Each Tuesday, rather than a POSSIBLY IRRITATING
ESSAY, I'd like to both challenge you and lend a helping hand. I generate more
speculative and teen story ideas than I can ever use. My family rolls its collective
eyes when I say, "Hang on a second! I just have to write down this idea..."
Here, I'll include the initial inspiration (quote, website, podcast, etc.) and
then a thought or two that came to mind. These will simply be seeds -- plant,
nurture, fertilize, chemically treat, irradiate, test or stress them as you see
fit. I only ask if you let me know if anything comes of them. Regarding Fantasy, this insight was startling:
“I see the fantasy genre as an ever-shifting metaphor for life in this world,
an innocuous medium that allows the author to examine difficult, even
controversial, subjects with impunity. Honor, religion, politics, nobility,
integrity, greed—we’ve an endless list of ideals to be dissected and explored. And
maybe learned from.” – Melissa McPhail.
Fantasy Trope:
Historical Fantasy (http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/HistoricalFantasy)
Current Event: http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/bay-city/index.ssf/2015/12/the_spirit_of_christmas_was_al.html
Filip Dybdahl
sighed then said, “All of the magic has gone out of the world.” He was working
a potion to lay down gold circuitry on an enchanted matrix for a board to be
packed off into space. The telescope the University was working on for the
United Nations would help astrologers make more accurate horoscopes for each of
the signatory countries. Non-signatories would just have to take their chances
with fate.
Shrugging, Maja
Wiig said, “Our ancestors didn’t help keep the saints alive, you know. They
could have been Catholic, but chose to be Protestants instead. Killing off all
the saints, as it were.”
Filip grunted. “If
there was one bit of magic I could call back,” he began.
“Don’t!” Maja
exclaimed.
“What’s wrong?”
“Don’t you know
anything about the intersection of the real and the fantastic?”
He straightened
up, thumbs going into the small of his back, shaking his head. “I had the same
fundamental courses you did before I sat for my Masters in Alchemy. What are
you talking about?”
“You remember when
you took that elective class in Classical Egyptian Incantations?”
“Duh. Professor
McGuillicudy said if I wanted to get my bachelor’s I had to take her class.”
“Yeah? Well I took
a physics class instead.”
His eyes widened.
“You took Planar Mathematic Spells for Physicists?”
She shrugged
again. “Calculus was always fun for me. Conjuring gravity anomalies was a great
way to meet boys with brains.”
“So you learned
about this what, ‘intersection of the real and the fantastic’? What’s that
supposed to mean?”
She scowled at him
and said, “You sound pretty hostile. I don’t know if I want to tell you about
it. Especially if you’re standing there ready to bite my head off. Whatever
happened to your Scandinavian coolness?”
“It heated up when
we got here. The Massachusetts Institute of Thaumaturgy isn’t exactly a place
where I can lay back on my frozen butt and bask in the glories of my previous
accomplishments! I’ve had to fight against these Gud forbannet Amerikanere for everything I’ve gotten.” He swung a
flat-handed chop at her. “You have, too!”
She surrendered with
both hands up and a laugh, “You’re the one who wanted to bring back the magic
of Christmas!”
He opened his
mouth to continue his attack, then closed it. He closed his eyes, then put dug
one thumb into each temple, adding, “I’m tired. Not myself.” He looked up at
her and for a moment, his gaze was bleak. “And I miss home. It’s Christmas…”
Names: ♀
Norway; ♂ Norway
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