Episode 185: How Much Is That Wyvern in the Window? ft. JOHN WISWELL
About this episode
John Wiswell discusses the domestication of animals and their roles in fantasy worlds.
People and animals have lived together in lots of ways for thousands upon thousands of years -- and humans, as we know, will attempt to pack-bond with anything. But what does the domestication of animals mean in worlds that might have fantastical creatures or critters who can talk? Guest John Wiswell joins us to discuss the friend-shaped beings that inhabit our fantasy worlds. When did your culture domesticate animals, and which ones, and why? What distinguishes a merely domesticated animal from a true companion? Which creatures might be normal pets, and which ones are more off-beat or even taboo? What does it mean if you can tame a dragon, or if your kitty familiar can talk to you? And then, of course, writers also need to consider what role these animals play in the story: Do they serve a narrative purpose? Or are they just there to fill out the world and acknowledge that, yes, humans generally love animals and want them around? [Transcript for Episode 185 TK] Our Guest: John Wiswell is a Nebula-winning and Locus-winning author who lives in the middle of the woods. His debut novel, SOMEONE YOU CAN BUILD A NEST IN, was released from DAW Books in the U.S. and Arcadia Books in the…
More episodes of Worldbuilding for Masochists
- Episode 184: Building Better Cities
- Episode 183: Tell Me What You Want, What You Really, Really Want
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