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McAnally's (The Community Pub) => Author Craft => Topic started by: Zioneer on November 09, 2013, 07:50:52 AM
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I'm writing an urban fantasy novel inspired by (but definitely distinct from) the Dresden Files. The main difference is that I won't have vampire or faerie courts, my main character will not be a freelance sort of magic-user like Harry Dresden starts off as, and my main setting will be the American Southwest, with an emphasis on Utah.
And therein lies my problem. I've been a resident of Utah for most of my life (I'm 20, and have been here almost 15 years), but besides being of the majority faith, I never really got into the culture, specifically the supernatural culture of Utah and the Southwest. I've searched on the Internet, but I can't find good ideas for monsters and supernatural ideas from the Southwest. I'd like some help if anyone's familiar with that area. I have Coyote (the Native American deity) involved, and the Transcontinental railroad/golden spike (don't ask), but I can't think of much else.
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I'm writing an urban fantasy novel inspired by (but definitely distinct from) the Dresden Files. The main difference is that I won't have vampire or faerie courts, my main character will not be a freelance sort of magic-user like Harry Dresden starts off as, and my main setting will be the American Southwest, with an emphasis on Utah.
And therein lies my problem. I've been a resident of Utah for most of my life (I'm 20, and have been here almost 15 years), but besides being of the majority faith, I never really got into the culture, specifically the supernatural culture of Utah and the Southwest. I've searched on the Internet, but I can't find good ideas for monsters and supernatural ideas from the Southwest. I'd like some help if anyone's familiar with that area. I have Coyote (the Native American deity) involved, and the Transcontinental railroad/golden spike (don't ask), but I can't think of much else.
Does the Cupacabra get out there much? Then there are Skinwalkers, evil Bruha's and all kinds of imported Arabian myths that got imported over there along with the Ibex. Which has been saved from extinction by big game hunters looking for the thrill of the hunt and eventually the herds grew large enough to wander off the hunting reserve.
The Deposed King
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A massive amount of American folklore, with the exception of any Native American legends, comes from the folklore of the European settlers who travelled there. One of the great things about writing urban fantasy set in the US is that you can draw on any culture's myths and legends for inspiration.
If you want to take inspiration from the Church of Latter-Day Saints, you've got all kinds of Biblical lore to work with. After all, if Jesus came here, what else might have followed him?
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After all, if Jesus came here, what else might have followed him?
Thats a very intriguing idea.
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Thats a very intriguing idea.
I wonder how you'd execute that? King Noah as a wraith perhaps or Lamen and Lemuel, guys who saw angels multiple times and still turned away because of jealousy over their younger brother, only to be cursed and all their children cursed with dark skin come back as some kind of baddie. As well as a whole host of jewish demons and uglies who (logically for our magical) followed them over from israel? Not sure.
In the Iron Druid series 'belief' in folklore and folk tales brought them to life, so I suppose if we're using that kind of paradigm a lot of things are possible, up to and including the Stake Puft marshmallow man of Ghostbusters. ;)
The Deposed King
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I wonder how you'd execute that? King Noah as a wraith perhaps or Lamen and Lemuel, guys who saw angels multiple times and still turned away because of jealousy over their younger brother, only to be cursed and all their children cursed with dark skin come back as some kind of baddie. As well as a whole host of jewish demons and uglies who (logically for our magical) followed them over from israel? Not sure.
In the Iron Druid series 'belief' in folklore and folk tales brought them to life, so I suppose if we're using that kind of paradigm a lot of things are possible, up to and including the Stake Puft marshmallow man of Ghostbusters. ;)
The Deposed King
American Gods did it similarly, to the point where if the Gods believers thought of it as a New World, they got a new version of their god, while the old one went about his business back home:
"So yeah, Jesus does pretty good over here. But I met a guy who said he saw him hitchhiking by the side of the road in Afghanistan and nobody was stopping to give him a ride. You know? It all depends on where you are."
As far as what could follow him, even absent other gods/religions, you could have any number of demons, or maybe even the Livestock that Jesus put the Legion Demon(s) when he yanked it/them out of somebody. You could have any of the Immortals (Cain, Lazarus, Longinus, etc) show up, most of the Saints could be fair game, as well as any angels you could think of. Having them play the part of feuding foreigners with the local Native deities and hero's getting drawn in could be fun. I dont know enough about the Mormon side of the mythos you'd be tying it to, but there have to be hooks in there somewhere.
