworten. ⚔️🎼⭐️ Vorbestellen könnt ihr DAS LIED DER NACHT noch signiert (!) bis zum 13.2. bei der @buecherbuechse , I AM ELEKTRA bei @christian.handel . Fürchtet nicht die Finsternis, und ergebt euch nicht der Furcht, my fellow wanderers! #daslieddernacht #becomingelektra #christianhandel #cebernard #deutschephantasik #deutschefantasy #femalefantasy #queerfantasy #authorlife #kollegengespräch #autorenuntersich #lesung #instagramlive
Ihr Lieben, An 15.3.2021 erscheint endlich DAS LI Ihr Lieben,

An 15.3.2021 erscheint endlich DAS LIED DER NACHT, der erste Band der Wayfarer-Saga! 🖤⚔️🎼🌟 Ich verspreche euch: den einsamsten Wanderer und die mutigste Bardin, das verschneiteste Tal und die finstersten Nächte der Phantastikgeschichte ... und einen sehr klugen, sehr hungrigen weißeb Fuchs. Wenn DER WITCHER und DER HERR DER RINGE ein Kind bekommen hätten, es wäre DAS LIED DER NACHT. 

In diesem besonderen Jahr werden wir uns zu vielen Gelegenheiten nicht treffen können, damit ich eure Bücher signiere, nun, da auch die  #lbm2021 abgesagt ist. Deshalb möchte ich euch sehr die tolle Aktion von der @buecherbuechse ans Herz legen. Dort könnt ihr noch bis zum 13.2., also kommenden Samstag, DAS LIED DER NACHT personalisiert signiert (!) vorbestellen. Die liebe Helen von der Bücherbüchse hat schon mit mir gesprochen — eure Namen werden mit durchgegeben, sodass ich persönlich für euch ein Exemplar signieren kann. 

Während die Pandemie uns weiterhin zurecht abverlangt, dass wir Masken tragen, Abstand halten, wenn möglich Zuhause bleiben, finde ich das eine ganz wunderbare Aktion. Ich bin sehr glücklich euch auf diesem Wege Bücher signieren zu können! Und wir Autorinnen und Autoren freuen uns in diesen besonders unsicheren Zeiten noch mehr als sonst über eure Vorbestellungen. Auch viele tolle Kolleginnen und Kollegen haben in diesem Frühjahr Bücher, die erscheinen, zum Beispiel @christian.handel . Wenn ihr also Lust auf ein signiertes Exemplar von DAS LIED DER NACHT habt, schaut einfach bei der @buecherbuechse vorbei 🔝 Der Link ist in meiner Bio, und um alles weitere kümmern sich für euch Helen, die Bücherbüchse und ich! 

Fürchtet nicht die Dunkelheit, und ergebt euch nicht der Furcht, ihr Lieben. #daslieddernacht #bringlichtinsdunkel #cebernard #wayfarersaga #authorlife #weydderwayfarer #caerdiebardin #bellitasderfuchs #buchaktion #bookstagram #instabook #bücherwurm #femalefantasy #deutschephantastik #deutschephantastikautoren #deutschephantastikautorinnen #fantasyfrauen #bücherbüchse #coverliebe #coverlove #coverlover #signiertebücher #signierstunde #signieraktion #penhaligon @blanvalet.verlag #blanvaletverlag #blanvalet
My loveliest, It is official: Leipzig Book Fair w My loveliest,

It is official: Leipzig Book Fair will not be taking place this May. It would be silly to pretend that this is not disappointing. It isn‘t only (but also) about the fun we could have had, the people you could have met, the memories we would have made. For many authors, this also means they lose a major platform where they tell the world, the readers, you, about their books. And of course, if you have a new book coming out, that is even more of a shame.

Neil Gaiman, in his excellent ART MATTERS, has a good piece of advice for situations just like this one:

Make good art.

For the world always seems a little brighter, he says, when you’ve just made something that had not been there before.

