#worldbuilding worldbuild worLDBUILDING WORLDBUILDING WORL-

[broken-synchronicity]

Hi hi!! Separate anon here but I just wanted to jump in and second that “The seven habits of highly unfortunate souls: a transmigrator’s guide to the coral sea” rec. That fics one of my top fav works ever (so is lost in translation but I can’t rec that to you since you wrote it lol.) the world building in 7 habits is so well fleshed out and authentic feeling, it’s very immersive! Also it has baby tweels, and you can never go wrong with baby tweels. sry to jump in I love that fic so much lol

Well, you can't get a more glowing rec that this! Go read the fic NOW

[m0thmancore]

dont get me wrong i love naval style space combat too but i want more with space physics applied. show me lasers that hit instantly from light years away. show me some stuff tailored to that shit. space is submarine combat. use your third dimension

[bi-hop]

why the vulture scene in atsv is pure horror (spoilers under the cut)

As promised, I now have the mental bandwidth to actually talk about Adriano Tumino aka the Medieval Vulture in Across the Spiderverse. This is a spoiler fest, so I'm putting everything under the cut. Enjoy!

So, at some point when I was younger, I first heard about Flatland. It's this satirical novella from 1884. When I was looking it up again last night to prepare myself to explain it to other people, I was SHOCKED to hear it was satire on Victorian society and class structures. I had only ever heard about it in science and horror spaces. As a work, it's mainly known now for exploring the idea of 4th dimensions before Einstein, but it also continues elements that are straight out of horror. So, instead of breaking down the whole thing, I'm going to be focusing on that stuff specifically.

Flatland is about A. Square (yes, that's his name), who is a square. As you can imagine, his entire world is two-dimensional and functions as such. There's a lot of worldbuilding, but just keep in mind that

The people in his world cannot conceive of a 3rd dimension, and any mention of such is heretical.

Circles are the highest ranked people in this world.

One day, he encounters what he thinks is a circle. Said character is actually a sphere. Even as said sphere fucks with his perception by looking like disks sliding in and out of reality and tells him about the 'truth' of the world, A. Square can't comprehend the third dimension until his teacher lifts him into it, into Spaceland. The square is enlightened! His mind has been opened! He tells the sphere, if his reality is false and there's truly a third dimension, what if there are more? What if a fourth dimension exists with fourth dimensional beings who cannot be accurately perceived?

His teacher immediately casts him back down into Flatland, where he is subsequently imprisoned. No one believes that the third dimension and Spaceland exist. He only is able to write the novella and hope that one day Flatland will be ready for this knowledge.

All of this to say that Adriano is A. Square.

I read a lot of dimension-based horror. Maybe it's because the multiverse has compelled me since I was a kid, or maybe it's because I've heard way too many thought experiments about how every person on the planet may see the world differently, and we just use the same language to describe fundamentally different visuals because we can't accurately verify anything. The horror of it all, for both readers and writers, isn't necessarily the idea of seeing things others can't. At least, it's not in the hands of someone sincerely thinking about the 'eldritch'. Instead, imagine a higher being grabbing you and exposing you to a whole new, weighty aspect of reality you could never conceive without actively being dragged into it. And then you're thrown back into your reality. It consumes you, drives you, and no one believes you. How can they, when it's something so alien to your reality that no one can even think of it unless shown?

Because of the ripple effects of the collider, Adriano Tumino is dragged into Earth-65, the home of Spider-Woman (Gwen Stacy). We don't know a lot about his world. As far as I remember, we don't even get a number designation. But his design, dialogue, and track all communicate a great deal about him. Vulture Meets Culture as a track blends Gwen's theme with the sort of opera he might listen to back home. He's designed heavily on the aesthetics of Da Vinci notebooks. As he affects the world, you can even see notations a la research scribbles next to diagrams. From memory alone, disregarding the fact that he's Italian (though I'm sure the insistence on English in Earth-65 was probably disorientating if his entire world speaks Italian), he also finds this new reality to be abhorrent and lashes out. This alone, an exposure to new colors and strange art and even weirder people who look nothing like you and the rest of your world, would be hard enough to cope with.

And then Miguel, this Spider-Man from 2099, drags Adriano out into the modern day.

The thing with movies being in theaters is that I'm at the mercy of random people who film showings on their phone to get footage. Because everyone finds the helicopter scene directly after this more interesting (which is valid), I don't have a picture of this moment. But when Adriano is flying out into this future, when he lays his eyes on these towering skyscrapers alight with color, you can see his shock, perhaps even terror. It'd be rough enough being exposed to a version of Italy that's, say, his time period but in technicolor. But this is worse. This is his Spaceland moment. The opera builds almost mournfully.

