Writers' Corner

[En1gma]

Cliche I know, but I'm always looking for inspiration and thought that this would be a good place to give/receive ideas. Not sure how many people would be interested in posting, but here goes nothing.

I figure we could pose hypothetical questions, devise challenges, host collective brainstorm sessions and the like, just to keep the minds sharp and thinking about different aspects of writing in general.

No need to be a serious writer here, this is meant to be more of a general ideas forum and discussion thread.

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For anyone looking for an amazing resource for world building, please please check out this page! So many great ideas and points here

www.seventhsanctum.com/www/wwwfull.html

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To get the ball rolling, here's a challenge:

We all know the normal and most common veins of magics-- Earth, Fire, Water, Air, Holy, Death. Nothing wrong with these, but let's come up with more. Come up with a new, rarely talked about, or uncommon vein of magic, describe it and what it does, how it fits into the realms of magic-- who does it ally with, who opposes it? What traits do users of the magic tend to exhibit?

Are there any types of magic still to create?

Wanting to get into writing fantasy, but not wanting to be too cliche, this is a hard question to answer for me.
--Chronomancy: Power and dominion over time itself. This would be the one type of magic aside form Death magic that would be at odds with just about everybody, I think. To be able to warp time would be the ultimate power, and I can't see them having any allies whatsoever, as their power would trump just about anything anybody else could conjure against them.

As for my question of new magics to be created, I think they have mostly been done. I think that there will be new ones to discover by looking at the more mundane aspects of life itself and seeing what can be done to replace certain aspects.

[ntsheep]

I think that finding new ways to use the forms of magic is one way to go. Perhaps the magic used by someone is the opposite of they personality. I've had a story idea for over ten years about how the grim reaper comes to Earth because too many people have been dying. It's due to a new drug being sold on the streets and he goes to war against the dealers and saves several people giving them a new life instead of taking one.

It's a neat question you ask and I'll need to think some more, but that's just what comes to mind at the moment.

[En1gma]

While we're thinking about that one, I'll pose another challenge--

We have Vampires, Lycanthropes (Werewolves), Zombies, etc. Classics, every single one of them. Create a new iconic enemy, tell how they came into being, what you think they would look like, what they do and their motivation to do what they do.

I'll give it some thought, but I'm eager to see what people come up with.

(Not that it needs to be said, but I'm not looking to hawk other peoples' ideas here... I'm just trying to get people thinking creatively)

[En1gma]

For peoples' own reference, I'd like to link a couple of websites that are invaluable when coming up with weird or fresh ideas, new names, plot lines, and anything else you could think of in terms of creative writing.

www.seventhsanctum.com
--This one in particular is especially valuable to me, and has been the source of more than one name for The Dark of Day, as well as a few other projects I have in mind.
--Also on this website are concept generators that can randomize plot lines, weapons, alien races, back stories, and a plethora of other highly useful tools you may find helpful.

fantasynamegenerators.com
--This one has a dazzling array of name generators, all categorized and ready to use. The person who maintains this website has done an amazing job and is one of the very few sites to convince me to white-list on my ad-blocker. Should you find it as useful as I, please consider doing the same.
--You will also find many different guides on this site, to help you learn how to write whatever it is you want.
--If you're more technologically advanced than I, there are also city/town generators,  Army formation generators, and so many more.

If I find any more, I'll list them here.

[ntsheep]

A story setting for a D20 Modern game I ran once had the background of what do the monsters fear. So I created the monster of monsters. A cat like race of gods called Felineans. Something even the monsters though was just a myth.

[En1gma]

I want a monster that plays on the contrast between light and dark.

I almost see shadow creatures, long claws at the end of long fingers and arms. Devoid of features save eyes even darker than their own bodies-- makes running across them even scarier... picture staring into a corner that you swore something just moved within. You continue to peer into the darkness, letting your eyes adjust, hair on the back of your neck on end. Then you have the sensation of locking eyes with something, and you realize that there are two spots darker than the rest of the recess. Then they blink.

[tenbsmith]

I always thought that Le Guin's Earth Sea Trilogy had a great, novel take on magic. It might be worth looking into that.

How about a magic system that focuses on influencing people's knowledge, attitudes and behaviors. There would be two different types of mages.
1) Truth Seers can see the truth of any situation and make other people see the truth in any give situation. They can work within a political system to create unity and a shared purpose, leading people to accomplish incredible feats as a group. A group of people who all truly believe the same thing can be very powerful. They can also uncover liars and cheats. They can criple some people emotionally by uncovering truths the person isn't prepared to face.
2) Illusionists can fool people. Make people believe anything. Including manipulating populations with false beliefs.
This could lead to some very rich story telling. Generally speaking, the Truth Seers would be able to institute long-lasting changes in the people they were influencing but it would take them a while to change peoples behaviors. In contrast, the illusionists could change peoples' behavior quickly, but it wouldn't be as lasting a change, as over time people would come to see the falsehood in the illusions.

