 Fantasy: December 09, 2015 Issue [#7362] |
  Fantasy
This week: When a Mage Has a Cold Edited by: Dawn Embers  
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An Elf Fantasy Newsletter
Today we look at the issue of illness and how that might affect characters, in particular those who wield magic. |
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Tis the season for many things, and unfortunately one of those is the cold or flu. Aside from working in a place where people will go when they are sick to buy things, I happen to also be an elf who has a cold. Which means, we're going to talk about that for this newsletter, but not really about me or work but illness is a factor in our lives that can also be used within fantasy stories. Not only do we get sick here but there are many different illnesses and situations that will cause issues for the characters.
The issue can be a small bit, a way to move the story forward or sometimes create an extra stall or problem to keep things from moving too fast. It can also be a huge factor over the story as the main part of the conflict. One of the self-published books I reviewed a few years ago involved a plague-like illness that was sweeping over communities and how different main characters were dealt with struggles. It did make for quite an interesting read and is an example of one of the many options in speculative fiction.
However, we can also look at illness or colds on a more individual level. And so, I offer this question for those who are writing characters who have magic abilities:
What if the character has a cold or some other illness? Would it affect their magic abilities?
I have to admit, I haven't dealt much with colds and my magic characters but it's something that I may consider for a few writing exercises. It can be the main character or a secondary, either can have interesting results depending on the magic system and the characters.
Plus, different characters will react to being sick in a variety of ways. There may be the one who ignores it. As long as they don't acknowledge the chance of being sick then it can't possibly be true. Then there is the character who the slightest illness will make them revert to a childish state of existence. Others might have a systemic approach to how they combat any form of illness and not want to stray off for any reason. All kinds of fun and potential.
And the questions remain. What happens if a mage gets a cold? Does magic things happen at random, like when they sneeze? Can they not do magic at all? That would be a problem at times, for sure. When building that magic system, don't forget to ask a few of these questions, because it just might give you an interesting scene or situation to your magic. Have fun and get writing. |
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Would a cold or something like the flu affect your character's magic? How?
Last month, I discussed the family unit within fantasy and science fiction. These are the two comments sent in over the topic:
Comment by Quick-Quill 
My novel is about family. It deals with the elements of why a family split. why no one talked about Grandma Katherine. With out being preachy I told about a family caught up in desires for a better life and what it cost when a town became revengeful. Check out my Port for more about the story. You can buy it on Amazon.
Comment by remusmdh 
What family members are important to the conflict in your story?
The assault and subsequent brain death of the adoptive daughter of the unofficial main character of my works (she/it is non humanoid, so the stories are generally not directly from her POV but from human POV's) sparked off several stories of mine in the last year. And before that, several stories revolved around their adoptive mother - daughter relationship.
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