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American Gods is definitely worth a read for inspiration on the matter. Not only for specifics, but the general idea of taking an idea or a god and twisting it around. It's sort of an evolution of gods.
Speaking of, you could have local legends evolve into gods or godlike creatures. A local man who saved a family from a burning house suddenly gets so much praise from newspapers and local tv stations, he is celebrated as a hero, and suddenly all that praise reaches critical mass and elevates him to god status. He might not even realize this.
Of course, there are also the stories about monsters in the woods, the shadow under the bed, the creepy man in the house on the hill and things like that, and a lot of people know those stories and even if they don't really believe them, it sticks with them and that gives them power.
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Cactus Cats, Hoopsnakes, and Jackalopes.
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You might also look into the "witchcraft" of the area which is as distinct as voodoo/hoodoo to the geographic range. Diableros, Brujas, curanderos, naguals, and the like. I would recommend looking into some of Carlos Castenadas works for inspiration, but for God's sake, don't smoke the jimsonweed.
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I think with the fireman he would just start finding himself at the scene of every fire as he was unconsciously drawn to them. People see the fire and wish that a firefighter like Hank the Firefighter would show up and save gramma and pretty soon there he is. The legend is perpetuated.
The Deposed King
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Along the same vein of American Gods, there is a tabletop system inspired by it that has a lot of published short stories and fanfic about it. Its in the Storyteller rules system (which is very literary/RP focused, much like the DFRPG system).
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First of all, I'm sorry I haven't got back to this for a while; various other things distracted me. But I'm back to answer these comments.
Does the Cupacabra get out there much? Then there are Skinwalkers, evil Bruha's and all kinds of imported Arabian myths that got imported over there along with the Ibex. Which has been saved from extinction by big game hunters looking for the thrill of the hunt and eventually the herds grew large enough to wander off the hunting reserve.
Well, I haven't figured out anything with the Cupacabra (I'm toying with them being magic detectors or something like that). I think I'll feature Skinwalkers as monstrously powerful shapeshifting sorcerers instead of the terrifying monster they are in Dresden Files. Brujas will be the local Southwestern term for any pracitioner of magic; Anglos, Hispanic folks, and everyone else will use it. Not sure on the Ibex; don't know enough about them to do much.
A massive amount of American folklore, with the exception of any Native American legends, comes from the folklore of the European settlers who travelled there. One of the great things about writing urban fantasy set in the US is that you can draw on any culture's myths and legends for inspiration.
If you want to take inspiration from the Church of Latter-Day Saints, you've got all kinds of Biblical lore to work with. After all, if Jesus came here, what else might have followed him?
Yep; that's why I love the Dresden Files, and that's why I'm writing my own urban fantasy. I can fit whatever I want into it. As for the Native American legends; I want to feature the Wendigo (probably something to do with the Donner Party), but besides that, the skinwalkers/bruja, and Coyote, I don't feel comfortable enough in my knowledge to know what Native American legends to have in the story.
And thanks for the Biblical ideas; that makes so much sense. And perhaps various supernatural creatures keep moving to the Americas as huge sources of power (the conquistadors, immigrants, etc) keep showing up in the Americas?
I wonder how you'd execute that? King Noah as a wraith perhaps or Lamen and Lemuel, guys who saw angels multiple times and still turned away because of jealousy over their younger brother, only to be cursed and all their children cursed with dark skin come back as some kind of baddie. As well as a whole host of jewish demons and uglies who (logically for our magical) followed them over from israel? Not sure.
In the Iron Druid series 'belief' in folklore and folk tales brought them to life, so I suppose if we're using that kind of paradigm a lot of things are possible, up to and including the Stake Puft marshmallow man of Ghostbusters. ;)
I don't think I'll actually include too much Book of Mormon stuff; might seem esoteric and insular to any readers I might have. I might have a few situations where the main character speculates if something he's encounter is from the Book of Mormon though.