If En1gma is interested in using this, he can go ahead, I'd just want an acknowledgement and, if it worked out, the opportunity to contribute to whatever was created, but never in a way that slowed down the creation.

[En1gma]

That's awesome, tenbsmith!  (I'll say again, the purpose of this thread wasn't to crowd source ideas for stories, though this is a pretty sweet idea )

[stratego]

The completely forgotten magic of life, it gives life, not everybody can learn it and not everybody respects it, but it is the most powerful one

[En1gma]

I wonder if this is an aspect of Holy magic?

Unless you go with bringing the dead back to life, which is a new ballgame altogether. Nobody likes a Necromancer.

[En1gma]

How about the Chaos Theorist? Someone who is able to see every consequence of any particular decision. Granted this would be a maddening condition, so perhaps they lock themselves away in solitude, refusing to speak to anyone.

It would take a fortune to get him to speak, even more to ask his advice, and once spurned into action could turn the tide of war, prevent a disaster, save the entire world. Or if wronged, bring it to its knees.

[ntsheep]

Really like the Chaos one. I have had similar characters in RPG's before. It's a great concept.

[wascalwywabbit]

Aug 21, 2016 20:01:38 GMT -5 En1gma said:

I wonder if this is an aspect of Holy magic?

Unless you go with bringing the dead back to life, which is a new ballgame altogether. Nobody likes a Necromancer.

Holy magic? Sure... "I come to bring life and bring it more abundantly." is something Jesus was supposed to have said, and many consider him holy, seems apt.

Actually bringing the dead back to life is celebrated as a miracle, Lazarus and the 12yo girl (At least everyone supposedly thought she was dead, except Jesus who said she was sleeping) from the NT and the Boy that Elijah saved, plus many similar miracles claimed from the eastern religions too (not sure on other tribal religions tho)... Though most sources I've seen imply "life" in those cases being [predominantly] spiritual and not bodily life per se.


What is despised is the dead being reanimated and then controlled by malevolent forces... That's regarded as the magic of death, or undead I think, not life. Even that is only bad because of the malevolence and the loss of will of the departed, maybe? In the SciFi scene rather than fantasy, it's generally bad due to blow back, the law of unintended consequences, see Frankenstein for example. Of course the scifi and fantasy can easily become another story trope combined, I'm sure it's been done before, mixing Frankenstienium and Necromancy elements, maybe with some traditional religious traditions thrown in for good measure.

[wascalwywabbit]

Aug 21, 2016 20:30:56 GMT -5 ntsheep said:

Really like the Chaos one. I have had similar characters in RPG's before. It's a great concept.

I'm thinking one that has isolated him/herself to avoid the panic and frustration of being aware of the recursive inescapable time travel cycles, like Groundhog Day with no ending, or Sisyphus... He/she becomes involved in an oppressive regime controlling the world thru their knowledge. Their seeing the relative oppression as a victory over the chance that humanity would be plunged into one of those inescapable time loops, which would be a even greater evil in their eyes. Perhaps they are saved from their madness by others helping to remind them of the other possible futures which are more hopeful, perhaps not...

[wascalwywabbit]

Aug 21, 2016 12:20:50 GMT -5 tenbsmith said:

I always thought that Le Guin's Earth Sea Trilogy had a great, novel take on magic. It might be worth looking into that.

How about a magic system that focuses on influencing people's knowledge, attitudes and behaviors. There would be two different types of mages.
1) Truth Seers can see the truth of any situation and make other people see the truth in any give situation. They can work within a political system to create unity and a shared purpose, leading people to accomplish incredible feats as a group. A group of people who all truly believe the same thing can be very powerful. They can also uncover liars and cheats. They can criple some people emotionally by uncovering truths the person isn't prepared to face.
2) Illusionists can fool people. Make people believe anything. Including manipulating populations with false beliefs.
This could lead to some very rich story telling. Generally speaking, the Truth Seers would be able to institute long-lasting changes in the people they were influencing but it would take them a while to change peoples behaviors. In contrast, the illusionists could change peoples' behavior quickly, but it wouldn't be as lasting a change, as over time people would come to see the falsehood in the illusions.

If En1gma is interested in using this, he can go ahead, I'd just want an acknowledgement and, if it worked out, the opportunity to contribute to whatever was created, but never in a way that slowed down the creation.

I think the truth Seers greatest battle would be against self lies and delusions of pride and ignorance of the general populace as much as those of the Illusionists who manipulate them. Perhaps both manipulations can only bend the minds of others so far before their small mindedness or confusion causes backlashes?