Dissecting Dragons

There are few phrases as bedight with dubious associations as 'for a modern audience'. In terms of storytelling, are we saying that the original story was flawed? That tends not to go down well with fans of the original. Or, conversely, does the phrase mean that a modern audience is somehow incapable of engaging with the original and needs to have the material dumbed down? Despite the trickiness o...

Music has a peculiar relationship with the supernatural, and no branch more so than the occult. Certain musical genres have a long association with the devil, both in folklore and urban legend. But why is that? Where did those stories originate? And how has this shaped modern horror and SFF? This week the dragons dive into Rock'n'Roll to unravel the devil's music. On the slab this week - The Infer...

From devices of comedy to alien antagonists to symbols of deep seated corruption, mushrooms and fungi make strangely appropriate side characters. They are used as set dressing, as indicators of other realms and as terrible weapons. Appropriately, they have woven tendrils so firmly through fiction that it's pretty much impossible to work out when they first entered storytelling cannon - potentially...

On a lighter note this week, the dragons delve into a well loved trope which has its origins in folk and fairy tales, shifting and adapting for audiences over the centuries to reflect the socio economics of the time. The clever servant-foolish master dynamic is one which is still enjoyed today, balancing inequalities of social position, wealth and status with intellect, cunning and personability....

It's no secret that the dragons are fans of musicals, so they should be delighted by all the film adaptations of popular stage shows, right? Well, that's not entirely the case. There are a variety of reasons why a stage production may not work as a film and vice versa, not withstanding any internet drama that blows up in the wake of an adaptation. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at why...

It's pretty well established that truth is stranger than fiction, but what do you do when the facts are literally too unlikely for a reader to swallow? When historical accuracy or authenticity is likely to bounce your reader out of your story for being unrealistic? Welcome to The Tiffany Problem. This week Jules and Madeleine examine this phenomenon, follow a trail through some examples and finall...

Possession is a regular trope in horror and sci-fi. The idea that a physical body could be taken over by an external entity is as disturbing as it is enticing. However, there are many sub categories of this kind of bodysnatching, from parasites that physically puppeteer to Freaky Friday-esque body swaps. This week, Jules and Madeleine delve into the humour and horror of the trope, drawing on a wid...

Generations of a family punished for the ill-advised actions or an ancestor? Crossed paths with the sidhe and worded an answer impolitely? Fallen foul of someone's desire for revenge? Chances are, in speculative fiction, the problem will turn out to be a curse. It may not really be the oldest speculative fiction trope but it's definitely got history.  In this episode of the Dragons' spooky season,...

Continuing with the spooky season, this week the dragons delve into the popular sub genre of survival horror. While you could argue that the point of every horror story is survival, this sub genre takes it to the next level with characters pitted against nature, the wild and even space - sometimes with a twist of the supernatural thrown in.  But how do you go about writing survival horror that lan...

The dragons kick off spooky season with a look at one of the staples of horror - the haunted house. It's so ubiquitous now that haunted house stories are really a sub genre in their own right with their own tropes and conventions. So why do some haunted house stories work while others fall flat? This week Jules and Madeleine present a blueprint on how to build your own haunted house story complete...

Part two of a two part episode   Most speculative fiction will involve traumatising your main character at some point but how do you make it clear to a reader or viewer that this is what is happening without ponderously 'telling' it? What narrative techniques can be employed to show this instead? How do you deliver the message with emotion without tilting over into melodrama? How do you make traum...

Part one of a two part episode   Most speculative fiction will involve traumatising your main character at some point but how do you make it clear to a reader or viewer that this is what is happening without ponderously 'telling' it? What narrative techniques can be employed to show this instead? How do you deliver the message with emotion without tilting over into melodrama? How do you make traum...

Part 2 of a 2 part episode Following on from last week's over view episode, this week Jules and Madeleine get, appropriately, into the details of what to include or exclude when writing and worldbuilding. Speculative fiction can, by it's very nature, require extensive world building which in turn requires plenty of detail. But how do you know what to include or exclude? How much detail should you...

Part 1 of a 2 part episode The dragons are back and gearing up for spooky season. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at the thorny issue of 'details'. Speculative fiction can, by it's very nature, require extensive world building which in turn requires plenty of detail. But how do you know what to include or exclude? How much detail should you go for? Is there such a thing as too much deta...

Please note this episode contains spoilers for all the shows and books mentioned! It's the human in superhuman which is the interesting aspect of the superhero genre, which is why the genre is so good at holding up a dark mirror to the worst aspects of humanity as well as being aspiration. This week Jules and Madeleine delve into the murky waters of dark superheroes looking at parallels between fa...

Not every story can be or needs to be high octane intensity. In fact some of the best books are objectively quiet affairs. Low stakes does not mean low story or lack of compelling reading or viewing experience however. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at why low stakes can be just as enthralling as high stakes, and in many ways can provide deeper connections between the reader and the ch...

Myths and stories from the classical world have always been popular inspiring works of art, poetry, books and plays across centuries. Lately, Greek mythology has enjoyed an even bigger revival powered by the era of the 'feminist retelling'. However, while many of these books may be enjoyable stories in their own right, they are almost always bad retellings of the original source material - althoug...

Every profession has at some point suffered from misrepresentation in fiction, however the inaccurate way writers are often depicted in screenplays is especially ironic. However, the dragons do acknowledge that exaggeration and outright fabrication often make for better storytelling so with that in mind, Jules and Madeleine take a look at the main writer character types used in fiction. From torme...

If you're a long term listener, you'll already be aware that the concept of 'genre' is mostly just a tool to aid categorisation, especially when it comes to selling books. That said, there are points on the timeline that are considered recognised emergence points for specific major genres. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at the evolution of fantasy: where did the idea come from? When di...

If you're a long term listener, you'll already be aware that the concept of 'genre' is mostly just a tool to aid categorisation, especially when it comes to selling books. That said, there are points on the timeline that are considered recognised emergence points for specific major genres. This week, Jules and Madeleine take a look at the evolution of fantasy: where did the idea come from? When di...

Dinosaurs and prehistoric megafauna have been capturing human imagination for centuries. Certain myths may well have been partially shaped by the discovery of dinosaur bones, whilst our progressing understanding of the dinosaurs 180 million year reign and how it ended, has coloured our understanding of our own place in the natural order.  No surprise then that dinosaurs should appear in so much fi...

Storytelling is a powerful tool for exploring difficult issues - both in terms of catharsis and also at a distance. This is especially true for death and bereavement. While the dragons have discussed grief in speculative fiction before, this week they are examining bereavement as a storytelling mode in its own right. How do you write bereavement in a way that isn't overwhelming, off-putting or jus...

It's time for another episode in the fairytales in focus series and this week the dragons are delving into one of the best known and (inexplicably?) best beloved. The tale of the Sleeping Beauty has gone through many permutations over the centuries and most likely has an oral tradition that was even older. It has been co-opted by Medieval Romantic poetry, pops up in Norse sagas, and was even used...

The villain who redeems themself is a highly popular trope, but so is it's mirror and sister trope - the hero who becomes the villain. Operating on the assumption that no one is born 'bad', this trope is an engaging look at how someone might gradually descend into villainy and not even realise until after they have arrived.  This week, the dragons discuss how to tackle this storyline in a way that...

Nineteenth century novels remain rich fodder both for adaptation and complete reimagining. However, it is rarely as easy as writers and screenwriters believe to strike the balance between respect for the source material, alteration to provide accessibility for a modern audience and presenting the themes which made the book a classic in the first place. This week Jules and Madeleine take a look at...