On dragons…
I came to the realization yesterday that there is a reason dragons are over-done in fantasy literature. Sure we think they’re cool, but there’s more to it than that. Really, there are only so many mythological beasts that are willing to transport humans, so if the writer is looking for something beyond horses and sailing ships, most animals slink off into the distance, unwilling to do the job.
The current short list for this novel includes dragons, gryphons, hippogriffs, and centaurs. I’m not extremely wild about using any of them. But this world deserves something beyond horses. No offense to my friend Flicka.
Dinosaurs? Giant dodo birds? I know! a giant tucan! Um… you could enlarge a lot of stuff… butterflies, for instance… or a bee? the stinger might come in handy… elk. Lizards. transport fungi? bats. hawks, eagles, elephants? zebra would be eye-catching. pelicans–watch the beak. a glider towed by large sea-birds?
Ok, that was fun…
Love ya!
Bye.
Unicorns and flying horses are also classic options.
But gryphons are cool (yes, still riding high on my Prince Caspian buzz).
Snarf at the flying fungi. Thanks but I think not.
Unicorns are out. And Pegasus was the given name of a member of the family pterippi…in consideration, but not a strong contender at the moment.
Thanks!