tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post2298481355228365957..comments2023-09-07T07:16:10.305-04:00Comments on Flights of Fantasy: Thoughts on princessesMarian Pererahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comBlogger16125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-16525585711473269572009-03-20T18:26:00.000-04:002009-03-20T18:26:00.000-04:00C.S. Lewis created an ugly princess as his main ch...C.S. Lewis created an ugly princess as his main character in 'Til We Have Faces.' She also struggles with jealousy of her beautiful, and adored, little sister. Great retelling of the Psyche myth.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-18935620388991669052009-03-20T10:14:00.000-04:002009-03-20T10:14:00.000-04:00Good point about women in high positions, garridon...Good point about women in high positions, garridon. <BR/><BR/>There’s a trilogy which I’ve heard deals very well with a woman’s rise to power – the <I>Daughter of the Empire</I> series by Raymond Furst and Janny Weiss. Otherwise, a lot of stories make the mistake of having the woman be too caring and idealistic, though <I>A Game of Thrones</I> spikes this neatly with Dany and Mirri Maz Duur.<BR/><BR/>My personal pet peeve is the woman who leads a land but insists that everyone is equal, or should be equal. This is anachronistic, and if she really favors some form of socialism, why not put her money where her mouth is and give up her title?Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-3918015701076344022009-03-20T09:24:00.000-04:002009-03-20T09:24:00.000-04:00Hey GunnerJ,That's right - if you use too exotic a...Hey GunnerJ,<BR/><BR/>That's right - if you use too exotic a title you'll need an exotic culture as well. <BR/><BR/>To a certain degree, though, you can push this without having to make major changes to the culture. I'm thinking something similar to the Roman naming conventions (e.g. a cognomen or agnomen) might work without being so evidently foreign that they tipped the believability scales.Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-40687831290482754732009-03-20T08:55:00.000-04:002009-03-20T08:55:00.000-04:00Odd, I know I commented here yesterday...but I don...Odd, I know I commented here yesterday...but I don't see the comment! And now I forget what I said. Good thoughts, however.writtenwyrddhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02280711822302493122noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-43469599738352325952009-03-20T02:09:00.000-04:002009-03-20T02:09:00.000-04:00Well written - I did a quick recall on princess no...Well written - I did a quick recall on princess novels and realized most conform to those storylines.<BR/><BR/>You can't beat princess appeal...in my kindergarten yearbook "FAQ" under "What do you want to be when you grow up" I wrote "mermaid princess."Martha Flynnhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07577165520610942727noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-74938756577561997482009-03-19T09:01:00.000-04:002009-03-19T09:01:00.000-04:00Hey Tara,I love TV tropes, but whenever I visit th...Hey Tara,<BR/><BR/>I love TV tropes, but whenever I visit that site, temporal anomalies happen to me. I look up from the computer and two hours have passed. It's weird.<BR/><BR/>But thanks for the link. :) I'll check it out.Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-24042294763942178862009-03-18T21:53:00.000-04:002009-03-18T21:53:00.000-04:00I think you would like my princess, Aduan. Though ...I think you would like my princess, Aduan. Though she's considered the most beautiful woman in her land, her soul is not kind. She's selfish and rude and has to overcome this.Madisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05216166392239865356noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-61775151121932010102009-03-18T21:42:00.000-04:002009-03-18T21:42:00.000-04:00Princess come in three flavors: Amazonian warriors...Princess come in three flavors: Amazonian warriors, spoiled rich brats and weak damsels in distress. <BR/><BR/>I like the way many of the females in Dune were portrayed. Princess Irulan for one is no dummy, and while she certainly play the part of the spoiled brat she is a keen scholar.<BR/><BR/>lady Jessica also shows how women struggle in a male centric society and how women can and often do wield power behind the scenes. Problem is that many of these so called powerful women "succumb" to the attention of men. Wheel of Time: Nuff said!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-31543043064385291032009-03-18T19:21:00.000-04:002009-03-18T19:21:00.000-04:00"Aspirational object" - accurate and succinct, Joy..."Aspirational object" - accurate <I>and</I> succinct, Joy. :)<BR/><BR/>Interesting - I've never come across any princess who was ugly (unless it was the result of a curse and she was actually the opposite). Though <I>A Song of Ice and Fire</I> has Brienne of Tarth. I don't think she'll ever be as popular as the more attractive characters, but she's definitely memorable.Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-29363003721187381952009-03-18T19:06:00.000-04:002009-03-18T19:06:00.000-04:00Hey bryngreenwood,Melanie Wilkes in Gone with the ...Hey bryngreenwood,<BR/><BR/>Melanie Wilkes in <I>Gone with the Wind</I> was a gentle and compassionate person as well, but at the same time she was strong and loyal. Even Scarlett didn't step too far out of social boundaries at the start.<BR/><BR/>Still, GWTW isn't spec fic and wasn't written in this day and age. On the other hand, a good enough writer can make almost any character believable and sympathetic. I'm sure you'll do well with your character. At least she'll stand out from the kick-ass pack!Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-58077428810743401362009-03-18T18:54:00.000-04:002009-03-18T18:54:00.000-04:00I'd like to see a princess who is plain or ugly - ...I'd like to see a princess who is plain or ugly - not disfigured, but just not pretty. Things like scars still seems to tell me that a princess has to have a reason for not being beautiful, but how about one that simply wasn't born that way? How about a spoiled willful naive princess, with real consequences for being that way? I've seen a few attempts at spoilt princesses, but the hero still manages to fall in love with her, and no one seems to mind that she's really annoying :) Or how about a princess who is vindictive and cruel because she's spoilt and bored, but not necessarily evil? There are so many possibilities when you think about making a princess a person, not just an aspirational object.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-44365168248963270382009-03-18T18:28:00.000-04:002009-03-18T18:28:00.000-04:00No princesses in mine, but I do have an empress. ...No princesses in mine, but I do have an empress. Since it's a modern setting, she's like the powerful women in Washington, DC. I won't say she's unattractive (especially since the press is highly interested in getting the scoop on the rumored affair she's having with an assasin), but she has a hard edge to her appearance that comes to women of high positions like that. She dresses conversatively, in the boring way Washington, DC politicians dress (very safe). And she is a secondary character who probably gets three or four scenes in the entire book.<BR/><BR/>In writing her, I've had to balance things out very carefully. When I've seen women in high positions in books (primarily the ones written by women), they tend to make the character unbelievable. In one, I couldn't believe that the women character had survived political elections and the press to become Vice President. In another, the character was so obnoxious that she was a b---- and probably would have never gotten anywhere. The women I've seen play by the rules, but also show strength and knowledge and occasionally bite someone's head off. While they might smile and be friendly, they'll also tend to be a little distant.<BR/><BR/>Names are where things got interesting. The whole family has unusual first names, and nearly everyone went by a middle name at the first opportunity. This, of course, created quite a stir when the empress started going by her middle name, and the press spent months with front page headlines about it ...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-83616067545026619402009-03-18T15:51:00.000-04:002009-03-18T15:51:00.000-04:00About the title: I have looked up titles of nobili...About the title: I have looked up titles of nobility from non-European cultures for inspiration, just to have an idea of the different cultural "flavors" available. But switching one (familiar/European) title for its (exotic/non-European) equivalent is not a neutral move. Consider the mental images and expectations the following names bring to mind:<BR/><BR/>Princess Nina<BR/>Nina-hime<BR/><BR/>"-hime" is the Japanese title (in that language, they are suffixes) meaning "Princess," but you can't just switch languages and word-order and expect a story about Nina to be the same either way.JHhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07899470444492391820noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-72009937697378211762009-03-18T12:24:00.000-04:002009-03-18T12:24:00.000-04:00I got a lot of guff from early readers on my curre...I got a lot of guff from early readers on my current project. The female lead (not the MC), isn't a princess, but she is the daughter of a god. She is also, and this was the source of the complaint, very peaceful and gentle. No ass-kicking, hyper-feminism. "She's too passive!" people said. To which I said, "Ghandi didn't kung-fu fight India to independence."Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-12758354763377903262009-03-18T08:03:00.000-04:002009-03-18T08:03:00.000-04:00She is womyn; hear me snore! Love the humor!She is womyn; hear me snore! Love the humor!Hazardgalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17440005970258168595noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-44319025106337436472009-03-18T06:51:00.000-04:002009-03-18T06:51:00.000-04:00Well, as you know, everything's better with prince...Well, as you know, everything's better with princesses.<BR/><BR/>http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/ptitlewop4ao6cwrhn?from=Main.EverythingsBetterWithPrincessesTara Mayahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09095632631554776002noreply@blogger.com