In today’s literature, more than ever, fantasy novels are filled with beings and creatures of folklore and mythology. From Tolkien’s ‘Lord of the Rings’, to Rowling’s ‘Harry Potter’, they’ve been enriching our hearts and fueling our imaginations.
Why so, then, are our stories always filled with the same creatures?
In today’s climate of writers, too many of us have adopted the bad habit of adhering to age-old interpretations, forgetting that in the genre of fantasy there are no rules.
Once upon a time, vampires couldn’t be exposed to sunlight. They were macabre creatures of the night who fed on blood, were allergic to garlic, and had a deathly phobia of the cross. Today, they are imagined as otherworldly beautiful creatures with characteristics more in line with that of an incubus than a creature who goes bump in the night. And you know what? That’s okay.
Today’s writers are often of the mindset that a concept can’t be reinvented; that it’s taboo to redefine the traditional interpretations of these fabled beings. But I’m here to tell you this is wrong.
Fantasy is just that: fantasy. By design it’s meant to be fluid and without borders. But instead of capitalizing on this opportunity, we instead often see writers trying to accentuate what already is, almost as if romanticizing.
Take dragons for instance.
For those who know me, it’s no secret that I have a grudge against dragons in modern fiction. Dragons have appeared in mythology throughout the world, dawning many forms throughout the ages. In Asia, they took the form of flying serpents. In Europe, they were as living dinosaurs. In many of our earliest stories, they were beastly beings who lived in caves, breathed fire, and were felled by a knight in shining armor. They weren’t godlike by any design, just mammoth-sized lizards who were the ultimate test of strength.
There was a time when a dragon could be imagined in a battle against a hydra and you would never be able to guess who’d come out on top. In Asia, the dragon is depicted battling the tiger as a representation of the balance of power. So when did they become the nuclear weapon of fantasy creatures? When did we reach a point where a single dragon could fell an army of a thousand, and humanity would be nearly powerless to stop it?
At some point in time a writer re-imagined the dragon. This writer envisioned a version of the creature as a god; A being of superior intelligence, unimaginable power, destructive without consequence, and a force to be synonymous with unstoppable. The dragon became an unparalleled existence among creatures of lore.
This was genius.
But in today’s literature it seems as though this genius has become the rule.
Audiences love seeing this all-powerful, mighty being swoop down and wreak havoc wherever they go. They love seeing these fabled creatures descend with glorious, crushing intimidation, and so writers portray them that way. But I ask you, why must it be a dragon in this role?
Mythology is filled with many powerful creatures other than the dragon. In a world with creatures such as the griffin, the manticore, the naga, and even cerberus, why do writers constrain themselves to exploiting only one creature? Where did the creative originality go? Why don’t they invent creatures?
I think we’ve fallen into a self-imposed trap, creating a climate of fear surrounding change. It’s become almost taboo to touch concepts that readers love so much. I think writers are now so fixated on delivering what audiences want to see that they’ve become afraid to show them something new. They fall back into a familiar comfort zones, reusing what they know has been proven to work instead of taking a chance and creating something new that challenges what audiences are familiar with. And that’s why dragons remain gods, and continue to become more so. It’s why dwarves are always blacksmiths. Why elves are always beautiful creatures of magic. It’s why trolls are dumb, and why fairies are sparkly. Everything that the genre of fantasy has to offer has now been stuffed inside a box, given rules and restrictions.
But that box is a lie.
“Fantasy” is exactly what the word implies: fantasy. It’s imagination without borders. It’s creativity without restraint. It’s painting the sky green, and coloring the earth blue. It’s the art of taking the rules and throwing them out the window.
Fantasy is freedom.
So to all the writers out there who lean on the interpretations of those who came before you just remember, they too once challenged what came before them. Just because the wheel works doesn’t mean it can’t be re-invented.
I’m not saying that as a writer you can’t use these interpretations. What I’m saying is don’t be afraid to take chances. Don’t be afraid to say “No, dragons aren’t special.” Be free with your writing. Be creative with your imagination. Fantasy is giving shape to your own dreams after all.
Dream – Imagine – Create
A.
A Life Imagined 