Fair point. Then again, there were rumours, so they must have come from somewhere.

 

The thing is, Thyestean, we can only speculate with certain data. Truth is, canon doesn't explain how Riddle became Lord Voldemort. Not in the way you ask: "The question is when, where and how." The 'how' is the problem here, I think. Because, how does someone become a Dark Lord? I honestly don't know. But, the author can imply certain knowledge. It depends on the narrator's perspective. Is he 1st, 2nd or 3rd person? Is 3rd person omniscient or only knows certain things. And being the point of view focused on Lily/James, the reader can make some concessions. He doesn't need an info dump in that regard, just some data to make the story believable or, if you want, different to other First War fic.

 

I agree, in the scheme of things it isn't overly important, the how, for this story. You just need a time frame and resonable rumors to frame the story. However, how did Voldemort become a dark lord? Well, trying to take over the uk is a good start. But I am more inclined to label him a dark lord when he took slytherin's ideals, which is near the time he took the name Voldemort. Also, his transformation into the worst dark lord of all time would conside with the splitting of his soul in many pieces.

But like you said this isn't needed for the story. And how he became a dark lord would be more of a philosophical question than a definitive one.

 

Tom Riddle was essentially born Lord Voldemort. A creation of magical rape. Dumbledore suspected what he would become the day he met him and set his wardrobe full of stolen items on fire. Did he know he had just met the boy that would become the darkest wizard in history? No, he said that himself. By the time Tom Riddle got to school he was a charmer but he could never un-do the damage he had done to his reputation in front of Dumbledore at the orphanage.

An interesting starting point for a long fic would be the final day of Lily and James 7th year. Graduation day. The day they, in your fic maybe, were first approached by Dumbledore to join the OOTP.

 

Uhh great minds think alike? This is actually what the first chapter is

I'm just making an epilogue before the first chapter to show the world they're in, but its halfway through at the very moment you suggested

Quick question, how do I thumb up people? Can't find the option

 

I strongly discourage that path. It's been done. And is not that I'm sub estimating you, but you need to be very skilled to maintain the reader's interest in the story once you showed how it ended.

You need 25/30 post first if I remember correctly.

 

Also, look into periods and punctuation, it helps a lot, especially before you try and reach those 25 posts.

 

I believe he meant prologue, not epilogue.

 

So Risen, when are you posting your first chapter. While I enjoy first war and Grindelwald war stories, make it AU. Having to read the light side lose so hopelessly and Order members and Aurors getting slaughtered isn't something that appeals to me. You know, add a twist to it. Like Lucius dies during DE excursions. Dumbledore is a lot more ruthless and less forgiving, although it's best to avoid the puppet master cliche.

And ya know, tip the scales of the war and make DE's lose more and more numbers. Malfoy's were the most influential family in Britain. If their heir was found a DE, their reputation and influence would diminish just like Barty Crouch Sr.

You know, with small twists like this. It would make for a good AU read.

 

Ya autocorrect switched the two for no apparent reason

As for chapter wise... By the end of mid-january I suppose

Swamped at the moment so I haven't really had a chance to work on it as much as I'd like

 

I don't know what you are planning Risen but what Krishna says is a valid approach and an AU could be good. It isn't the only valid approach personally I'd prefer a more character driven approach that stuck to canon as it stands.

You can have a good story where the good guys mostly lose. Incidentally I'm not sure that their is any canon reason to believe that the light side did lose so "hopelessly" or that they were "slaughtered. I always got the feel that it was more a grinding dreadful stalemate just with Voldemort slowly winning. We know Moody for example took out a number of big Death Eaters etc.

Anyway, either approach could work, write the story you feel works for you. I'll be interested to have a read either way Risen.

 

Where did you get the impression that it was a slaughter Krishna

Most of the original Ootp are still alive or active with the exception of the prewett brothers, longbottoms, potters and two others

I always though it was a stalemate like comneus just said like eleven years seems like a bit to long of a war if it was practically a demolition...

 

Seems to me they were getting ass raped pretty hard.

 

If it were me doing this, I'd do a prologue with Lily/James' first and/or second year - which, doing the math, is the "beginning" of the first "war".

I call it that because I really consider them more a series of terrorist attacks than anything else. Perhaps few "battles" where Hogsmeade is nearly destroyed - in my mind I have something like this being the "first time Lily/James defied him", by resisting Voldemort's plan to destroy Hogsmeade and leading a group of students against the Death Eaters. Perhaps Auror Cadet Frank Longbottom is there, with his future wife, too.

Too often I see this discussed as a war, when really it is untraceable terrorist attacks that would provoke far more fear. A simple Imperius Curse on a passing stranger - "Go into in the middle of Diagon Alley and start casting Blasting Curses until you're killed" - is horrendously terrifying to the sheeple of the Wizarding World. And who ends up being blamed? The "Death Eaters", who are never caught, at least not for years into the war.

Were I leading the war, I'd use the Imperius Curse almost exclusively for strikes on the Wizarding World - to prevent any possibility of having them catch my followers - and use the actual Death Eaters to kill loads of muggles with impunity for fun. And have the big focus of the Ministry be on preventing the fall of the Statute of Secrecy. Which causes drama as the wizarding community is more fearful for their lives, 5 years into the war, than the muggles.

This makes sense how being "muggle-born" can still be such a stigma - the Ministry people who focused on "protecting muggles" by protecting the Statute neglected the rights and protections of good honest wizards. Voldemort's people can easily win elections by standing up for wizards - "putting our brethren first" if you will.


This kind of thing has the potential for a hell of a politically-savvy author to really take charge and write an incredible story. But capturing that fear and helplessness inherent in terrorism is key, in my opinion. Not easy to do.