by Kate Story
I am indebted to the very fine book Christmas Mumming in Newfoundland, edited by my father George Story and Herbert Halpert (University of Toronto Press, 1969). Some readers will have noticed inspiration from Gavin Menzies’s book 1421: The Year China Discovered the World (Bantam Books 2002). I relied upon descriptions of sailing a leather boat from Tim Severin’s brilliant The Brendan Voyage (Hutchinson 1978); any errors in sailing lore are mine. And thank you to all the Icelanders who were kind enough to speak to me about folklores there, and to the many books I’ve read on Norse lore. The song Sigrid sings is inspired by works in The Penguin Book of Chinese Verse (Penguin Books, 1962).
Deep gratitude goes out to Black Honey Writing Group luminaries Joe Davies and Janette Platana, for reading seemingly endless drafts, believing in Antilia, and keeping me honest. To Emma Bowen and Charlotte Dempsey, whose astute comments, suggestions for music, and for submitting to being my “youth” readers, I owe you a huge debt of gratitude. Deep thanks to Navroz Dubash for helping me find Sam’s name and his Persian stories. To Sarah Kastner for her insightful anecdotes about the adventures of raising her children, and to Chaka Chikodzi for sharing his stories, too, many thanks. Thank you to Cal Coons for telling me what it feels like to break your nose! To Derek Bell, for supporting the work and putting up with my crankiness, thank you. Peterborough people will notice a salute to The Spill: I add my voice to those thanking that space for all the good it did over the years. Sincere and humble thanks to Holly Bennett for kind comments, insight, and support when I needed it most. To Chris Wilton, whose belief in this work touched me and kept me going, thank you; our discussions about writing, reading, and race have affected me deeply. To Rachel Mordecai, for being a first reader, for sharing insight into Jamaican culture and lore, and for engaging in the work of the new conversations we are having—and must keep having—about privilege, I cannot thank you enough, my friend. And of course deep gratitude to Ryan Kerr, my friend and my love: you have my back and I have yours.
About the Author
KATE STORY is a writer and performer. A Newfoundlander living in Ontario, her first novel Blasted (Killick Press) received the Sunburst Award’s honourable mention. She is a recipient of the K.M. Hunter Award for her work in theatre, and recent publications include short fiction in World Fantasy Award-nominated and Aurora Award-nominated collections. Her third novel, Shakespeare-in-space romp This Insubstantial Pageant (ChiZine Publications) was ranked a “top science-fiction read” by the Toronto Star (Alex Good, 2017). Antilia: Sword and Song is her first Young Adult Fantasy novel.