John C. Wright's Journal

Friday Posting: On my favorite topic--Writing!
DONATISM AND ATHEISM IN FUGITIVES OF CHAOS

A reader asked me a number of questions about Fugitives of Chaos, particularly the role of religion in the character development. I was an atheist when I wrote that book, but my reader reads into many a Christian, or at least Theist, viewpoint or idea, and he wonders why I an atheist treated an enemy religion so respectably.

At the risk of robbing the magic trick of the magic, I would be happy to share with anyone interested the author's thought process behind the writing of the scenes in question.

I add a caveat. Never trust an author describing his creative process. First, much of what happens is inspiration—call it the muse or call it the subconscious mind, as poetical or psychological outlook prompts you. The only thing we really know about where ideas come from is that it is unknown. The process of discarding ideas is better known: the writer can sometimes identify why he rejects an inspiration that seems not to work. This depends on a nicety of judgment about the effect he is trying to craft. Second, an author will boast about himself when asked about himself, which makes the reading unrewarding for anyone who takes artists too seriously. Take everything written below with a grain of salt.

Another caveat. If you haven't read the book in question, the discussion will be unrewarding.

First my reader asks a general question about how I came to write the scene where Thelxepeia the siren reveals that she is a Donatist. Why wasn't I more obvious about my atheism when writing scenes where differences of religion are discussed?

The short answer is that, so some readers, it was perfectly obvious. Here is one critic who noticed the contempt for Christianity in the book:

http://www.bewilderingstories.com/issue256/fugitives_rev.html

The long answer is that I did not mean it to be obvious. I was writing to tell a story, not to sell my personal brand of soap.

( Read more... )

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