Magical Revelations

It’s no secret I think that Salvation Day is my best novel.  One of the things that makes it my favorite is that there are very few instances of what I call “info dump.”  Most of the narrative is revealed slowly, through the actions of the characters.  Off the top of my head, I can think of only two info dumps in the story – where Lucifer reveals the nature of Hell and Creation to the main character, and the main character’s conversation with God.

So why the long, rambling tour through a previous book of mine?  Well, because I’m trying to figure out how to handle things in my new book.  As mentioned previously, my new novel is a sci-fi/fantasy mashup, and I’ve already found myself trying to cull info dumps on why the people of Earth are exploring the galaxy in the first place.  However, now that they’ve run into a planet full of magic, I have to figure out how to handle that introduction as well.

The magic in my world has rules.  There aren’t many, but these rules still dictate what magic can and can’t do(for example, magic is always stronger when used in conjunction with another caster of magic).  I’m trying to figure out how to introduce these rules in the course of the story.  Of course it’d be easier for some wizened old wizard pouring over dusty spell books to either tell the audience what the rules are, or for him to have a piece of parchment tacked to the wall of his tower, but I don’t think that’d be as much fun for the audience.

Therefore, I’ve got to figure out how to reveal these rules through the course of the story without contradicting myself.  I think I can do that through two means, the characters’ actions and their interactions.  What I mean by that, is that maybe after magic becomes known to the group of non-magic people from Earth, they start asking questions when they see a bit of magic performed.  Rather than give an info dump, the magic casters they talk to simply act as if the answer to the question is obvious(because to them, it is).  It could be akin to the way someone might explain not running out into traffic to a particularly slow child.

I haven’t completely figured out the dynamics yet, but the challenge should be fun.