The network of gods idea is interesting and o think it handles communication to other gods well. Plus there was a bunch of character building in that scene. It's a refreshing take, I think, since gods are typically at each other's throats. Would male gods be more father like? How do male and female gods interact?
How deities and their ilk will be treated in any story I write will ultimately be dependent on the story itself, but I do have preferences that I lean towards. Generally speaking, I prefer the divine to be distant in my fantasy. Naturally there are exceptions, Moorcock's Elric stories being among them since we're actively shown characters like Arioch and other Lords of Chaos and Law, the closest things to gods present in those stories.
For my own work I like to keep the gods distant, to preserve the mystique of the supernatural. I want that to be something my readers wonder at, a decision they reach for themselves based on how they interact with and interpret the writing. Supernatural forces - everything ranging from magic, to spirits, to monsters, and the gods themselves - are the most interesting to me when they hit that challenging middle ground of feeling as though they belong in the setting and story, while still carrying a sense of mystery and the unknown about them.
Personally, gods that act personable are... not really gods, in my book. They're powerful, they certainly get some sort of connection out of prayer... but I'm reminded of a Crom song, The Stars Will Fall. There is a risk of serious doom in such a world. They themselves feel like they're at the whim of some more elder god, who is the true king of the universe.
Rather, I prefer the divine be a level above the mortal. If they are present in the story, aloof. A king or queen over their domain. They aren't something you're going to share a tortilla with. The example that comes to mind is how the majority of the gods in the web musical EPIC behave.
In my work , Aeron's Flame, I wrestle with three questions. Do the gods shape us? Do we shape the gods? How could an immortal not be driven at least a little mad from dealing with people?
You wrote them beautifully! My goddess (in the series) tends to be distant and I think it’s time to find out why given that she was once so connected to the draig môr.
"One problem with modern fantasy is that it mentions gods, goddesses, and demigods but rarely fleshes them out."
I disagree that this is a problem. Real life religions are often vague on who or what gods are, and when they seem to act out of character, it's explained as another aspect of who they are. I don't think it's a problem when books leave gods vague, I think it's reflective of reality, and a valid stylistic choice.
I also don't think there's anything wrong with going the other way. The example you provide of a very personal goddess can also be interesting. To answer your question, I wouldn't say "more" interesting, no, but for this story, it works very well. For other stories, more vague and distant gods work well, especially for characters exploring questions or crises of faith.
My world has one true God and several powerful beings who are seen as gods (and basically are, just not on technicality, but then that itself plays with vague definitions of what a god actually is). The one true God is seen only as much as the wind is—he has a hand in everything and you can find his impact if you look for it, but there's no distinct proof in the world that he's there at all. The lesser "gods" are much more personal and active, and one of them is the antagonist of the story. (This in some ways reflects my beliefs of God and gods in real life.)
I don't think my way of writing gods is better or worse than anyone else's. It all depends on what serves the story. Aslan works very well in Narnia, but would have ruined the story of Lord of the Rings.
This is an interesting thought experiment JW, I've never give my Manorian Deity much thought. I mean I did think about her, create a little legend, but never considered giving her her own story that could actually be something. She was always just a history lesson for my two guys, a bedtime story, a myth to dream on. Maybe this could be something. I wish I had time to give it the attention it deserves. I'll add it to the TBW list of drafts.
To me personally the idea of a mother in the sky sounds very nice and cozy. In fantasy though I feel keeping some mystery in religion can add a lot of intrigue to the story. There are many ways to go about this that don't involve keeping your Gods completely alfot. I prefer a higharchy with some political intrigue, more like kings ruling their separate nations rather than one big family. I feel there is more room this way to preserve some of the mystery. My God's aren't nearly as involved as yours though. They generally just observe and would only answer a direct question like this if they were particularly infatuated with a mortal.
The network of gods idea is interesting and o think it handles communication to other gods well. Plus there was a bunch of character building in that scene. It's a refreshing take, I think, since gods are typically at each other's throats. Would male gods be more father like? How do male and female gods interact?
How deities and their ilk will be treated in any story I write will ultimately be dependent on the story itself, but I do have preferences that I lean towards. Generally speaking, I prefer the divine to be distant in my fantasy. Naturally there are exceptions, Moorcock's Elric stories being among them since we're actively shown characters like Arioch and other Lords of Chaos and Law, the closest things to gods present in those stories.
For my own work I like to keep the gods distant, to preserve the mystique of the supernatural. I want that to be something my readers wonder at, a decision they reach for themselves based on how they interact with and interpret the writing. Supernatural forces - everything ranging from magic, to spirits, to monsters, and the gods themselves - are the most interesting to me when they hit that challenging middle ground of feeling as though they belong in the setting and story, while still carrying a sense of mystery and the unknown about them.
Personally, gods that act personable are... not really gods, in my book. They're powerful, they certainly get some sort of connection out of prayer... but I'm reminded of a Crom song, The Stars Will Fall. There is a risk of serious doom in such a world. They themselves feel like they're at the whim of some more elder god, who is the true king of the universe.
Rather, I prefer the divine be a level above the mortal. If they are present in the story, aloof. A king or queen over their domain. They aren't something you're going to share a tortilla with. The example that comes to mind is how the majority of the gods in the web musical EPIC behave.
Great approach.
In my work , Aeron's Flame, I wrestle with three questions. Do the gods shape us? Do we shape the gods? How could an immortal not be driven at least a little mad from dealing with people?
My answer to all three is, yes.
You wrote them beautifully! My goddess (in the series) tends to be distant and I think it’s time to find out why given that she was once so connected to the draig môr.
"One problem with modern fantasy is that it mentions gods, goddesses, and demigods but rarely fleshes them out."
I disagree that this is a problem. Real life religions are often vague on who or what gods are, and when they seem to act out of character, it's explained as another aspect of who they are. I don't think it's a problem when books leave gods vague, I think it's reflective of reality, and a valid stylistic choice.
I also don't think there's anything wrong with going the other way. The example you provide of a very personal goddess can also be interesting. To answer your question, I wouldn't say "more" interesting, no, but for this story, it works very well. For other stories, more vague and distant gods work well, especially for characters exploring questions or crises of faith.
My world has one true God and several powerful beings who are seen as gods (and basically are, just not on technicality, but then that itself plays with vague definitions of what a god actually is). The one true God is seen only as much as the wind is—he has a hand in everything and you can find his impact if you look for it, but there's no distinct proof in the world that he's there at all. The lesser "gods" are much more personal and active, and one of them is the antagonist of the story. (This in some ways reflects my beliefs of God and gods in real life.)
I don't think my way of writing gods is better or worse than anyone else's. It all depends on what serves the story. Aslan works very well in Narnia, but would have ruined the story of Lord of the Rings.
This is an interesting thought experiment JW, I've never give my Manorian Deity much thought. I mean I did think about her, create a little legend, but never considered giving her her own story that could actually be something. She was always just a history lesson for my two guys, a bedtime story, a myth to dream on. Maybe this could be something. I wish I had time to give it the attention it deserves. I'll add it to the TBW list of drafts.
To me personally the idea of a mother in the sky sounds very nice and cozy. In fantasy though I feel keeping some mystery in religion can add a lot of intrigue to the story. There are many ways to go about this that don't involve keeping your Gods completely alfot. I prefer a higharchy with some political intrigue, more like kings ruling their separate nations rather than one big family. I feel there is more room this way to preserve some of the mystery. My God's aren't nearly as involved as yours though. They generally just observe and would only answer a direct question like this if they were particularly infatuated with a mortal.