Karen Azinger's Blog: The Silk & Steel Saga - Posts Tagged "spock"

Cultures are the spice of life, one of the prime reasons we travel. Cultures are the kaleidoscopic lens that lets us see the world from different perspectives. Some cultures are exotic, some are strange and colorful, while others appear familiar till we brush against subtle differences like walking through cobwebs. Cultures also clash, providing a prime source of tension in the real world and in storytelling. Tolkien was a master at creating unique and different cultures. Elves, dwarves, and men all had their unique cultures, their own histories, legends and lore. To make Erdhe a rich and vibrant land, one of the things I wanted to do as an author was to have pockets of forgotten peoples with unique cultures in The Silk & Steel Saga. Overlooked and often persecuted, these forgotten people develop unique counter cultures that seem strange and mysterious at first contact. An example of this can be found on the Isle of Souls, where the council of mystics uses a shocking test to confirm their fortunetellers. Those who succeed gain ‘spirit hands’ for the lintels of their shops…while those who fail pay in flesh and blood. Borrowed from the mystics of India, this trial is the type of cultural detail that gives the Isle of Souls a sense of depth and realism. As a writer, I not only need to develop these alternate cultures but I need to "show them", not just "tell them". "Showing" a culture is usually done in the details (think of Spock in Star Trek with his unique 'Live long and prosper' greeting). To increase tension, these subtle details should confuse, or shock, or surprise the point of view character as well as the reader. These detailed differences are the key to making alternate cultures rich and believable. When Kath first meets the painted warriors in The Skeleton King, she has a conversation with a healer. On the surface it seems like a simple conversations but then Kath realizes that her words are land-mined with subtle misunderstandings. "Kath felt as if she teetered on the edge of a chasm, a division of history and customs, a great divide sundering potential allies." Somehow Kath has to understand the culture of the painted warriors and find a way to bridge the gap. In the Silk & Steel Saga, readers will discover many forgotten peoples with their own unique cultures.