Prophecy

This is going to be my first attempt at a real writing blog, so fasten your seatbelts, exchange all your Euros for Yen and prepare to be frustrated because no shops outside of Japan accept yen as legal tender!

In the world of fantasy, many stories involve prophecies. In the context of the story these tend to be written hundreds or even thousands of years before the main character is even born, often by somebody either mad or blind. Known as a seer, this person sees into the future and describes the main scenes that the main character will have to endure, often through riddles, rhymes or very vague comments.

So, for example, the seer might say "The chosen one shall want for nothing, yet nothing is all he shall have." At some point in the story it will become apparant that the main character's sword, Drak'thun, translates in an ancient language as "Nothing", and the reader suddenly nods and says "That makes sense now."

Used well, prophecy can give greater context to the main character's actions. Instead of being some farmer's son on a quest for revenge against The Evil One, prophecy can transform the main character into a Hero destined since the dawn of time! (cue the angelic chorus)

Or, better yet, prophecy can even create suspense in the story. In "A Song of Ice and Fire" series by George R. R. Martin, a certain character is told they will be betrayed three times. Twice, so far, that prophecy has come true, and it keeps the reader interested because they want to find out how the third betrayal will come about and who will be the culprit.

However, not all fantasy writers are so noble in their use of prophecy. Some will use prophecy like spackling paste, smoothing over unresolved plot threads or gaps in logic to further the story. The author might need his main character to climb a mountain, for example, for up there is an ancient temple containing a mystical sword. Hark, however, for the main character has no motivation to climb the mountain, nor does he even know there's a temple up there! So the author will have another character suddenly remember a verse of prophecy that states the chosen one must climb the mountain, and so he does.

Shame on you, fantasy author! And a mystical sword too? Fie, I say!

Of course, it's all well and good saying this now. I have a terrible feeling that thirty years into the future I'll be at some sort of Fantasy Convention trying to promote my latest novel, The Prophecy of the Mystical Sword, and somebody is going to remind me of this blog post.

But hey. I'll be rich by then. I can give security a big wad of cash to drag him outside.

:-Paul.