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D.R. Ranshaw

D.R. RANSHAW

The Other Gender: Strong Female Characters

10/26/2015

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                Lowri shook her head in disbelief. “The One preserve us. Women can be equal with men and yet still delight in being women, distinct from men. And men can appreciate that. Although I’ll be the first to admit we’re not talking of a universal condition. So… why would women in your land settle for less?”
                -excerpted from Gryphon’s Heir by D.R. Ranshaw
 
Several readers have paid me the compliment that Gryphon’s Heir features some very strong, diverse female characters. I was a little nonplussed the first couple of times I heard such comments. I’d never really stopped to think about it, but yeah, I guess I do. For example, my male protagonist, Rhiss, has:
  • an aunt who happens to be the evil, usurping Queen he’s trying to rid the land of
  • a love interest in a fiercely independent but gentle woman he describes as “a perplexing but utterly enchanting mix of strength and vulnerability"
  • an intelligent female gryphon who becomes his constant companion early on in the story
  • a crusty older woman who mentors him and takes him in tow, trying to help him avoid the pitfalls of his new life
And that’s just in the first book. There are more in the second (currently ‘under construction,’ he said teasingly). But I didn’t write my story with the objective of having strong female characters in mind. My character, Lowri, whom I quote at the beginning of this, simply speaks for me in her views.
 
Now, in several respects, it’s unfortunate this is an issue, or worthy of comment, at all. And surprising to me, too, in this day and age. As an OWG (older white guy) who has spent his entire career as a secondary school teacher, it’s an issue that doesn’t hit me over the head every day: teaching is a pretty egalitarian profession as far as gender goes... I get paid exactly the same as my female colleagues, and have worked with a number of women assistant principals and principals. And they’re every bit as competent as their male counterparts. But apparently I live a pretty sheltered life; several female friends assure me that misogyny is, unfortunately, alive and well in our world of today. And despite the Ellen Ripleys and the Katniss Everdeens out there in film and literature, it seems we have a ways to travel yet.
 
A lot of fantasy --- epic, literary or otherwise --- has, historically, been very male oriented and dominated. As just one example, Frank Frazetta’s numerous images of brawny men with scantily clad women at their feet were most unhelpful in promoting equality between the sexes. And in my obligatory weekly LOTR blog reference, even Tolkien’s female characters are mostly awful. Just awful... although, to be fair, we have to remember when he was writing: England in the first half of the 20th century was hardly a bastion of gender equality. But they’re mostly meek and mild, ornamental background decorations. Even Eowyn, shield maiden of Rohan, who gets to dispatch the Witch-King on the field before Minas Tirith, has really only that one shining moment, and then is relegated to some truly dreadful dialogue as she is wooed by Faramir. We have to give Peter Jackson some credit for giving women a much stronger presence and voice in the film version --- even in The Hobbit with the character of Tauriel... although I wasn’t thrilled about his creation of a character who never existed in the book. That’s Tinkering With The Master, a cardinal sin I have already addressed (read that entry here).
 
So... how do we write strong female characters in fantasy lit? Without being obvious or painfully artificial or patronizing? Well, I have a few ideas on that score... even from my perch as an OWG. I’ll look at them in my next post. And in the meantime, if you have any thoughts on that matter
, send me an email at annalsofarrinor@gmail.com or leave a comment below.

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From Little Acorns...

10/18/2015

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Picture
I was looking today at a timeline for Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander books and was duly impressed... maybe a little bit intimidated, too. There’s a great deal of material, and of course, given that she originally sets her tale in 18th century Scotland, it’s all tied --- rather cleverly, to my admittedly  limited understanding of her story --- to real historical events in Britain, France, and the New World. Did I mention there’s a great deal of material there?
 
I use the word ‘intimidated’ because, as a writer, it is... until you realize that the entire Outlander saga apparently all stems from Ms. Gabaldon --- originally a marine biologist --- viewing a Dr. Who episode years ago and seeing some minor character with a Scots name and kilt, and from that slenderest of inspirations, crafting a story that so far includes eight novels and now, to the delirious delight of its legions of fans, a television series. And she did not have the entire canon --- the full extent of the sweeping canvas that is Outlander’s world --- fully formed from the get-go. Whew. (I may have viewed an episode or six of Outlander... I neither confirm nor deny, but maintain, as they used to say on The X Files, ‘as always, plausible deniability.’ I say this because I frequently tell my students they should always make sure, where there is a written story and a film version, the Civilized Person always reads before viewing.)
 
We could say the same about J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series. Yikes. Look at the creativity and originality. The details. The clever ideas. Intimidating as hell... until we compare the first book (Philosopher’s Stone) to the last (Deathly Hallows). Our introduction to Harry is a rather simple story that doesn’t take long to spin its plot arc. Laid next to the final book, we see a minnow beside a whale.  We see enormous change, a massive increase in complexity of all sorts --- in plot, in details, in characterizations, in texture... in short, just about everything. And while Rowling apparently knew from the start how her series would end, and that it would contain seven volumes, I think it’s fair to make the assertion that there was a great deal of evolution in her saga as it progressed.
 
