Why I Chose Autumn for the Beginning of The Eternal Prince

When I imagined the beginning of The Eternal Prince, I never really pictured Alexander starting his journey beneath a bright summer sky. It did not feel right. I wanted the beginning to feel colder, quieter and slightly uncomfortable. Autumn naturally gave me that.

I Wanted the World to Feel Real

Weather changes the way we experience places. A castle on a perfect summer afternoon feels very different from the same castle surrounded by rain, mist and fallen leaves. The architecture has not changed. But our feeling has. That is something I wanted to use in The Eternal Prince.

Alexander moves through a world that should feel beautiful, but I never wanted that beauty to become too clean or artificial. There can be mud on the road. There can be cold rain. The trees can be nearly bare. The sky does not always have to cooperate with the story. To me, those imperfections make the world more believable.

Autumn Has the Right Kind of Uncertainty

There is also something strange about autumn. You never quite know what kind of day you are going to get. One afternoon can be warm and golden. The next morning can be grey, windy and freezing.

That instability suited the beginning of Alexander’s story. He does not begin with complete knowledge of what is ahead. Neither should the world around him feel completely predictable. The weather, landscapes and changing light quietly reinforce that uncertainty without needing to explain anything.

I Like the Contrast With Warm Places

One of my favorite things about colder weather is what it does to warmth. A candle matters more in a dark room. A fireplace feels different after someone has been walking through rain. A palace window glowing in the distance becomes inviting when the road leading to it is cold and wet.

Those are simple images, but they create atmosphere immediately. Valentine Kingdom contains a lot of contrasts, and I wanted the seasons to become part of that. The outside world can be difficult while something beautiful waits inside. Or something beautiful can hide something dangerous. The appearance of a place never has to tell the entire truth.

Autumn Also Represents Change

There is an obvious symbolism to autumn, but I did not want to force it. Alexander is entering a period of enormous change. Autumn happens to be a season defined by change. That connection works naturally enough on its own.

Trees lose their leaves. Days disappear earlier. Animals prepare for winter. The entire landscape begins adjusting to what comes next. Alexander does not know what comes next. But his old life is already beginning to move away from him.

Sometimes the Beginning Should Feel Like an Ending

That may be the part I like most. Autumn is usually associated with things ending. Summer ends. Leaves fall. The year begins moving toward winter. But The Eternal Prince begins there.

For Alexander, what looks like an ending from one perspective is actually the first chapter of something much larger. I like that contradiction. The story does not begin when the world is opening into spring. It begins when everything seems to be closing down.

And from that colder beginning, Valentine Kingdom starts to reveal itself.