McAnally's (The Community Pub) > Author Craft
Redefining Established Paranomal Beings
sarafina:
--- Quote from: Darwinist on October 27, 2009, 02:03:37 AM ---Butcher did it, imo, with Loup Garou. That stupid name still makes me cringe everytime I read it. But I can forgive one mistake, because he's done so many other wonderful things with his writing to make up for it.
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You did know loup garou is werewolf in French, didn't you?
the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh:
--- Quote from: Son of an Ogre on October 26, 2009, 08:35:24 PM ---Neurovore, Ghoulems...actually sounds pretty good. Sounds familiar, though. Oh yeah. Like Golem.
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Yes, it was a pun, or play on words.
the neurovore of Zur-En-Aargh:
--- Quote from: Kris_W on October 26, 2009, 09:05:47 PM ---This explanations belong in the exposition. It’s a tautology, the exposition is where things are explained. This is normally somewhere around the first third of the book (first sixth is better).
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But if you're following a character who is figuring the world out as they go along - indeed, if your pacing and plotting hangs on that revelation - I'd be surprised to see the important bits show up before the last sixth.
Darwinist:
--- Quote from: sarafina on October 27, 2009, 02:20:24 AM ---You did know loup garou is werewolf in French, didn't you?
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I don't speak French. The story takes place in America. The writer is American. The character who was a loup garou was not French, so why would this be obvious? Still doesn't quell the issue that it is an incomprehensibly stupid pair of words. Maybe if I was French I could have more respect for the word choice, but I bring myself full circle and point out the first four sentences.
Sebastian:
--- Quote from: Darwinist on October 27, 2009, 02:03:37 AM ---For the love of god, do not rename it. Part of the charm of stories like Jim Butchers is that he redefines the genre. Vampires that feed on emotions instead of blood. Ghouls that are supernatural hitmen. Werewolves that can change and control their ability. Think back to any books you've read before. It's the very lucky few authors who can write a genre piece that can somehow engage the reader without stumbling into unoriginal territory. It's the brave few who break this mold and invent something new that stick out in your mind.
...
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None of your examples feel very unique to me. I'd heard of psychic vampires, cheap muscle ghouls and werevolves in control before reading Jim.
To adress the matter at hand, if your ghouls are neither undead nor eat flesh, what are their defining features? Chances are they're very similar to some other mythological monstrosity and using that name would be more appropriate.
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