I would like to agree whole-heartedly: Today, I finished the third and final book in the Wayfarer Saga, DER KLANG DES FEUERS (SOUND OF LIGHT). It was almost exactly one year ago that I started: on January 16th 2020, I wrote the first page of DAS LIED DER NACHT (SONG OF NIGHT). 

What an extraordinary thing. Let us remember: Whether it’s the pandemic or the cancellation of a book fair: books are being made. They are being written, they are being published, they are being read. Good art is being made. We make it for you.

If, in the coming months, especially around the book fair, you feel like buying a book from your favourite author (and I know many of my colleagues have great titles coming out this spring), please don’t hesitate. They’ll be extremely grateful. To know you’re there, even though we cannot meet you. Even though we cannot see you. Even though we cannot sign books for you.

Not this year, anyway. In 2022, we will be back.

And who knows? Maybe my colleagues and I will think of something to bring at least a little bit of #LBM2021 to you. Maybe even here. Wherever, and however, it is safe to do so. In the meantime: Stay safe, stay healthy, wear a mask, take care of yourself and others. Fear no Darkness, and head no Fear, my fellow wanderers! 

#cebernard #daslieddernacht #derklangdesfeuers #wayfarersaga #femalefantasy #deutschephantastik #lbm2021 #lbm2022 #lbf2021 #lbf2022 #makegoodart #bookstagram #authorsofinstagram #authorlife #finishing
This Sunday, authors on instagram have been talkin This Sunday, authors on instagram have been talking about rivalry among writers. There is a lovely German word for it, #konkurrenzkampf , the battle of rivals.

Haruki Murakami wrote a book called NOVELIST AS A PROFESSION. In it he remarks that authors are usually supportive of newcomers, because they are well aware how much it takes to write novels all your life. Not just a debut, not just until you’ve “made it”, not even until retirement. All of one’s life, writing one’s books. 

Clearly, being an author means to Murakami: Writing the novels only you can write, telling the tales only you can tell, for as long as you are able to lift a pen, hit a key stroke, think a thought. It is obvious, I believe, that there can be no rivals in that.

I have known so much support from my colleagues. @christian.handel invited me to contribute to his anthology and agreed to have tea with me, in public, on numerous occasions. @popescu_schreibt guided me through my first major event at Leipzig Book Fair, facing a horde of teenage students. @avareed.books brought me along on tour with her. @stefaniehasse has been a star giving advice on all matters, from social media to signing pens. @bernhard.hennen has been incredibly generous with his knowledge, skill and experience of being a lifelong author. There are so many more; you know who you are, whether I name you here or not. Still: @timoleibigautor & @heikeknauber , @rala.vom.wald & @captainofathens , @r.v.lightwood & @elibergr , @kieferlena & everyone at @pan_ev_de . And of course, to new colleagues and further adventures: @thomas_d_lee & @meaghan__allen & @trothgardmusic & @elijn_e . Thank you all. 

#autor_innensonntag @justine_thereadingmermaid #authorlife #cebernard #harukimurakami #novelistasaprofession
My dearest fellow wanderers, I have fantastic new My dearest fellow wanderers,

I have fantastic news: The German audio book version of DAS LIED DER NACHT will be narrated by none other than Oliver Siebeck, who, among many other parts, has already narrated the WITCHER audio books.

Quite fitting, as I always like to say that SONG OF NIGHT is the love child of THE WITCHER and THE LORD OF THE RINGS.

I cannot wait to hear Oliver read it! Until then, I‘ll be finishing the manuscript of book 3. I wrapped up the finale yesterday. It left me very happy, and very pleased. After a very productive and incredibly fun conversation with my editor @beatricelampe this morning, I’ll be ready to carry on come Monday. I‘m optimistic that I‘ll have it finished and off to Beatrice and my editor/translator @clkpages in two weeks. Cross your fingers for me, will you?
 
