The Importance of a Belt Buckle

I write this leading on somewhat from my earlier article “Bringing the Vikings to Life”, as I wish to talk about the experience I have had in injecting detail and description to my writings. Now, firstly my background as a writer is as a game designer, writing either fiction based on a world that I particularly liked or later on writing the script for the adventure itself, either as background lore, quest detail or interactions between the players and the denizens of the land.

Part of this has meant my developing style is very blunt and concise, with a heady amount of action driving the plot forward. Working in such a visual medium as this, it was usually better to leave the optical features to the artists, because as they say, a picture tells a thousand words. Now, that I am writing a book it has come about from frequent critiques that I need to add more detail and atmosphere to the text, as I can no longer rely on the visual feedback from the graphics.

My experiences of this have been widespread, ranging from finding certain aspects really interesting (the weather and environment in particular) and therefore easier to write about. For some reason I find it very easily to properly visualise and then put into words a description of weather and its effects, be it bright sunlight on a mid-summers eve to a blizzard in the middle of winter, however detail of the land is rather more difficult. This is part of the reason for my attempts to get as much visual feedback on the Greenlandic terrain, which led to my discovery of the real Hvalsey in the article mentioned above.

Then there is the part of descriptive text which I find near impossible, and this most likely stems from my own (very) casual attitude to the subject, and that is clothing. I realise that what people wear can be as important to their overall characterisation as their actions, but I find it nearly impossible to connect the two. Does it really matter if Gorran wears a blue tunic or a green one? What about Thorvald’s trousers today? Is it enough that I simply dress up the characters in personality and then let the reader imagine for themselves what exactly it is they wear. I hope so, because this is what I intend to do.

This leads very nicely on to my final point, the nature of novel writing is a very different beast to master compared with script or lore scribbling, and it requires different skills and techniques to pull off; but should I really mould my entire writing style to suit this, or would my book come out as stronger if I write along my strengths rather than weaknesses? Perhaps I should start to concentrate more on Leif’s voyage of discovery and worry less about the shape of Erik’s belt buckles...

Progress Report : 6th May 2011

It has been a slow week, with ups and downs. It turns out that bank holidays really mess up the schedules of those who work from home as well as our office inhabiting brethren. When everyone is out having a good time it gets very difficult to stay in churning away at the laptop.

The fault for this lies not only with external distractions but also technical issues. I would get sections of the story done only to backtrack realising what I had just put on paper was trash. One part in particular has been causing some real headaches; this was a section in which one of the characters enters Erik’s great hall incognito. It turns out that writing about a character while hiding everything about them (their name, physique and gender) is pretty much impossible. My objective is to create something of a “who dunnit” in the story.

Thorvald

“These ships are built to take the wrath of storms, have we Vikings not built a legend on them? See how the planks beneath us flex like the muscles of Thor? They are built of the same stuff, as hard and enduring as he is.” 

Background

Thorvald has gone through a number of renditions during the process of creating him as a character. He is the middle son of Erik, a year younger than Leif. While Leif might not be all that typical a Viking, being happier with his nose buried in books while trying to learn Latin, Thorvald is most at home at the prow of a Viking long-ship heading into the jaws of danger. Early on, while writing him, he was rather unlikable due to being horrifically arrogant, but with subsequent re-writes that arrogance has mellowed into a ready confidence in his own abilities. This was one of the challenges of creating Thorvald, that although he is the younger brother of Leif, he often comes across as older. Hopefully, I have managed to reflect this in the story. Leif starts off quite innocent and naive but events in the book cause him to grow up and accept his role as Erik’s heir.

Thorvald has treated the discovery of Vinland as a great opportunity, not for wealth and prosperity like most of the others, but rather for the potential for glory. Part of the reason for the Viking success was their nose for adventure and Thorvald comes to epitomise this. He is forever on the lookout for opportunities to explore the world and leave his stamp on destiny.

Gorran

“And that is my point” continued Gorran, sitting straighter in his seat. “I suspect you are planning for your whole family to go on this venture. It is a great opportunity naturally, but I fear the rest of Greenland will suffer for it.”

Gorran, love him or hate him, is one of the most complex characters that I have developed. He has caused me more writer blocks, nervous breakdowns and problems than pretty much the rest of the cast put together.

Background

Gorran was one of the first settlers to arrive in Greenland, landing with Erik, his superior. Although physically Gorran has become rather fat, he has an indomitable energy that keeps him interacting with almost all who visit Greenland. Over time he has built up considerable influence and wealth in Hvalsey (the capital), enough so that he has declared himself mayor – and Erik has not disputed this claim.

Gorran stands for the greater good, he cares deeply for the settlement he helped establish and treats all of its many citizens in a fatherly manner. He is worried however at the impact that Vinland will have on Greenland. Although wealthy thanks to the resources available, it has a small population, and Erik's expedition is attracting many Greenlanders to follow him to Vinland. Gorran has complete respect for Erik but believes deeply that Greenland will not continue to flourish should the enigmatic founder leave for greener pastures.

Greenland is a prosperous but fragile settlement. Gorran stands as the sole sentinel for its continued existence, but how can one man stand against the call of destiny? How far will his conscience allow him to go?

What's in a name?

Ok, so for me, one of the most interesting parts of writing a story is the names of the characters, and the amount of power they can have in defining them. If a character is badly named, then that can negatively impact an entire story; likewise, a good name can make a mediocre story better. The same process also occurs in reality.  There are certain kinds of people that we associate with certain names. When you meet someone for the first time, reflect on their name and your first impressions of them. Does the name help in defining them? In most cases, I’ll bet it does. Get good enough at it, and you can probably begin to guess names before you are even introduced.

I do not know how other authors do it but, for me, the names have to reflect the characters themselves in some way. One web page that I always have open is for naming babies.  Yes, I get bombarded with adverts about pregnancy because of this, but it is a vital resource to really get the right name for the right person. If the character I have in mind has a certain personality or trait, I need to find a name with the right type of meaning.