American Gods did it similarly, to the point where if the Gods believers thought of it as a New World, they got a new version of their god, while the old one went about his business back home:
"So yeah, Jesus does pretty good over here. But I met a guy who said he saw him hitchhiking by the side of the road in Afghanistan and nobody was stopping to give him a ride. You know? It all depends on where you are."
As far as what could follow him, even absent other gods/religions, you could have any number of demons, or maybe even the Livestock that Jesus put the Legion Demon(s) when he yanked it/them out of somebody. You could have any of the Immortals (Cain, Lazarus, Longinus, etc) show up, most of the Saints could be fair game, as well as any angels you could think of. Having them play the part of feuding foreigners with the local Native deities and hero's getting drawn in could be fun. I dont know enough about the Mormon side of the mythos you'd be tying it to, but there have to be hooks in there somewhere.
I like the idea of "feuding foreigners"; I've already decided that several characters will be immigrants and refugees (or descendents of such) to Utah. I'll have some interesting Biblical and modern-day Mormon influences (and of course characters), but again, I feel uncomfortable using Book of Mormon characters. Definitely will have Coyote feuding with foreign gods and demons though.
Speaking of, you could have local legends evolve into gods or godlike creatures. A local man who saved a family from a burning house suddenly gets so much praise from newspapers and local tv stations, he is celebrated as a hero, and suddenly all that praise reaches critical mass and elevates him to god status. He might not even realize this.
Of course, there are also the stories about monsters in the woods, the shadow under the bed, the creepy man in the house on the hill and things like that, and a lot of people know those stories and even if they don't really believe them, it sticks with them and that gives them power.
I'll definitely use the "legends gain power" idea. Probably at the level of "gods" (except Coyote and a couple of other beings), but close enough, ala the Queens of Winter and Summer from the Dresden Files.
Cactus Cats, Hoopsnakes, and Jackalopes.
I'm only familiar with Jackalopes and even then I only know the basics), but I'll definitely check those out; do you have any good sources on those?
You might also look into the "witchcraft" of the area which is as distinct as voodoo/hoodoo to the geographic range. Diableros, Brujas, curanderos, naguals, and the like. I would recommend looking into some of Carlos Castenadas works for inspiration, but for God's sake, don't smoke the jimsonweed.
I'll have to do that, thanks for the info.
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Look up Fearsome Critters of the Lumberwoods, With a Few Desert and Mountain Beasts.
There is the Nagual, shapeshifters who can turn into turkeys, dogs, donkeys, pumas, of jaguars. Perhaps they could be rivals of the Skinwalkers. You could also throw in the hengeyokai, Japanese animal spirits. They could have moved there during WWII when US the government moved them to an internment camp thinking that they were normal Japanese people. There are also the Tsukumogami, animated objects. Imagine your hero being followed around by an animated umbrella, or an animated teapot.
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If you are using the transcontinental railroad as part of your story then you would have both Irish and Chinese laborers and could therefore bring their mythologies into your story as well. Even if your story takes place in modern times, you could still tie their legends into the railroad they worked so hard to build.
The book Six-Gun Tarot by R. S. Belcher takes place in the Southwest although it's the Old West not modern times. It blends everything from Chinese mythology to Mormonism, Angels and demons to Lovecraftian mythos, and of course Native American folklore. It's not necessarily the best thing I've ever read but I think the author did a good job of blending the cultural ideas of many of the major peoples of the Southwest. It might be worth checking out.
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If you're bringing or want to bring Jewish tales into this - there's always
the Golem - a man of clay brought to life by the sacred words. That could take on
a whole new meaning blended with Native American beliefs and lud ::) ::) - what coyote
could do with that kind of thing.
Also something to consider - like viruses gain strength when they jump species.
Combining belief systems could create some major baddies that might not respond to
dismissal rituals from either system.
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The Iron Druid series starts out West, and deals with NA mythology, but it'd mostly Irish and goes global.
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Again, I'm really sorry for not being timely with responses; I really am interested in your advice, it's just that I've had a weird schedule lately.
Look up Fearsome Critters of the Lumberwoods, With a Few Desert and Mountain Beasts.
