religion in fantasy novels | helluo librorum
Since no one burned my house down after the Tolkien post, I’m going out on a limb here and talk to you about using religion in your fantasy novels. Generally speaking, when building worlds in fantasy novels, the religions of your world will be a reflection of the religions here on good old planet earth. So I’m going to offer a few suggestions – take them or leave them: Know thy religion. Understand the core beliefs. Avoid stereotypes. Religions don’t kill. Treat all religions with respect. Don’t be malicious. World building is a difficult process; as a fantasy writer you are creating a whole social order, and you want it to be believable. A few articles to see: If you’re looking for a checklist of questions to ask when world building, go to the SFWA blog where Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions by Patricia C. Joe Wetzel at Inkwell Ideas has a great article with Worldbuilding: Fantasy Religion Design Guide, and a subsequent post, Worldbuilding: Fantasy Religion Design Example. Like this:
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Berley’s Top 10 World Building Tips for Sci Fi or Fantasy | Curse Breaker Series
Like I have mentioned in past blog posts, it took me ten years of writing and collecting rejection letters to get to level I am today. And even so I’m still working and still climbing. Always working and always writing to improve my craft. The bad part about going through those ten years is obvious, even the annoyingly cliche parts. 1. Believe it or not few people put very little thought into the size of their book’s personal universe. The size of your world is not only very important, it’s more important than you think. 2. Save the groans for when you have to pay for you’re kids’ college education. 3. Culture may not be the thing fantasy and sci-fi ignore but it tends to get overlooked quite a bit. 4. For those of you who’ve watched the God-awful 2006 Superman Returns probably remember this quote from Kevin Spacey’s Lex Luthor: “You see whoever controls technology controls the world. Technology is what makes a dominant country/empire dominate. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Like this:
Hebrew Goddess; Asherah, the Shekinah, consort of Yahweh
The Hebrew Goddess Painting by Jonathon Earl Bowser Asherah, known as the "Lady of the Sea" Asherah, the Shekinah, consort and beloved of Yahweh. God-the-Mother. n hill-tops, such as Zion, Mount of Olives, Har Megiddo and countless others. Here is an excerpt from one of our Mystery School lessons: Exercise 5: (Extra Credit) If you're really brave, not worried about being called a "heretic Jezebel," try making some Asherah cakes. *A word about snakes: The Serpent, though a frightening symbol because of its ability to bring death, stood also for ancient wisdom and immortality. ideas. Asherah from the Religion of the Canaanites She was the wife of El in Ugaritic mythology, and is the goddess who is also called Athirau-Yammi: "She Who Walks on (or in) the Sea." Asherah, like Anat, is a well-documented goddess of the northwest Semitic pantheon. If you are researching Her, searching for Her in the Bible, in the Torah, in Kabbala, there is one book you gotta read...
Psychology Today: The Creative Personality
Of all human activities, creativity comes closest to providing the fulfillment we all hope to get in our lives. Call it full-blast living. Creativity is a central source of meaning in our lives. Most of the things that are interesting, important, and human are the result of creativity. What makes us different from apes—our language, values, artistic expression, scientific understanding , and technology—is the result of individual ingenuity that was recognized, rewarded, and transmitted through learning. When we're creative, we feel we are living more fully than during the rest of life. I have devoted 30 years of research to how creative people live and work, to make more understandable the mysterious process by which they come up with new ideas and new things. Here are the 10 antithetical traits often present in creative people that are integrated with each other in a dialectical tension. Creative people have a great deal of physical energy, but they're also often quiet and at rest.
Daily Hávamál | Huginn's Heathen Hof | Page 16
Original-Ósnjallr maðrhyggsk munu ey lifaef hann við víg varasken elli gefrhonum engi friðþótt honum geirar gefi Translation-The cowardly manthinks he will live foreverif he just avoids conflictbut old age gives him no peacethough spears have spared him-Hávamál: Stanza 16 Much like the preceding stanza (15), this verse gives us a glimpse into ancient Germanic philosophy. In fifteen, Odin told us that we should be both cheerful and generous until death finds us. Original-Kópir afglapier til kynnis kømrþylsk hann umbeða þrumiralt er sennef hann sylg um getruppi er þá geð guma Translation-The foolish man stareshovering about the edges of the feastHe mumbles to himself,or just sits silently.But once he has a few drinks,everybody will know what a fool he is. Today’s stanza needs little explanation. Original-Þagalt ok hugaltskyli þjóðans barnok vígdjarft veraglaðr ok reifrskyli gumna hverrunz sínn bíðr bana This stanza shifts us from “advice about life”, to “advice about how to live”.
How To Write A Novel Step by Step
The toughest part of learning how to write a novel is knowing where to start and how to keep on going to the end. This section of Novel Writing Help is all about demystifying the writing process. Figuring out how to write a novel can be confusing, probably because there are so many steps to take... You've got to create all the fictional characters and write a watertight plot. You've got to write the subplots and weave them seamlessly into the main plot. ... and that's all before you can even start to write the novel! Where do I even begin?!? The answer is that you begin by studying a good map and familiarizing yourself with the route. Actually, it is two maps in one... First, it gives you an overview of every step you need to take to get from where you are today to having a published novel to your name. Second, it is a kind of user's guide to Novel Writing Help, in that it summarizes where everything is and what all the sections are about. 16 Steps to Write a Novel (and Get It Published) 01.
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10 Writing Rules You Can't Break...And How to Break Them
A guest post by Eric Cummings of On Violence First, there was the “old school.” A bunch of stubborn grammarians got together and decided what defined “proper English.” Don’t end sentences with prepositions, never begin a sentence with “and” or “but,” and never split infinitives. Then came the “new school” in the sixties. Well, as part of the millennial generation, I’ve got some criticisms for the “new school”, “the old school” and other pieces of advice that I think hold writers back. 1. This advice is considered gospel for a reason: nothing is worse than confused, labyrinthine prose. At the same time, clear writing is different than simple writing. Also, feel free to write long sentences and paragraphs. 2. I see this advice all the time: write with confidence. This advice is intended to prevent writers from using wishy-washy verbs, adjectives or qualifiers. 3. This has become the new school mantra. That said, let big words come naturally. 4. So one, learn what the passive voice is. 5.
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