Tentacular Fanfic, and Related Matters
Dec. 8th, 2019 09:24 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ecosophia
I've had several readers ask me how I'd feel if they wrote stories set in the fictive world of The Weird of Hali, my epic fantasy with tentacles. Those weren't questions I could answer off the cuff. Partly, like many other authors of fiction, I invest a lot of my own emotional life in my stories; many of the characters might as well be close personal friends, and many of the settings are as thick with memories for me as any place where I've spent a lot of time and had a lot of vivid experiences. By writing about them, I've invited my readers to meet the characters and visit the places, but it's another matter to have people come in and start remodeling the rooms and inviting their friends. For complex reasons, too, The Weird of Hali has a stronger place in my emotional life than my other fiction. Partly, I'm sure, it's the sheer volume -- nine novels and counting -- but I also had the chance to weave quite a bit more of my own vision of the world into these stories than I usually do. No, I don't worship Cthulhu or cuddle up with shoggoths, but the gods and sorcery in the novels borrow quite a bit from my own spirituality, and the basic sense of things is mine: where Lovecraft saw the universe as blithely indifferent to human existence and shuddered in horror, I see exactly the same thing, breathe an immense sigh of relief, and notice how liberating it is to ditch the burden of hubris and delusion that treats humanity as the conqueror of nature, the summit of evolution, the measure of all things, blah blah foam-flecked blah, and get on with life.
On the other side of the scale, though, is the massive point that I didn't invent the setting and the basic situation of The Weird of Hali. H.P. Lovecraft and his friends invented it as one of the first great shared settings for fiction, and of course it's been picked up by many writers since Lovecraft's time. What's more, I'm not the only writer who's taken the Lovecraftian cosmos and spun the moral compass 180 degrees; Ruthanna Emrys has done the same thing in a very different way with the two novels and a novella (so far) of her Innsmouth Legacy series. (No, I haven't read them yet. When I'm in creative mode, I'm very easily influenced by the work of other authors, especially if they're any good. That's why I wallowed in weird tales from the Golden Age between the wars and before then while writing The Weird of Hali, and strictly avoided anything of more recent vintage. Once I've finished the last of my tentacle novels, I plan on reading her entire series and I expect to enjoy them immensely.)
So here's what I'd like to suggest for those who want to play with tentacled horrors in their own fiction...
1) Anything I didn't invent is free for the taking. The great majority of the material in The Weird of Hali is not original to me; from the towns to the eldritch tomes to such little details as the Mao games Jenny Chaudronnier plays to divine the future, I got it from existing weird-tale literature and I have no business telling anyone else what to do with it. If you've got questions about where something came from, so you can look up the details in their original habitat, ask me!
2) My main additions to the canon are the Radiance and its history, from the desecration of the seven temples through to the fulfillment of the Weird of Hali; the Weird itself; and certain modifications to the Great Old Ones -- for example, my version of Nyarlathotep is a free invention based on a variety of Pagan gods and the crossroads devil of blues tradition, and Phauz was simply a name in a letter by Clark Ashton Smith before she strolled into my imagination in the midst of a clowder of cats. Those are also fair game; just as Lovecraft made the Necronomicon available to others, I'm putting these into the common stash.
3) If you want to use a character in one of my stories as a minor character in yours, cool. For example, if you've got a character who's taking classes at Miskatonic University who happens to take a class from Miriam Akeley, and she appears a couple of times, no problem. If you want to turn one of my minor characters into a central character, please ask -- I often have further details of canon that you may not know.
4) Please don't do stories that are primarily about one of my major characters. They're personal friends, as noted above.
5) If you're doing slash or other forms of fanfic pornography, I don't want to know about it. Seriously, don't mention it to me and don't parade it anywhere I might see it, or I might decide to get crunchy about it.
So basically that's what I'd like to ask. Comments? Questions? Tentacled horrors await...
(no subject)
Date: 2019-12-09 03:30 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2019-12-09 03:49 am (UTC)(no subject)
From:(no subject)
From: (Anonymous) - Date: 2021-08-30 02:22 am (UTC) - Expand(no subject)
From:(no subject)
Date: 2019-12-09 05:21 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2019-12-09 05:23 am (UTC)There's a lot more raw material in that story than I had space to use, for what it's worth!
WoH RPG - Or, how do you say "Tank Ale" in Aklo?
Date: 2019-12-09 01:09 pm (UTC)I have another question about the imaginary magic of your WoH RPG* - this seems a good venue. My creepy old farmhouse has an elaborate pattern in a parquet floor one of the rooms. Speaking the correct phrase establishes a “phone call” communication with Erielhonan, the Lady of Lake Erie, for 1d4 minutes at the rise of the full moon, giving the Games Master an information dump opportunity – or a chance to drag some red herrings.
