Writtenwyrdd

History in your fictional worlds (repost)

2010-01-06T01:00:00-05:00

Reposted from February 5, 2008

Epic fantasies usually begin in medias res, in the middle of things. Consider, for example, how much history comes before we meet Frodo Baggins in The Lord of the Rings, and I'm not just talking about its prequel, The Hobbit. The Silmarillion will give you a better idea. In this eon-long context, the One Ring can be seen as merely a loose end that must be tidies up before it and its master can destroy all of Middle-earth, smashing sundry lives in the process including those of various innocent hobbits.

This pattern runs through much of modern fantasy. The past is a looming shadow that shapes the present and threatens the future. Characters thus totter between light and dark, between simple, everyday life and cosmic destruction, on a scale that sometimes boggles the mind even of their creator. P.C. Hodgell, the introduction to Blood & Ivory

P.C. Hodgell is one of my all-time favorite fantasists. She wrote God Stalk, which is not so well known but which is in my top three favorite books of all time list. Go read it and the sequels if you want to read something truly unique. Her world is not a Tolkein deriviative; it's fresh, new, fascinating.

And what she has to say about the looming history of an epic fantasy is so true. I've always had the sense of this, but hadn't ever put it so well. I've always thought of the history as a river, and you just launch your story's boat at the appropriate spot. Like a canoe trip.

And you can find information on Professor Hodgell here.

2010-01-03T21:33:50-05:00

Felt better today, and the blizzard was over, so we had my party tonight instead of yesterday. This after I spent about 3 hours snowblowing a foot plus of wet slushy snow (the temp climbed to 40 last night!) and then raking the accumulated 2' off the garage roof before it caved in. Good thing the wind was blowing or the driveway would have been a total nightmare!

Social outlook (repost)

2010-01-02T01:00:00-05:00

Reposted from January 28, 2008

An article on pets vs. food animals. Thanks to Sclerotic Rings for the link. As a writer, I found it informative to be forced to consider a hot-button issue like the eating of cats and dogs in other countries. We all have our cultural boundaries that we tend to unswervingly assume are the realities for other cultures, and this issue of what's supposed to be food is a biggie. The article is very lucid in its presentation of others' views of our Western sensibilities, and points out how we tend to treat other cultures as bad and us as right...as if we have a god-given right to do so.

The stuff of international, um, misunderstandings, yes?

I recall once having dinner with some acquaintances, and my then-hubs and I mentioned that we hunted. I swear, this woman vomited in her mouth and ran from the room at the mere thought of us eating venison. (And yes, said, "Ew, you eat Bambi?!") That's an example of cultural boundaries, all right.

Likewise, imagine eating ants, snails, grubs, cat, or raccoon meat. Some things don't seem so bad, but others make the stomach roil. Depends on you, your culture and your individual tolerance. Cannibalism is even acceptable-- somewhere. (I mention this because of a classmate in college who'd just returned from a year living with a former tribe of headhunters. He shared in great detail their attitudes about not being able to head hunt. Very enlightening, because they still wanted to, it was that embedded in their culture.)

So, back to the main point: An awareness of cultural perspectives is valuable for your fictional worlds and the characters who find themselves stranded there.

Happy writing!

2010-01-01T12:40:26-05:00

I'm sick with a cold or some virus or other. So I had to cancel my party tomorrow (all that food!) and go huddle, shivering, in bed. Crap. I thought it was improving yesterday, but by 8 last night I was getting worse. And today I almost feel like I have the flu. Go me. :/ At least I'm on vacation with nothing else pressing to do!

Time to Par-tay!!!

2009-12-31T01:00:00-05:00

Well, gang, it's that time of year again. New Year's Eve. I hope you have something fun planned for your evening, whether it's getting soused with five hundred other folks at a big bash or staying home, putting your feet up, and watching tv. Enjoy yourselves, but, above all, be safe. Look out for drunks driving and be careful yourself if you're the one imbibing.

See you on the flip side!

