A Multiplicity of Symbolism

Hello, Vocal community,

Although I am no stranger to writing, I am a stranger here. Circumstances in my life have led me to test this method of presenting my written material to the public. I am excited and intimidated to share my creative vision on this platform. Since this will count as the first story, I want to take the time to introduce myself by, of course, sharing one of my personal experiences with creativity.

As it stands, I toe the line between two specific communities, that of the writers and the video game enthusiasts. For me, engaging with both of them in equal measure has led me to experiences that inspire me as a creator, and I consider myself a narrative designer and consultant for a wide variety of fictional mediums.

One result of my creativity split in twine is that I've used my birth name and a few crafted ones to label my handiwork. So to open my story, I want to tell the meaning behind "The Chrestomath" and why it is my frequent choice for publications I make. Writing usually incentivizes using the birth name, unless, of course, you use an author name, but it usually isn't something as mysterious as a title. It all started when everyone I knew used creative design as a competition in my childhood.

The joys of a constructed language

Although I didn't have a word for it till 2019, when I learned about WorldAnvil, I'd like to consider myself something of a decent worldbuilder since elementary school. I've strived to keep documenting the original works that fueled my dream and quickly return to 2002-2003 when I was already writing original stories. Back then, I had maps, characters, a decent plot, and I'm sure that if my support circle had fully backed it, I probably could have published it back then.

A weird kick came with my passion, though. Fierce demand for originality fomented the ranks of the creatives of my class. Both my father and my classmates loved to bring up the concept of copyright. They would dictate rather quickly when an idea I had was theft or, in the event of a new idea not viewed in the current media at the time, either tell me to claim a trademark or, oddly enough, rush to "steal" it themselves. My earliest written work has ©️ all over it, an adequate representation of one of my ongoing fears.

I was a child, of course. There's absolutely no legal standing amongst 4th-graders, but this became my all-consuming focus. I did everything in my power to embrace as much originality as I could. My father still reminds me about copyright today, a funny reminder of why this seed would plant and eventually blossom into my current challenge.

Eventually, this development overwhelmed me with a need to depart from English traditional naming conventions seen in fiction at some point between then and now. For me, it started to make no sense that a fictional world would speak perfect modern English, and I considered the act of replacing the word English with "Common" a neat trick all too often replicated. I wanted to reinvent language used in a way that would free me from the accusation of trademark theft forever.

Thus was born the desire to create a constructed language. And within the countless hours spent reading, crafting, and refining, I would come across unique words in other languages that never find use in modern parlance. I would seize these words and restructure them for my methods. This act is the foundation of many of the words you'll see in my worldbuilding.

The Desire for Learning

I found the title I use for my publications from this conlang activity. The title itself originates within an obscure word I found through one of my rabbit-hole internet dives, from the Ancient Greek χρηστομάθεια, itself constructed from two Greek words, χρηστός, or "useful," and μανθάνω, "learn." Together they describe a state of being, a desire to learn, and have only been used in English to reference a collection of literary texts of a foreign language compiled as a means to study said language.

And when I first came across this word, it resonated with the core of my passion. I love the process of learning. And what better means to express the language of my intentions with the work I create than with a series of written material presented to understand it? After making that connection, I assigned the title to my author's Twitter account almost a decade before today's extensive use.

This means of craft is the consistent goal for which I strive. I find an instrument within fictional mediums to capture the feeling of wonder, perhaps even the thaumazein Aristotle referenced. Understanding the language I would use to present that feeling, every word employed to its maximum benefit of symbolic sense would describe my ultimate marker of success while I create.

Of course, one of my greatest fascinations is the arbitrariness of the languages we use. We string a few sounds together, and suddenly, it's not just random utterances of the mouth. It compiles a whole new concept. There's no natural connection between linguistic form and meaning, yet it thrives as one of its primary forms of identification.

Words serve as symbols. Each string of letters represents something outside the framework of its parts. That representation is greater than the parts that make it, no matter how it looks, because of the message it communicates to the reader. This vibrant ideology I built from years of work as a wordsmith prompted me to assume the title "Chrestomath" as both one passionate for knowledge for its own sake and one that can share it with others as a guide.

A Means of Purification

It should come as no surprise then that my vision in my work relies heavily on the extensive use of symbolic imagery we rely upon in our modern languages. I like to deconstruct words using the Online Etymology Dictionary and rebuild them to represent unique specific meanings in my world. I also want to present the original concepts behind the words we use every day. For example, I am sharing and working with the fact that Saturday directly references the Roman god Saturn and is connected to that deity's domain of ends.

Surprisingly, this year, thanks to a frequent rotation of articles from Mental Floss on my feed, I would learn February comes from a Latin verb meaning "to purify" and was directly associated with purification rituals associated with the month that shared the name. This etymological discovery was exciting for me to learn in the new month because this month meant significant changes to come about. Some I knew ahead of time. Others, not so much.

February 1st, 2022, also marked the start of the celebration of the Lunar New Year, as the second new moon landed on that day this year. Lunar New Year traditions are rife with symbolism. These symbols have become a personal research topic for me. I used to work in an Asian-themed cuisine restaurant, the owner continuously extending to every store member a chance to celebrate with his family Lunar New Year. He gave each of the employees what I would later learn was called hóngbāo, its significance entirely missed on me until I would do some reading on the subject later.

Additionally, I recognize the month of February in the United States as Black History Month. During this month, everyone is encouraged to reflect on the incredible contributions the world has received at the hand of Black individuals throughout history and highlight continued contributions in all fields in the present day. I was excited to see my feed several Black content creators getting the recognition they are more than deserving for their work on the front page of Twitch.tv. Following the recent ongoing struggles regarding hate raids and profiling (of the many battles fought), I was happy some effort is moving forward, although long overdue.

I find it an attractive, powerful combination of symbols here, purifications in ritual action, wishes of good fortune in tradition, and awareness of the silenced voices of humanity in the focus of equity and justice. I was leading into these few days of significance with a significant change of my own that would initiate this reflection: the discontinuation of Aetherflow Media, the platform I previously published a substantial amount of my writing. These thoughts currently encompass my creative journey, so I want to use them as a springboard upon delivering my voice on this platform.

Purifying my Intent

I want to use my fascination for symbols and these celebrations of several traditions to inspire my writing for this year of 2022. I hope to exercise a creative means to continue publishing my worldbuilding and truth-seeking adventures and post my continued love for Final Fantasy XIV's world. This significant component fueled my written work the past four years.

Hopefully, as I work on getting myself to a better location, I will be publishing stories to share the lore of Final Fantasy XIV, starting with the last official assignments I had before the discontinuation of AFM. After that, I plan to share my thoughts regarding the latest expansion narrative and other such narrative designs in gaming subjects. I look forward to working to inspire!

~ The Chrestomath

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