Tag Archives: Ayn Rand

If Authors Named Football Teams

Teams in the National Football League received their names in various ways, but most don’t derive from literary references.

The Baltimore Ravens stand out as a sole exception. Taken from the mysterious talking bird of the Edgar Allan Poe poem, that team name epitomizes the city where Poe lived.

What works for Baltimore might work for other NFL cities as well. Let’s find out what could happen if they left team-naming up to fiction writers.

Arizona

The Cardinals would become the Arizona Thrillers. Adventure author Clive Cussler lived in Arizona.

Atlanta

Replacing the Falcons are the Atlanta Argonauts, named for Rick Riordan’s book The Mark of Athena, which is set in Atlanta and features a trireme named Argo II. 

Buffalo

Writers would cross out the name Bills and write in the Buffalo Rangers. Writer Fran Striker, creator of the Lone Ranger, was born in and lived in Buffalo.

Carolina

In place of the Panthers, this team becomes the Carolina Crawdads. Delia Owens’ Where the Crawdads Sing is set in North Carolina.

Chicago

Writers need something fiercer than Bears. Instead, meet the Chicago Tyrannosaurs. Author Michael Crichton, born in Chicago, wrote Jurassic Park.

Cincinnati

Let’s replace Bengals with the Cincinnati Werewolves. Kim Harrison wrote The Hollows series, which is set in Cincinnati and contains werewolves.

Cleveland

Fiction writers could come up with a better name than Browns. How about the Cleveland Hellcats? Marie Vibbert, born and living in Cleveland, authored Galactic Hellcats.

Dallas

How ‘bout something other than them Cowboys? Writers would substitute the Dallas Vampires, since Charlaine Harris, who lives in Texas, wrote Living Dead in Dallas, which is set in Dallas.

Denver

For writers, the name Broncos won’t do. They’d choose the Denver Doomsdays, since Connie Willis was born in Denver and wrote Doomsday Book.

Detroit

Rather than Lions as a team name, writers would select the Detroit Wheels. Arthur Hailey’s novel Wheels was set in Detroit.

Green Bay

Could fiction writers surpass the name Packers? I think so. How about the Green Bay Starshooters? Not only does author Jason Mancheski live in Green Bay, but his book Shoot for the Stars is about the city’s football team.

Houston

Rather than Texans, writers might opt for the Houston Battleships, since author Daniel da Cruz penned The Ayes of Texas, a novel set partly in Houston.

Indianapolis

For this football city, fiction writers would replace Colts with the Indianapolis Titans (sorry, Nashville). The name is more appropriate here because Kurt Vonnegut, author of The Sirens of Titan, was born in Indianapolis.

Jacksonville

Writers might replace Jaguars with the Jacksonville Alligators. Diana K. Kanoy wrote She Swims with Alligators. Though not fiction, it is set in Florida.

Kansas City

For authors, this one’s obvious. Leave the name Chiefs aside and substitute the Kansas City Twisters. L. Frank Baum’s book The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, with its introductory tornado, is set in Kansas.

Las Vegas

Here, writers might swap the name Raiders with the Las Vegas Miners, to honor Mark Twain’s book, Roughing It, a partly true tale of silver mining in the Territory of Nevada.

Los Angeles

The City of Angels hosts two NFL teams. Writers would retreat from the name Chargers and forge ahead with the Los Angeles Demons. After all, William Peter Blatty lived near LA and wrote The Exorcist.

Los Angeles

Rather than the Rams, the other LA team should be renamed the Los Angeles Martians. Ray Bradbury lived much of his life near LA and authored The Martian Chronicles.

Miami

Writers would choose a harder-hitting name than Dolphins. How about the Miami Punchers? Elmore Leonard’s Rum Punch is set in Miami.

Minnesota

Some residents of the North Star State might prefer the Vikings, but writers would call that team the Minnesota Wobegons. Lake Wobegon Days, by Garrison Keillor, is set in Minnesota.

New England

Since the Patriots were named for a region, rather than a specific state or city, that gives writers some latitude to re-name the team the New England Cthulhus. Rhode Island is part of New England, and author H.P. Lovecraft, creator of the Cthulhu Mythos, was born and lived there.  

