Apr 14, 2011

L is for Legends

The greatest stories in the world transcend the boundaries of history and culture. They live on in myth, books, movies, toys and games. Children grow up knowing them, but never really knowing where they learned about them. Adults look back on them with fond memories and delight in seeing each new generation discover them.

We all know legends that have been passed down time and time again, retold and reinvented. That's the strength of a legend. It will always adapt to meet its audience, yet its core will never change.

I have a WIP still in the planning stage, but I've had the opening decided for a while now. It's a fantasy western trilogy set in the late 1870s. The opening is something I created for a roleplaying game I ran, and which has become a key element of how I think about my writing. I'd like to share the opening here.

They say every story starts at the beginning. I say every good story starts with an ending, and ends with a beginning.

There was a time, before this, when the West was still being won. A time of death and darkness, where fear was like a storm on the horizon; dark clouds gathering, getting  closer every day. In this world, a man could choose to suffer, or choose to act. He could join the darkness, or stand as a light.

In this world, ruled by the gun and forged by the gun, a man could become a hero. A hero could become a legend. And a legend could live forever.

Let me tell you a story...

10 comments:

  1. Very intruguing. I'm already hooked - great job! I'm so glad I found your blog. I'm stopping by from the A to Z challenge and I look forward to reading more from you.

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  2. Love this beginning, it totally drew me in and I'd love to read more. Great job!

    Found you through the A-Z Challenge as well, I'm glad to have discovered your blog.

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  3. Thank you guys! I'm really glad you're all enjoying it. I've never blogged so much in my life.

    I may have to put this project into gear sooner than I expected, if people like the opening so much, though right now I'm still focusing on my first book.

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  4. I really like that! What you said about children growing up hearing legends made me think of urban legends that I heard growing up. There was one about a crazy ax wielding lady who lived out by the river in my hometown. I decided to share this legend with my parents one day. Imagine my surprise when my mom said, "You know who that is don't you? It's a cousin of your dad's; she's an old ranching woman and yes, she probably did chase someone off her property with an ax. That sounds just like her."

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  5. What a tremendous approach. I can't wait to see how your WIP evolves. Nicely done. :)

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  6. you make a story writing very interesting and clear...here.

    lovely take on L.

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  7. great start indeed, more please

    http://baygirl32.blogspot.com

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  8. Awesome start, and I'm intrigued by the genre of fantasy western. The wild west is a time period I've always been interested in. Can't wait to hear more about it!

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  9. Jeffrey: Thanks. I'm going to try juggling this alongside the second book in the series I'm currently querying. I may go mad, I suspect...

    Jingle: Glad to hear it. I like to try and keep my writing as clear as possible and not get lost in complicated language.

    baygirl32: More will come. Might see about posting a sample from my completed ms soon.

    Shannon: I love the wild west. Some of my favourite movies are westerns, so it's great to explore the idea that there could be more than a mundane eye can see in the stories of Wyatt Earp and Billy the Kid.

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