My novel is to be a story set alomst entirely in Hell. Angels, demons and the damned are all the bulk of the main characters. I was just wondering just how possibly sacrilegious it was to have these elements:
-Two of the damned falling in love. The idea was, they were from two completely different times yet did almost identical sins, and falling to Hell, ended up reaching out to each other and falling in love, and this makes their agony somewhat bearable. This is taken to the extent when one of them is offered the chance to leave hell, he refuses as it would mean leaving his beloved. The idea is that love can exist anywhere, even in the most wretched circumstances, but unsure what Christians would think of this.
-A demon and an angel that care for one another. They do not necessarily have to be in love, but enjoy each other's company and even respect each other. The idea was they were once good friends in Heaven. Unfortunately, one of them was seduced by the devil into rebelling against God, and he joined the forces of evil, much to the other one's dismay. After the Fall, he was cast down into Hell, where he became a demon. The two, despite being on opposite sides, miss each other's company, and wish things could be like the old days, before sides had to be chosen.
-Demons who regret rebelling, and angels who wish they had have rebelled. (Indeed, thinking of having one angel side with the demons at the story's end.)
-The whole concept of female angels: all Biblical angels seem to be male.
-Older gods from other mythologies showing up in the Christian hell offering social reform: dying from lack of faith in them, the reason the best place to find new followers are in a place where the name of the Christian God is shunned. And both demons and angels joining forces to combat these ancient deities.
-An angel who appears on earth in human form every few millenia to carry out divine plans (supposed to be the influence for Beatrice in Danté's Inferno.)
Would appreciate views, from a religious perspective, on these plot points. Would this work, if published, spark strong outcry from the religious in general?
----------
58,836 / 50,000
Jan 19, 2008 - 17 41
It sounds like it would be intriguing. The thought of two people falling in love during eternal torment doesn't sound logical, but since it's fiction, everything goes.
You would definitely have issues from some religious people. There are some who would shun the book simply for being written about hell.
I am a Christian and your book intrigues me and if I saw it I would definitely thumb through it to see what it's like. I would be uncomfortable if "evil" prevailed in the end. It's such a fine line. Maybe don't try to market it to Christians, it would make a good mainstream novel.
Good luck!
50,108 / 50,000
Jan 21, 2008 - 08 12
I think it sounds like you have some very intriguing story lines going on. I hope you write your novel. Personally, I'm of a mindset that there will be someone out there who will be offended no matter what... and if you write anything with religious themes or overtones, there will be a lot of somebodies offended. I don't care... although, as my significant other is fond of pointing out, I'm not really a people person. As the poster above stated, if you think it will be too much of a problem, submit it to a mainstream agent / publisher. And keep in mind that no matter how 'offensive' a work of fiction is, most people understand that it is just a work of fiction; for the most part, the vocal opposition does not represent the views of a majority of Christians (or Jews, or Muslims, etc.). It's fine to be sensitive to peoples' religious beliefs, but don't let the same extremists who think Harry Potter is converting an entire generation of kids to satanism keep you from telling a good story. Good luck!
0 / 50,000
Jan 23, 2008 - 19 11
Honestly, I see it very interesting! There would probably be a big outcry by the clergy and the like. Remember though, every novel faces criticism, and those that have such touchy subjects are no less held accountable by questionable material. Either way, you'll always have people who will read and react in a negative way but take no heed of them! Do what you feel is right and if you like your work then other people be damned!
63,376 / 50,000
Feb 4, 2008 - 08 08
Well, from my religious viewpoint, being a Christian:
Since it's not set in the reality that I believe in, it doesn't sound any different to me than any other novel in the fantasy genre. I'd probably disagree with most of the points that come out through the story, but then, I'm used to that from reading secular literature and living in a secular world. I certainly don't find it offensive that other people see the world differently from me, and I pity (or despise) anyone who does.
What does annoy me is people who think they're being really clever by setting out to ridicule or disprove Christianity in their stories when it's blatantly obvious they haven't a clue what it's really about. But your story doesn't sound anything like that, so no, I don't find the idea offensive, and I doubt it would cause much of an uproar. You certainly wouldn't be the first to paint a humorous and irreverent view of hell (q.v. Gary Larson, Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey, ...)
1,645 / 50,000
Feb 19, 2008 - 18 42
All kinds of stories are set in Hell, in fact, you mentioned one, Dante's "Inferno". Love in Hell...it's unlikely, being subjected constantly to all sorts of torture forever doesn''t make anyone very lovable, much less having any time to realize or declare love among the screams. Don't get me wrong, the idea is touching and might make some Holocaust survivors tear up, but from an author's standpoint it seems not at all practical, given that the spirits of those in Hell lack the occasion to think of anyone but themselves or their Tormentor, being constantly pushed into a mental state of survival, even though they cannot die. An Angel could love one of the Damned, and journey to Hell to free that person, but that would go against the Angel's instinct to perform the Will of God Almighty, and said Angel would likely be subject to His Divine Wrath.
Angels and Demons respecting one another...as the first demons were actually angels, this idea seems to flow well with the Bible, even though some may object to it. Your Angel, however, should have an innate inclination to do the will of God, and your Demon should live in fear of Satan finding out that there is even a friendship between these two fated enemies.
Demons who regret rebelling...this is highly doable, especially if said demons doubted the Salvation of Humanity through Christ and then witnessed it happening. The key is that the demons know that they cannot be redeemed unless through a Savior of the Angels (if you so choose to make one).
Angels who regret obeying...not so doable, being that (as far as we think we know) Angels have a drive to do God's will inside of them. Plus, God probably knew who to keep and who to toss at the Beginning (Genesis), so any of the first angels who tried to oppose him likely were canned a long time ago.
Female Angels...well, they gotta multiply somehow, lol. In all seriousness, you should either have them asexual or have both sexes. If we can have female saints, we can have female Angels, right? Some literary works have angels like Gabriel and Ariel as women, as those names have feminine forms.
Older gods a-fightin for converts...of course! Their human counterparts did it, so why wouldn't Ye Olde Pagan gods do so, especially if they're fighting for their godliness? One thing NOT to do: Don't be like Dante and toss in Muhammad and Ali as "false prophets" in with the pagan gods. That not only discredits those guys, it discredits Islam as an Abrahamic (believing in the one God, Judaism & Christianity are also Abrahamic) religion. Besides, Islam gets a bad enough rap today as it is, not to mention that Dante's reasoning was highly bigoted, following the trend of that era.
Beatrice...uhm....ok I guess, but it's likely that there's more than one of those around. And don't call her Beatrice. Call her...I dunno Zelda or Ursula or Carmela or something.
Controversial...always will be to some; not to me if you can make it convincing. The idea is to focus on the Hellishness of Hell, otherwise it won't be so convincing. The most whine you'll get will be from the (Neo)Pagans, but they're always whiny anyway. :p