A nice article on the origins of Atlantis from the BBC website:

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/greeks/atlantis_01.shtml

This myth has been on my mind during these days leading up to the release of Slash of Crimson, as it figures largely in the storyline. Though there have been wide ranging theories as to origins of Plato’s sunken city, I think its location probably does match a geographical source from the classical or pre-classical Mediterranean. Discovering a story’s origins, however, often raises more questions than it answers.

We are conditioned by themes in popular literature to feel like we already know to some extent what kind of character a vampire has, a werewolf has, etcetera. We need these themes to stay somewhat true even to enjoy it when we add a twist to them. And so in this regard, when it comes to Atlantis, what we’re usually handed is an ancient civilization inhabited by advanced beings that encountered tragedy for unspecified reasons.

But I wonder sometimes what motivations might lie beneath this story structure. I wonder what an Atlantean would have to say about Plato’s tale, and whether what he thinks important would be the same as what she thinks important. Perhaps an Atlantean would have other priorities entirely. Perhaps she would ask something very different of someone she loves, for example, than a human would, and perhaps growing to understand what that love truly meant would lead to places uncharted indeed.