Playing God Part I: The Why of Worldbuilding — Fiction Basics
In recent years, there’s been a lot of debate out there about whether or not worldbuilding is important and how you should go about it. You’ll find opinions vary widely from person to person. Me, I’m of the opinion that worldbuilding is incredibly important for writers in the fantasy and science-fiction genres. Read on to find out why.
Playing God Part II: What’s in a Name? — Fiction Basics
“What’s in a name?” When Shakespeare penned that infamous question so many centuries ago, he was speaking of the idea that the essence of an object or person remains the same regardless of what it’s called. Indeed, the rose of which Juliet spoke during her not-so-secret thoughts on the nature of Romeo has many names — a different one in each human language, for starters. So what does this mean for us as writers or in terms of world building in general? Read more.
Playing God Part III: Earth or No? — Fiction Basics
To earth or not to earth — that is the question. And every fiction writer, in some shape or form, has had to answer it. I don’t care if you’re writing about a serial killer in the suburbs of Chicago or a clumsy alien zookeeper on planet Froofus, your story’s locale crossed your mind, if only briefly. And this throws us smack into the arena of world building. Read more.
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Load More...The agent. The contract. The feeling of holding your book for the first time. The readers. The reviews. The signings. The award nominations. Whatever you dream about is possible, and it all starts with you getting the story out of your head and onto the page. Go write.
Wishing everyone doing #PitMad the best of luck!
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11 hours ago
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1 week ago
Interesting read. Also great for thinking about building religions in a fantasy setting!New interpretation of Norse religion.
"Recent research on pre-Christian Nordic religion demonstrates that there was much greater variation in Norse religion than previously thought. This is one of the conclusions of a new comprehensive interdisciplinary compilation of the research landscape.
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“The work presents a new interpretation of Scandinavian religion. Instead of seeing it as a uniform and relatively immutable mythological system over time, it is perceived as a ritual practice, which varies with time, space and social environments.
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As a result, cultural meetings with surrounding areas become at least as important as elements that can be followed over a long period of time,” says Anders Andrén, Professor of Archaeology at Stockholm University and one of the book's three editors-in-chief.
Practice of tradition
Norse religion was primarily a traditional practice, rather than a coherent mythological system, an understanding that is emphasised throughout the new publication.
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“Religion changed over time and varied between different regions and social environments. This thesis is in stark contrast to older overviews which emphasised the uniform and long-term immutable myth-based religion,” says Anders Andrén.
Unlike older overviews, the results of archaeology are now fully integrated into the production for the first time. This includes mainly ritual sites and ritual buildings, which have been examined in recent decades.
The written sources on Scandinavian religion have been known for a long time, and can only provide new knowledge through new interpretations of these sources. However, archaeology contributes completely new sources through further excavations, according to Anders Andrén.
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“Archaeological interest in religion has increased sharply since the 1990s, which has led to several new results through both exploitation excavations and research excavations.”
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Read the full piece here, reviewing an important new work in the study of pre-Christian Northern European beliefs and practices:
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www.su.se/english/news/new-interpretation-of-norse-religion-1.543297
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"The Pre-Christian Religions of the North. History and Structures" editors are Jens Peter Schjødt, John Lindow and Anders Andrén. The book was published late 2020 by the Belgian publisher Brepols. It comprises four volumes totalling just over 2,000 pages.
Volume I: Basic Premises and Consideration of Sources.
Volume II: Social, Geographical, and Historical Contexts, and Communication between Worlds
Volume III: Conceptual Frameworks: The Cosmos and Collective Supernational Beings
Volume IV: The Christianization Process, Bibliography, and Index
The manual is part of a larger publication. The first two volumes were published two years ago, and deal with research history and reception history:
Margaret Clunies Ross (ed). 2018. The Pre-Christian Religions of the North. Research and Reception. Turnout: Brepols.
Volume I: From the Middle Ages to c. 1830
Volume II: From c. 1830 to the present
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#TheHeathenUndergroundAgainstHate
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#heathen #asatru #pagan #archaeology #anthropology
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[Image: reconstruction of the temple at Uppåkra]
2 weeks ago
Looks like a new book I need to add to my reading list! ... See MoreSee Less