Impact fans know Elizabeth Gracen for a string of action roles, most prominently ‘Amanda’ in the Highlander tv series. Now she’s turned her hand to writing a new YA adventure…
Highlander star Elizabeth Gracen is returning with some classic mythology of her own. The stunning actress, 55, who played Amanda in the show (she was one of the most popular regular characters in the Highlander series along with Adrian Paul’s heroic Duncan MacLeod and Roger Daltrey’s Hugh Fitzcairn) and its spin-off Highlander: The Raven, has written a book targeting the YA (Young Adult) audience.
Elizabeth won the titles of Miss Arkansas in 1981 and Miss America in 1982 and used her scholarship money to study acting at HB Studios in New York City before moving to Hollywood to pursue a film and television career and she has now established her own publishing and film production company. Her debut novel Shalilly is a piece of young adult fiction likely to appeal to fans of the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter.
‘Shalilly’ is Elizabeth’s book aimed at the YA market…
The book tells the love story of mystic Fippa and young warrior Ision who live in ancient Greece. They meet an Oracle and will follow a prophecy to save love in the universe but before their ceremony is complete an evil priest drags the young warrior away and Fippa must sacrifice herself so she can be born again as the Shalilly – a butterfly girl – and win back her companion. She says was inspired by the myths of ancient Greece to write the story.
“I read an article in Scientific American about Mt. Parnassus and the Pythia – the Oracles – of Archaic Greece in the Temple of Delphi. The thrust of the article was about the ethylene gas that emitted from the fissures in the mountain and how those fumes could have possibly caused the extreme, wild trances that these young virgins were thrown into – the crazy states where they barked like dogs, foamed at the mouth and uttered gibberish – which was believed to be the actual prophecies from the god, Apollo.”
Another influence is Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings – an influence on many fantasy authors for generations.
“I was lucky enough to have a fab teacher in my senior year of high school who required a mandatory reading of The Lord of the Rings. We actually had a Middle Earth Day – I sewed my own Galadriel costume from sheets! In my adult years, as a parent, Harry Potter has played a major role – it is part of our family life in a wonderful way,” she explained. “So… yes. All the great fantasy stories have influenced me. I also had my Grandmother Murphy! She was a huge ‘magical’ influence on me when I was a kid. She was a Would-be-Witch who made up all sorts of stories about the fairies in her attic. She read palms and had a fake crystal ball. She dressed as the gypsy fortuneteller during Halloween carnivals! Magical thinking is just part of who I am. ”
And this was an influence she took to Highlander, which she remembers fondly….
“I’m not sure what I brought to the character that wasn’t on the page, but I know that it was perfect fit for me. I remember thinking about my Grandmother Murphy – again – when I started to work on Amanda,” Elizabeth notes. “There is a similar sense of fun, mischief and an attraction to ‘stirring it up’ when things get boring. I tend to have that in my own character as well. It’s caused me a lot of trouble in the past! I also had great chemistry with Adrian Paul as a person. We had a lot of fun working on the show, and we developed our relationship on screen as the show went along. Amanda on Highlander represents some of the best moments of my life as an actor. It was the best job I’ve ever had. I loved every aspect of the experience. The myth, the magic, swords, flashbacks, costumes, accents, Paris… all of it.”
Elizabeth also starred as Amanda in the ‘Highlander’ spin-off ‘The Raven’…
But if she had carte blanche over Amanda would she change anything?
“I loved the writers of Highlander! Amanda was wild and crazy and very unpredictable – I wouldn’t change a thing! Highlander: The Raven… that’s another story. Complicated. Even though my personal life was super crazy at the time –which affected everything around me – I think that Amanda as ‘the Raven’ was sort of… before her time. If it was rebooted today with some wonderful, kick-ass version of Amanda, I think it would fly! Along with La Femme Nikita, Amanda was one of the first female action heroes on a series. We just couldn’t get the story mix right to suit all the investors. It was also in the day of franchised television. I think it would have been fine, given another season. We would have worked it out.”
She told how her own life has taken some challenging twists and turns, comparable to that of her sword wielding character.
“I have survived some difficult experiences that could have destroyed me. I had a very rough childhood and had some horrible things happen to me as an adolescent. I made some truly bad mistakes as a young adult. I am no immortal, but I keep rising from the flames,” she admits.
Her lead book character Fippa is also a kind of role model for young girls – like Elizabeth’s own teenage daughter.
“Shalilly is a coming of age story about a young girl who is coming to grips with her femininity and what she chooses to be in this world. She learns about compassion and about sacrificing her own needs to a bigger cause,” Elizabeth explains.”She is feisty and a little arrogant at the start of the story and believes that she is destined for great things. Fippa is a true hero, who, in the end, is willing to sacrifice herself to save those around her. I think she’s a wonderful female role model for young girls. She is not willing to acquiesce to everyone around her – in a world ruled by men. She’s awkward, larger than all the petite, super feminine characters. She has unruly red hair in a world where everyone is beautiful and pristine. I wanted her to be an ‘outsider’ – someone who really has to find her way and keep a sense of self. ”
Shalilly is published soon by Elizabeth’s own boutique publishing company Flapper Press and you can find out more about ordering the title here: (http://www.flapperpress.com).
– Simon Keegan is the author of Pennine Dragon: The Real King Arthur of the North published by New Haven Publishing (http://www.amazon.co.uk/Pennine-Dragon-Simon-Keegan/dp/1910705322)
