Fiction idea

[TERROR]

Hi, I'm doing a creative writing course at the open university.Like alot of you one day i'd like to be an author.The thing is I have to have the story idea of my main piece in by the 19th feb.It has to be 4000 words long.(the story not the idea piece) I had the idea of a greek god waking up today on mount olympus and his presence in the modern day word bringing forth other mythical creatures including zombies.I saw a film trailer for a similar idea after i had mine but my tutor said to continue.I need help from you because besides my first idea i don't actually have a story. Any ideas? Much appreciated

[clanglee]

I don't know if I would go with zombies in that story idea. But there are a plethora of mythical creatures to chose from there. Interesting Idea.

[krakenslayer]

Hi, I'm doing a creative writing course at the open university.Like alot of you one day i'd like to be an author.The thing is I have to have the story idea of my main piece in by the 19th feb.It has to be 4000 words long.(the story not the idea piece) I had the idea of a greek god waking up today on mount olympus and his presence in the modern day word bringing forth other mythical creatures including zombies.I saw a film trailer for a similar idea after i had mine but my tutor said to continue.I need help from you because besides my first idea i don't actually have a story. Any ideas? Much appreciated Small world. I'm gonna be doing an OU creative writing course later this year too. I think the idea could be very interesting, but like Clanglee, I'm not sure if Romero-esque zombies sit very well within Greek mythology. The story as a whole would gel better and be more coherent and focused, I think, if you stuck to things that existed within Greek mythology. Here's what I'd do - if this god is waking up in the present day, and looking upon our world with interest, I would also give these Greek creatures a modern twist, as if he is taking inspiration from the world he sees before him as well as his own time - for example, Centaurs that are half man, half Harley Davidson; Medusae that look like vapid bimbo, fake-titted Paris Hilton-type clones with snakes for hair, etc. I think sort of thing would be cool because it would be like the god is having fun playing around with us; his torments should be ironic and sadistic, and be almost mocking of our new, jumped-up way of living. In ancient times men feared their gods, they saw themselves as the mere playthings of greater beings that were largely indifferent to our individual fates. The we re-shaped out image of god, from fickle controllers of nature to one loving and caring father figure. We then forgot our fear of gods and being subject to the will of nature, and got too big for our boots, and tried to take control of nature. Now the old gods are back, and mock and punish mankind for his attempts at godhood, and intend to show him that he can still be subject to their will. Like I said, that's the direction my imagination would take me with it.

[paulannett]

Small world. I'm gonna be doing an OU creative writing course later this year too. I think the idea could be very interesting, but like Clanglee, I'm not sure if Romero-esque zombies sit very well within Greek mythology. The story as a whole would gel better and be more coherent and focused, I think, if you stuck to things that existed within Greek mythology. Here's what I'd do - if this god is waking up in the present day, and looking upon our world with interest, I would also give these Greek creatures a modern twist, as if he is taking inspiration from the world he sees before him as well as his own time - for example, Centaurs that are half man, half Harley Davidson; Medusae that look like vapid bimbo, fake-titted Paris Hilton-type clones with snakes for hair, etc. I think sort of thing would be cool because it would be like the god is having fun playing around with us; his torments should be ironic and sadistic, and be almost mocking of our new, jumped-up way of living. In ancient times men feared their gods, they saw themselves as the mere playthings of greater beings that were largely indifferent to our individual fates. The we re-shaped out image of god, from fickle controllers of nature to one loving and caring father figure. We then forgot our fear of gods and being subject to the will of nature, and got too big for our boots, and tried to take control of nature. Now the old gods are back, and mock and punish mankind for his attempts at godhood, and intend to show him that he can still be subject to their will. Like I said, that's the direction my imagination would take me with it. I like your thinking, chief! I'm tempted to try my hand at that idea! :P

[krakenslayer]

I like your thinking, chief! I'm tempted to try my hand at that idea! :P Go for it, man!

[paulannett]

Oh and to the thread starter, forget about the zombies. They just don't fit. If you want to go for the reanimated dead in this story, go with a skeleton army!

[krakenslayer]

Oh and to the thread starter, forget about the zombies. They just don't fit. If you want to go for the reanimated dead in this story, go with a skeleton army! Yes, this very thing crossed my mind too. Think Jason and the Argonauts:

[paulannett]

Exactly the scene I was thinking of, I don't know why I didn't mention it. Terror, zombies don't fit within your reality, skeletal dead guys on the other hand, do! Kraken, we'll get him through this story yet!

[TERROR]

Thanks guys, you've been a great help. Do you think I should have the god wakeing up in todays world or always being here living as one of us?

[krakenslayer]

Thanks guys, you've been a great help. Do you think I should have the god wakeing up in todays world or always being here living as one of us? It's your story and I don't want to feel like we're hijacking it from you. But if I was writing it, I would stick to your idea of the god waking up having been asleep/absent for a long time. This means you can have more fun with the concept of this immortal being as an outsider - bemused and outraged at the changes in mankind and amused by the things that HAVEN'T changed after thousands of years. Also, as an antithesis or alternate take on my earlier suggestion, perhaps the twist in the tail could be that mankind has advanced so far what we have almost caught up with the old gods in terms of power (having harnessed the power of the atom, created out own simulated worlds, etc.) to the extent the god is no longer able hold permanent sway over us. Perhaps he discovers just how far we have come and flees in shock like a man opening an ants' nest and discovering that they have harnessed fire and invented the wheel.

[Nephilim]

Sounds alittle Percy Jackson to me......

[BillyRay]

More like Thorne (Topper) Smith's Night Life of the Gods...

[Wyldwraith]

Hey, If you want to write a story like this I would suggest reading American Gods by Neil Gaiman, and perhaps the Percy Jackson & The Olympians series. Both have excellent examples of modernizing entities and elements of Greek and other mythologies. Piece of unsolicited advice, I think you might want to consider the notion of the ancient Gods power being proportional to human belief in them. To be sure they'd still be formidable beings, but it would explain why the Gods aren't just smiting entire neighborhoods/towns/cities of people whose behavior offends them. Maybe such old Gods haunt appropriate areas to their former mythological area of control. Apollo might be hanging out in Southern California with the tons of people who make tanning into a lifestyle. So-called "sun worshippers." Or Hermes/Mercury could be working for FedEx as Employee of the Year 20 years in a row. Just a thought to give you some ideas maybe. Good luck with your story, and remember, don't force it. If a given subplot or character just doesn't seem to be working and is holding back the entire story, instead of continuing to try jamming a square peg into a round hole consider other alternatives. You can stay true to your core vision while still remaining flexible creatively. Let us know how it works out.