A few thoughts about trolls ;-)

[RathDarkblade]

So this morning, while leafing through the guide to Ankh-Morpork, I started thinking about trolls.

As we know, on the Disc, trolls are made from some kind of rock. (Well, except Tethys - but he's a different kettle of fish.) And yet, in Tolkien's LOTR legendarium, trolls are organic life-forms. (Bert, Tom and William all eat flesh, even if they turn into stone by sunlight).

Is there a difference between these trolls? *wonders* I know that in Norse myth, trolls are immobile rocks by day and only come to life at night, so Tolkien's version is consistent with that. So ... did Terry simply take the idea further (i.e. trolls stay rocky all the time)?

I just had an idea for a story I'm writing. Suppose my main character (MC) is stealthily moving through the forest, but there's a patch of gravel come up ahead. She doesn't want to be noticed, so she kicks a gravel stone away -- and as it bounces, she hears a little "Ouch!" and a lot of swearing. Then a standing stone nearby says: "That was my little baby girl Substrate, you know."

"Oops! Sorry."

"It's no trouble, she's not hurt. She'll bounce back. Actually, she did." Pause. "You humans don't watch where you step."

Then the gravel stone returns back to its place, and a tiny voice complains: "I could've been hurt, you know."

"No you couldn't," says the troll dad.

"Yeah I could! I could've ended up in some snake's gullet." Pause. "All right, it wouldn't hurt, but it'd have been a hassle getting out of there."

Troll dad turns to MC and gives an expansive, stony shrug. "Kids of today, eh? What an imagination my little pebble has."

...and so on. I'm not sure where it might go from there, but it could be fun. Or maybe just be a distraction. What do you think?

 

[Quatermass]

Trolls seem to be one of those fictional species that seem to have many varying interpretations, not all of them petrifying in sunlight. A number of variations have them being able to regenerate health, and the variations in Warcraft seem to be Caribbean.

And then there's Homestuck's variations on trolls. They start out as seemingly human internet trolls, but are actually aliens. They generally look human, save for grey skin and horns, but are derived from some sort of insect, have a caste system based on their blood colour, and while not petrifying in sunlight, most would be blinded by sunlight. One of the main troll characters, Terezi Pyrope, was actually blinded by sunlight, but basically becomes Daredevil, complete with cane, enhanced senses, and a desire to enter the judicial system, or what passes for it in their totalitarian society. And that's without going into the weirder aspects of their biology, culture and society that rivals the Drow in sheer nastiness at times.

I'm bringing these up because there's quite a few variations you can cherrypick ideas from for your own story. It helps that trolls are, in some regards, not unlike the Fair Folk in some Scandinavian tales, from what I can gather...

 

[RathDarkblade]

Ah. Hmm ... well, I've done some thinking and had quite a few ideas (some of them quite silly, but fun).

I already know the setting and the time period of my story, as well as who my MCs (Main Characters) are (and their character arcs), and who the "supporting cast" are. I've planned out a couple of beat sheets and story outlines, broken down the story into scenes and planned what each scene should do. I've also written 6 chapters (out of 17) so far, and submitted them for critique with other writers.

This troll idea, though, introduces something completely new. I've worked out why they're here, where they came from and why they can't go back. I also thought of what they're going to do in the story (other than be an fun distraction, of course).

Well - you've certainly given me lots of food for thought, Quatermass. Thanks!