This week: Dances Edited by: Annette  
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“There are shortcuts to happiness, and dancing is one of them.” — Vicki Baum
“To watch us dance is to hear our hearts speak.” — Indian Proverb |
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Dances
There are two main ways to experience dancing:
1. Watch someone dance.
2. Take part in a dance.
When fantasy fiction is turned into a TV show or movie, there is frequently a dance scene. This might be entertainment for the government, king, or similar. It might be a scene where the characters watch a dance and whisper in the cover of loud music to exchange secrets. The characters can also be part of a dance. Dances can be a coming of age celebration. Or they are shown to parade a group of suitors to a royal youth who has become eligible to get engaged. Weddings are a common time when a dance will happen. In some movies, a dance will be the moment when a truth gets revealed such as the fact that everybody else is a vampire when nobody but the main character is seen in the mirrors. The reasons for dances in fantasy are endless.
There is also the dark side of dance. To make it look very impressive, some of the dancers have to endure years of grueling practice. Sometimes to the detriment of their growth and health. In John Wick 3, John Wick walks past a group of ballerinas who are taking a short break between training sessions. One them casually pulls off a toenail that has come loose from all the toe-dancing. This event takes very little time in the story, but it is a powerful detail that shows the hardship the young women endure to have the honor (?) to dance ballet for the Russian mob.
All around the world, tribes, nations, groups of people, different generations have developed different dance styles. Some are exuberant. Others appear to celebrate economy of motion. Watch this video to get some ideas for dances in your fantasy stories.
How do your fantasy characters dance during celebrations? |
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I got these replies to my last Fantasy newsletter "Elaborate Meals" that asked: Why are fantasy meals always more elaborate than other fiction foods?
Osirantinous  wrote: What a fascinating newsletter, Annette, and thinking back on all the various fantasy stories I've read, meals do seem to come in extra large/plump sizes. But even the Famous Five had impressive picnics with lashings of ginger ale. I wonder if it's the communal angle. There's so much food that you have to sit around a while to eat it and therefore mix and mingle. Nowadays, too, things like dinner can be seen as a 'we know you eat, we don't need to see it' part of fiction, but my two novels have a decent amount of eating--it's where my characters almost relax and act properly toward each other!
You are so right that the communal angle is a huge reason to show food in fiction. It makes sense and gives an opportunity to show the characters in a moment of peace.
Beholden  wrote: You asked, "Why are fantasy meals always more elaborate than other fiction foods?"
I think the answer has to be because it's fantasy and anything is possible, therefore. Given that freedom, who is going to write of bread and butter and water? But also, fantasy belongs to the young (although it's often the old that writes it). I think it was CS Lewis who mentioned that children love being told of wonderful foods piled up in glotous, mouth-watering heaps. The Narnian books are full of highly detailed accounts of meals as a result.
Before that, Kenneth Grahame had written this list of the contents of a picnic hamper in his book, The Wind in the Willows: 'There's cold chicken inside it,' replied the Rat briefly; 'coldtonguecoldhamcoldbeefpickledgherkinssaladfrenchrollscresssandwichespotted-meatgingerbeerlemonadesodawater—' 'O stop, stop,' cried the Mole in ecstasies: 'This is too much!'
"Adults" are far too busy and important to bother with such mundane things! They tend to go for brand names rather than the thing itself.
Your comment reminds me of a trip to Turkey I took in the early 1990s. I stayed at a hotel that had a breakfast and a dinner buffet. I dreamt of those buffets for years afterward. Room length tables loaded up with fruits, breads, sweets, meats, vegetables, colorful grain dishes ... I think I am dreaming again.
Aiva Raine  wrote: I think fantasy fiction meals are typically more elaborate because in many ways- the worlds are more elaborate. With the exception of space opera- the fantasy genre lends itself more to epic worlds and excess of detail. Take Game of Thrones or Downton Abbey (I consider it historical fantasy) or even Alice in Wonderland. The meals were epic and lavish and served to heighten the setting and the world. Large lavish meals helped emphasize the disparity between those in power and those not. I think food inequalities are an excellent way to show rather than tell the differences between the heroes and those they fight against- whether they be people or social structures. They also serve as an excellent way to create a bonding moment between groups of characters. Food is life. Food is power. Food is glorious.
You nailed every single aspect of fantasy food. Wow! Thank you for your comment.
BIG BAD WOLF Feeling Thankful  wrote: Redwall books by Brian Jacques are always descriptive with their meals. Dude grew up during the Blitz, so he liked adding food to the books, and he worked for a school for the blind, so he liked to describe things.
That makes a lot of sense. (Sense - why is that word such a double entendre?)
brom21  wrote: Taste may be the least used sense that writers impute. Personally, I rarely describe texter, juiciness, sour, bitterness, mushiness etc. But after reading this, I just may strive more to include this neglected sensation. In one book from my favorite author, Stephen Lawhead, he goes to name over ten foods consecutively! A lot of critics may oppose such extensive construction. Thanks for the NL!
While some critics may oppose naming a bunch of foods in a row, those authors who do it without worry often end up getting accolades for their work. The work of critics is to critique. The work of the writer is to paint pictures with words. Keep mentioning all that food. The readers will thank you. |
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Fantasy: December 07, 2022 Issue [#11688]
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