Soon, he will be sent back to his reality. This will happen in an even more incomprehensible future dimension, with even more people who look nothing like him. Perhaps there's a version of his granddaughter there. Tiana Tumino? It doesn't matter. Imagine this though. Your grandfather is yanked out of existence. He comes back. And he tells you 'I have seen colors beyond the ones we live in. I have seen towers of glass and metal scraping the sky, all alight in these colors. I have seen art that contains more art, and it was hideous. No one understood me. Flying things neared me that were beyond anything even our greatest geniuses can make.'

Do you believe him? Can you even imagine it all, even if he describes it, even if he shows you drawings of what he witnessed?

What will you say?

[literary-illuminati]

2024 Book Review #18 – Montress Volume 3: Haven by Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda

I have been reading one volume of this comic a month, in part as a way to force myself to take it a bit slowly and appreciate the issues and volumes as distinct arcs and works in their own right instead of archive binging, and in part because a volume of comic books being more than ~20% of my reading goal for the year feels like cheating. This has accomplished both of those goals splendidly, but it is making it increasingly hard to come up with different ways of talking about the basic premise of the story. So I’m just not going to.

The plot picks up fairly directly where the last plot dropped off – with Maika having escaped the last maratime city-state she’d found refuge in (now wanted fugitive) and settling into the next one. To secure safety for herself and her little crew of misfits (eldritch god-monster her mom bore and raised her to be a host for, adorable fox-child she treats like shit, terrible cat who betrays everyone, improbably hot noble magic assassin whose technically supposed to be murdering her), she’s conscripted by the royal engineer to assist in repairing the ancient magical shield which protected the city during the last war – which, due to her heritage and the aforementioned eldritch god, she might be the only one capable of safely accessing. That (literally) blows up in everyone’s face just about immediately, and the remainder of the arc is spent scrambling to deal.

Dramatically the volume works very well as a self-contained narrative, though a decade of marvel movies have left me kind of incapable of taking a big climax involving an apocalyptic glowing hole in the sky that seriously. Beyond that though, this is definitely a Lore volume, digging deep into the history of the Shaman Empress, her relationship with Zinn, and what the other Montrum are or want. It also, if my memory is right, marks the point where Zinn finishes transitioning from this terrible quasi-unknowable parasite ruining Maika’s life and turning her into a walking atrocity to just, like, Some Guy. They’re a little shit with an improbably amount of flattering amnesia and also murder a bunch of people but like, they’re a character now. They banter with Maika constantly, and also keep fucking up and being wrong about things. Deeply endearing tbh.

This also marks the point where The Doctor and Maika’s paternal family more broadly starts being a lot more plot-relavent which, going to be honest, I’m kind of dreading. Can’t remember any real details but my memories of the whole upcoming arc basically boil down to ‘at least Maika got that badass clockwork prosthetic out of it’.

Kippa and Ren are basically irrelevant to the actual plot this time, which is totally fine because I love them both dearly and would have happily read an entire issue of them going shopping and having a nice day in the market. Kippa, besides being adorable, does actually get some pretty meaty scenes providing the view from the gutter here though – Maika gets scooped up by a scheming vizier engineer as soon as she walks into town, and also hates people, but Kippa is absolutely the sort of person to go wandering through a sprawling refugee camp doing whatever she can to help. Which is both good worldbuilding and characterization and provides some desperately needed grounding to keep the whole story from vanishing entirely into mythic freudian psychodrama.

Speaking of preferring the social and political storytelling – I’m not sure they ever actually matter, but I do love the two bit characters who occasionally get scenes of their desperate heroic spycraft and diplomacy as they try everything they can to prevent another war breaking out. Their little bit in this volume also does a great job illuminating what a broken mess the politics of the Federation is – given the incredibly vague 1930s-East-Asia analogy underlying the story’s geopolitics, I like that the genocidal power about to plunge the world into war is riven with internal contradictions and five minutes away from a coup with the army and navy barely able to stand in the same room without gunfights breaking out).

Anyway yeah, it’s still Monstress. Still good! I probably sound like a broken record saying it at this point, but the character design remains just sublime, even for very thoroughly secondary characters. Speaking of, my favourite one has now shown up!

[thatonebirdwrites]

if you like a good fantasy story, where small details can have large ripple effects later, and enjoy the Avatar-verse, then take a look at my Legend of Korra fanfiction Shared Moments series. (I chose to not rewrite canon Book 1 because of reasons.) As long as you've seen the first season of Legend of Korra, then it should all make sense. Heck, you probably don't even need to see that, but book 1 would have more clarity if you did. This very much is a Korrasami fanfiction, where their relationship starts much earlier than canon. (I got rid of the romantic triangle weirdness with Mako in book 2 entirely).

