The Five
Developing and refining your world, no matter its breadth, is one of the most rewarding aspects of content creation. In my experience, the key to ensure its accuracy with the most originality one can muster is allowing others to review it and provide insight. Rarely is creativity a truly, solitary affair for you would not be where you are today if it had not been for the journey of fellow storytellers.
Many of the elements contained in my own writing have come from the ideas of others; husband, friends, teachers, co-workers, family, and mentors. It is imperative to balance your own creative expectations in order to incorporate suggestions from those who know you best and especially from those who do not. The key is to live by a similar mantra I live by: if you cannot handle criticism and feedback, do not ask for it.
People who share the same passions for the craft of content creation and consumers of said content are the best source to help guide your story in the right direction. There is no room for easily bruised egos; not if you want to be successful in delivering quality content people will devour and happily ask for more. I have often asked my husband to provide potential names for characters, a new race, or planet name. Depending on the breadth of your story, the mind cannot be in all places at all times.
The concept of The Five had already been fully fleshed out in my head when I wrote the first version of book one to The Sy’Arrian Legacy Series. My intention is to blend an element I have seen develop organically in my story; an element I was oblivious to until creating the outline for book two. Although I would like to take credit for many of the good ideas developed for the series, some of them brought to my attention by those who have shared their insights, I need to be intellectually honest; they fell right into my lap. I suspect all content creators have experienced this more than once.
Progressively, I have noticed the number five continually coming out to play. The Sy’Arrians governing body, the Cri’lin Council is composed of five members, whereas the Dralak Council, who oversees the affairs of the Hyprovian people, also is comprised of five members. The Sy’Arrians utilize the five primary elements of fire, water, air, earth, and Akasha. In a subplot yet to be unveiled, readers will discover five prior attempts by a race of beings to create a counter balance to the damaging effects of the Sy’Arrian Massacre with the fifth and final attempt being successful.
Admittedly, the nuance above is not a stroke of creative genius by yours truly. In the case of ruling bodies, I pick five members simply because I want a tie-breaking element when it comes to decision making. When the aforementioned subplot is revealed, the reason for the five attempts will be apparent. In addition, the concept of The Five is all over the place in other areas of the content creation world. It often times will refer to a group whose purpose is deeply embedded in the lore of the world in question. It was a good friend and writing mentor who planted the concept in my brain as a way to create something catchy for readers to identify should they deem my world worthy of their attention.
In 2001, I finished the prologue for the original book one to the series. Prior to starting it, I had written nothing for at least five years because I had taken time off to discover who I was both spiritually and intellectually. I had asked myself, How can I write about a group of people who attempt to practice compassion and forgiveness in their daily lives, if I cannot love or forgive myself? When I came to a greater understanding of what those precepts meant to me, I was able to churn out content once more.
It was a sidelong comment, something thrown my way to consider while at the same time, maybe not take too seriously. I had been thinking about what to call the group, which contained Lourous and his childhood friends, Aurelius, Kye Lee, Brakel and Cyra, for some time. Usually, I do not rush this part of the creative process in order to avoid generating awkward or overly odd naming conventions. After mulling it around for several weeks, my writing mentor at the time stated; Why not name them something like The Five? Thus, the concept was born.
Shortly thereafter, I began to solidify the concept further by establishing where in Sy’Arrian lore the name originated, which found its way into chapter 10 of the published book, The Cradle of Destiny. There is scene where the antagonist, Alexis Striken is recalling how the group came in possession of its moniker to his cohort, Raleous. I will not recall the entire conversation here because, well, I want people to buy the book and find out for themselves.
Essentially, The Five is a nickname the group earned during the time they performed ambassadorial duties for the Cri’lin Council, which was led by Lourous’ father Augustas. It would be during a mission in 3050 to assist in ending the war between the Traxians and Hyprovians, where the close-knit group is put to the test when they are surrounded by a sizeable Hyprovian fighting force who viewed them as enemies not diplomats.
In order to survive the enemy force about to eliminate them, they utilized an experimental technique where each focused on one specific elemental force. Due to the unknown variables and potential for destruction on a grand scale, they stood sizable distances from each other. Based on historical accounts, when they implemented the maneuver, it resulted in a shockwave, which effectively neutralized the Hyprovian threat while leaving innocents unharmed. The aftermath of the unprecedented act left behind a stunning discovery. A Traxian aerial reconnaissance team captured a picture in the earth where each member had stood; it was the image of a five-pointed star.
The five-pointed star refers to the pentagram used in Wicca, which is where I pull the concept of Akasha from to use in The Sy’Arrian Legacy Series, not from ancient times when it was used as a Christian symbol. I do mix various aspects associated with Akasha from Taoism and classic Greek into the lore of the Sy’Arrians. They associate each point of the five-pointed star with fire, water, earth, and air with Akasha presiding over the other elements at the star’s top most point.
There you have it. A rough, overall insight into how The Five came to be and, even scarier, how my little mind works out all the minute details associated with a story, which never stays quiet for very long.
Feel free to post your questions or comments. I will respond, if need be, when I am able.
