Thank you.EinBein wrote: nice read! I'm especially impressed by your language skills.
Really? :0EinBein wrote:My first impression: the atmosphere and language of the first two samples remind me heavily of Patrick Rothfuss's "The Name of the Wind". Which is good in general, because Rothfuss won several awards with that book.
I'm honoured, Name of the Wind is one of my all-time-favorites, despite the criticisms.
Personally, I think the story as a whole works, and i think Rothfuss manages nicely to make Kvothe a believable character, in the "personality" sense, albeit an extraordinarily gifted one. I'd say that it's one of the few works i've seen where this kind of absurdly gifted person was handled well.
Though i was not consciously trying to write like Rothfuss, it's likely that his influenc is are all over the place: the names i give to things, the world (it's really growing out radially from Ramlin's garden at the moment, but i'm seeing a few elements and themes pop up, some my own, older ideas, some other that may be not quite convential, as fantasy goes, unless you've read Rothfuss), and the general, hmm, I'd like to call it "woodgrain" feeling.
I think i like that, "Woodgrain Fantasy". What the denizens of the woods do in mild summer nights, in the context of a world inspired by pre-industrial 19th century. Mind you, sub-genres are a rather silly thing, but it's fun to think up monickers for your own story's "sub-genre".
I have to say i disagree with you on Name of the Wind about this. There are quite a few instances in the series so far where "magic items" fullfill mundane tasks (a magical cooling box/refrigerator comes to mind), includingEinBein wrote: 1. This style of fantasy isn't my piece of cake.
The way magic is "casual" on the one hand but seems to have little effect on the way technologies developed on the other hand [...]
Is this really a part of his style or does it just happen to be part of this particular story? Rothfuss is not that old, so maybe he was thinking the same thing as me ("i don't think i can convincingly write about an old guy"). Though I will concede that it would make more sense if Kvothe was in at least his fourties, in the frame story.EinBein wrote: Sorry, I wasn't intending to rant about another story in this thread, but when you mentioned that "old" ramlin is in his forties and "retired" I got reminded of that particular book. So if you want to write a successful story, go on and keep it as it is, because many people seem to like Rothfuss's style.
You'll have to point me out whenever Ramlin is being too "cool", i think.EinBein wrote:I personally prefer old people being old and flawed (and not so forcibly "cool") [...]
I guess i could drop some exposition right here.EinBein wrote: magic either being an integral part of everything if it is widely accepted or (and I prefer this much more) be an outlawed field of study with high risk of losing your soul or ending on a pyre...
None of the Magic seen so far are "Spells". These things are Charms, and they are easy and quick and they don't linger. A Spell is supposed to be something much bigger: You can lay a spell on a place (to make it a home, a safe place, etc), or, if you put a spell on a person, it could be a Curse; so these stick around.
The difference is in what i'm later going to present as "Lesser Works", that's charms and hexes and anything else that simply entails a singular, one-time, physical effect; and "Greater Works", that's Spells and Curses and anything else that potentially changes an aspect of reality itself.
Note that Lesser Works, as they create physical effects, are actually irreversible (because they already happened). This is in contrast to Greater Works, for a Spell/Curse will stay with you (but those can be broken).
This Magic comes from the mind, and while one can learn another wizard's charms and hexes, inventing your own is a long process: these things grow in your mind, borne of a lowly desire (charms and hexes), or a genuine wish (spells).
The effects of Sorcery on one's mind, as shown with Tam's experience, may thus be interpreted as what happens when you try to grow a charm or spell too quickly.
So as you can see, I'm taking loans from the Potterverse of all things: this world's Magic doesn't have many limitations, but the ones that it has, and are of heavy weight, are a mage's time and will.
Now does this inhibit technology? A bit, probably. I guess Ramlin might just as well drink his rum on tea.
it was really just the sentence ("both tired and retired") that i liked, maybe . Maybe Ramlin now does freelancing work, mostly? I guess it makes sense more if the man is much older than what i've mentioned above, though. We'll see.EinBein wrote: And I dislike people "retiring" in fantasy stories, as retirement is a really modern concept after all. People generally did what they did until they died (which wasn't necessarily at young age, as the "average" data is telling us, which is highly biased by high death-rates among infants).
Also, Wizards are jerks. ;p