I did a lot of research for this fanfiction. Dug into the Avatar-verse lore, especially the bending arts, Spirit World, spirit energy, the Beyond/Space, and how that all interconnects with the physical world. And let me tell you, I found a lot more gaps in the worldbuilding than I expected, which gives me a little freedom to dig deeper into some of my themes. I also looked at some common themes that the fandom seems to use in relation to the Spirit World and Spirits, so I collated those as well to try to find a sort-of consensus. (Not that there is one really.) That is reflected in how I depict Spirits and the Spirit World. Also, I strive to accurately depict how people in oppressive regimes often have underground mutual aid networks, and how these often have anarchist roots (I paint these as good because they are!). I explore themes related to justice, equality, mutual aid, disability, sustainability, balance, and building relationships. Korra and Asami's journey is very much a long arc of learning about how to listen to the people's needs and then give them the materials/tools needed to build what they need to be sustainable. Of course, the powers-at-be don't like that and fight Korra and Asami at every turn. Note: since I'm a queer disabled person, I wanted more queer disabled rep, so when our heroes face off in epic battles, they will have scars and deal with temporary (or permanent) disability. How they acclimate is crucial to their journey and the goal of justice, where no one is left behind. (Content Warning for: graphic violence, abuse, murder, poisoning, assault, attempted genocide.) To read summaries of the books, see below. For Books 4 and 5, the summary may be adjusted after I start writing those. At the moment, I only have an outline for those and scattered scenes.

I have Books 1, 1.5, 2, 2.5, and 3 finished. I have started Book 3.5.

Book 1 starts after Asami turns on her father, and it details scenes between the canon show's scenes. The book digs into the start of Korra and Asami's friendship and how Asami deals with the loss of nearly everything of her former life. Goal was to show some of her arc that the show glossed over.

Book 1.5 centers on Asami after the events of Book 1. It starts a few days after Team Avatar returns from the South after Korra's bending was restored by her past lives. Asami struggles with the aftermath of her father trying to kill her, his upcoming trial, the investigation into his properties, and her inheritance of Future Industries. Content Warning: Suicidal Ideation, PTSD, Traumatic Flashbacks

Book 2 is a rewrite of the canon version. Asami joins Korra in her journey to the South in hopes of scoring a deal with Varrick to save her beleaguered company, while she supports Korra's journey to better understand her spiritual side and her relationship troubles. However, Asami finds herself swept up with a hidden sect of Southerners that try to keep their traditions alive despite Northern oppression. She convinces Korra to visit this sect, and it starts their dark spirits investigations. Tensions rise in the South as the North invades, and Team Avatar finds themselves caught in an escalating conflict that leads to a World War.

In Book 2.5, Team Avatar return to Republic City after having survived a World War. Asami finds herself caught up in a spiral of flashbacks, strange headaches, and an unsettling feeling that something is very wrong with herself. Varrick tries to manipulate the press against Asami in a bid to lessen his sentence, but as she and Korra fight back, Asami discovers her mansion has been taken over by an unknown faction.

Book 3 involves the rise of airbenders all over the world. Team Avatar journeys with Tenzin and Jinora to seek out airbenders to rebuild the Air Nation, only to find that across the Earth Kingdom airbenders are going missing and others going into hiding. While they seek to unravel the mystery, Asami's health deteriorates as the symptoms she had since Harmonic Convergence begin to accelerate. To make matters worse, a group of criminals, who had attempted to kidnap Korra as a child, escape from jail and go on the hunt for the Avatar and her Mirror.

Book 3.5 details the rise of military dictatorship in the Earth Kingdom, while Asami and Korra tackle long-distance relationship troubles and their grueling recovery from the Red Lotus. However, Asami finds herself increases caught up in a political quagmire when her company starts the Republic City rebuild project and Asami begins following through on her promises to the mutual aid communities in the Earth Kingdom. She develops an undercover identity and works with the Air Nation to slow the rise of the dictator and provide aid to those in need. This book is being written and will be posted once I finish posting Book 3. It covers three years unlike the other books that span a few weeks to a few months at most.

Book 4 will detail Korra's return to Republic City and Asami's struggle to trust Korra again. However, the brutal dictator in the Earth Kingdom has set her sights on Zaofu and Republic City in a goal to take over the entire continent, but her experiments into spirit energy threatens to imbalance the physical and spirit world and imperil the lives of millions.