New Orleans

Here, writers would replace the name Saints with the New Orleans Steamboaters. Mark Twain’s Life on the Mississippi, includes descriptions of New Orleans.

New York

With two teams in New York City, let’s go alphabetically and rename the Giants first. Writers might choose the New York Atlases, since author Ayn Rand, who wrote Atlas Shrugged, lived in NYC.

New York

As for the Jets, the New York Bombardiers seems appropriate. Joseph Heller was born and lived in NYC, and wrote Catch-22, about WWII bombardiers.

Philadelphia

The literary crowd wouldn’t go for Eagles, and might instead select a name requiring a change in the team’s colors—the Philadelphia Purple Riders. Having gone to college in Philadelphia, Zane Grey wrote Riders of the Purple Sage.

Pittsburgh

The other Pennsylvania team needs a name change from the Steelers. Writers would call it the Pittsburgh Furies. Stephen King’s novel Christine is set in Pittsburgh and involves a Plymouth Fury.

San Francisco

In replacing the 49ers name, writers would go for the San Francisco Wolfdogs in honor of Jack London’s White Fang. London was born in San Francisco.

Seattle

Ditch the Seahawks name. Authors have a better one in mind. They’d like the Seattle Boneshakers. This honors Cherie Priest, whose novel Boneshaker: A Novel of the Clockwork Century is set in Seattle.

Tampa Bay

This team wouldn’t be the Buccaneers any more after writers got their blue pens out. They’d rename the team the Tampa Bay Cannoneers. After all, Jules Verne had his characters build a gigantic cannon near Tampa in his novel From the Earth to the Moon.

Tennessee

Earlier, I stole the name Titans from Tennessee and gave it to Indianapolis. Writers would rename this team the Tennessee Devils. Jaden Terrell’s novel Racing the Devil is set in Nashville.

Washington

Some in the District want to change the name from the Commanders anyway. If they let writers pick, they might come up with the Washington Scorpions. Lisa Howorth’s novel Summerlings is set in D.C. and involves scorpions.

There. I’ve done the hard part. Others can come up with team logos, uniform designs, and characteristic colors. If any NFL teams desire a name makeover based on literary references, feel free to contact—

Poseidon’s Scribe

January 5, 2025Permalink Leave a comment

Donkey and Elephant Stories

donkey elephantIs it wise for a fiction writer to inject personal political beliefs into his or her stories?  Or is the question moot; is all fiction in some sense political?  Let us roam with elephants and donkeys.

Arguably, both politics and good fiction are about ideas.  The ideas explored by politics surround questions like:  How shall people be governed?  What is the role of government?  What is the nature of power? Can we arrange governing systems for maximum benefit to all?

Fiction also deals with ideas, though these are not limited to political ideas.  Often they boil down to basic questions of philosophy:  What is beauty?  What is truth?  What is justice?  What happens after death?

But my real question is whether writers should make their political leanings obvious in their stories.  Some authors certainly do.  L. Neil Smith is very libertarian.  Robert Heinlein, too, leaned libertarian.   Isaac Asimov leaned to the liberal side, though not blatantly so.  Ayn Rand was passionate about her political philosophy, which she felt was new and different enough to have its own name—Objectivism.

In my view, there are dangers in making your political views obvious in your fiction.  For one thing, you can turn off at least half of your potential audience.  Those who disagree with your political stance won’t read more than one of your books.

If your intent is to persuade, consider this.  Have you ever heard anyone say something like this after a political argument: “Thank you.  I’ve come around to your side, based on the strength of your logic.  I see now that I’ve been voting the wrong way my whole life.  Thanks again, for helping me see the light.”  Almost nobody changes his party affiliations that easily.

Another danger in overt political fiction is predictability, and therefore dullness.  When the good guys believe as the writer does, and the bad guys are of the other political party, the reader knows who will win.  The reader can feel like she’s being preached to.  Clever and rare is the writer who can represent the opposite side in a fair and convincing way.

NightOfJanuary16thIt’s my view that Ayn Rand achieved this in her stage play “Night of January 16th.” The play occurs, for the most part, in a courtroom.  Near the end, the judge dismisses the jury to their room to render a decision. At that point it’s announced to the audience that they are the jury and will be allowed to vote guilty or not guilty.  (Either that or twelve audience members are selected at the start to play the jury.)  A vote of not guilty represents a tilt toward Objectivism, and a vote of guilty means the opposite.  There are two endings to the play, and the actors perform the one voted on by the “jury.”  I understand that, in all the plays performances since it premiered in 1935, the ‘guilty’ and ‘not guilty’ outcomes occur about equally often.

My recommendation, if you’re set on writing overt political fiction, is to (1) do so in a subtle, metaphorical way without preaching to your readers, (2) poke fun at or lambaste all politicians equally, focusing on the separation between politicians and the rest of us, or (3) be as even-handed as possible, with bad guys and good guys on both sides.

What are your thoughts?  No, not about the last election—I mean about the prudence of putting politics in your fiction!  Leave a nonpartisan comment and let me know.  Steering well clear of donkeys and elephants, I’m—

                                                   Poseidon’s Scribe

February 3, 2013Permalink

A Stroll through My Mental Library

Why would you read a blog post containing a list of writers who influenced me?  My aim is to provoke you to think about (perhaps even write down) the list of those who inspired you.  It’s a useful exercise.  Perhaps the most important part of the exercise is to describe those writers as well—what they mean to you.

Come on, walk along beside me now through the library of my mind.  The shelves have all the books I ever read.  My apologies for its small size; a busy life interferes with reading, unfortunately.  But I’m trying to read more.  For the purposes of today’s tour the books have been arranged by author, and we’ll be viewing busts of the more prominent ones.  Engraved on the pedestal of each bust are the author’s name and a few words describing his or her works.

Ah, I see you noticed the 30-foot high bronze statue just within the entrance.  Kind of hard to miss.  Yes, that’s Jules Verne.  I’ve read most of his works that have been translated into English.  His Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea is the only book I ever re-read, and I do that every couple of years.  That book inspired me both to join the submarine service and to major in naval architecture in college.  To me, he represents scientific accuracy, exotic voyages, high drama and adventure, and a glimpse of a time when technology seemed on the verge of making everything possible for the first time in human history.

Over here is the bust of Isaac Asimov.  I’ve read only a fraction of his published work but it’s still a lot, both fiction and non-fiction.  The words engraved beneath his name are scientific accuracy, easy-to-read writing style, clever ideas, and love of wordplay.

Walking along, we’ve come to Arthur C. Clarke.  To me, he too symbolizes scientific accuracy, but also an optimistic view of mankind’s future, and various ways we could deal with aliens of far greater and different intelligences.

That bust there depicts Robert Heinlein.  Hard-edged style, a strict morality, a libertarian viewpoint, and success through struggle are the hallmarks of his writing, to me.

Watch your step; this area is not well lit.  Here, take my flashlight.  That bust you just bumped into is Ray Bradbury.  He has the most poetic prose of any author here—a flowing style that seduces you into his stories with the sheer magic and power of the words.  Then he often slaps you hard with some dark and twisted surprise.

And that one over there is Ayn Rand.  She’s the only woman on the tour; I wish there were more.  Her writing is characterized by emotional power, uncompromising philosophy, and a deep belief in human freedom coupled with strict ideas about how to live one’s life.

We’ve come to the bust of Larry Niven.  Amazing ideas, compelling characters, and the most well-thought-out aliens of any author in the library.

Here we are in the Children’s section—quite dusty, I know.  This next bust looks a little strange, with no discernable features.   Maybe you don’t recognize the name, Victor Appleton II. It’s a pseudonym used by many authors.  I grew up reading the Tom Swift, Jr. series written by the various “Mr. Appletons.”  With fondness I recall the high adventure, the marvelous inventions, and the use of science to solve problems.

One more and I think we’ll wrap up the tour.  Clive Cussler’s bust bears the following descriptions on beneath the name on its pedestal—engaging adventures set at sea, a writer with an easy-reading style that really puts his characters through hell.

That’s enough for this trip.  Perhaps we’ll continue the tour in a future blog post and examine busts of authors we missed.  I should mention you won’t necessarily see the influences of all of these writers in my own stories.  Also, I don’t necessarily agree with the viewpoints of all of them—I just enjoy reading their books.

Thanks for stopping by for a tour today.  Hope you enjoyed strolling through the mind of–

Poseidon’s Scribe

April 10, 2011Permalink