Clockwork Angels
In addition to my "Brains, Brawn & Bravado" posts, I will start adding additional analysis related to my new workshop, "Let There Be Light." This will be the first of those analyses.
If you attend writers conferences or workshops, even occasionally, you have most likely heard the phrase "Show; don't tell." While that axiom is important to storytelling, it is critical to effectively introducing your world to your reader.
Think of it this way. You want your reader to become a part of the story, to be drawn into the story through the senses of your characters. You do not want your reader watching your story unfold as if through a window pane.
A great example of this lesson is Clockwork Angels, by Kevin J. Anderson. The book has a short prologue that does a lot to introduce the main character's personality, but very little to introduce the world in which he lives. I will focus on chapter one, the beginning of the actual story Anderson is telling.
One of the key concepts in this story is the "Stability," the current era in which the characters live. Anderson never describes to the reader what the Stability is, but by the end of chapter one, you have a clear idea of what life in the Stability is like. Here are a few examples of how he accomplishes this:
1. The exactness of time. The main character, Owen, knows the train will come by in exactly 11 minutes. He and his girlfriend, Lavinia, know that the rain will come at exactly 3:11 PM, which lets him know he has 14 minutes to spare when he gets back into town.
2. The train schedule. Owen likes watching the train and watching the airships descend down to unload the train. This happens at the same time everyday when he is working out in the orchard.
3. The weather. Owen and Lavinia refer to an "almanac" which tells them exactly when a rainstorm is scheduled. It is not like our farmer's almanacs that give general information about the weather and the best times to plant and reap. This almanac tells them exactly, down to the minute, when rain is "scheduled." Owen is even very disturbed when the rain is late.
4. The almanac. Unlike almanacs in our world, which are published annually, Owen's almanac is updated daily. When he thinks the rain is late, he is unaware that an almanac update has been published that rescheduled the rainstorm.
5. Predictability of life. Owen is "scheduled" to marry Lavinia and to live in his village and to care for the apple orchard. He has even received a letter from the Watchmaker, the ruler of his world, congratulating him on reaching adulthood so he can start the life he has bee destined to live. It's not just the weather and the trains that are predictable, but also the fact he will marry Lavinia, have a home, and take over the orchard.
We learn in chapter one that the Stability is an era introduced by the Watchmaker in which everything, even things that shouldn't be controllable, is controlled with absolute precision. Nothing "bad" ever happens because nothing "unexpected" ever happens. Rather than explaining this to the reader, though, Kevin J. Anderson shows us the Stability through the impact it has on the lives of the characters it affects. This draws readers into the story quickly and makes them more likely to continue into the second and further chapters.
If you attend writers conferences or workshops, even occasionally, you have most likely heard the phrase "Show; don't tell." While that axiom is important to storytelling, it is critical to effectively introducing your world to your reader.
Think of it this way. You want your reader to become a part of the story, to be drawn into the story through the senses of your characters. You do not want your reader watching your story unfold as if through a window pane.
A great example of this lesson is Clockwork Angels, by Kevin J. Anderson. The book has a short prologue that does a lot to introduce the main character's personality, but very little to introduce the world in which he lives. I will focus on chapter one, the beginning of the actual story Anderson is telling.
One of the key concepts in this story is the "Stability," the current era in which the characters live. Anderson never describes to the reader what the Stability is, but by the end of chapter one, you have a clear idea of what life in the Stability is like. Here are a few examples of how he accomplishes this:
1. The exactness of time. The main character, Owen, knows the train will come by in exactly 11 minutes. He and his girlfriend, Lavinia, know that the rain will come at exactly 3:11 PM, which lets him know he has 14 minutes to spare when he gets back into town.
2. The train schedule. Owen likes watching the train and watching the airships descend down to unload the train. This happens at the same time everyday when he is working out in the orchard.
3. The weather. Owen and Lavinia refer to an "almanac" which tells them exactly when a rainstorm is scheduled. It is not like our farmer's almanacs that give general information about the weather and the best times to plant and reap. This almanac tells them exactly, down to the minute, when rain is "scheduled." Owen is even very disturbed when the rain is late.
4. The almanac. Unlike almanacs in our world, which are published annually, Owen's almanac is updated daily. When he thinks the rain is late, he is unaware that an almanac update has been published that rescheduled the rainstorm.
5. Predictability of life. Owen is "scheduled" to marry Lavinia and to live in his village and to care for the apple orchard. He has even received a letter from the Watchmaker, the ruler of his world, congratulating him on reaching adulthood so he can start the life he has bee destined to live. It's not just the weather and the trains that are predictable, but also the fact he will marry Lavinia, have a home, and take over the orchard.
We learn in chapter one that the Stability is an era introduced by the Watchmaker in which everything, even things that shouldn't be controllable, is controlled with absolute precision. Nothing "bad" ever happens because nothing "unexpected" ever happens. Rather than explaining this to the reader, though, Kevin J. Anderson shows us the Stability through the impact it has on the lives of the characters it affects. This draws readers into the story quickly and makes them more likely to continue into the second and further chapters.
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