The flavor of a culture, or a truism? (repost)

2009-12-30T01:00:00-05:00

Reposted from February 24, 2008

"There was a great simplicity and openness of character about the Gauls, a love of liberty and a generous sympathy with the oppressed. They scorned surprises and strategems in war, trusting only to strength and valour. This absense of craft was indeed one of the reasons why they succumbed to the Romans so much sooner and more easily than the Spaniards. The conquest of Gaul was begun about a century later than that of Spain, but it was concluded earlier. For the Spaniard kept up a scattered guerilla warfare, protecting himself in his mountains, whereas the Gaul came on with fire and fury, and shattered his whole strength at once against the Roman legions. Another reason for the comparatively easy subjugation of the Gauls lay in their inability to combine. Their internal animosities were of more importance to them than the exclusion of the foreigner." De Bello Gallico, According to the Text of Emanuel Hoffman via Google book search. (footnotes and bibliographical refs are omitted)

Does this sound familiar? I'd bet it does if you have read ANY epic fantasy or military SF!

First published in 1898, this tome talks about the Gauls and their conquest by the Romans.

However, from Lord of the Rings to many of the recent epic fantasies I've read, the dynamics are remarkably similar.

Which tells us something about epic fantasies. Either the cultures we prefer to see in them are divisive and troublemaking, or this rather ubiquitous social dynamic of divisiveness and inner cultural conflict obscuring threats from outside is a pervasive human condition.

I rather think the latter. How do you weigh in on this?

In terms of writing, though, the loosely connected tribal society that can't get its act together because of internal conflict is rather useful from a plot conflict perspective. A major obstacle to overcome!

Happy writing!

Ah, the joys of laziness

2009-12-29T11:33:54-05:00

I know I said I intended to do some home improvement projects, but I find that I just don't want to. I have been enjoying the last few days, walking the dog, baking christmas cookies (I take them to the always-hungry masses at my main office) and reading a lot. On my 9th book since Christmas Eve. I feel like I am recharging my batteries, and I'm starting to think about sitting down with the digital tablet, my hawt new laptop, and one of the digital drawing books I got with my Xmas amazon gift certificate to improve my skills.

But first, today I'm making sugar cookies and date nut bars. I have to make red velvet cupcakes for my party on Saturday, as well as another batch of killer white chocolate fudge, which hopefully won't be so darned crumbly as the first batch.

I love baking. And except for a bit too much fudge I've been very good about not eating what I shouldn't. Although I haven't lost any weight for a week!

Societal layers (repost)

2009-12-29T01:00:00-05:00

Reposted from February 27, 2008

"Roman Britain is an example of how a large civilised "top layer" of people can invade and rule a native population and yet leave the native fundamentally unchanged." p22 Food In England by Delia Smith

Ran across that interesting quote and had to share it because it goes well with the earlier post on the Gauls and their social structure.

The book, Food In England, is one I picked up because Bernita mentioned it. She references the most interesting tomes! Lots of historical tid bits that at first do not make one think of kitchens and cooking. Yet, somehow, even Roman Britain is linked to food herein.

It's useful when your reading material forces you to think outside the box.

Space pollution and your novel's landscape (repost)

2009-12-28T01:00:00-05:00

Reposted from Augsut 8, 2008

Reading science blogs again instead of writing. Found an idea on the New Scientist magazine blog. (Hint: It's free, unlike the magazine.)

The discussion entails the concept of protecting foreign biospheres from exploitation, vis the moon. The author mentions that a single moon landing added the equivalent of the moon's atmosphere in spaceship exhaust. What would a lot of activity, especially mining, do to that particular environment? And would it be a bad thing? Because we wouldn't like to look up in the sky and see a raddled strip-mined eyesore, now would we?

Brrr. Bad thing to have actually happen. Brings to mind a nice visual for a novel, though. I've read books where the moon was green (Gene Wolfe's Citadel of the Autarch) and it implied to me that the moon was terraformed and had been for milennia. A debased moon can do many things, too, such as add to the dystopian flavor of your Blade Runner-esque world.

It's little touches like this that can underscore the world you are creating, doing more work than volumes of telling.

