The Heroes Quest by Michael Spradlin

Like most writers, I'm often asked what are my favorite books and from what other writers inspire me? My answer to that question is usually: it depends. Because I tend to write across genres, I find inspiration in many different places. When I began writing The Youngest Templar: Keeper of the Grail, I think my biggest influence was Joseph Campbell's The Hero with a Thousand Faces, a book I turned to time and time again.

The Youngest Templar: Keeper of the Grail is a hero's quest. What you discover in reading Campbell's work is that the hero's quest is a story told repeatedly in different forms in almost every culture. If you think about it, the hero of almost any dramatic work is on some sort of quest. It may be an internal quest for self-discovery or validation or a very external quest: to solve the crime, save the girl/town/world, or to complete some charge that the hero has been given.

In The Youngest Templar: Keeper of the Grail, my hero Tristan is given a very sacred duty. He is ordered by his knight, Sir Thomas Leux, to safeguard the Holy Grail. The cup of Christ. The most sacred relic in all of Christendom. Sir Thomas orders Tristan to return with the Grail from the Holy Land to Scotland. He must keep it safe at all costs. Tell no one. Trust no one. So begins Tristan's journey.

Given that The Youngest Templar: Keeper of the Grail is a quest story, I found the challenge became to populate it with characters that readers become invested in. To me, it's always been the characters that pull me into a story. I become invested in their lives. As a writer, I've found myself rooting for Tristan on every page. Since I conceived the story as a trilogy and I'm working on book three now, I can't wait to see what happens next. Will Tristan fulfill his mission? Will he keep the Grail safe?

I'm not sure that I can answer those questions yet! But after all, Tristan is a hero. In many ways he is the hero with a thousand faces. So I have to say, I like his chances.

Michael Spradlin, The Youngest Templar, young adult fiction, Knights Templar, Holy Grail,historical fiction,books, Penguin Books