Creating The Mythology For Writing

Creating The Mythology For Writing

This is the topic that @melda0m3 has request of me with the specific quote as: "How to write legends about gods? I have my whole god system and their basic lore, but can never figure out how to make legends and such"

So, following this advice post, I will only be talking about how to create legends for your established gods and I will not be talking about how to create gods.

Writing Legends

Legends, as defined by a quick google searchl, are a traditional story sometimes popularly regarded as historical but unauthenticated.

Legends are also classified as myths since myths are traditional stories that were meant to explain a physical or social phenomena.

For example, the "marriage" between Hades And Persephone was meant to explain seasons as Demeter(the goddess of harvest) destroyes all the plants when Persephone is in the underworld for six months.

Using the real-life reason for legends and myth exist can help provide a clearer, more concise, guideline to make use of.

Of course, your characters won't discuss every single legend within the story so you need to write the legends which will be noteworthy to the plot.

For example, you can highlight the mythology that explains why your characters have inhuman characteristics and why {SOMETHING} is happening.

However, mythology doesn't only exist around the natural. Legends are also weaved around battles, important individuals, and other such things.

This is due to the fact that legends are often the most influencial piece of propaganda within the world. Legends often serve to disparate certain communities within a conflict as failing to win the cover of God.

However, this propaganda also serves to paint certain individuals in an almost heavenly light where their ability to present themselves as a seemingly supernatural creature provides untold benefits for them. A real-life example of this is the Legend of King Arthur.

HOW IS IT APPLICABLE FOR YOU(Story Ideas) ?

Characters have a vested interest in making themselves appear better than they actually are. They may attempt to utilize legends in order to appear like they are God's favorite child.

Countries have a desire to always appear victorious and idealized. This can create it's own sort of reflection chamber where exaggerate stories of grandeur can create a mutation of beliefs so profound that when your characters step outside of the country, reality is vastly different.

Gods are the most likely to manipulate legends to cast their enemies in an unlikeable light while portraying themselves as perfect. This can lead to a highly complicated hodge-podge of contradictory information.

I hope I did well by you @melda0m3 :)

Writing Prompt: Isekai And Reincarnation

This for those pesky moments when you have characters that are resurrected/transferred into different world(s) but you just can't decide how it goes.

Here Is Story Inspiration For The ISEKAI Genre:

Your character is incapable of dealing with their unfortunate crimes and instead indulges in the world of dreams as a form of escape. However each time they escape into the world of fantasy, their actual body starts decaying and deforming. Eventually, their body will cease to exist if they refuse to stop.

When your character becomes reincarnated into the life-sized recreation of their book they think they have won the lottery however, secretly, a cult has actually orchestrated these events with the goal of using this broken hole between universes as a way of bringing in a God!

You're a video game character who has been taken from their digital universe in order to serve as the perfect servant for your creator. Are you really content living like this though?

Apparently, you are so hated by rich people that they have created a fake horrible life for you after believing your character has amnesia. However, your character was LYING. They never had amnesia and now need to figure out how to simultaneously fake their forgetfullness and get out of this fake-real reality.

A character in a seperate universe made of magic looked into the various realities in order to find the most compassionate person in existence since they believed that this kind individual would be easy to manipulate. While they succeeded in getting a compassionate person, they definitely didn't expect the added bonus of insanity!

You were just scrolling away on your phone when suddenly a crash is heard from outside your house. According to the mysterious magical "alien", they are a member of the royal family from a different world who was being chased by "someone" and had to run into the sacred interdimensional portal! Now they are demanding that you allow them to live here! While they certainly aren't human, they definitely have the manners of one :(

I finished the post @stabbyapologist :)

I'm sorry I wasn't able to finish it yesterday :(

What Do YOU Need Writing Advice On?

I know I posted this a couple days ago but I am an unpopular tumblr account who barely gets interactions so constantly posting this question seems inevitable.

Again, ask me whatever you want. Anything. Heck, ask me to continue one of my previous series that you had an emotional attachment towards for some reason???

