Comments | natasnape: Idea for a novel

natasnape

Idea for a novel - help?

May 24, 2010 09:05

This morning, I got an idea for an original novel. I'm super-excited about that, but also apprehensive to the point of giving up before I even started. So, I'd like to ask for help.

The premise is based on convergent evolution. Once upon a time there were two fish. One had two pairs of fins, the other three pairs. Both evolved. The first to ( Read more... )

writing

Comments 10

dragons - yay! saschia May 24 2010, 09:00:09 UTC

Great idea! I love the evolution part. It reminded me of the fictional documentary I saw once in US (caught the american strain of some throat bacteria and spend most of the conference in the hotel bed - was I lucky, or what?) about the biology of dragons, even behavior (like, the sex of the developing embryo is determined by the incubating temperature, the males want to have male offspring and try to increase the temperature around eggs behind the female's back, risking the well-being of the eggs), there was one inconsistency, and that concerned the number of pairs of limbs. Early dragons had two legs and two wing, while late dragons had two wings and four legs, and there was no explanation ( ... )

Re: dragons - yay! natasnape May 24 2010, 09:06:47 UTC

By the way - the fish with three pairs of fins - is that completely fictional, or is it based on reality?

I firmly believe it's fictional. Already sharks have two pairs of fins even though they don't yet have bones. But that's something to rigourously check for.

Anyway - may I be a co-author? Please? I'll help with the translations even... And we could make a science popularization paper from that, too...

:o) I love you, do you know that? Do you want to know the plot idea? Skype?

Re: dragons - yay! opaljade May 24 2010, 12:54:37 UTC

So interesting! :D

opaljade May 24 2010, 12:53:40 UTC

Wow!!!Nata!!!

I really adore evolutionary biology, and I love your idea!!! I'm very excited for you, my dear!

"Ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny..." though proven to be untrue could be an interesting angle to look at.

Re: plot, I have a few random ideas that might help you springboard other ideas. :D

Good luck!!!

natasnape May 24 2010, 13:02:31 UTC

I'd love to hear about your ideas! You should have a PM in your inbox with my contact details. I'd prefer to discuss actual plot and story off LJ.

karelia May 24 2010, 16:04:26 UTC

I'm excited for you! When you have an idea like that, writing calls, for sure.

And I wouldn't worry about things you perceive your writing to be not so good. Once you're well into writing the story, the characters do tend to take on a life of their own and will probably let you know their emotions, their thoughts, and even plot.

natasnape May 24 2010, 16:32:40 UTC

Thank you. You are very kind. But I'm not so sure. I just spent almost half an hour (running around getting children fixed for dinner) typing up my world and figuring out what mechanisms must be in place to make the dichotomy evolutionary stable for hundreds of millions years. Not a word about plot. So far, the plot is as original as a man and an angel want to have a baby. But I know latin names of the two groups, their mutation rate, life history traits, ecological niche allocation between them, reasons for destabilisation of the dynamics and so on.

No plot.

ext_215025 July 24 2010, 03:45:10 UTC

This is a really cool idea, and I'd love to see what you eventually write. Your main original concept seems to be not just that angels and humans are different species, but that angels are more closely related to these non-humanoid creatures like dragons and griffins than they are to humans. I would emphasize that in the plot as it would make your story unique. For example, maybe there are diseases that angels/dragons/griffins get but not tetrapods. Or maybe injured angels can be healed with tissue from dragons similar to how we get organ transplants from pigs.

natasnape July 24 2010, 05:10:00 UTC

Most interesting. Not only your suggestion, but the mere fact that you are here and commenting. How did you find my post if I may ask?

My story is going to be about the species concept. The current plot does not include a disease, but it is an important detail that I completely overlooked while drafting my characteristics of the world. An angel would be healthy in human society, given the isolation between the groups is sufficient. Thank you for pointing it out.

ext_215025 July 24 2010, 05:35:07 UTC

I was randomly searching for posts about evolution, my favorite subject. Your post caught my eye because I especially enjoy fiction that incorporates evolutionary concepts (and I occasionally write some myself).

Anyway, remember that it's your story and you should write it however you like. I mostly just wanted to say that I liked the idea.