Since the fictional brand of beer in my fictional town is Tank Ale (just the thing for fish batter – if nothing better is handy), maybe that is the magic phrase? And, is there any way to check to make sure the four consonants don’t do something unexpected? (TSW is a new thing for me, so I’m inclined to caution.)
Rusty
*For everyone who doesn’t know, I’m working on a WoH RPG adventure. OK, still working. I’m normally a technical writer – instruction manuals and things like that. My first attempt at fiction has me bleeding out the eyes. (Many thanks to John for bandages!) Interested parties may peek at my notes.
Re: WoH RPG - Or, how do you say "Tank Ale" in Aklo?
Date: 2019-12-10 04:34 pm (UTC)Re: WoH RPG - Or, how do you say "Tank Ale" in Aklo?
From: (Anonymous) - Date: 2019-12-10 08:36 pm (UTC) - ExpandRe: WoH RPG - Or, how do you say "Tank Ale" in Aklo?
From:Thanks for allowing me to be a Remora
Date: 2019-12-09 02:20 pm (UTC)It actually took a bit of agonizing to ask you in the first place, I was kinda hoping that you would have said "no" so I wouldn't have had to fully unpack the ideas and try to turn them into reality. While I am a technical writing wizard, I agonize over dialog.
I took the liberty of writing the full response to this over at my site here in Dreamwidthville. I hope that folks don't take offense at the blatant effrontery of upping my pageview count.
https://degringolade.dreamwidth.org/103307.html
Re: Thanks for allowing me to be a Remora
Date: 2019-12-09 04:53 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2019-12-10 01:33 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2019-12-10 04:35 pm (UTC)Timelines
Date: 2019-12-10 01:54 pm (UTC)Re: Timelines
Date: 2019-12-10 04:47 pm (UTC)All those dates have wiggle room, though, because the fictive world of The Weird of Hali isn't quite our world, and not just because we have a shortage of tentacled horrors. For example, the Essex County bus system that features in the stories doesn't exist!
Just to let you know what I am thinking
Date: 2020-01-15 02:27 pm (UTC)Worked on the story last night. I wrote a quick synopsis of what I was thinking about doing with the story. This will be the only tie in to Jenny because it is easy and she will only appear in the prologue. I just needed a tube of her blood.
Here is the description I wrote over at my place.
https://degringolade.dreamwidth.org/112876.html
Re: Just to let you know what I am thinking
Date: 2020-01-15 07:24 pm (UTC)This is good. Go for it.
Prologue: Over at My Place
Date: 2020-01-19 04:52 pm (UTC)This is just a heads up and an opportunity for anyone to take umbrage at misuse of characters or poor grammar.
This is the last time I will do anything with Jenny or Tish in the work, I just needed a tie in. and a way to start out.
https://degringolade.dreamwidth.org/113761.html
I don't know if you will see this
Date: 2020-08-22 01:40 pm (UTC)Anyway, and this heads up is oddly relevant to this original post, you might want to wander over to Ugo Bardi's place and take a gander at this.
https://cassandralegacy.blogspot.com/2020/08/money-gods-and-taboos-re-sacralizing.html
I am over at the usual place,
John
https://degringolade.dreamwidth.org/
Happy Turkey Day
Date: 2020-11-26 04:21 pm (UTC)Re: Happy Turkey Day
Date: 2020-11-26 06:52 pm (UTC)An odd mail address
Date: 2020-12-15 02:12 am (UTC)Since I mentioned you
Date: 2021-01-09 04:10 pm (UTC)Coming from left field.
Date: 2021-04-11 11:03 pm (UTC)In the JMG flavor of the Haliverse, does Ubbo-Sathla have followers?
Thanks, now back into the sun, drinking beer and working on plot details.
John
Re: Coming from left field.
Date: 2021-04-11 11:47 pm (UTC)Just an FYI that is completely off topic
Date: 2021-05-06 01:27 pm (UTC)https://thebulletin.org/2021/05/the-origin-of-covid-did-people-or-nature-open-pandoras-box-at-wuhan/
I have been reading the bulletin for years. Gotta love those guys
Be well. BTW, good piece yesterday over at the big house.
This sure made me laugh
Date: 2021-06-02 03:03 pm (UTC)Anyway, this is cut and pasted from a sales blurb for one of the books
"In 1176, forensic pathologist Adelia Aguilar is tasked with accompanying King Henry II’s daughter to Sicily"
Just wow, I thought you might be amused.
Re: This sure made me laugh
Date: 2021-06-07 04:32 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-07-03 01:30 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-07-18 03:08 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2021-07-18 04:50 pm (UTC)For the collapse aficionado
Date: 2021-08-04 12:50 pm (UTC)tell me if you want me to not alert you here.
Date: 2021-08-06 02:01 pm (UTC)This one is an odd. If you go in an find the article, you are given an option to purchase to read the rest.
But if you click the link attached, it takes you straight to the article. Hmm
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-021-01097-4.epdf?sharing_token=0qm51pO1MYo8Z26hn_i_ztRgN0jAjWel9jnR3ZoTv0ODQw4Na6S4LwvIIwjZ_S3NdBoG6pi8c5NBfIwoUKp1VAfbSfrMzrb0iHzsa8RoOriAyIbFfv2NdFYlOWAP_u8GNi04esr5H82r3z0JBGkkuwsvu-6bpKfEcF-5iB1_sCVs61ILuw6q94g_DwZOHjlpkultTrj9ulqdLxROydV5t5UVgBnF_8rDV-2LgnpXLA6LhwzMaTWr6jRQS6EEoks_jBEGsp8X_7KSLKXfKsku2KZiWz27SzHchwhWqq5FMK0_t2DwEDy8BTNV-rHYxiq98KxzkpxjBHZNyiqERUgsRlWxMNupSiOXWAfRi8Qa3Cs%3D&tracking_referrer=www.theguardian.com
Questions?
Date: 2021-08-08 09:38 pm (UTC)2.) How far off base would I be using Hmong as a cultural mirror for the Tcho Tcho's? I worked with the Hmong in the long ago, they is good folk.
3.) Would you be offended if I highjacked Walt Moore for a piece set in about year 8-9?
4.) In your work, you don't mention the Mi Go's wings...Is this deliberate?
5.) I am thinking that Chorazin is around (RL) Varysburg?
Spent today reading and thinking....Might actually have a story I can complete. The last ended up sucking pretty bad.
Thanks for all your patience. See you in the funny papers.
John
Re: Questions?
Date: 2021-08-08 10:51 pm (UTC)2) Not far off at all. The Hmong were among the models I used.
3) As long as you don't do anything too awkward to him, not at all.
4) I found the wings improbable and so quietly deep-sixed them.
5) No, it's north and east of there. In the Lovecraft story that describes it, and also in my fiction, it's due east of Attica, not far from where Linden, NY is in the real world.
Thanks for the help. Also something that you might like
Date: 2021-08-15 03:32 pm (UTC)I noticed that thus far in your books, only Hastur maintains a paramilitary. I'm kinda thinking that now Yhoundeh is free, she might be pissed off enough to put one together. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Ugo Bardi has an interesting piece today that you might wish to peruse.
https://thesenecaeffect.blogspot.com/2021/08/the-collapse-of-scientism-and-rebirth.html
Re: Thanks for the help. Also something that you might like
Date: 2021-08-22 01:00 am (UTC)Re: Thanks for the help. Also something that you might like
From:Carla's in Chorazin
Date: 2021-08-22 12:26 am (UTC)I don't mind at all, but trying to write a story within a story is harder than it first appears if you want to stay consistent.
Re: Carla's in Chorazin
Date: 2021-08-22 12:49 am (UTC)Level query
Date: 2021-08-28 05:12 pm (UTC)Also, just to get an idea of how you see this, what level do most folks end up at in the SW?
Just finished the first chapter of the new idea. I think that this one won't blow up ike the last one did.
Re: Level query
Date: 2021-08-29 05:21 pm (UTC)More background ??
Date: 2021-09-06 11:54 pm (UTC)Finally getting some traction on this. Just a couple of questions that I hope you can answer.
1> Walt and Cecily Moore...I am thinking Brother and Sister? If you haven't decided, if you don't mind I think that it would help my story
2> In "Providence" you wrote "THE NEXT MORNING, after putting the letter in the underground vault and hurrying away," Do all Starry Wisdom Churches have this feature?
Re: More background ??
Date: 2021-09-07 12:55 am (UTC)2) No. Chorazin doesn't, which is why phone calls rather than letters in vaults were used to communicate with Dunwich.
Re: More background ??
From: (Anonymous) - Date: 2022-05-23 07:41 pm (UTC) - ExpandRe: More background ??
From:Re: More background ??
From:Re: More background ??
From:Thought you might find this interesting
Date: 2021-10-09 02:40 pm (UTC)