Dissecting Dragons

Episode 429: All in the Details - How to Use Description in Speculative Fiction part 2

Part 2 of a 2 part episode

Following on from last week's over view episode, this week Jules and Madeleine get, appropriately, into the details of what to include or exclude when writing and worldbuilding. Speculative fiction can, by it's very nature, require extensive world building which in turn requires plenty of detail. But how do you know what to include or exclude? How much detail should you go for? Is there such a thing as too much detail?

On the slab this week - Harker & Blackthorn, The Sons of Thestian, Strange the Dreamer - Laini Taylor, Immortal Pleasures - V Castro and many more

 

Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic

Episode 428: All in the Details - How to Use Description in Speculative Fiction part 1

Part 1 of a 2 part episode

The dragons are back and gearing up for spooky season. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at the thorny issue of 'details'. Speculative fiction can, by it's very nature, require extensive world building which in turn requires plenty of detail. But how do you know what to include or exclude? How much detail should you go for? Is there such a thing as too much detail?

On the slab this week - The Book of Strange New Things - Michel Faber, Fire & Hemlock and Howl's Moving Castle - Diana Wynne Jones, Lorna Doone - R D Blackmoore and many more. 

 

Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic

Episode 427: The Boys are Back in Town - the Dark Heart of the Superhero Genre

Please note this episode contains spoilers for all the shows and books mentioned!

It's the human in superhuman which is the interesting aspect of the superhero genre, which is why the genre is so good at holding up a dark mirror to the worst aspects of humanity as well as being aspiration. This week Jules and Madeleine delve into the murky waters of dark superheroes looking at parallels between fame, money, consumerism and politics. How are superheroes the new pantheon of gods? Isn't a dark superhero just a villain? And why are writers drawn to telling these stories? 

On the slab this week - The Boys, The Umbrella Academy, Velveteen vs by Seanan McGuire and many more.

 

This is the season finale but the dragons will be back in September.

 

Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic

Episode 426: Change, Uncertainty and Unhappiness - making low stakes compelling

Not every story can be or needs to be high octane intensity. In fact some of the best books are objectively quiet affairs. Low stakes does not mean low story or lack of compelling reading or viewing experience however. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at why low stakes can be just as enthralling as high stakes, and in many ways can provide deeper connections between the reader and the characters. How do you make a low stakes story compelling? What are the dos and don'ts of writing low stakes? And how do you keep a reader's attention focused on your MC when the world isn't ending?

On the slab this week - Legends & Lattes by Travis Baldree, The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness, Swordheart by T Kingfisher and many more.

 

Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic

Episode 425: A Thousand Ships - The Awkward Side of Retelling Greek Myths

Myths and stories from the classical world have always been popular inspiring works of art, poetry, books and plays across centuries. Lately, Greek mythology has enjoyed an even bigger revival powered by the era of the 'feminist retelling'. However, while many of these books may be enjoyable stories in their own right, they are almost always bad retellings of the original source material - although 'original' is a relative term. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a frank look at why this happens, why overlaying a modern lens over literature that is several thousand years old is often doomed to failure and how you can find a balance between anachronistically modern and incomprehensively contemporaneous with the original. On the slab this week - A Thousand Ships - Natalie Haynes, The Song of Achilles - Madeline Miller, The Silence of the Girls - Pat Barker and many more.

 

Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic

Episode 424: Starving Artists and Worshipped Writers - unrealistic depictions of creatives in Film and TV

Every profession has at some point suffered from misrepresentation in fiction, however the inaccurate way writers are often depicted in screenplays is especially ironic. However, the dragons do acknowledge that exaggeration and outright fabrication often make for better storytelling so with that in mind, Jules and Madeleine take a look at the main writer character types used in fiction. From tormented geniuses to hardbitten hacks, this tongue in cheek episode is full of characterisation ideas if you ever want to include a writer character in your own writing.

On the slab this week - Argylle, Limitless, The Help and many more.

 

Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic

Episode 423: Memory became legend legend became myth - the dawn of the fantasy genre part 2

If you're a long term listener, you'll already be aware that the concept of 'genre' is mostly just a tool to aid categorisation, especially when it comes to selling books. That said, there are points on the timeline that are considered recognised emergence points for specific major genres. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at the evolution of fantasy: where did the idea come from? When did it diverge from fairy tales and folklore? And how did it become the speculative fiction power house genre it is today?

 

Part 2 of a 2 part episode.

 

Title music - Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic

Episode 422: Memory became legend legend became myth - the dawn of the fantasy genre part 1

If you're a long term listener, you'll already be aware that the concept of 'genre' is mostly just a tool to aid categorisation, especially when it comes to selling books. That said, there are points on the timeline that are considered recognised emergence points for specific major genres. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at the evolution of fantasy: where did the idea come from? When did it diverge from fairy tales and folklore? And how did it become the speculative fiction power house genre it is today?

Part 1 of a 2 part episode.

Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic

Episode 421: Impossible Monsters - Dinosaurs and Megafauna in Speculative Fiction

Dinosaurs and prehistoric megafauna have been capturing human imagination for centuries. Certain myths may well have been partially shaped by the discovery of dinosaur bones, whilst our progressing understanding of the dinosaurs 180 million year reign and how it ended, has coloured our understanding of our own place in the natural order. 

No surprise then that dinosaurs should appear in so much fiction - both written and staged or filmed. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at why these creatures hold such fascination for us, and why they have bled into fantasy and science fiction in a way that cannot be erased.

Under the microscope this week: Jurassic Park - Michael Crichton, The Palaeontologist - Luke Dumas, Dinotopia and many more. 

 

Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic 

Episode 420: Never Coming Home - The Moving Beyond Bereavement and Death is a Sad Thing Tropes

Storytelling is a powerful tool for exploring difficult issues - both in terms of catharsis and also at a distance. This is especially true for death and bereavement. While the dragons have discussed grief in speculative fiction before, this week they are examining bereavement as a storytelling mode in its own right.

How do you write bereavement in a way that isn't overwhelming, off-putting or just false? What are the popular tropes which explore this issue? And just why might you include it in sff anyway? On the slab this week - Fruits Basket, Star Trek: Discovery, A Symphony of Echoes - Jodi Taylor and many more.

 

Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic