Support for Indie Authors discussion

The story takes place in a sort of "Vintage England" setting where its stated that they actually are in England but the whole monarchy is completely made up, a direct example would be that the Queen is 11 years old.

Also the power hierarchy is different too, like the royal palace is central in the country, then its surrounded by the higher ranking individuals eg Royal advisers family etc, then the average sort of rich upperclassmen and nobility, then normal civilians.

I'm worried that none of this makes any sense or it just sounds weird. Or am I just stressing because it's my first novel?

Either way I appreciate your help, thank you!

Personally I don't see a problem. It's a form of speculative fiction where you follow an alternate version of the real world. Perfectly legitimate thing to do.

IMO the big challenge is to make sure your reader clues in to what's happening. It helps here, paradoxically, if the setting has at least some elements that are clearly not reality. If your story world is too close to reality you run the risk of causing confusion and people attributing the differences to author error rather than deliberate design. If you can include some surreal or jarring elements that will shake the reader's assumptions loose. Also important to follow through on the implications of those differences and be consistent. For example, will ordinary citizens be expected to show visible deference (doff the cap, tug the forelock) to nobility, and will there be harsh consequences for non-compliance? If you mix some Victorian culture with modern-day tech that would be interesting.

Ian wrote: "Personally I don't see a problem. It's a form of speculative fiction where you follow an alternate version of the real world. Perfectly legitimate thing to do.

IMO the big challenge is to make sur..."

Thank you! And originally I was planning to mix modern tech with the old culture but someone said that it would be rookie mistake. But since you mentioned it maybe I'll reconsider and put some modern tech in other places like the military.

Thanks for the response, you really helped :D

For a story to ring true, it needs be internally consistent while remaining relatable. If your history/culture deviates from ours, you may want to think through the reasons for the change, even if some of that material is not detailed in the book. Cultural norms and traditions stem from practical realities, even if the cause for those traditions is no longer apparent. If your story is has internal consistency, it will make sense.

Of course, I’m a Village Idiot (according to some Goodreads authors), so you may want to seek out other opinions.

Ubiquitous wrote: "For a story to ring true, it needs be internally consistent while remaining relatable. If your history/culture deviates from ours, you may want to think through the reasons for the change, even if ..."

Ok thank you! Clearly I'm still new to all of this.

I'm not clear - you are saying Vintage England but what period are you thinking of?

Also, when you say THE royal palace is central in the country, are you saying there is only one, and it is geographically in the centre of the country, surrounded by a ring of noblemen's mansions, or is this entirely metaphorical and you are still planning to have Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Sandringham, Balmoral, Kensington Palace?

Carro wrote: "Also, when you say THE royal palace is central in the country, are you saying there is only one, and it is geographically in the centre of the country, surrounded by a ring of noblemen's mansions, or is this entirely metaphorical and you are still planning to have Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, Sandringham, Balmoral, Kensington Palace?"

This was my question too. If you're using familiar places and locations, but altering the history, political structure, or technology, I think that's completely workable.

If you have something that you call "England" but it isn't shaped like England, and "London" sits in the dead middle of it, I think it might become confusing and therefore distracting, in which case it may be better to invent an entirely new setting.

Lastly, you write its stated that they actually are in England but the whole monarchy is completely made up . Stated by whom? I still struggle with the "show, don't tell" thing myself; it takes a conscious effort to not just dump everything you know about the world in the first chapter, rather than letting facts come out organically. That may not be what you meant, but figured I'd offer the cautionary example in case it might help.

In my opinion, if you are going to say this is England but, you need to very early in the book give a reason why your England deviates from everyone else's. Geography should stay the same, though, or change the name of the place. The whole reason for having "England" is so that there is a degree of familiarity, otherwise it is simply a fantasy and should have a name change. There is nothing wrong with having palaces elsewhere, especially if you say why, but it is also important not to get bogged down in the back story. A few lines should do it. An example might be, ever since William Wallace marched on London, royalty needed a more defensible site, and . . .

I agree with Ian, but if it's just 'like' England, then no need to explain, just do your thing. A good example of this is General Winston's Daughter, which mirrors so many historical situations/countries and yet I think the author just didn't wnat to have to worry about being entirely accurate, and instead just did her own thing. Just something you can use for reference if you want.

I always remember reading a piece of advice that said, build your world, get the customs and geography straight, its history and culture, and then put it all away and just write your story.

I have read (I'm a reader not a writer, so I mostly lurk) any number of books in 'real, but not quite' worlds. Some of them have been very, very good indeed. My two bits worth would be kind of what Neil said above; get the details straight in your head, believe in your world, then write it.

You can give the reasons away, or not, as you choose as long as they make sense within your story. As a reader, I would be curious about why the royal family remained in power; was there an act that never got signed ect ect.

Just to clarify, my reason for giving an explanation is that I would only do it if you are putting something somewhere where it really shouldn't be (and some equivalent for major situations) where it would irritate the reader and make them ask why. My rule is, don't irritate the reader, or ask too much of the reader. If you have been thinking about it for years, don't assume the reader can quickly cotton on, but on the other hand, if it is only things your fictional characters do, or only minor changes, don't bother explaining.

I'd say it makes enough sense to work with. The main challenge you'll face in making that idea work for your story is making sure that that the world is fleshed-out enough for it not to feel clunky or half-baked. I think a good example of this is the Dark Tower series where the main characters go to an alternate version of New York and Maine where the presidents are on different dollar bills, neighborhoods have different names and Coka Cola is called Nozz-A-Laa. Just little differences in everything.

I'd suggest following a similar route; if it's an alternate England, be sure to not just change the monarchy and politics and nothing else, but incorporate little cultural differences too and scatter them throughout the book. You don't have to go with this, but maybe instead of The Beatles, it's The Beetles, et cetera. Just little differences you can sprinkle in that will help make the world seem the same but also different.