Next week, I‘ll be back to tell you all about the MEISTER DER PHANTASTIK Tour that I‘ll be going on in early 2022 with @bernhard.hennen @meister_mahet  and @kaimeyerautor . Until then, have a lovely weekend, everyone. Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear. #cebernard #daslieddernacht #wayfarersaga #oliversiebeck #thewitcher #derwitcher #lotr #lordoftherings #hdr #derherrderringe #bernhardhennen #markusheitz #kaimeyer #hörbuch #songofnight #bookstagram #authorlife #meisterderphantastiktour #meisterderphantastik
Hello fellow wanderers, I am currently writing th Hello fellow wanderers,

I am currently writing the finale of the third book of the WAYFARER saga, DER KLANG DES FEUERS (SOUND OF LIGHT). @isabelle_hirtz made this beautiful cover, like all the other covers of the saga. The excellent folk at @blanvalet.verlag and I are currently making all the plans for the publication of the first book, DAS LIED DER NACHT (SONG OF NIGHT) on 15.3.2021. We are talking signed editions for bookshops, online events, videos, press ... Much of it is going to happen here, which I hope you’re as excited about as I am. Meanwhile, @thelizagrimm is copy-editing book 2, DAS FLÜSTERN DES ZWIELICHTS (WHISPERS OF TWILIGHT). Everything is happening at the same time, just in different stages.

And I’m sitting here, day by day, writing the grand finale. I suppose I cannot say anything about what it is I’m writing without it being a terrible spoiler for you all, so I won’t. 

Instead I’ll say how intense it is to write this. How intense it is to finish a series of books, to finish a long story, a tall tale. I have sympathy for some colleagues of mine who have trouble finishing their book series. It is an intensity that is difficult to describe. It’s not having to say farewell to characters or a world you love (though I’m sure that sadness will still come). I believe it is being driven by all that narrative force, inexorably, that you have set up. You are headed for the end, and you know you won’t leave the road you’ve set out on, not anymore. You’re seeing it through, to the very end of the line. But it’s no longer up to you. All you can do is follow the road. You’ll see where it takes you.

Will you follow me on this road? Wollt ihr mir auf dieser Straße folgen, und Licht ins Dunkel bringen?

Have a great weekend, everyone. Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear. #daslieddernacht #cebernard #writinglife #wayfarersaga #dasflüsterndeszwielichts #derklamgdesfeuers #isabellehirtz #authorlife
“This is how we tend to think of democracies dyi “This is how we tend to think of democracies dying: at the hands of men with guns. But there is another way to break a democracy: presidents or prime ministers who subvert the very democratic process that brought them to power.”

This is a book I highly recommend you read if the events on Capitol Hill have touched you. Its dramatic title notwithstanding, this is a clear-eyed, concise, erudite study of how norms — not laws, not regulations, just norms, those unspoken agreements of decency and politeness — keep democracies alive, and how their erosion can be and often prove to be the cause of a democracy’s failure. Additionally, it is a pleasure to read. The authors are professors of Government at Harvard University. They know what they’re talking about, having researched contemporary and historical democracies in Europe ans Latin America for many years, and it shows. It is available in German as well.

Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear, my friends. #howdemocraciesdie #penguinpublishing #viking @penguinbooks #stevenlevitsky #danielziblatt #booksofthehour #buchderstunde #capitolhilldc #weltbleibwach
Hello my fellow wanderers, It is the first day of Hello my fellow wanderers,

It is the first day of a new year. I have had the privilege of passing a beautiful day today with a loved one, and visiting friends who are as good as family. Tonight, I’ve enjoyed another privilege: I’ve had time to think.

Thinking is a gift, and so is having the time and leisure to do so. We spend so many hours being busy, so many hours with plans already in place. It doesn’t help with letting in the thoughts that matter. Thinking needs time. It needs space. It needs us to be brave.

