Here’s a Q and A where basically I Ask and Answer the questions! If you’ve got any, leave them in the comments and I’ll answer.
Q: What’s going on with the whole no free will thing?
A: well… when I dreamed up this novel, I kind of started in the middle of the action. I knew the climax, the powers at play, the way the deities will [redacted]. I struggled on how to begin, and perhaps started a bit too far before the action occurring in the synopsis. Just rest assured this tidbit will become more relevant once the Divine Puppets are on full display. You’ll know it when you see it.
Q: Why do you keep switching POV?
A: Some of the greatest challenges for me was choosing who to make the main character, how to portray their thoughts, etc. I have a whole tangled web of interconnected actions and characters in my head that I need to spin into one solid yarn. I initially was going to tailor the character spotlights according to reader feedback (see: poll) but then I decided to just do whatever I wanted. I am intending on rewriting this novel (perhaps for publication as a cheap e-novel?) after completing it on here, at which point I will work out the plot holes and pacing issues.
Q: Why are your characters the genders they are?
A: Now that’s a hard one. It’s not exactly personal lived experience.
Silnarion, in my mind, was always always beyond gender as a concept, a daydream, a hope, and a nightmare. They are the embodiment of emotional, obsessive, horrible, and beautiful portions of the self that I believe all humans share. They also embody the “Outsider” trope to a T.
Afia is cis female like myself, but comes from an entirely different culture and ethnicity. I enjoy researching and reading different cultural folktales and traditions. I chose her background inspiration to be one I believe often forgotten or overlooked, that of the Akan people. I am trying to treat the traditions and culture with the utmost respect, taking inspiration from but not bastardizing the original works. Should there ever be any issues on this front PLEASE alert me to them so that they may be rectified.
Vaza is trans male but I relate to him on certain topics, such as feelings of body dysmorphia. This character will be tied into some heavy plot points, such as internalized misogyny, societal failings, and the struggle to solidify one’s place in the world. While I have not experienced this journey, I am researching regarding the experience and hope to honor the struggle of real life people with well thought out representation. Once again, if I ever show a less than perfect interpretation, PLEASE alert me.
Q: What was the inspiration for this novel?
A: The intersection of my scientific, religious, and folklore background. I work in science, was raised in and still practice a Faith, and have always loved fairytales, folklore stories, and anything fantasy I could get my hands on. The deities and Imanjar and all that comes from my observations of people’s interactions with Faith, the need for it, the twisting of it, the losing it and finding it in new forms. This story is not meant to push a certain Faith, but rather recognize people’s utilization of it as a tool. It’s an examination of myself and of how I see world, and how my faults and my strengths were formed. I also wish to include a theme of tolerance, where all Faiths are acknowledged and respected.
Q: What are your final plans for this novel?
A: Once I complete this scribble version, I plan to treat it as a draft for a rewrite. I am hoping to completely overhaul the novel. If it could eventually move to publication, great! If not, no big deal. If I ever do publish a new version, this version will still be available. I am not planning on deleting anything. Rather than a published novel though, I have always dreamed of creating a webtoon. I created the cover art myself, and have been practicing my art skills. I just can’t seem to get human anatomy right!
Q: Why is the schedule so inconsistent?
A: Let me preface this with saying that these are explanations, not excuses. I am, unfortunately, a pantser. If I chose write and rewrite and edit before posting, I would never have been able to work up the courage to post my work here. Also, my work schedule is hectic, my body is tired, and I’m considering getting a part-time job to supplement the income of my full-time job. I’m attempting to get into a pretty competitive career, which I will eventually have to go back to school for (graduate/professional degree). So lots of irl stuff basically.
Let me know your thoughts!
How would Silnarion, well acquainted with the soul as they are, react to completely losing everything fleshy about them - from brain to toe - and obtain the perfect body for themselves? Their soul remains the same, while their mind depends on the story's mechanics of mind and body. I proffer the Ship of Theseus problem for you, my dear MintiLime.
In developing in the story, narratively revealed as so much base filth with the sexual obsession with Vaza, Magpie lost much of the gravitas and charisma of their start in the story. Do you have any ideas for balancing the most weighty expression of the revolting aspects of their nature with regaining the twisted draw of their villainy?
I am assuming this is a sudden miraculous transition for Silnarion.
At this point in the story, Silnarion would be overjoyed. Some small part of them would die, yes, but would they feel the loss of a spice of pain as a negative? Actually, yes. Over the course of the millennia, Silnarion would miss the noise and busy of life. These feelings would be repressed in favor of exalting their Master. The emptiness already embedded within them would still echo throughout the soul.
Silnarion is a different creature than their Master at their core, and loss of a body would not perfectly mesh their existence with that of the higher realm. The longing to be with the Deity of Loneliness would still remain, now with the unwelcome knowledge that it was not only form that divided the two.
Magpie, magpie, magpie… in the rewrite I’ll attempt to handle the reveal with more finesse than I have this time around (and probably keep it hidden a bit longer). I think one of the most terrifying aspects of humans is that one can be horrible and charming. It pains me to make Magpie evil because he’s so fun when he’s not… acting like the worst type of human scum. So far, he’s mimicked and played like life is a theatre play, but then also displayed an absolutely horrendous worldview that reeks of the worst kind of violence. I like to think of him as the worst type of priest possible.
So far, I am planning on meshing the two sides of Magpie. More hints of disgusting rotten pieces of himself will be apparent in his speeches to others. His interactions with other characters, like and. mercenary, should help flesh it out. I do not want them to suddenly be outsmarted and outmaneuvered by Silnarion, since Magpie has been building up his plots for much longer.
I’ve been so wishy-washy on whether Magpie could redeem himself and become better… I need to steel myself for what’s to come.
I need to study a bit as well for this- reading Titus Adronicus now. I think I perhaps ought not to have attempted such a character in my first story, but whelp here we are.