Thursday, June 26, 2014

Bible Bunnies!

Because I'm rapidly running out of June, I'm going to do a lump post of plot bunnies. Honestly, I'm not sure if I'm ever going to get all of the first chapters written, but just organizing my thoughts on these things has been helpful. Anyways, these three have no magic (Supernatural, yes, magic, no), just my weird ideas.

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The first of the bunnies is In Those Days. Ever since we studied the pre-flood world in school, I've been wanting to write a book about it. I've read several stories (Many Waters; Eye of the Oracle ... there are others), but I just don't think that any of them (and especially not Many Waters,) did the pre-flood culture justice.

There will be a lot of conspiracy theories in this book that possibly aren't true, but I think are a lot truer than our current picture of that time. The technology will be higher than we commonly give them credit, and I will take the Nephilim literally.

And despite how much I want to market it as historical fiction, it will probably end up in the fantasy or sci-fi.

As for main character ... I'm going to tell it from the POV of the girls who marry Noah's three boys. I want to be able to write a happily ever after, after all. As for names ... Um, how about Ehsa, Lusih, and Marai.

It's going to be a tough book to write, I know that. It's going to address a lot of sins that I'd rather not exist. But it is a story that I feel God is calling me to write. Anyways, Blurb:

Ehsa's Uncle Noah has always been on the radical side. Sure, it's alright to believe in Elohim, everyone has a right to worship their own god, and she and her parents are, themselves, followers of Elohim, but this boat building is a bit overkill.

Even though Lusih's family doesn't think that Noah is quite right in the head - seriously, he's building a giant coffin, cough, ark in the middle of dry land claiming that some god is going to send water from the sky - he does pay his hired help well. And since money is something they're short on, they may as well take advantage. 

Marai is a spy. For all of his loud preaching, Noah has been terribly secretive about a lot of things. Such as the real reason he's been building a big box just outside the city. A man who spends that much time and money on that thing must have ulterior motives.

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Bunny 2 (or bunny 4, if you take into consideration the others that I've posted) is Fisherman's Wife, and is another Biblical Fiction, this time about the Apostle Peter.

And his wife.

I was in church one day, listening to the sermon (I forget, exactly, what it was about) but somehow my brain came across the story where Jesus heals Peter's Mother-in-law. Now, a person doesn't usually have a MIL unless they've had a wife, so what happened to her? And, more importantly, who was she?

So this story is my self-indulgence to answer this question, and also an exploration in the Jewish culture and the political unrest of that time. And since I'm in the business of naming people, I think I'll name her Anna. Because I like that name and it goes well with Peter.

Now would be the perfect time for a Messiah. They don't rule themsleves - instead, the Romans lord over them. Despite their strict following of the law, their spirituality seems dry. They've received no word from from The LORD for hundreds of years. Many begin to doubt that he's coming at all, and are taking matters into their own hands.

Anna has no doubts, she still attends to her prayers every day, and though he has sent no child to her and her husband, she's sure that, like Hannah, he has not forgotten them. If only Peter felt the same.

Not exactly sure where I'm going with this story, though I'm afraid it may end tragically. But there we go.

Via Pinterest
And then we have Thutmosis II and a Half, which is about Moses.

You see, when I was studying Egypt, I was fascinated by the culture, and I was also dissatisfied with where they placed Moses in the commonly accepted timeline. You see, I don't think that Rameses was the Pharaoh that Moses stole the Children of Israel from. I think it was Seti I. (CORRECTION! I mean Amenhotop II. This is what I get for trying to remember names off the top of my head, rather than looking them up!) And I believe that the Pharaoh's Daughter that drew him from the water was Hatshepsut.

Moses had planned to set his people free as soon as he became Pharaoh - as his adopted mother always told him he would be. But his stepbrother, also named Thutmosis, took the throne instead, so Moses intends to take things into his own hands.

Justice must be served, after all.


And there we go, three more plot bunnies.

12 comments:

  1. Hey! Interesting Biblical plot bunnies! I like the idea about the Moses one... tell me, what makes you think that it's Seti I's time that it occurred? And the part about Hatshepsut is intriguing... I'd love to hear the details!!! :-)

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    1. It's been a few years since I discovered the theory (which comes from a gentleman who went to my church and had been to Egypt, Israel, and the surrounding area several times) and many of the details as to the reasoning are fuzzy ... including names. I actually meant Amenhotep II. Only just realized my mistake a few minutes ago when I was looking for some facts about him to remind me of my reasoning. Anyways, it involves the fact that Amenhotep's death is very ambiguous, and both he and his son died suddenly, allowing his nephew to take the throne in his place. Let me dig out some tapes to rewatch, and I'll be back later with a detailed explanation.

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  2. Have you ever heard of Dr. Tom Hoyle? He's a Christian scientist who talks about, writes books about, and promotes books about Creation and the pre-flood world. You might want to check out some of his resources. He has some particularly interesting things on Gigantism... the theory (or fact? I'm not sure. There's lots of fossil evidence, evidently) that animals and plants and even humans used to be a whole lot bigger. He supports the canopy theory - that before the flood, the earth's atmosphere had a canopy surrounding it which protected it from radiation and other stuff, and that during the flood, the canopy broke, and that's where a lot of the water came from. I dunno, it's something to look in to.

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    1. I can't say that I know him off the top of my head, but I'm very familiar with the Canopy Theory, and it will be the one I use. (It's hinted to in the blurb). I'll look into his resources.

      And despite what the Evolutionists want us to believe, life - including human life - was bigger then than it is now. I've seen a few of the fossils myself, and plenty more replicas and pictures.

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    2. That's cool! I've seen quite a few pictures of Gigantism as well. I don't know too much about the science-y end of things... but I do wonder... The Bible says Goliath was about nine feet tall, right? And he's described as a giant. If everything was a lot bigger back then - including humans - a nine-foot tall man wouldn't necessarily be described as a giant. Or is the theory that only creatures before the flood were larger?

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    3. If the canopy theory is true, then there was a higher air pressure, which made breathing easier (incidentally, many of the dinosaurs had nostrils smaller than what would allow them to breath sufficiently for present atmospheric conditions), and a water layer would have blocked a lot of deadly radiation, which meant that creatures could grow larger (bugs and plants especially). I don't think it was an immediate change from large to small after the flood, but as food supply and atmospheric conditions plummeted immediately, and the genetic code started degenerating, people and other creatures got smaller. So while Goliath would have been short by preflood standards, he was very much a giant by the time of David.

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  3. Oooh, I love your idea of In Those Days. I find pre-Flood culture intriguing, too, so I look forward to what you come up with.

    I've wondered about Peter's wife myself. Hmmm, sounds like your version will be pretty interesting. I'm especially interested in what you do with the cultural and political unrest of the times. (I love politics and culture.)

    WOW. I've had a fascination with Ancient Egypt and have been wanting to do a parallel study about Moses and Ancient Egypt but haven't gotten to it. I'm SUPER curious about this story of yours.

    Also, someday when you have time, would you mind emailing me why you think Moses was in the time of Seti and not Ramses? I haven't really bought into the whole Ramses theory myself- partly because I wanted to research it myself and not just accept scientists' opinions, so I'm intrigued by your statement. (And Hatshepsut fascinates me.)

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  4. Biblical historical fiction (BiHiFi? Oh, wow...) is something of a sticky-wicket for me; I'm not comfortable writing it myself, mainly because HiFi isn't my bag, but also because--personally--I'd feel like I was adding to the Word (something God warns us about severely) or even re-writing it, in a way. I'll admit, though, that "filling in the blanks"--with a clear understanding that it's all fictional filling-in--can be interesting, especially if the culture, etc. is well-researched and presented. Knowing the ins and outs of the society a passage of Scripture was written in sometimes helps me understand that passage a little better. Bottom line, though--if you feel God is calling you to write in this genera, then by all means WRITE! You've come up with some intriguing ideas on that head, and now I'm curious to see how you develop them.
    My two cents. :-P

    And re: Hatshepsut: Wasn't she the one who made herself a false beard and ruled as Pharaoh?

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    1. BiHiFi? I shall use that from now on. I like it!

      But I agree about the fact that more often than not, BiHiFi can sometimes fall into "adding to scripture" which is why I've waited so long to write the stories. However, the way that most people tell the stories of Noah and Moses weaken them. I'm trying to put them back into perspective.

      And yes, Hatshepsut was the one who made a false beard. And when her stepson/nephew took the throne back from her, he destroyed every bit of evidence of her he could find. It isn't that far of a leap to say that he destroyed evidence of Moses along with her.

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  5. Most interesting!! I'll be looking for snippets soon! ;)

    Personally, I've always wondered about minor people (if they can be called that; no one is really "minor") who don't get their whole story told. Noah's three daughter-in-laws were one, so I'm really intrigued by your idea, Kendra. Another story is Athalia, the queen who killed all her male relatives and ruled herself until Joash took over when he was eight. It boggles me... what would drive a woman to do that? Kill everyone she was supposed to love? Was her greed really that strong? What about the ram that Abraham offered in place of his son on the altar? True, God probably had some divine intervention there, but is it possible to think that perhaps the ram's owner was somewhere nearby? How would he have been affected by Abraham's testimony: a man who was willing to sacrifice all for the sake of obeying God? Just something to ponder...

    BiHiFi... I like it, too!! :D But I like how you said that in response to TomWildRose's comment: putting the stories back into perspective. Sooo many people have swiped Biblical accounts and twisted them for their own benefit. The Bible isn't wrong; all the accounts are correct; is that so hard to understand? They should not be twisted. That's one reason why I liked Ben-Hur so much; the storyline went along perfectly with the account of Christ.

    Wow... I did not mean for this to get so long. What can I say? You got me all excited, Kendra. :)

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    1. I'm not certain how soon I'll be able to provide snippets - I'm working on WP,FP this month for Camp NaNo (I'm hoping to finish parts one and two), and all the party whathavewe, and I need to refresh my research on these ideas.

      I agree. I like the little stories. When I attempt BiHiFi, HiFi, or fanfiction, I'm almost always pulling out a small character, or an event that has been pulled out of context and such far too often. I find it easier to put words in the mouths of people we don't know well, and I can use more of my imagination.

      Hmm ... I've never given much thought to those latter two. I've always chalked Athalia's insanity to being the daughter of Jezebel, and I always got the impression that the ram was wild. I mean, he could have had an owner ...

      I actually have a few issues with Ben-Hur. though more of the historic sort, having to do with the wise men. He used the Catholic tradition, but they were actually members of the order that Daniel was head of (the one that tried to throw him in the Lion's Den. Their role in Persian society was to choose kings, which is one reason that Herod was so upset when they showed up.

      Don't mind long. Long is good. Excited is better!

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  6. This is awesome. :)
    And yes, Many Waters was just... No.

    ~Robyn

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Hi! Now that you've read my post, hast thou any opinions that thou wouldst like to share? I'd love to hear them!

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