There is the Nagual, shapeshifters who can turn into turkeys, dogs, donkeys, pumas, of jaguars. Perhaps they could be rivals of the Skinwalkers. You could also throw in the hengeyokai, Japanese animal spirits. They could have moved there during WWII when US the government moved them to an internment camp thinking that they were normal Japanese people. There are also the Tsukumogami, animated objects. Imagine your hero being followed around by an animated umbrella, or an animated teapot.
Ooh, I'll have to check that book out!
And thanks for Japanese suggestions; I intended to feature the Japanese population in Utah anyway, and your comment gives me a bunch of ideas...
The Nagual seem a bit too similar to to the Skinwalkers, but I might be able to use them anyway.
If you are using the transcontinental railroad as part of your story then you would have both Irish and Chinese laborers and could therefore bring their mythologies into your story as well. Even if your story takes place in modern times, you could still tie their legends into the railroad they worked so hard to build.
The book Six-Gun Tarot by R. S. Belcher takes place in the Southwest although it's the Old West not modern times. It blends everything from Chinese mythology to Mormonism, Angels and demons to Lovecraftian mythos, and of course Native American folklore. It's not necessarily the best thing I've ever read but I think the author did a good job of blending the cultural ideas of many of the major peoples of the Southwest. It might be worth checking out.
Good point on the Irish and Chinese building the railroads; do you know of any interesting urban legends or tall tales that popped up around the Railroad?
And I'll have to check out Six-Gun Tarot, thanks for the suggestion. Sounds interesting, and along the lines of what I'm thinking of. Though I read the Amazon.com synopsis, and I don't think I could create a fictional city (Salt Lake City is the only city of the right size in Utah for the diversity in culture that I need, unless I switched the setting to a different state, which I might do), or rename an existing city.
If you're bringing or want to bring Jewish tales into this - there's always
the Golem - a man of clay brought to life by the sacred words. That could take on
a whole new meaning blended with Native American beliefs and lud ::) ::) - what coyote
could do with that kind of thing.
Also something to consider - like viruses gain strength when they jump species.
Combining belief systems could create some major baddies that might not respond to
dismissal rituals from either system.
Yeah, the possibilities of Jewish legend and Native American myths like Coyote are endless...
I don't think I'll go the full route of having baddies that combine belief systems, but I will have baddies that take advantage of it (like a vampire baddie unleashing an oni on someone).
The Iron Druid series starts out West, and deals with NA mythology, but it'd mostly Irish and goes global.
Yeah, that was another one of my inspirations, besides Dresden. I've only read the first book, though. I've heard the others vary a bit in quality.
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Zioneer you might want to check out - "The Case of the Toxic Spelldump" by H. Turtledove.
Interesting use of different belief systems and how they get along...or don't.
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And I'll have to check out Six-Gun Tarot, thanks for the suggestion. Sounds interesting, and along the lines of what I'm thinking of. Though I read the Amazon.com synopsis, and I don't think I could create a fictional city (Salt Lake City is the only city of the right size in Utah for the diversity in culture that I need, unless I switched the setting to a different state, which I might do), or rename an existing city.
I wasn't talking so much about the town of Golgotha as I was how many different belief systems played important roles in the story. I don't remember any specific legends related to the railroads although I do remember reading a story somewhere that had the iron rails playing an important part in driving the Fae from our land. Since the Fae seldom played well with mortals, this was considered a good thing.
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Silver Fox is a trickster in Native American legends. Perhaps a tribe of kitsune came to America at some point, and made their way into legend. What about your legends taking over a ghost town, and hiding it from normal humas.
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Yeah, that was another one of my inspirations, besides Dresden. I've only read the first book, though. I've heard the others vary a bit in quality.
Ive read all thats out and did it all recently in a single push, and enjoyed I them thoroughly. It's not so much that they vary in quality as it's that they are not all that self-contained (as compared to TDF where there is always a new casefile to be resolved even if there are overarching plot elements at work). One book flows into the next in what to me is a much more serial way than the more episodic form of Dresden for example. They also have the benefit of coming out almost twice a year, which makes me a lot more able to ignore the lack of a contained plot/climax/resolution form. Give me too long to get my jones up and I start getting irate and over-critical.
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I heard Tim Powers once at a conference. He starts his writing with research. He keeps reading and exploring stuff until he's got twenty too-cool-things not to use and then he starts to write. Not a bad process.