On Changes and New Things

I was browsing new laptops today, and it got me thinking. Why do we need new versions of things at all? Is it a purpose or function that our current hardware just can’t handle?

My current laptop does everything I need it to, but I feel like it is outdated.

I’m the type of person who will use something until it breaks.

Why is it that we revisit things with hardware revisions in the technology sphere?

Why do we remix songs when the original is just fine?

Sometimes working on things with our own spin makes sense for the vision we have for the project.

My next novel, which releases in a little less than two weeks, is such a project.

Everyone knows the Persephone story from Greek mythology.

Is there really a need to remake it when the original story has been around for many centuries?

The answer to that is no. It isn’t necessary to remake a classic.

But I wanted to take that mythos and put a creative spin on the tale. So now it’s art school with an Under Library.

The tale is from a time before copyright, so anyone is free to do with it as they will.

Not that I’m interested in doing so, but even classic tales such as Alice in Wonderland are prime territory for all sorts of remakes.

I hope one day, after I’m dead, my stories will be remade by someone far in the future. That thought process shows my optimism about making it to the level I desire.

My personal take is that if a story is great the way it is, it doesn’t need a remake.

But I’m also not against the idea of a remake at all.

Square-Enix and Nintendo are doing this a lot in recent years. Seriously, how many times are they going to remake Star Fox 64?

Nostalgia aside, the reason is that there is always something else to do with a piece of art.

Maybe you’ll revisit it because there was a certain plot thread that needed to be expanded on, that didn’t quite make the initial cut.

The original form of the story might have been limited by certain technology-imposed limitations. Or the clay you shaped may have needed a bit more time in the oven.

The world doesn’t need Persephone and Hades in another form.

But my creative instincts told me to make the story from a new perspective because of the character possibilities in a tale that is frankly quite short.

How do you take a story that is around 5,000 words and expand it to over 65,000 words?

What characterization needs to be there and how much of it is artistic liberty?

That’s part of the fun, I think. That’s why I wanted to try it. Part of my reasoning was to see if I could expand a timeless story in my own way, with my own spin. The challenge of it simply called to me.

Don’t be afraid to reimagine things or change things up in something familiar.

It might lead somewhere awesome and turn out better than you’d expect.

Happy writing!

*These two songs are two of my favorite covers of all time. They change the originals just enough, but still carry the heart behind the songs. That’s what I’m trying to say here. Changing things doesn’t mean reducing the complexities and the heart of the original. New takes can bring life to originals.