Hormesis (repost)

2009-12-26T01:00:00-05:00

Reposted from August 13, 2008

"The theory of hormesis has been around for decades, but has long been met with scepticism or downright suspicion. In recent years, however, biologists have pieced together a clear molecular explanation of how it works, and hormesis has finally been accepted as a fundamental principle of biology and biomedicine. The question now is how to take advantage of hormesis to live longer and healthier lives." Mark Mattson & Edwin Calabrese, New Science, 6 Aug 2008

Homeopathic medicine has been sneered at by allopathic believers for a long time now. Probably since the Swiss physician and alchemist Paracelsus recognized the concept of hormesis, or "a process whereby organisms exposed to low levels of stress or toxins become more resistant to tougher challenges." (See cited article.) We also have been hearing in the news recently that a bit of germs and dirt actually innoculates the immune system, keeping it strong.

The advent of mechanical models of the universe affected philosophy and scientific thought as well. You can see how the advent of Copernicus' postulation in 1543 that the Earth orbited the Sun had a profound affect. Likewise, Kepler, Galileo, Descartes and Isaac Newtons' ideas fostered a burgeoning model of mechanistic life had effecuts upon the theories of medicine. The 'magic' was discounted in favor of 'scientific' medicine. Sometimes it wasn't very scientific and this baby and bathwater approach to deciding what was proper medicine ignored means of healing that were more effective. Common sense was often forgotten as well in the fervor for new ways that embraced the mechanistic models of science. (Note: This is my loose interpretation of these events, not a genuinely well-researched treatise.)

Anyhow, medicine in the Dark and Middle Ages was, in part, a reflection of the male-oriented allopathic physicians seeking to control healthcare over the grannies and midwives who used knowledge of plants and 'what worked' over high-falutin' ideas like cupping and starvation to heal illness. It was a product of religious and social tensions as much as it was about knowledge.

Starting with Hippocrites, who is credited as being the father of modern medicine, however in the middle ages, the collapse of the Greek and Roman empires caused a halt in the progression of medicine, and the repository of medical knowledge was maintained primarily at the monastery, which frequently had hospitals attached. (See Wikipedia article on Medieval medicine.) While astrology often got lumped in with medicine at this stage, herb craft and medicine practiced by outsiders--those who were not part of the religious heirarchy or doctors with political clout--were often labeled witches. And medical philosophy was increasingly tied in with the Christian world view.

As Wiki explains, "As Christianity grew in influence, a tension developed between the church and folk-medicine, since much in folk medicine was magical, or mystical, and had its basis in sources that were not compatible with Christian faith. Spells and incantations were used in conjunction with herbs and other remedies. Such spells had to be separated from the physical remedies, or replaced with Christian prayers or devotions. Similarly, the dependence upon the power of herbs or gems needed to be explained through Christianity.The church taught that God sometimes sent illness as a punishment, and that in these cases, repentance could lead to a recovery. This led to the practice of penance and pilgrimage as a means of curing illness."

How does this relate to your novel?
In a worldbuilding mode, you might need a conflict wherein your character is in conflict with society over what he/she knows works and what is allowed. Classic conflict for Church or State vs. Individual. Even Big Biz vs. the Little Guy. The motif is one of struggle against some amorphous juggernaut, a thing that cannot be stopped and must be either worked around or be crushed by it.

And hormesis, the idea that you can use a little of something to do good, could also be used in a magical scenario for your fantasy novel.

The important thing to take away from the discussion is, I believe, that large social institutions can influence--perhaps very wrongly--the growth and function of science. And it can be to the detriment of a society. The human Will To Be Stupid is so common...

Have a marvelous Yule!

2009-12-25T01:07:00-05:00

Merry Christmas, Happy Yule, Happy Kwanzaa, and/or Happy Chanukah!

And in case you haven't been by English Fail, you should check it out. Cuz it's funny.

(And have you heard that old one liner: Have you heard about the dyslexic Satanist who worshipped Santa?)

WORTHY OF NOTE: THIS IS MY 1300TH POST ON THIS BLOG. SEVERAL HUNDRED MORE AT THE OLD BLOGGER BLOG.

