I get to be on a panel entitled “Creating Creature Worlds” as part of the Clallam County ComicCon, one of the amazing summer programs presented by North Olympic Library System. If you live close by, put it on your calendar: Friday, June 24th 3—4pm at the Port Angeles Main Library. Related ComicCon things happen all day, including a chance to win prizes dressed as your favorite Super Hero.
Creating Creature Worlds Panel also features young adult fantasy authors Lish McBride and Lisa Mantchev.
I’m super excited to meet Lish and Lisa, and to hear what they contribute to the conversation.
The things I especially like about writing a world of fantastical creatures are:
- Playing in the ancient traditions of folklore—I’ve read fantasy my whole life. That’s 50+ years of reading about fairies, gnomes, trolls, unicorns, dragons, elves, etc. The works I’ve read are based on things those authors have read or heard or experienced, which are based on what someone else read, heard, or experienced, back and back and back. These ancient traditions come, therefore, with some pre-definition. When I say “goblin,” you already have an idea of what that is. This means I don’t have to work from scratch. I’m standing on the shoulders of giants like Tolkein.
- Making magic real—For reasons I have yet to understand, our culture chooses to call magic “fantasy” rather than allowing it to be woven into our daily world. Because of this, writing fantasy becomes, for me, the place where magic is real, as it should be in real life, in my humble opinion. I love having the permission as an author, to make magic real for others.
- Making my own rules—There’s no doubt I’m working from well-established ancient traditions in writing about fantastical creatures—but I also get to make my own rules. Rules are fundamentals to world building. Rules of the world, rules of the creatures and people who live there, cultural rules, and so on and so forth. Once a rule is established, it can be broken in service to the story, but not randomly.
Without rules, a reader quickly loses interest. It’s through its “rules” that we understand fantasy worlds, fantasy characters. The rules allow the “suspension of disbelief” that we ask any reader of fantasy to enter into. For instance, in Fairyland’s Crystal City, I chose to put in place a law forbidding fairies to fly. (You get a taste of that in book one through King Oberon and Queen Titania’s conversation, you’ll get more in book two.)
On the other hand, The Curse of the Neverland is set in a world originally established by another: author and playwright J.M. Barrie. So I had to learn the rules of that world, and when I decided to break one, I had to build in believable reasons and motivations to justify it. For example, I wanted a new Pan in the Neverland, so I had to have a believable reason why Peter Pan has left.
Now you have a preview of what discussions about creating creature worlds might include. But that’s just me. Lish McBride (Hold Me Closer, Necromancer) and Lisa Mantchev (Theatre Illuminata series: Book One: Eyes Like Stars) have written their own magical worlds. You’ll for sure want to come hear what they have to say! Plus it’s just cool to hang out with writers, isn’t it?