Origin
1. Where does YC hail from? Are they whisked from our earthly world into Narnia? Eeek, cliché. You need a very good explanation.
Good example: A story in which the OC is part of the Kinderexpress from Germany to England.
2. Randomly flung into Narnia? Möööp.
3. Their life is a tragedy so far? Or was happy until tragedy suddenly struck? All went downhill from one point? Zzzzz.
4. Running away from life, an orphanage, bullies... into the woods and hey, hello Narnia? Well, I must say I like this, IF the context is right. But, why always the woods? Why never an abandoned church, ruins, a cave (like the Telmarines' ancestors), an old castle, during a bus crash, behind an ice cream stand...? A little creativity and diversity, people.
Family
5. Is the C another Pevensie sibling or a (Scrubb) cousin? Möööp. Try again.
6. Where is YC's family? If they are the Pevensies or Scrubbs, kindly refer to the previous point. Also, if the parents or extended family are alive, don't write them away on trips or similar.
7. If not, is your character orphaned? Okay, you need a well-founded explanation. Don't just make it a given. If YC witnesses their parents' deaths, they will be traumatised. And trauma is not resolved in a few chapters or less, nor by a LI. There is no need to uglify it (depending on the age you are writing for), but don't make it seem smaller than it really is.
8. Is your character Aslan's daughter or son (biological or adoptive)? Mööp. Read the books, or research, why that is highly to completely unlikely.
9. Is YC the White Witch's daughter or son? Who is the father then? Better leave that idea - it is cliché and highly improbable. The same goes for magic users. Yes, they exist in Narnia but always come from certain species, e. g. stars.
10. Daughter of a god? Unless from Calormen, there exist no gods besides the One and His son Aslan - all those nature and water deities or spirits are no gods (despite being called that at a few places). At least, not worshipped - e. g. Bacchus or the River God.
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Paths to Narnia | How to open the Wardrobe
FanfictionEnter and find a checklist for writing YOUR Narnian adventure. This is advice and trial-and-error-experience as both - a reader and a writer in the fandom - blended and sprinkled with sarcasm. For Narnia and for Aslan - and for better stories! |2023...