Track Santa online!

2009-12-24T14:18:45-05:00

NORAD tracks Santa online these days. Check it out here.

Opportunity Thursday

2009-12-24T14:00:00-05:00

Anthology News & Reviews posted a new submission that you all might like to know about:

Blood Bound Books. Short story contest and anthology call for submissions for Night Terrors: An Anthology of Horror. Wanted: 750-5000 words (query for longer.) Payment: 1st Place - $.05 per word, 2nd Place - $.01 per word, 3rd Place - 1/2 cent per word, runners-up - 1/2 cent per word. "Stories ...must be rooted in the realms of horror/dark fiction. Science fiction and dark fantasy will be considered as long as it has a strong element of horror. Try to avoid classic horror conventions, unless you incorporate a new twist. Remember, evil has no boundaries and neither do we! Nothing is off limits, so take advantage of the freedom. We'll accept stories in any setting or time period, as long as it's well written, powerful and original. Most importantly, scare us. We want to be haunted by your story long after we put it down. Gore and sex are acceptable, as long as it serves a purpose. If we start receiving an abundance of common themed stories, I will update this page so authors have a better idea of what we still need, but for now it's wide open." Submissions guidelines here.

On vacation

2009-12-24T11:00:00-05:00

I'm on vacation for a couple of weeks, so I'll be posting a bit sporadically. I'll try to get a bunch of reposts up to salt the new ones, giving you something new or 'gently used' six days per week, as usual. But don't expect anything of intellecual acuity out of me. I'm dog sitting, trying to write, and working on getting the basement habitable for my days off. That may not sound like much, but I'm repairing concrete and sealing it, making shelving, reorganizing and revamping a workbench for my artwork. I'd like to get some actual painting in...I haven't slapped paint on a canvas since 1998, and I'm craving it. Digital art just isn't the same. However, I have a cool new digital program to play with, so I might be doing more with the digital art. I'm so out of practice that my drawing skills have to have the rust chipped off them!

I hope Santa brings you lots of joy and cheer in your stockings, and loot if you want it. And books. Lots and lots of books. (If you read this blog, you had better want books or I'll have to hunt you down and slap you with one.)

Seriously, enjoy the season. The best thing about it is that people get together--families, friends, coworkers--and people do nice things for no real reason much more frequently. If we'd only remember to do random acts of kindness more often other times of the year... Wouldn't that be nice?

It's Christmas Eve, so I thought you might need to de-stress a little

2009-12-24T01:00:00-05:00

So go here and have a laugh at Santa's expense. And have a Merry Christmas.

Last minute Christmas shopping?

2009-12-23T09:45:01-05:00

Have I got the deal for you! Check this out: A Spa-to-go, an inflatable spa! Just what your loved ones always wanted, right?

And they'll forgive you for being late with it, as it's so incredibly nifty. Sure. Right.

Basic human needs in your writing (repost)

2009-12-23T08:12:16-05:00

Reposted from March 30, 2009

1001 Things to do Before You Die has an amusing sf-related rant about the lack of fire departments in futuristic movies. He has a point: I don't offhand recall any movies set in the future with a fire department, in action or otherwise, shown on screen.

Which reminded me of something I've long thought: Sometimes failure to mention certain obvious human needs or institutions can draw attention to the lack and work against the author.

For example, how many times have you read a book and thought, don't they ever go to the bathroom? In instances where the facilities are an issue, such as being tied to a bed for three days with no indication the poor victim has soiled him or herself or of their having been taken out and allowed the use of the facilities, it can look pretty lame. Or when a character must sit for an entire day and yet is allowed no breaks, such as in a courtroom. As an example of a piece that distracted me, I just read a book I really liked where the heroine had to sit during a festival for about 12 hours with no mention of a potty break. Yes, she was a high lady of her people, but she still had to pee sometime! The mere mention of a couple of breaks when the author mentioned giving the woman water and food would have kept me from being distracted; no need to mention she actually used a bathroom, just the opportunity. As it was, I kept thinking, She's up there how long? When does she go to the bathroom? Which spoiled this momentous scene for me somewhat.