2021 is going to be a special year. DAS LIED DER NACHT, the book I called SONG OF NIGHT, will be published on 15th March in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland by the excellent folks at @blanvalet.verlag . It’s a book about finding light in the darkness, about what we do when we’re afraid, about what it means to love, to fight, and to live life knowing we will all have to die one day. I am still writing it as we speak, working on the manuscript for the third book, DER KLANG DES FEUERS, which in English I called SOUND OF LIGHT. It isn’t quite finished, this journey isn’t quite over yet. But soon, it will be.

It is a strange thing, finishing a book. Don’t let anyone tell you differently. It is a strange and magical thing.

I have more plans for 2021: I will write a novel about Achilles, Patroclus, Penthesilea and the Trojan war. I will start a new fantasy novel, maybe starring a miner’s daughter who meets a heroine she’s always dreamt of becoming and the bard who fancies her (or maybe not). I will write a dissertation. I will take the first steps on the path to creating a mentorship for writers from working class backgrounds.

Or so I think. Life has this penchant for making other plans, and stories the tendency to change as you work on them. It is good to know still that 2021 is here, and that there will be good things in it: tales of lights in the dark, of courage in the face of fear, of life and love and death. Tales that need to be told afresh, tales that tell us who we are, who we were and who we want to be. We’re still here. Let us fear no darkness, and heed no fear.

Happy new year, everybody. #cebernard #daslieddernacht
Let’s end this year with a bang: I’ve been acc Let’s end this year with a bang: I’ve been accepted onto two PhD programmes in the United Kingdom. I will be pursuing a doctorate in Creative Writing, starting next year. In three years’ time, I’ll be Dr Christine Lehnen. Or Dr Darkness, as friend and acting miracle Robin Hemmersbach AKA  @gnomweitwerfer pointed out. I‘m casually referred to by anyone who has ever worked with me on stage as Lord of Darkness, while my brilliant translator Charlotte Lungstrass-Kapfer AKA @clkpages has taken to calling me Queen of Darkness. I don’t know what it is about my stories and the darkness. I’m a cheerful, optimistic, enthusiastic person, who likes a laugh as well as the next woman. Ask anyone who knows me, they’ll confirm.

There’s just something about the darkness within us. It needs to be understood. There are two ways of understanding humans, I believe: art and science. In my degree, I’ll combine both: I will be writing my dissertation on the Trojan war. More precisely, on representations of war, violence and heroism in contemporary re-writings of the Trojan war as artefacts of memory culture, or Erinnerungskultur. And I will also be writing a novel set during the Trojan war. I have written the first few pages. It opens on Achilles mourning Patroclus. When I brought the beginning into a workshop session at the Novel Writing Workshop that I co-teach at @universitaetbonn , half of the students told me it had made them cry. Success!

Never fear: I’ve also started scribbling down the beginnings of a new fantasy novel.

These are the stories that make us. They are the tales that tell us who we are, what is right and what is wrong, our founding myths. That is why they need to be rewritten, again and again. That is why we need to be careful as we do. It needs care, and it needs courage.
 
I’m very much looking forward to starting the PhD in 2021, with care and with courage. What are you looking forward to in the new year, my heroines and heros? 

Whatever it is: Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear. #cebernard #christinelehnen #daslieddernacht #wayfarersaga #wayfarer #thehumanities #memorystudies #erinmerungskultur #myth #mythology #diezunft #romanwerkstattbonn
My fellow wanderers, How happy I am about this ye My fellow wanderers,

How happy I am about this year on instagram. DAS LIED DER NACHT next to PALACE next to my brilliant assistant Lisa AKA @captainofathens and of course, myself (with a wide variety of hairstyles — I am currently growing it again). I cannot believe all of these photos were taken in one and the same year. 2020 has been a long twelve months. The pandemic made it difficult for all of us. Then again, when I look back at 2020, I also see lights, like flickering candles in a dark night (and you know that, the darker the night, the brighter shines every lamp, every lantern, every candle). Some burn very brightly: Writing the WAYFARER saga, books where every word was crafted with all my skill and love and passion, with precision and patience and sweat. A trip to Phantasialand for my thirtieth birthday with the family. Finding out that I‘m not allergic to British Shorthair cats. 

