Books are portals to other realms and must be kept in secure locations to prevent untrained persons from accidentally accessing them and potentially putting themselves in harms way, but when a Reader drops one on a subway and an Untrained picks it up, the Untrained discovers that there may be more to it than meets the eyes.
It’s my newest plot bunny. Hands off. I’ll be writing it like- Next month.
But anyways- Thoughts? Would you read? What do you think of the title? (Usually I’m pretty confident in mine but this time I’m nervous)
Mods, if I’m in the wrong spot please correct, but I think I’m fine here.
I don’t know about the title – sounds like something YA – but the plot sounds awesome, and I love books about books and magical libraries, like The Starless Sea, Shadow of the Wind, Midnight Library, etc. I’d definitely check it out. ( ˆ◡ˆ)۶ ٩(˘◡˘ )
I’ll figure more of this out in prewriting after I finish SoC, but thank you for giving me food for thought!
Picture books I imagine will work similarly to Atlases, which I’ll be working with a lot throughout the story.
I know, I’ve just grown very protective of this one.
It may well be. It’ll probably end up being on the shorter side, maybe even a novella, and I definitely see this one with a more playful tone than anything I’ve written recently (Wrath of Leviathan was deliberately depressing, Sword of Courage is getting pretty dark, and Under A Thousand Dying Stars is a whimsical piece but kinda hopeless tbh), so who knows. Could end up fitting quite nicely into the YA category.
That sounds like such an interesting concept! And I really love the title, I would definitely read a story with that title.
So if books aren’t allowed, what about written language? Are most people just illiterate unless they’re a Reader? Is history passed down orally? Do the Readers teach people about general education things? Since you said a Reader dropped a book on a subway, I assume that means that it’s a more modern setting. Are Readers the ones making all the technological advances then, since so many technological advances rely on the written language so that communication about it stays consistent? Or are Untrained people allowed to write things down, just not allowed to read writings? What about factual writings vs fictional writings? Does something like a scientific article have the same effect as a story with a plot? Or someone journalling? I know other people have asked, but what about pictures? Is it specifically books that lead to other realms, or just stories, or writing of any kind? In the transportation to other realms thing, is there any way to get out of those realms? Are you just mentally stuck in the realm and your physical body is in a coma type state in the real world, or is your whole physical body there? Is getting transported to other realms a guaranteed thing if you’re reading a book, or are there conditions that need to be fulfilled to be transported? Or does it happen on command? You don’t have to answer all of these right here (although I wouldn’t complain if you did), they’re just some of the questions that I’d want to see answered in a story about this.
adds to reading list