In such cases, the story clearly requires at least an allusion to the base needs of life, or of basic human institutions like a fire department. (Well, no fire department for someone tied to a bed...unless it really was that messy. But you know what I mean.)

And sometimes shit needs to be mentioned because it's expected or the scene won't feel right. If you drop a character down the oubliette, a mention of fecal matter is pretty needful, it being part of the (for lack of a better word) ambiance. If, however, your character is going through daily regular life, it's not always necessary. An occasional mention of using the bathroom instead of a wholesale avoidance might be good as a reality builder or it might be TMI (too much information); but the lack, if it doesn't call attention to itself, is okay.

And don't get me started on epic fantasy quests where the characters don't have any money, pack animals or wilderness experience. Puhleeze. You need lots of water, grain for your horses, more food than you think--and you have to give the animals a break once in a while. I'm no expert on horses and endurance trail riding, but I do know you can't keep a horse going forever without dealing with foot problems, like worn or split hooves, especially when they are not shod, exhaustion due to not enough time to feed themselves (grain will only go so far) and adequate rest and time without carrying extra weight. There was a reason knights never rode their war horses except during battle: so they were fresh.

And then there's the walking forever in the same set of shoes and no foot rot. If they get wet feet, trench foot can occur. Boots that are soaked will wear out faster. Wet leather pants (or bustiers) will CHAFE. (Personally, Epic Fantasy Girl finds her chainmail bikini quite comfortable even after riding Dawnstorm, my mare, for 900 miles straight over the Plains of Kathuselum with neither saddle nor bridle nor pad, neither kit nor bedroll nor coat... but then I'm Super Epic Fantasy Chick and YOU'RE--excuse me, got carried away there--WE are not.)

There are a lot of areas in stories where basic facts are glossed over, and I think most of the time this is wise compression on the part of the author. Occasionally, however, a judicious nod to the facts of life like pack horses and their vulnerabilities, human waste disposal, weevily bread and trench foot need to be considered.

What about the spear carriers? (repost)

2009-12-22T01:00:00-05:00

Thought I'd share this once more (From Oct 10, 2007):

It's always a temptation when writing, I find, to treat the smaller roles like I do new neighbors: First impression is all there is to them. You see them, form a sense of who they are and just carry on as usual. It might not be until you really get to know them that you discover the apparent hippie is actually a NASA researcher and his wife is a PhD in Social Anthropology who does freelance consulting for the UN.

At that point you have to take a mental step back and take another mental snapshot of them.

The failing here is one that is one of adaptation which humans found useful: The application of quickly formed labels for things and individuals. This aided survival to form an instant impression of Good, Bad, Scary, Nice, etc. Simplistic, but depth wasn't needful to survival. A still shot of something that isn't questioned again without strong provocation.

Unfortunately, this trait lingers on in our behavior to the present day, allowing us to meet someone and form an impression that we just don't bother to change...resulting in a rather shocked realization when we discover the 'hippy' is a rocket scientist or similar.

And how does this specifically apply to writing?
I submit to you, fellow writers, that you probably do this glossing over with many of your bit players in your stories. It's only human nature, after all. We do it in real life. And it is hurting your novels because with small bit players, the spear carriers, you can add so much realism and veracity, empowering your worldbuilding and increasing the impact of your ideas-- if you reframe your image of that flat, pale little character on page 93.

Consider this: People are like the patchwork quilt. They are composed of bits taken from here and there, the places they've been, the people they've known, the emotional experiences they've had. And then they sew these together. Each is unique and beautiful in its own way, and you, the author, can use this knowledge to portray every character as individual.

It's easy to forget that people don't come to us in our stories frozen in time. Especially when we are talking about minor characters. If they do not react and change in direct experience during your stories, you have failed them and your story. So they are a spear carrier in this story; but if you treat them like they are real people, they will add breadth and life to your writing. Give the spear carriers a bone and let them be real enough to change some in your works.

But play Pygmalion and breathe the breath of life into them. See how fascinating the story becomes.