73,605
edits
Welcome to Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum! Log in and join the community.
Changes
From Warhammer 40k - Lexicanum
m
''Aaron Dembski-Bowden''<br>
→Why the term "Canon" or "Canonicity" is problematic
}}
In a lengthy but very worthwhile interview with [https://www.boomtron.com/ Boomtron] [[Black Library]] author [[Aaron Dembski-Bowden]] had (amongst many other interesting things) the following to say on the concept of "canon" :
{{QuoteBox
''Within the possibility of endless interpretation lies the potential for freedom. What matters is respecting the source material, contributing to it, and sticking to the theme. And that ties right back into my first column, because no matter who’s writing the details, 40K has some unalterable themes, etched in the stoniest of stone. They’re the key. They’re what matter most.''<br>
''Get the atmosphere right, and you’re halfway there.''<br>
Source: [https://web.archive.org/web/20111127203730/https://www.boomtron.com/2011/03/grimdark-ii-loose-canon/ Boomtron: GrimDark II: Loose Canon (posted 10 March 2011)] ''(saved archive page, dated 27 November 2011, last accessed 15 April 2020)''
|align = center
{{QuoteBox
|quote = "''[[...]It used to be the case that I had one foot on either side of the fence when it came to the Black Library. By day I was a games developer, evening and weekends saw me in my guise of swashbuckling author. One of the roles of the GW games developers is to liaise with Black Library, answering their questions and generally providing consultation. The BL editors are well-versed in the worlds of Warhammer and Warhammer 40,000 so it was usually the case that inquiries directed to games dev would concern either very specific questions, or areas where the existing background was unclear or perhaps contradictory.<br>For the most part these discussions revolved around extrapolations by the authors, extending areas of the backgrounds into subjects that were not relevant to the material needed for tabletop wargames – ‘Does this sound right?’ or ‘Is this how it would work?’. It was rare that we would be passed anything that was so hideously off-the-mark that the story or novel was completely verboten (“we’ve had this story about squats…”). Far from being the black jackboot of authoritarianism, I like to think that we provided possible solutions to problems that cropped up. Sometimes an author or an editor might have a situation they need resolved and would ask for background-friendly suggestions. For instance, an author might want orks invading a moon, but was not sure how the greenies would operate on an airless world. Rather than say that would never happen, we would have a think about it and provided some viable answers (probably something with mobile forcefields in this case…). That was the day job.''<br>
''The ability of an author to write within an established setting isn’t about knowing every single detail of the background (though targeted research is always good), it is about understanding the style and ethos of that universe. With a grounding in the principles of that world, an author can extend the logic (or lack) to cover places, people and situations not explicitly detailed in the source material. That’s sort of the point of tie-in fiction; to expand on what is already published, not simply package it up in a slightly different form.''<br>
''Having been inculcated in the mysteries and ways of Warhammer and 40K for years, I was in the enviable position as an author of being able to say to an editor ‘Yes, that’s exactly how it works’. After all, if they were uncertain about something, it was me they were going to ask… I was going to say this put me in a unique position, but unfortunately those Jonny-Come-Latelies Graham McNeill, Andy Hoare and Ant Reynolds have all made the transition from games developer to author. [...]''
''In this regard it is the job of authors and games developers to illuminate and inspire, not to dictate. Perhaps you disagree with the portrayal of a certain faction, or a facet of their society doesn’t make sense in your version of the world. You may not like the answers presented, but in asking the question you can come up with a solution that matches your vision. As long as certain central themes and principles remain, you can pick and choose which parts you like and dislike.''<br>
''The same applies to transference from Black Library back into the gaming supplements. If the developers and other creative folks believe a contribution by an author fits the bill and has an appeal to the audience, why not fold it back into the ‘game’ world – such as Gaunt’s Ghosts or characters from the Gotrek and Felix series. On the other hand, if an author has a bit of a wobbly moment, there’s no pressure to feel that it has to be accepted into the worldview promulgated by the codexes and army books. And beside, there simply isn’t enough room in those gaming books to include everything from the hundreds of novels – good, bad or indifferent as we each see them – so the decision must ultimately rest with the taste of individual readers and gamers.''<br>
''There’s a misconception that writing in somebody else’s world is somehow cheating. Certainly world creation is given a lot of weight in genre fiction circles (too much in my opinion). The fact is, it doesn’t matter how much material there exists for a setting, the world must be created anew by the author every time they write a story or novel. It is the writer’s ability to evoke the world through their words that is important, and that doesn’t get any harder or easier whether you created the world yourself or are borrowing someone else’s.''<br>''Gav Thorpe''"<br>
Source: [https://mechanicalhamster.wordpress.com/2010/01/21/jumping-the-fence/ Mechanical Hamster: Jumping the Fence (published 21 January 2010)] ''(last accessed 15 April 2020)''
|align = center
