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by seashade
Yes.
One of the most important things about writing “prophecies” is cliches. Prophecies have been so overdone with certain cliches that people are beginning to tire of the very idea of a prophecy- that doesn’t mean that prophecies are Now Very Bad. It just means that writers have to get even more creative when writing a prophecy.
First, some things to avoid when writing prophecies:
*** disclaimer: as with everything in writing, prophecy techniques are a gray area. Yeah, maybe you can pull it off if you are original enough. But generally, these are just some things that have been used tiresomely before.
1. The Perfect Poem:This means those prophecies you see sometimes that are super dramatic and usually rhyming. I don’t know where it came from, but there seems to be this idea that if something rhymes, it is all of a sudden a Very Important Thing. Additionally- the case of the magical prophecy that always rhymes. You’ve probably seen this before- an ancient prophecy is written on an Egyptian tomb or something, and then the explorer translates is aloud and it flawlessly rhymes in perfect English. If you want to do that, there had better be a reason, because rhymes don’t translate between languages since you are, you know, using different words. Also related: cryptic prophecies. The ones that are jumbled and poetic and it’s hard to tell what it’s saying exactly. These are bad when done just for the poetry and good when done with multiple interpretations in mind. I’ll get back to that.
2. The Delivery: Often when prophecies are delivered, they are delivered in the most dramatic way possible. Again, if done right, this can create a very intense and intriguing scene. But for the most part, people have gotten used to dramatic lighting and strange smelling mist and the seer going into a trance or something. If your prophecy is going to be delivered via Magical Ritual, make it an original magic ritual. Also, making a ritual scene runs the risk of misrepresenting and generally insulting cultures in which certain divination is sacred.
3. The Chosen One: Possibly one of the most popular tropes of all time, The Chosen One is the one the prophecies spoke of long ago, the chosen hero sent to save us all, and totally super done. Chosen Ones can be intriguing characters, but honestly? If you can do something different, do. Don’t jump to Chosen Ones. Really, really put work into avoiding your Chosen Ones. They cause trouble. As a somewhat off topic note, I personally love stories where the hero wasn’t chosen, where is was just coincidence or bad luck or good luck or whatever. The hero isn’t the person who was destined, they were just the one who happened to step up to the plate and swing, prophecy or no. It kind of shows how anyone can be a hero, but a hero isn’t just anyone.
What You Should Do:
Do the opposite of what you don’t do. Yay, I’m so helpful. As a general rule, try to be original. Easier said than done, I know, but give creativity your best shot. As for random tips…
1. Clarity: If your prophecy is going to be poetically unclear, use that to your advantage. Make each line have a double meaning or different possible interpretations that could potentially be true. Surprise your readers and your characters and even yourself- it doesn’t always mean what you think it means. Explore the possibilities.
2. Keep Track of Fate: If your prophecy mentions multiple people or events, make sure to follow through with your story. Don’t forget any details, it has to add up or it will all make no sense. Unless, of course, the point it that the prophecy was wrong.
3. How Much Do They Know?: This one confuses me in a lot of stories. How much do your people know about this prophecy? If the prophecy is ancient or widespread, then there might have been plenty of opportunity to study it. Who knows, maybe they figured out a few lines in the time they’ve had to read it over and over before it became true.
4. Being Cryptic: This is just a quick tip on how you can make your prophecies make less sense- maybe, originally, they made perfect sense. Language and culture is constantly evolving. Maybe the prophecy made perfect sense way back when it was spoken, but now it has been so long that nobody really remembers “brillig” or “slithy toves” even are.
5. Research: I kind of touched on this in point two of the don’ts, but I think it deserves its own spot here. If your method of prophecy is based off of something real, some real oracle or ritual, know your stuff and portray it accurately, or don’t do it at all. This goes from the Ancient Greeks to modern kitchen witchcraft and beyond.
Remember, this story is yours. Make your prophecy your own, too. There can be a million prophecies in the world, but this one is yours, so show how special is in the way only you can.
And thank you for the ask!
~Penemue