Storybook Plan

     I have settled on doing a storybook about a god that creates the world from nothing through writing on a magical typewriter. The god will have an assistant or a team of assistants that help his writing and advise him. The amount of assistants and their input is not entirely determined yet. The story will end up dictating that. The god will create the world as he writes its history. For example, "'And then a mighty wave crashed onto land and a single fish was left on the shore,' wrote the god. So, a mighty wave crashed onto the land and a single fish was left on the shore."

    I want the experience of the story to be that of rewriting and experiencing the creative process. A god he may be, this god is not perfect. He is going to need to rewrite. He may not like yesterday's draft. His assistant may notice a glaring continuity error. Whatever the case may be, there will be rewrites and brainstorming sessions abound. For both my characters and myself I'm sure. I also want the story to feel comedic in tone. I want it to read like someone telling you a story around a campfire. I really like the comedically direct writing style of authors like Douglas Adams. I hope to emulate that style a bit in my writing for this project.

    Because of the story I'm telling, I am going to draw inspiration primarily from the Popul Vuh and the Genesis creation narrative. The Popul Vuh is the main source of inspiration because it is a story of redoing a god's creation. It will be helpful for structuring when a rewrite or change should happen in my story and inspiring reasons for why my god may want or need to change things. The Genesis narrative will serve as inspiration for a progressive and orderly creation myth. I like the idea that my god has a sort of due date for his work. The seven day spread of the Genesis tale will help inspire and inform the timeframe for my story. It will also serve as a guide for when certain aspects of the world need be created. While I don't have links to them, I will also take inspiration from all the English and screenwriting lectures I've sat through and books I've read. I will use this knowledge to give my god realistic rules and guidelines for his story structure, character development, and how to rewrite properly.

    The basic structure of my storybook is going to consist of four parts. In the first story my god will create the basics of the world. Where and why do seas, mountains, and valleys exist? This story will also explore the god getting used to the writing process. In the second story, the god will populate the earth with flora and fauna. I think it will be really fun to imaginatively explain certain creatures like the platypus. The third story will be the creation of man. This story will take big inspiration from the Popul Vuh. My god will take a few drafts on man. Finally, in the fourth story, I will have the god solidify his final draft. He'll add a few more things, remove a few things or just update some spelling errors (or leave them and invent some new words). I think it will be fun to use this story to explain why mythical animals like Unicorns no longer exist.