Newsletter 09/01

This Will Take More Than Seven Days Part 3
So, What Have You Done Lately?

Last time, I discussed ancient and mythic history in Fantasy stories. Today, I'm going to talk about recent history. As with ancient history, what has been happening in the recent past will have a great impact on your story. Often recent events act as foreshadowing for the events that will occur in the story.

Take a look at some of your favorite fantasy stories? How many of them have a local gossip early on talking about current events? And how often do those events fail to impact the events in the story?

Look at some of the Masters. Lord of the Rings begins with an overview of what has been happening in Middle Earth. All the mentioned events relate to the plot of the story. In the Wheel of Time, by Robert Jordan, he uses rumors and reports from various sources to hint at what is likely to come next. Rowling features The Daily Prophet, the wizarding world's most notable paper, in every book to tell the characters, and the readers, what important events are going on in the world of the books. If they can do it, why not you?

It's not too difficult to create some current events to pass along in your narrative. As the author, you should know what is going to be happening in your story. As such, you should also be able to figure out what would be happening to lead up to the important events. Are the Goblins planning a war of extermination against the Elves of the Bloodwood forest? Then they'll probably be buying weapons, or the raw materials to make weapons. They might also be hiring mercenaries. A Goblin recruiter could approach one of the main characters in the story with a job offer. The main thing to remember is cause and effect. For any given plan, there are numerous necessary preparatory steps. Your current events should reflect this.

One thing to watch out for, however, is delivering too much information, and delivering it the wrong way. When the heroes walk into town, it doesn't make much sense for a complete stranger to walk up to them, deliver a ten page monologue about everything that has happened around town then disappear never to be seen again. Make the characters dig for the information.

There are many sensible places where local events can come out. The common room of an inn or a tavern can yield many rumors and whispered conversations about dark events surrounding the land. Of course, since these are mostly rumors, it doesn't hurt to throw in some superfluous information. Another place to check is the local constabulary. Normally in the small border towns that adventurers tend to flock to, the watch captain is interested in keeping the peace, and is quite willing to share information with anyone that will help in that task. If one of your characters is religious, a local shrine or temple may be a good place to gather information. Same for wizards going to the local guild hall, if such things exist in your world.

The possibilities are endless when it comes to local history and current events, so try to use them in your stories. It will make the world feel more like a living evolving thing.

Colin