One major aspect of the plot for a science fiction novel I'm working on is that the ancient Greek god Poseidon lives in the ocean of the planet Neptune (yes, Neptune has a liquid ocean between its gaseous atmosphere and solid core). I have an explanation - it goes something like this. There are two planes (three, but one is irrelevant for this explanation): the mental plane and the material plane (the physical universe). The material plane is more powerful than the mental plane, and if a being gains enough power in the material plane, it will manifest in the material plane. The Greek gods, although they were invented, were believed in absolutely by a large portion of the population, and their definition was quite specific and common among people. They achieved a ghostlike, partially manifested quasi-existence in the material plane because they were powerful in that many people believed in them, but not enough to fully manifest. But then, of course, people began to stop believing in them, and because they were conscious and sentient, they decided to save themselves from fading back to the mental plane by traveling throughout space and finding homes where they could flourish. Poseidon went to Neptune, because of its ocean, and because the planet was practically designed for him, he achieved full material existence. The planet was named after him later because he unwittingly transmitted energy across a lower plane to influence the astronomer who discovered the planet. Two questions: 1) Does this idea seem seem plausible - does it even make sense? 2) If so, does the whole idea seem contrived and over-the-top? EDIT: To clarify, this is not the plot, this is the principle underlying premise.
The planet was named after him later because he unwittingly transmitted energy across a lower plane to influence the astronomer who discovered the planet. If this goes too far, then I am willing to say that it is a coincidence, as an astronomer would definitely see the connection between the blue ocean-like appearance of Neptune and the Greek/Roman god.
This is not really a plot for a story. It may be the basis for a story, but the story itself has to be more than an explanation of how various gods may have actually existed. There has to be something going on besides an idea, or people won't want to read it. As an idea, it's ok. Whether it seems "too far-fetched" or not really depends on your ability to make it seem real to your reader. Good luck. yours in Chaos, Scarlett
Yes, this is a premise, not the actual plot. What worried me was, since the plot could not exist without this idea at the root of it, the plot itself, although good, might be destroyed simply because of this potentially unrealistic premise. And thank you; I just needed to make sure I wasn't competely insane and that people could actually buy it
It's no a coincidence if this Neptune being "made" him name the planet that. Meanwhile, I don't get how Neptune can and would travel to that planet (or whatever) since it's so far away from people. It seems like a power reduction. However, it doesn't matter. Suggestion: I'd like you book if it was about these beings struggling to force/influence humans to believe in them again. It would be a comment on death and how attention makes people feel good.
I can't make any promises with regard to whether people in general would actually "buy" the idea. Who would ever have thought that people would buy a story in which a young girl and her dog get picked up by a tornado and taken to a bizarre alternate reality where she is befriended by a talking scarecrow, a tin robot, and an anthropomorphic lion..? And that her house would somehow land on a witch? (Most of the witches I know would not just stand there and let a house land on them, but that's neither here nor there.) And indeed, one publisher after another rejected Mr. Baum's writing, until finally someone bothered to sit down and actually read this entertaining, engaging, and thought-provoking story, saw its worth, and decided to take a gamble and print it. It's all how ya tell it. As far as basic concepts, in my opinion explaining how everything works in your story--even to yourself--should always take a back seat to how you put the story together. If you have thought of some interesting situations for Poseidon and his friends to get into in this story, and tell about them well, you don't need to be really thorough about working out the story's underpinning. Mr. Baum didn't agonize over exactly HOW a scarecrow could walk and talk, or how a lion that was so afraid of its own shadow would be able to survive into adulthood, right? I mean, his story is really full of holes as far as "how everything got to be the way it was". People love it, though. Anyway, all this is just my opinion, and somewhat based on experiences I've had trying to help writers come up with "worlds" for their fantasy creations. I have known more than a couple of people who will sit and fiddle with their world and how it works, and fiddle with it, and fiddle with it... and that's all they ever do. They feel like they have to make it MAKE SENSE before they can write a story (or perhaps they had no story to begin with, and they're just killing time). I'm not saying that's you, but I am saying that for me to have any sort of desire to read about the adventures of Poseidon and his friends, there has to be a story, and it has to be a good story. xoxo
Beyond a seeming mix-up in your explanation, I don't see why this couldn't work. Though it did bring to mind David Eddings after that "belief equals existence" thing. I'm not sure you've handled their continued existence well enough, if it takes so much energy to manifest even partially. It seems like they would run out of energy well before reaching Neptune. But beyond that, I couldn't say how believeable it is without a story or at least a plot behind it. My advice is to run with it and decide then whether to continue or not.