Or Tolkien, who famously admitted in his foreword to The Lord of the Rings that his tale ‘grew in the telling’ (my obligatory LOTR blog reference for the week out of the way). I also find his confession that his writing of LOTR stalled out for almost a year while the Fellowship was in Moria --- and the accompanying inference that he contemplated abandoning the book altogether --- as extremely comforting. After all, if even The Master can have long creative droughts, and flirt with story abandonment, then what a tremendous relief it is for us mere mortals.
 
My point regarding all three of these very successful writers is that the rest of us should collectively take heart, because all you really need to start with is the germ of a clever idea, things like a marginal character in a TV series; a protagonist first envisioned while traveling on a train (it’s also worth noting that Rowling says on her website that what eventually became the first book bore almost no resemblance to her initial written words on the subject); and, of course, ‘In a hole in the ground lived a hobbit.’
 
(In my case --- although I want to make it abundantly clear I’m not equating myself with the Trinity listed above --- I also began with a simple idea: a door in my classroom that had absolutely no business being there, a door through which I could escape the slings and arrows of a situation that varied between Merely Annoying and Downright Appalling, disappearing into a whole other world, a richer and more vibrant place than the Darkton where I found myself incarcerated. From that little acorn did Gryphon’s Heir grow.)
 
Of course, it takes more than just the germ of an idea, a whole lot more. We ultimately need characters who are more real than some people we actually know; dialogue that sings; events that captivate; details that are plentiful but do not distract or stifle --- in short, a story that will grow, deepen, become ever richer, and mature. But if we are any good at all... that will come, and our tales, too, will grow in the telling.

One final thing... the picture of the tree at the entry's beginning... yes, yes, I know it's not an oak. We don't have any in the semi-arid climate where I live. You'll just have to use your imagination...


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In Praise of Praise

10/10/2015

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There’s nothing like a little ego-boo to lift the spirits, is there?
 
I say that because the Kirkus Indie review of my novel has finally arrived. Actually, it arrived last week, but of course the policy at Kirkus is that an author cannot use their review until after it’s up and on the Kirkus website --- which is fair enough, no complaints there... particularly given the content in their review of Gryphon’s Heir. It is now, so I’m free to quote from it and comment on it.
 
(For those of you not in the loop of the publishing world, Kirkus is one of the big-name outfits who review various books. They have a widespread reputation as one of the pre-eminent reviewers in the business. Last year, they established the Kirkus Prize, a $50,000 literary prize. The Kirkus name carries with it both weight and credibility in the publishing world.)
 
So what did Kirkus say about Gryphon’s Heir? Well, the full text of their review can be found at https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/dr-ranshaw/gryphons-heir/ and also on this website under ‘Reviews.’ And... I may also have put a few of the comments on my home page. Particularly the ones that say: “A literary epic apparently inspired by grand classics such as T.H. White’s The Once and Future King and the poems of Alfred, Lord Tennyson... sharp and absorbing... fabulously layered mythmaking.”
 
Wow. Really? I was quite blown away by those comments. You can compare me to T.H. White and Tennyson any old time you’d like. And ‘fabulously layered mythmaking?’ That’s extremely gratifying.
 
Now, I’ve had many family, friends and colleagues tell me how good the story is and how much they’ve enjoyed reading it. And that’s great, don’t get me wrong. But it’s really nice to hear from an outfit like Kirkus that they like the story, too. Why? Because they’re more impartial than family, friends and colleagues, who either have to like the story or have to pretend to (although not everyone has), in order to spare an emotionally needy writer’s feelings. But Kirkus is under no such constraints. They don’t know me from Adam, as the saying goes, and a positive review is by no means guaranteed. In fact, I had to give my permission for them to publish the review on their website. If I had withheld that permission, the review would have remained private... which implies that sometimes, particularly with indie authors, the review is not especially glowing.
 
(Well, it got me thinking. You gotta tell it like it is. As a teacher, I’m frequently confronted by the same thing. However, as a teacher, I’m also keenly aware of the positive power of affirmation when it’s warranted. Most people love to hear from others --- both known and unknown to us --- when we think we’ve done a good job. And unfortunately, affirmation seems to be a much rarer commodity in our world than criticism. We’re quick to tell people when we think they’ve messed up, much slower to dole out praise. Why is that? It’s rather a sad state of affairs when it’s simpler to point out someone’s faults than it is their strengths.)
 
Anyway... check out the Kirkus review. If you’ve read Gryphon’s Heir and enjoyed it and agree with Kirkus... I’d be really grateful if you’d tell a few people and encourage them to get the novel.
 
If you haven’t read Gryphon’s Heir, read the review anyway, and then... well, what are you doing just sitting there?

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And They All Lived Messily With Complications Ever After

10/3/2015

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“And they all lived happily ever after.”
 
