The Simmering Mind

Today I’m excited to be part of the blog tour for my friend Sarah White’s incredible fantasy novel, Halayda. (Seriously. Pick Halayda up!! It’s one of the best books I’ve read all year! Also, have you seen the gorgeous cover?? *drools* My print copy is coming in the mail any day now and I CAN’T WAIT!)

Sarah’s taking over the blog today to talk about two topics close to my heart: the Halayda characters (who are amazing and you should get to know them), and Myers-Briggs typology. 😀

Take it away, Sarah!

The MBTI Types of Halayda—
and How to Ruin Their Lives

by Sarah Delena White

I use Myers-Briggs typology a lot as an author. It gives me a good springboard for creating nuanced characters and figuring out what motivates them. Of course, part of creating a good plot is knowing exactly how to mess with your characters. Here is a sure-fire plan for ruining the lives of the major characters in Halayda, based on their MBTI type.

Sylvie – INFP

Sylvie is driven by compassion and empathy, and she always tries to see the best in everyone and everything. She’s exuberant and friendly, but also likes her alone time and her piles of fluffy blankets. Though very gifted, she doesn’t always trust her own abilities. Most of all, she fiercely loves her family and friends and will do anything to help and protect them.

If you want to ruin Sylvie’s life, make sure you put every single person she loves in danger. Geographic distance is especially helpful here, as it will frustrate her to know that someone she cares about needs help and she can’t reach them. It’s also very effective to throw a bunch of complicated problems at her and then talk down to her when she can’t immediately solve them. When she gets stressed out, don’t give her a chance to hide under her blankets. In fact, take the blankets away entirely—have them get washed away by a river or something.

Taylan – ESTJ

Taylan loves having control of his surroundings and his kingdom. He likes consistency and reliability, and he doesn’t appreciate sudden changes. He also has a tragic past and a lot of hidden scars from past failures and poor choices. He doesn’t trust or love easily, but the few people he cares for have his complete loyalty, no matter the cost.

The best way to mess up his life is to make sure he can’t control anything. Turn his entire kingdom against him. Have his magical abilities go haywire at a time when he desperately needs them. Throw constant small annoyances at him, such as forcing him to ally with shady characters or eat oatmeal in a room full of screaming children. Most importantly, make sure the woman he loves is in constant danger, and force him to choose between her and his responsibilities.

Diza – ENTP

Diza is highly skilled and intelligent, and has a far greater wealth of knowledge and experience than most people realize. She loves to work with the people she cares about, whether it’s her husband or her friends. She sees endless possibilities in the world around her, and she loves to discuss ideas with others. She’s exuberant and creative, and is happiest when she can use her abilities to the fullest and experience the world—or the multiverse—with people she loves.

The most effective way to ruin Diza’s life is to force her to work alone. Make sure there’s no one she can have intellectual conversations with. Force her to constantly have to make important decisions without discussing her options with anyone. Strand her in a world where she can’t access her full power or communicate with her otherworldly connections. Make her have to put herself on the line for someone who repeatedly rejects her. Top it off by separating her from her husband—the one person she trusts fully—and making sure she has no one to cuddle with.

Casimir – ENTJ

Casimir is bold, arrogant, and extremely intelligent and gifted. He’s a charismatic leader with his own vision for the world. Though some may take issue with his extreme measures, he does everything for the sake of a better future. Exiled from his homeland and cut off from the magic of Faerie, he has survived through science and strategy, biding his time until he can return to his homeland and give the faerie king the reckoning he deserves.

The best way to infuriate him is to upend his infallible plans. Have no one comprehend his great wisdom or respect his vision for a better future. Have his loyal servants regain their fallible free will and reject his guidance and foresight. Bonus points if his plans are thwarted the weakest, lowliest person possible.

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About Halayda:

A mortal alchemist. A faerie king. A bond that transcends death.

Betrayed by a trusted mentor, Sylvie Imanthiya hides on the fringes of society, caring for half-fae orphans and trading her alchemical creations on the black market. She lives for the one night each season when she can see her dearest friend—a man whose destiny is far above hers.

King Taylan Ashkalabek knows better than to exchange halayda vows with a mortal. Even their friendship is a risk; love is an impossible dream. Then a brutal alchemical attack poisons his realm, unearthing a dark power within him—and leaving Sylvie with the ancient mark of Faerie’s savior.

Manifesting unpredictable abilities and aided by allies with their own secrets, Sylvie and Taylan journey into the wilds of Faerie to heal the damage and confront Casimir, an invincible star-fae determined to claim the realm as his own. But only their enemy knows Sylvie’s true capabilities—and Taylan’s weaknesses—and how to use them in his vicious schemes.

Her fate is life. His fate is death. With Faerie in the balance, Sylvie and Taylan must stand together before reality as they know it is destroyed.

Buy the book on Amazon here.

Sarah Delena White was raised by wolves in an alternate dimension. She writes eclectic speculative fiction that reworks mythology with a fine balance of poetry and snark. She’s an experienced world traveler who loves to weave world folklore and ancient concepts into vibrant, original story worlds. She is also the Benevolent Firebird (acquisitions editor) for Uncommon Universes Press. When she’s not writing or editing, she can be found making jewelry, singing Irish ballads, drinking tea, and working a variety of odd jobs. She can be bribed with dark chocolate.