I'm currently writing a Children's fantasy book. I just need some ideas maybe a point in the right direction with something involving my setting/plot. Basically this girl 1/2 elf gets stuck in a world where elven kind are sold into slavery. Free elves are abducted and sent to work camps. If people are caught helping them etc. it's illegal. It's not exactly about this in particular but they do play a role in the plot. I'm having a hard time coming up with what the laws should be called. It's sort of like a mixture between American Slavery and Nazis except obviously completely fictional. Some of the laws include: 1. Elves must submit to bi-weekly searches of their homes or dwellings. 1a. May be evicted from their homes or dwellings without notice by order of King Kieran. 2. King Kieran has the right to enslave, send to work camps, or execute any Elf to which he deems a threat. 2a. Any Elf to refuse, resist or try to run will be executed. 3. Any citizen of Nympharium seen or suspected of being an Elf sympathizer will face Capital punishment. 4. Elves are not allowed to be married. 4a. Any persons caught marrying an Elf are punishable by Fae Law. 4b. Any persons in interspecies marriage with an Elf is considered a traitor to the Crown and will be sentenced to death. 4c. Any Elven marriage already enacted is hereby null and void. Etc. I need help coming up with a name for this type of law. IE. Law of Fae Law of Nympharium 5 laws of Kieran etc. Also any amendments or suggestions to these laws that you can think of. Deaths won't be graphic as it is a Children's novel. Middle grade kids. Thanks for helping me through this brain fart.
In my head I read your subject in the voice of Dracula. It seems that and elf can't take a step without being sentenced to death. What is the point of all these laws if they are only going to be sent to camps anyway? Why let them have homes or dwellings in the first place? How and when would elves even get married if they are all being sent to camps to work? What kind of life could they possibly live outside of a camp? How would they support themselves, earn a living, if they somehow had their own home? If they tried to apply for a job, giving them a job would be seen as being a Sympathizer. Who is going to give an elf a job? Or even sell them anything? Why not just send armies to wipe them all out once and for all? I'm also confused by what you mean when you say a half elf, half human girl gets stuck in a world where this is going on. Where was she from initially? How does she get to this nightmare plane?
Smacks very much of Nazi Germany and the way laws were passed restricting the freedom of Jews. They were enacted incrementally from 1933, leading to the Final Solution, the Holocaust. All the background you need is in the history books. Genocide, ethnic-cleansing, racial purification; call it what you will. A typical example: The Reich Citizenship Law and the Law for the Protection of German Blood and Honour. Germany, September 15, 1935. You could re-title that: The Kieran Citizenship Law and the Law for the Protection of Human Blood and Honour.
I guess I wasn't specific enough. The girl is 1/2 elf 1/2 fairy. Not human. She finds out she's adopted when she turns 13 and in a flurry of emotions somehow ends up in this world. I'm still constructing the setting so and the details so it's not all set up yet. But to answer your question Hawls she's trapped here and she is easily disguisable because she's only a half-breed. There is a lot more but there will be sympathizers and I'm still amending the laws so they are subject to change. Thanks for your suggestions I'll consider them.
What's the law regarding half-Elves? Are they just treated like Elves, or are they perhaps worse than Elves?
In a world where you already have fairies and elves why does she need to be transported into a whole other world with fairies and elves? Why not just another land or country?
@Mckk I'm not sure yet you see a half breed/interspecies is pretty rare in my book at least between elves and fairies because they are typically not friendly at all with each other. The main character doesn't know any of this yet because she's from Earth at least she thinks that she is until she winds up in this place. Because she's only a halfbreed she is easily hidden or can convince people she's not an elf. Really what this is going to come down to is not what the laws are, or possible punishment from the King, but how the people react to her. It will play a role in if people help her or not, and it will also play a role in how she finds out about what/who she is. That's why I'm asking for suggestions though because I'm still working out the kinks and I'm having a hard time coming up with fictional laws. So if you have any suggestions on some laws this would be appreciated.
Cdoop4, Here are my suggestions. 1. Drop the fact that she believed she was ever human. You are putting too much into the mix. 2. Research, and I mean really research, the history of interracial relationships in America (between black and white primary). This will give you not only ideas for the 'laws' you are after, but will also give you ideas of how your MC will be treated throughout the story.
@OJB Her believing she wasn't an elf is like a huge part of the plot so I'm not dropping that. It's kind of like how Harry Potter didn't know he was a wizard. Thanks for the suggestion though. I'll do some more research.
If half-breeds are as rare as you claim, then why on earth are HALF of your laws to do with Elfen-Fae marriages: That there are actually LAWS - this many of them - against Elf and Fae unions tell me that it's hardly a rarity. And if you say these laws aren't even that important, then why on earth are you spending so much time on this?? Why do you need these fictional laws at all? You already know they're hostile to each other. What role are these laws supposed to play in the plot? Make up just 2-3 such laws that affect the plot, and be done with it. Also, just because two breeds are hostile to each other doesn't necessarily make their union such a rarity. If you're wanting info on how people react to half-breeds in a society where the two breeds are hostile to each other, why don't you look into American history. Interracial marriages were illegal just something like 50 years ago. And during Nazi Germany there were Jewish-German marriages, so many that there was a German protest for the Nazis to return their Jewish spouses. Again, just because two kinds of people are supposedly hostile towards one another does not necessarily equate a rarity for their union. Less common, perhaps, but these unions and their offspring still have to be accounted for - and if you're writing laws, one would think there would be laws dealing with this, and society wouldn't be blind to the existence of these unions either and thus would clearly have cultural and societal opinions on these half-breeds. All of this affects how people are going to react to your half-breed character - you want to work out their reaction to her, this is it. Figure out people's opinions on half-breeds and you will figure out their reaction to her as well as how easily your character may or may not be able to disguise herself, if and when someone recognises her for the half-breed that she is and how they recognised her.
"Smacks very much of Nazi Germany and the way laws were passed restricting the freedom of Jews." Righty-right. You want CHILDREN subjected to this stuff?? Read "Little Big" (John Crowley) if you want to know about the fae folk.
Magical Creature Decree of Disdain "Yes my dear Adolf! With your jackboots, we will bring Neverland to its knees! We will rid the world of those inferior mythical creatures once and for all!" "But Mickey, I think it would be a good idea to use our best scientist on them. Perform all manner of horrific experiments on them in addition to genocide." "Of course, my friend. After all, we are superior to them in every way." -Welcome to Mouschwitz: The Death Camps in Fantasy- A Disney Production (That was a joke. I don't support genocide in any way shape or form.) In all seriousness though you should probably look into what the Dictators in our world have called such laws to get a better feel into what to call your own. Good Luck (Be brave as it involves scary, and chilling content.)
Two things struck me: 1) She's half elf, half fairy, but she was under the impression that she was human? To me (and I apologize for the implicit racism here, but it's in the original question) that strikes me as someone who is half-African, half Vietnamese (for example) growing up thinking that they're of Norwegian extraction. 2) Fantasy kingdoms and fancy law names don't mix, in my opinion. My image of fantasy law is that "The King has decreed that your kind can't marry," or "By Royal Proclamation, your marriage is invalid." It's only when you get a government of laws, not men*, that you get things like the USA PATRIOT Act (full name: "Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism Act of 2001"), the Law for the Protection of German Blood and German Honour, the Reich Citizenship Law, and other such Orwellian nonsense. *Yes, some of these are good examples of government of men, not laws, but the Nazis tried to keep a veneer of legality on things at all times. The good ol' USA was more honest with the Chinese Exclusion Act, but it was a simpler time.