How To Scare Your Readers

tw: mentions of murder and other horror media, its not specific or gorey but I just wanted to mention it

Today is one my hardest asks as it is a highly individual process to freaking out your audience with @differentnighttale asking: "How do you write horror, and how do you write it good nail biting and very unsettling type of horror."

Specifically, we are focusing on supernatural horror and dark fantasy. Due to the fact that there are numerous ways of scaring an audience, I'm going to focus on more diverse and interesting ways to freak out the readers. There are obvious tricks like "focus on the tactile senses" and stuff like that but let's cover something not as cliche!

Again, there are many ways to instill horror.

One: Combine Beauty And The Macabre

While this is a common trick seen in visual horror such as the works of Junji Ito or Midsommar, it's also an important and useful element in other beloved horror media.

This can be useful for a myriad of reasons.

The ability to combine the fantastical beauty of the scenery with death or the lovingly detailed imagery of a victimized body might be just the thing to elevate the scenery and visuals.

It also works to surprise your readers. If you are reading horror, you expect the murder and terror to appear in dark hospitals and obviously disgusting places. But what if the horror was in a cherry blossom field? In the church? In the character's childhood bedroom during the sunset?

It follows the perversion of the familiar. Most people internalize certain environments are seperated from society which might assist you if you are going for that specific type of horror. BUT! If you have horror in the supermarket, in the coziest little cottage, in the beauty.

TWO: Focus On A Specific Brand Of Horror

This is especially important for horror that is based off of pop culture spooks such as ghosts, ghouls, witches, zombies, and werewolfs.

Doing some research into why these monsters have survived in the public mind and what exactly is frightening abou them can influence your settings, characters, and horror.

There is horror about isolation.

There is horror about losing yourself.

There is horror about the female body.

There is horror about puberty.

There is horror about gender dysphoria.

There is horror about everything.

Decide what is the core fear you are proding at.

THREE: Be Ambiguous

Readers are comforted by linear stories with a beginning, clearly laid out morality, and a clear cut ending which provides either a happy ending or a sad ending.

Messing up any one of these things can lead to your story haunting the minds of your audience for a long time.

Midsommar is constantly debated about over if the ending is happy or sad.

Joker(2019), a thriller but not a horror, is infamous for it's amazing usage of hallucination and delusion to tell a non-linear story with a confusing ending.

Leaving the ending, villain, characters, or plot ambiguous and not clearly detailed might elevate your horror :)

FOUR: Use Your Own Fears

When you write about what scares you, that natural fear tends to radiate into your writing more naturally :)

This fear can be a lot of things from the specific phobia of bugs to the fear of being mistreated by a loved one.

Conclusion:

I hope I gave you some interesting advice that you haven't heard before @differentnighttale

p.s: at what point does something become "Mature"? I did mention "murder" throughout my post somewhat frequently but I never went into specific detail so I can't tell if it's "Mature" or not?

If it is mature and I mislabeled it then I can edit it to be "Mature"

I finished it @melda0m3 :3

What Do YOU Need Writing Advice On?

I know I posted this a couple days ago but I am an unpopular tumblr account who barely gets interactions so constantly posting this question seems inevitable.

Again, ask me whatever you want. Anything. Heck, ask me to continue one of my previous series that you had an emotional attachment towards for some reason???

I'm so so so sorry. I only saw this post when it was 10:00. In order to slightly preserve what's left of my sleeping schedule, I will leave to for tomorrow.

Rest assured, I will give you advice tomorrow!

Again, I am so sorry @melda0m3

What Do YOU Need Writing Advice On (Requests)

Hi, Unpopular Tumblr User Here! Again, I am asking for requests on what to do because I am very insecure about my own original ideas! Plus, I genuinely love helping people out and I really like talking about writing.

I've had some original ideas like "How To Write Sex Appeal" Or "Where Is Realism's Place In Writing" but I also want to hear from you!

Feel free to send multiple requests and I'll try to finish the advice in 1-2 days!