Showing posts with label fiction. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fiction. Show all posts

Saturday, August 8, 2009

Religion and "Forbidden Children"

 About four people on the planet have seen the prologue to this novel. The Prologue is the story of how the Immortal Clans came into existence, and it runs parallel and with the Christian story of Creation, Adam and Eve, and Noah. 
 Most Immortals (and all of the ones featured in the novel) believe in a Higher Power. Most refer to that Higher Power as God, but the Immortals accept any name given to that being (God, Allah, the Creator, etc). To them, all of those names refer to the same being. Immortals are not as stringent as humans when it comes to religious beliefs; they feel that every culture is entitled to their set of beliefs and celebrate the similarities between major religions rather than the differences. 
 The Higher Power belief is very strong in the Immortal world, but I chose not to go too much deeper into their spirituality with the fear that it would take away from the Forbidden Children plot (and later the Tylea's Blood plot, which is the working title for book two). And yes, the vampires and werewolves believe in a Higher Power as well. 
 This, of course, brings up the ever touchy subject of religion in fictional works. Heads of different religions appear to be wary of the questioning or altering of their beliefs, even in a work of fiction. Look no further than some of Dan Brown's novels and the reaction of the Catholic Church to see an example. I believe that many writers don't go in trying to attack a particular religion (although some do); we go in to write a compelling story, and religion is one way to make a story compelling. 
 Rest assured that even though religion does pop up often in Forbidden Children, I am not trying to attack or dismiss a religion. I am introducing you to a world different from your own, beliefs different from your own, and a general world view that is different from your own.

Friday, March 20, 2009

The Sapira

Much like the Congress of the United States or Parliament in the United Kingdom, the Sapira is the governing body of the Immortals. This group has at least one representative from every nation that has Immortals. While the Ten Commandments are the basic rules of Immortal life, the Sapira created laws "inspired by God's divine intervention" for the Immortals to follow.
The members of the Sapira usually stay in their home countries, although about 25 of them remain at the Immortal headquarters, Great Hall, permanently. The Sapira meet regularly about three times a year, but can also be summoned at a moment's notice in emergencies and in dealing with major violations of Immortal law. The Sapira not only vote on lawas, but also act as a jury of peers during major trials. A two-thirds vote is needed for a law or sentence to pass.
Members of the Sapira have to be at least 275 years of age. The senior members, some of whom are founding members of the Sapira, have the most power and are allowed to debate or invite other younger members to debate. The Sapira's verdict or vote can still be overturned by one governing body that is above them...The Immortal Elders.