What were your lights in 2020? What were the good things? Tell us about them in the comments, please. Let the world know. Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear, my lovelies. 2021 is coming. It will be brighter. It will be better. Thanks to science. Thanks to reason. Thanks to the stories that taught us to care for each other, and that every human life matters, whether old or young, weak or strong, next door or far away.

Merry Christmas and happy holidays. #cebernard #daslieddernacht #wayfarer #wayfarersaga #songofnight #palacesaga #palaceofglass #seifurchtlos #writinglife #authorlife #2020
Hello my fellow wanderers, A dear friend and tale Hello my fellow wanderers,

A dear friend and talented writer asked me a question this week: How do you decide which story to write? Of the many, many ideas swirling around your head, which one do you pick? How do you know which one to trust?

We were on a walk through a beautiful park, wearing masks and keeping our distance, and I gave her advice as best I could. She said she found it helpful.

Now, I cannot remember what it was that I told her. I do remember asking @neilhimself the same question on his tumblr, and he was kind enough to reply. He said it was helpful to think of it as choosing from a menu at a restaurant. There isn’t a right or a wrong choice, you’re just going to have two very different dinners, depending on what you choose to eat.  I found this extremely helpful. He also said that he carried some ideas with him for decades before turning them into books, or comics, or audio plays.

Here is one idea that hasn’t let me go this year: my dear colleague @christian.handel suggested to do something with the Nibelungen. With writing the Wayfarer Saga, I haven’t had time yet to give it any serious thought. And yet,  that tale begging to be told again, isn’t it? The warrior princess, the man who slays the dragon, treachery, revenge, the cost of bloodshed, the inescapable truth that in war and violence, everybody loses. It is quite fitting that my mastermind assistant and tirelessly inspiring cheerleader @captainofathens gave this beautiful @inselverlag edition to me as an early Christmas  present (well, I made it into an early Christmas present. I am impossible like that.) It is the first time that I read the Nibelungen. Let’s see where it takes us.

Have any of you read it? What do you think of the Nibelungen?

Einen wunderschönen vierten Advent euch allen. Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear, my fellow wanderers.

#wayfarer #wayfarersaga #derwayfarer #daslieddernacht #cebernard #writingadvice #neilgaimam #nibelungen #inselverlag @inselverlag #femalefantasy #deutschephantastik #deutschephantastikautorin #deutschephantastikautoren
Ihr Lieben, ich darf voller Vorfreude verkünden, Ihr Lieben,
ich darf voller Vorfreude verkünden, dass es nächste Woche Mittwoch einen neuen TEA TALK mit @christian.handel und mir geben wird! 🎉🎉
Zusammen mit @captainofathens, die wie immer die Moderation übernimmt, feiern wir den Release von ROSEN UND KNOCHEN - PALAST AUS GOLD UND TRÄNEN und freuen uns auf die Erscheinung des WAYFARERS nächstes Jahr mit einem Instagram-Live-Stream. 😍
Dieses Mal legen wir den Fokus auf Geschichten, die uns inspiriert haben: Märchen, Lieder etc.
Macht euch einen Tee, einen heißen Kakao oder einen Glühwein und verbringt mit uns eine schöne, gemütliche Stunde am Nachmittag! 🍵❤️

#teatalk #teaparty #livestream #rosenundknochen #wayfarer #cebernard #cebernardwrites #palacesaga #palaceofglass #autorin #author #writing
Ihr Lieben, Kaum bin ich aus der Quarantäne in d Ihr Lieben,

Kaum bin ich aus der Quarantäne in die Freiheit entlassen worden, möchte meine Wohnung mich wiederhaben: Ich bin heute Morgen vom Fahrrad gestürzt. Ich bin glimpflich davongekommen und schon wieder aus dem Krankenhaus zurück. Trotzdem heißt es nun zwei bis drei Tage Zuhause bleiben und den Körper schonen. Das möchte der auch sehr gern. Und das lässt er mich wissen. Es lohnt sich, hinzuhören.

