Realism in Fiction
One of the interesting things about writing fiction, and admittedly there are quite a few, is that there has to be something real about the stories or characters. That doesn’t mean that everything has to operate according to the natural laws of the real world, but there has to be some sort of order to how things operate in the fictional world. And then there are some things, like math and numbers that exist outside the realm of fictionalization. Let me explain, what I mean. I really like “The How to Train Your Dragon” movies. I think they’re a lot of fun. I love the music and the humor and the artwork. But recently, while I was re-watching the first and second films, and anticipating the upcoming release of the third, it occurred to me that the Vikings of Berk have a serious problem, and it has nothing t...