Sigh. How many children’s stories end with that tired, clichéd tag line? And why do authors pull out that limp excuse for a conclusion? Did they suddenly grow tired of writing? Were they called several times to dinner by an irritated spouse and had to finish the story in a tearing hurry? Couldn’t think of anything more original/provocative?
 
I ask this because, at my recent book launch, I was asked a number of times (among numerous questions) how many books there would be in the tale of Rhiss (as many as it takes, I replied rather disingenuously --- more on that another time), and if I know how the story begun in Gryphon’s Heir will ultimately end (because I freely admit Gryphon’s Heir does end on something of a cliff-hanger... which one friend in particular was at pains to tell me she hated, although she generously allowed as to understanding why I did that). Yes, I replied much more straight-forwardly, I do know how the story will end. Now, I could have said, annoyingly and pedantically, that, really, our individual stories in this world end only with our ‘shuffling off this mortal coil.’ But that’s not what people want to know. What they’re asking is: will my plucky protagonist achieve his goal? Will he get the girl and all will be well? That’s what people want to know. I may have been a little evasive on my answers. Well, okay, a lot evasive. After all, you can’t tell people the ending before they’ve read the story, even if they are impatient. Don’t ever be one of those Awful People who peep at the book’s end while still only in the middle, he sternly admonished.
 
But I know why people do that, or ask such questions, or default to the happily-ever-after thing: it’s because we seek resolution, don’t we? We crave surety and shun uncertainty. Uncertainty gives rise to all sorts of fears related to the unknown. And my gosh, most of us are absolutely terrified of the unknown. (Despite the fact that, ironically, we tend to get unutterably bored with too much surety. Well, nobody ever said humans aren’t full of paradoxes... at least, I’ve never said that.) I suppose that, amidst all the vicissitudes, the slings and arrows of outrageous fortune in real life, we tend to like stories wrapped up in neat, tidy little boxes with bows on top. But “they all lived happily ever after” is something of a cheat. It sets kids up with all kinds of unrealistic expectations. And it unrealistically implies there is an ending to the tale.
 
Two stories in particular I use with my classes illustrate this point, and they drive kids absolutely wild: The Lady or the Tiger and its sequel, The Discourager of Hesitancy, by Frank Stockton. These are great short stories, but the source of the frustration for students is that both end on very inconclusive notes, asking readers to make their own conclusions based on individual interpretations of human nature. (After the kids express their outrage over The Lady or the Tiger, I mention innocently that there is a sequel addressing the question left unresolved in the first story, and would they like to hear it? Yes! they invariably respond. But their eager anticipation is swiftly dashed, poor things, when they discover that the closure --- the resolution they so desperately want --- is just not happening, the second story ending just as indeterminately as the first.)
 
And yet indeterminate endings are not necessarily bad, are they? One of my favourite examples in support of this contention is the 2000 film Cast Away, starring Tom Hanks as a driven, type A FedEx employee whose plane crashes in the Pacific Ocean. As the only survivor, Hanks’ character is marooned on a tropical island for several years before he manages to escape and is rescued. Returning to civilization, he is devastated to discover that, inevitably but tragically, the people in his world have had to move on in his absence --- including his fiancée, the love of his life, whose memory sustained him during his years of isolation. She has married someone else and had a child in the time he was gone, and cannot dissolve that union to reunite with him. At the film’s end, Hanks’ character stands at a crossroads --- literally and figuratively.  (The imagery is a tad obvious, but we’ll forgive the screenwriter for hitting us over the head with a two by four. Sometimes, obvious is not a bad thing. Sometimes.) If the film’s writer observed the “happily-ever-after” rule, the fiancée would either have cast away (sorry; awful pun) her husband and child to reunite with Hanks’ character, or more sensitively, would not have been hitched and therefore unavailable in the first place. But life isn’t always like that, is it? Life isn’t clean and tidy and simple. It’s full of messy complications, conceits, conundrums and convolutions.
 
And, of course, the Master doesn’t end with happily-ever-after. (As a friend who should remain anonymous has so kindly pointed out, what’s a blog post of mine without some reference to The Lord of the Rings? Thank you so much. You Know Who You Are.) Frodo saves Middle Earth, but not, as he points out, for him; he’s too badly wounded, physically and spiritually, and the book concludes with him, as Lev Grossman so aptly puts it, ‘skipping town with the elves.’ If Tolkien had done happily-ever-after, Frodo would have married, become Thain of the Shire, been feted, wined and dined endlessly, won all kinds of humanitarian awards, gone on triumphant speaking tours recounting his adventures, and written bestselling books with titles like “Ringing in the New Age.” (Sorry again.) But Tolkien didn’t, and so neither did Frodo, and we were left with a rather weepy ending to both book and film that, I think, many found vaguely unsatisfying... but not altogether unrealistic.
 
So... where does that leave the protagonist of my story? Does it end well for him? Neatly and tidily? Or messily and untidily?
 
Well, stay tuned. I’m plotting as fast as I can, you know.

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    D.R. Ranshaw's Blog

    Author of The Annals of Arrinor series.  Lover of great literature, fine wine, and chocolate. Not necessarily in that order.

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