How does this garble have anything to do with Hierarchy you ask?? Well, not much really but it's intriguing. The whole deal got me thinking about the evolution of an immortal - how do you suggest an immortal ages? If old age doesn't kill you, if disease has no affect on you, how would your body go about physically maturing? It's quite the conundrum actually - and this conundrum directly correlates to Hierarchy.
How the devil am I supposed to craft an appearance for someone who is hundreds of years old but won't ever die? As far as eternity goes, anyone under 1000 had got to be young...hell, if were talking about eternity, then everyone is young! So would that give the character the appearance of a child? Adolescent? Young adult? What a headache.
Although I've never put too much thought into it, I feel like it must be a major challenge for you to craft characters such as Zuriel and Tarlin when you yourself are in your prime with the future before you. Where do you draw upon the sardonicism, the isolation, and the feelings of misunderstanding and anachronistic misfittedness to fulfill these characters? Which experiences? THAT is something you could tell us while we wait for your sly jamaican ass to give us the first and second chapters. I'm curious too lol. Syracuse misses you.
ReplyDeleteTruth be told, the experiences that help to shape these characters don't come strictly from my own psyche - the stories of the friends I've made, of those who have given me a taste of their hardships and misfortunes, lend a great deal. I wont be so presumptuous as to say that I know TRUE loneliness or isolation, but I can tell you that writing these feelings into a character has forced me to become an actor of sorts. It's as though I've been hired for a part in a movie, a role where a future full of joy and promise is an impossibility. At this point, my life is full of questions, small inconveniences, and a slight bit of isolation - regardless, nothing I'm currently experiencing is directly proportional to the experiences of my misfits. To me, these are living characters, their depth and desires only limited by my imagination and my ability to put myself in their shoes.
ReplyDeleteAlso, for you my dear Roone, I have a question - what do you think about me posting chapters on the blog? Good idea or bad idea?
Bas, I have no idea if this idea will be helpful or not, but what if you used material markings to show age on the immortals?
ReplyDeleteMaybe for every hundred years, they could be awarded a ring with a jewel of a certain colour to distinguish their age from that of others?
Or maybe like trees they could literally have 'rings' that signify their specific age - sort of like permanent tribal paint on their bodies?
It's an interesting dilemma, and I'm intrigued as to what you'll decide on using as a marker of age.