I’m in one of my rare periods of melancholy. Yesterday, a dear friend, mentor and just amazing person, Janet Ellen Morris, passed away at the age of 78. I’ve only known her and her husband, Chris, since 2017, but that connection has had a major impact on my life. From the outpouring of her fans and friends who have learned of her passing, it’s clear that she’s had that sort of influence on everyone who’s been blessed to have spent time in her orbit. There are others, especially Chris, who can say more than what you’d find in her Wikipedia article, so I should only speak to what I know. Forgive the inevitable turn that feels like I’m making it about me. It’s the nature of a memorial, I suppose.
If you haven’t heard of Janet, you’ve missed out. If you have, you probably understand the subtitle on the post image. She’s authored more than forty outstanding novels and several non-fiction books, many in cooperation with Chris. Most of these are in fantasy and science fiction, though she has a masterpiece of historical fiction called I, The Sun, about the Hittite King, Suppiluliuma I. Her first novel, published in 1977, was a post-apocalyptic work called High Couch of Silistra, the first of a tetralogy. Janet’s and Chris’ non-fiction works involved national security, non-lethal weapons and other defense technologies that brought them into the upper echelons of national and international consulting and research.
I think I was in 7th grade, living in Yuma, Arizona, when I first saw her name. I had been the sort of reader who picked up a book when I had nothing else to do. When my mother handed me The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings series, I discovered a new world. Wanting to visit more such worlds, and bugging my mother about it, she handed me a book called Thieves’ World, an anthology of short stories from the best authors of the time set in the shared universe of a town called Sanctuary. It came out in 1979, and its dark, cynical, exciting atmosphere was very different from Middle Earth. Janet’s first story in the series, “Vashanka’s Minion” appeared in the second book of the series, Tales from the Vulgar Unicorn, and her character, Tempus, and his band of mercenaries became my favorites of the many denizens of Sanctuary. Janet’s contributions to Thieves’ World were so impactful, that the entire 12 book series was shaped more by her characters, stories and ideas than any other single author.
No matter where I moved, those books, and Janet’s spin-off novels, like The Sacred Band, went with me. Anyone who’s been in the military, where limiting personal belongings is a virtue, can appreciate what that means. When I stepped into the world of writing, Janet’s wordcraft is what most influenced me, even if I couldn’t hope to match hers. My novels even have some scenes that were inspired by scenes from her books.
So, when my first book was at the publisher, in the process to get it out into the world, I found Chris and Janet on Facebook. With little hope of hearing back, I sent a message explaining how she has been such an influence on my writing, and that I wondered if she’d be willing to read my first novel. To my surprise and delight, she not only responded, but agreed to read the book and offer a review.
You can only imagine my excitement when she told me she liked the book and invited Jennifer and I to visit her and Chris. Jenn and I made the first of several such trips in which I had to restrain my inner fan-girl each time. Janet and Chris offered me the honor of contributing to their anthology, Heroika: Skirmishers, and it became my second published work with my short historical fiction story, “A Handful of Salt”. Their mentorship greatly improved my writing, and the first examples of their instruction may be found in that story. Not only that, but Chris graciously began teaching me the art and science of book publishing, which made me appreciate what it takes to put out a professional product. Their decades of experience has made their company, Perseid Press, a well-respected publisher. So it was an even greater honor when they took over the publication rights of my Arthurian historical fiction series.
Janet and Chris have become dear friends. I treasure those late nights, soaking in everything she and Chris had to say about writing, publishing, heroic literature, history, horses, dogs, their fascinating lives-it’s a font of knowledge and advice that I have been so fortunate to have sipped from. We loved meeting their beautiful Morgan, Field of Honor, playing with their lovely Belgian Tervurens, Tailer and Night, getting a tour of the places where Janet grew up, or getting the best ice cream we’ve ever had from a local spot. We’ve enjoyed sitting in as Janet and Chris practiced their music. Who would have thought she was a bass player! You can-and should-catch their music here.
Like I said, this post shouldn’t be about me. There are others who can offer far more than my small memorial. I guess this is my way to make something concrete of the impact she’s made on my life in the short time I’ve been blessed to know her. Immortality is not just found in the spirit, but in legacy. Janet has bequeathed a legacy to me and to many others, and that immortality, how we impact the lives of those around us, is a gift she gave of freely and generously.
The Perseid meteor showers are underway, as if the heavens, too, salute our commander.
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