The Hero’s Journey: Initiation

Years ago, I talked about the influence of Joseph Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces (one of my recommended resources), and how I saw Mystical Greenwood as the Departure phase in the hero’s journey. Thus, I planned for Beneath the Deep Wave to be the next phase, known as the Initiation. Likewise, I sought to look for little ways to stand out from the traditional storyline.

The “Road of Trials” is most prevalent in this phase, so I knew there would be a lot of traveling like in the first book. However, when I look at both books together, in terms of plots spelled out in another resource I recommend, 20 Master Plots and How to Build Them, I see Mystical Greenwood more of as an actual “Quest” story whereas Beneath the Deep Wave is much more an “Adventure.” The seeking more aligns with what the book refers to as the MacGuffin (made famous by Hitchcock). It makes sense, I suppose, since the Trials are meant to prove the hero’s worth.

I knew going in also that Beneath the Deep Wave was going to include romance, so this would tie in more with the “Woman as Temptress” rather than “Meeting the Goddess,” as I’d imagined Dermot might be faced with a dilemma: would his love compromise his vows to his magical order? Then, of course, there’s the “Atonement with the Father.” By the end, I don’t know whether this is a combination of “Apotheosis” and “Ultimate Boon,” but in some ways, akin to Dan Brown’s The Da Vinci Code, I thought about physical vs. symbolic treasures, in this case tying them in with the elements and the natural world. I shouldn’t say any more, for fear of spoilers.

I’ll end this post by saying that the last phase, the Return, will be and is an inspiration for the plot in last book in One with Nature. Happy Father’s Day!