Die Zeit vertreibe ich mir einerseits damit, dass ich die Überarbeitung von DAS FLÜSTERN DES ZWIELICHTS abschließe, dem zweiten Band der Wayfarer-Saga. Das Buch hat ein großes Finale, indem viel ans Licht kommt, viel gekämpft wird, viel gewonnen und viel verloren. Andererseits spiele ich die Extensions von THE WITCHER III: THE WILD HUNT. Und ich lese dieses hervorragende Buch: J R R Tolkiens UNFINISHED TALES OF MIDDLE-EARTH AND NUMÉNOR. Gerade die Geschichte Tuors hat es mir angetan. Tolkien hat wahrlich nur ihren Anfang verfasst, ungefähr 60 Seiten, aber was für ein Anfang das ist. Eines Tages möchte ich diejenige sein, die die Geschichte Tuors als Roman zu Ende erzählt. 

Stay safe, dear wanderers. Wear a helmet, wear a mask. Fear no Darkness, and heed no Fear. #cebernard #daslieddernacht #dasflüsterndeszwielichts #wayfarersaga #wayfarer #jrrtolkien #tolkien #unfinishedtales #unfinishedtalesofnúmenorandmiddleearth #alanlee #johnhowe #tednasmith #christophertolkien #thewitcher #thewitcheriii #fearnodarkness #authorlife #editing #tuor #tuorsonofhuor #bookstagram #instabooks #bookworm #coverlove
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News

Neue Fantasy-Trilogie ab Frühjahr 2021!

Veröffentlicht von Admin

Frohe Kunde! C. E. Bernard verfasst eine neue High-Fantasy-Trilogie für den Penhaligon Verlag. Der erste Band soll voraussichtlich im Frühjahr 2021 zur Leipziger Buchmesse erscheinen. Die Folgebände sollen in...

April 22, 2020
blog, news, tagebuch

Neue Märchenanthologie – und ich bin dabei!

Veröffentlicht von Lisa Pohlers

Ihr Lieben, es gibt aufregende Neuigkeiten – beim Drachenmond Verlag erscheint Mitte Oktober eine wunderschöne neue Märchenanthologie, herausgegeben von Christian Handel, und ich bin mit dabei! Die Anthologie beeinhaltet...

September 29, 2019
blog, tagebuch

Palace 4 kommt!

Veröffentlicht von Admin

Es ist offiziell:   View this post on Instagram Feuerschwestern! Endlich, endlich kann ich es offiziell machen: ES WIRD EINEN 4. BAND DER PALACE SAGA GEBEN! ??❤️? Ich kann...

März 1, 2019
blog, tagebuch

Palace of Glass, Palace of Silk und Palace of Fire für den Lovelybooks-Leserpreis nominiert!

Veröffentlicht von Christine Elizabeth Bernard

Was für eine Ehre! Alle drei Bände der Palace-Saga sind für den Lovelybooks-Lesepreis 2018 nominiert! Die Abstimmung läuft noch 8 Tage bis zum 27.11.2018 — Rea und ich freuen...

November 19, 2018
blog, tagebuch

FBM 2018 & erste Termine 2019

Veröffentlicht von Admin

View this post on Instagram What a fair we had! Milles mercis an alle #feuerschwestern , die zur Signierstunde am Samstag gekommen sind! ♥️? Ich hatte wirklich nicht mit...

Oktober 22, 2018
blog, tagebuch

Events im Herbst: C. E. Bernard im Ruhrgebiet & Frankfurt

Veröffentlicht von Christine Elizabeth Bernard

C. E. Bernard wird im Herbst im Radio, auf der Frankfurter Buchmesse und im Ruhrgebiet auftreten: 22.8.2018, Deutschlandfunk Kultur, LesArt / Podcast 13.9.2018, Buchhandlung Musial, Recklinghausen. Tickets ab 1.9....

August 21, 2018
blog, tagebuch

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