Monday, June 3, 2013

Book Chat: Building a Fantasy World with Rachel Morgan, author of The Faerie Prince

 
 
Building a Fantasy World

I write fantasy, and the great thing about writing fantasy is that I get to make up so much stuff! My characters are faeries who are essentially as "human" as you and I are when it comes to their personalities, faults, dreams, fears etc. But the world they live in is vastly different from ours, and I had a lot of fun creating the fantastically magical realm of Creepy Hollow.


I'm sure we all have a picture in our heads of what faeries and a magic forest should look like based on traditional fairy tales. But I wanted to put a modern twist on that picture. Why shouldn't faeries' magical "technologies" have advanced along with advancements in human technology? Why shouldn't they have their own versions of social media, for example? Faeries interact with the human realm, but should all their words be the same as ours? Where do they go shopping? What are their magical equivalents for the things we humans use every day?

Here are some examples:

Computer/tablet – Faeries use mirrors for a lot of communication. They can use social media spells on them, or they can see and speak to each other in them. To quote Nate from The Faerie Guardian, a mirror is ... "Like the faerie version of Skype?"(And Vi had no idea what he was talking about, but she nodded anyway.)
Cell phone – Instead of a cell phone, faeries carry a rectangular piece of amber around with them. They use a magical stylus to write on the amber and send messages to one another. Just like with cell phones, you get different kinds of amber, with different levels of spells worked into them (Ryn rudely refers to Vi's old amber as having spells from the Stone Age on it.)
Bath and shower – Faeries refer to the bathing room where instead of a bathtub they have a self-cleaning pool to take a dip in. These pools often come with mini waterfalls to be used as showers. The bathing room is usually filled with grass, flowers and plants to give the feeling of being outside in nature.
Electric lights – Rooms usually have a shining glow-bug stuck to the ceiling to provide light. Unlike a light bulb, a glow-bug has a mind of its own and can sometimes choose to squirm away when you're not around, leaving the room in darkness.

And along with that are the different foods, the different animals, the different plants and trees, the different forms of transport. It's fun to come up with, but I also have to remember everything I've created!

If you want to lose yourself in this magical world, get yourself a copy of The Faerie Prince from the following online retailers (and if you haven't yet read the first book, The Faerie Guardian, you can find out where to get it on this page):



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Rachel Morgan was born in South Africa and spent a large portion of her childhood living in a fantasy land of her own making. After completing a degree in genetics, she decided science wasn’t for her—after all, they didn’t approve of made-up facts. These days she spends much of her time immersed in fantasy land once more, writing fiction for young adults.


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20 comments:

Unknown said...

Thanks so much for hosting me today, Cherie!

Michael Di Gesu said...

Hi, Cherie, Hi, Rachel..


Thanks for featuring Rachel... She is a long time blogger friend and I enjoy her stories!

GOOD LUCK RACHEL!!!!!

Julie Flanders said...

It's great to meet you, Rachel, your book sounds awesome. I'm really impressed with the world building you fantasy writers do, I've never tried it and it seems intimidating to me. Good luck with your book! :)

Nicole said...

Oh my gosh, the mirror-Skype thing works perfectly! Brilliant and hilarious. ;)

Natalie Aguirre said...

I LOVE your world building, Rachel. It sounds so awesome. Congrats on your book.

Jai said...

Rachel - your book sounds wonderful and I love your world building. Very nice.

Unknown said...

There are so many great things about the Creepy Hollow books and world building is definitely one of them. I'm very jealous of the faerie pools and waterfalls... I want one! lol


Thanks for sharing Cherie and Congrats Rachel! :)

Al Diaz said...

I would like a fairy tablet, hahaha. Very interesting peek into the fairy world, Rachel. Good luck!

Unknown said...

Thanks so much for the comments, everyone! I also wish I had some of the things I've made up! (like a fairy tablet ;-) )

M Pax said...

Happy Monday, Cherie and Rachel!

Making stuff up is the best part of fantasy and sci-fi. I love your idea about the mirrors, and your creative twists are very clever, Rachel. All success to you. :)

Heather R. Holden said...

World-building is one of my favorite things to do when working on a fantasy project. Love seeing how you developed Creepy Hollow--it has so many neat traits!

Cathy Keaton said...

This is an example of really fascinating world building! I love the alternative technology the Creepy Hollow faeries use. It still even looks like old world tech. :)

Gwen Gardner said...

I love the world you created, Rachel! Just bought the Faerie Prince :)

Catherine Stine said...

Right, why shouldn't faeries be involved in social media! Ha, I like twists on tried and true things. Good luck with The Faerie Prince.

Crystal Collier said...

World building is such a blast, and as I read the earlier released teasers for this book, I LOVED the world of Creepy Hollow. Looking forward to reading more. ;)

nutschell said...

lovely to see Rachel here! And oh do I love fantasy as well--both reading it and writing it. So much room to make stuff up and build new worlds!
Nutschell
www.thewritingnut.com

Jack said...

Now that is a grand idea on fairy stories! I get so tired of the same kinds, over and over again, and it is always fun to hear of new ideas and twists!

Unknown said...

Thank you, everyone! So great to have you reading about the stuff I make up ;-)

Christine Rains said...

This post was so much fun! Rachel has such an incredible imagination. :)

Jeff Hargett said...

Worldbuilding is the thing I love most about writing fantasy. And I always find exploring worlds created by others enjoyable. Creativity at its best.