About the book: 1981 / The idea of ​​a new historical novel arose from Emilian Stanev, according to academician P. Dinekov, after reading the latter’s article about Ivan Rilsky, himself popular saint of the Bulgarian Christian pantheon. The writer was captivated by the idea of ​​creating an image similar to Ivan Rilsky. “I want to write about the great, about moral beauty, to create something similar to what true artists created,” - this is what the writer said, according to N. Staneva. And further she writes: “His imagination depicted him as a bright man, cleansed of earthly baseness, full of love for the world.” Then the writer had the idea to make his future book a continuation of “The Legend of Sibin, Prince of Preslavsky,” and, apparently, the dynamism and vitality of the “Legend” forced him to abandon the hero he had planned - the holy hermit. “These hermits are essentially self-centered people. Man was created for activity, to live among his own kind, to act. Inaction is death. Life is movement, struggle, action.” Having abandoned the idea of ​​​​making his Nazarius a saint, he makes him an artist, thereby defining the theme of the work - the meaning and role of art in the life of man and society, its meaning and influence on the artist himself. “Art is not a destination,” Stanev told Sarandev, “it is a human need, forcing him to strive for harmony of his inner world with the outside.” And at the same time, he understood more and more clearly that true creativity leads to the deepest knowledge, which can lead to no less deep despair and even destroy the artist’s gift.