Book 4.5 covers Korra and Asami's vacation in the Spirit World.

Book 5 will cover Korra and Asami's return from their vacation and the subsequent recovery from war. However, danger looms when the secret of the spirit vines is stolen followed by explosive attacks on city centers across the world by an unknown but strangely familiar faction. (Still unwritten, but it's been plotted out already.)

So those are the already written or planned books thus far!

Enjoy!

[thecruxarm-personal-blog]

Hi! Do you have any tips on worldbuilding? Where do you start?

Thanks!

Hello! Thanks for asking me this haha, this is a little vague but ill do my best to answer anyway!

Worldbuilding can be pretty intimidating to start doing at first, but its by no means a fine science. My first suggestion would be to think ahout what sort of worls you want in the first place; do you want a high fantasy magical world? A hard-science sci fi setting? A steampunk post apocalyptic future with zombies? A slice of life urban setting with monster people? Go for whatever you want!! Theres no limits for what theme you can go with, mish mash any asthetivs or settings you want! Just keep in mind this will be indicative of everything else to do with your world

From there on, my best advice would be to have fun. You can have an overarching narrative in your world, though this isnt strictly necessary either. You can just have a world for the sake of having a world. Its important, though, to consider how this world will *work*, be it by developing a magic system or by following real world physics, or something in between that, do whatever you want really! Alternatively, you can also have a wacky world with no dead set rules either if thats what youre going for! Just keep in mind the way your world works will affect everything else about it, like the people who live in this world, the places they live in, the cultures/societies/technology they create or the life that will live in this world etc

So to summarize, my best advice is to think of a theme, a setting, and make up rules for what can and cant happen (if you want!) And last but not least, to just have fun :)

Also, if theres any other more specific questions you had that this didnt help with, id recommend checking out artifexian and biblaridion and curious archive on youtube; the first two have various videos on worldbuilding, such as speculative biology, geography, conlang and more, whereas curious archive reviews worldbuilding settings and projects by other people and anaylses these worlds, he reviews a ton of neat stuff also worth checking out!! Honestly lots of the projects reviewed in his videos serve as big inspiration in my projects, so its worth checking him out along with biblaridion and artifexian if you havent already! Hope this all helped! Sorry for the textwall dickfksodixudisis

[yamasasoysauce]

I was not. Actually expecting people to see this. Well hello! I'll drop some more worldbuilding I guess?????

Fantasy worl

Plants are kept in big potion bottles with cute little corks on top because thats adorable but also, Plant Harvesting is necessary for humans to use their magic to stay alive. Essentially, Plants produce magic naturally via the Higher Dimension and in order for humans to do so by proxy they have to harvest body parts from Plants and use that as magical focus.

So long as the Plant you harvested from still lives, you can use their magic! So harvest from a gravity Plant, use gravity magic, heat Plant, heat magic, etc etc.

Wolfwood relies heavily on specially developed potions made by Nai's pet alchemist to survive heavy injuries. The alchemist (Conrad) is determined to find a way for humanity to thrive on this frozen planet without the use of Plant magic.

Meryl and Roberto are travelling bards who get caught in Vash's orbit entirely by accident, but they're both so fond of him that they continue to travel with him even though chaos follows him everywhere.

Theres a lot more stuff but uhh, thats the fun unimportant stuff! Thank you for reading this??? Also, this is an Everybody Loves Vash kind of thing but Vashwood is the focus.

[millin21]

Oh im excited!!!!

Oooo!!!! They're referencing Pinocchio!!! I didnt even think about that! Oh thats so cool!! I love seeing them take pieces of Disney and adding it to the worls. Gosh! I could gush for hours about the worldbuilding in this story!!! And how the most famous movies get turned into words of legends in this world. Gaaah!!!!!

Casually blatant admittance ans just sweeping it under the rug and moving on. Ahhh Crowly....

Oh Idia. You're such a good big brother you dont even know what other siblings tend to do...

[marinsawakening]

Reading Round-Up June 2023

Books Read

An Unauthorized Fan Treatise by Lauren James

Described as "a serialized murder mystery novel set in a fictional fandom, formatted like a shipper's conspiracy theory", which is very accurate. It can be read in full (for free) here. I have mixed feelings on this novel. On the one hand, it's really clever in a lot of ways, I love Gottie and Rob and their parallels, and it absolutely nails the fandom atmosphere. The first half of the book feels just like reading unhinged fandom discourse, which, if you're a nosy bitch like me, is fantastic. The second half, however, plays the (murder) mystery a lot straighter, and that's where it kind of lost me. I don't feel like the mystery is quite strong enough to work without the gimmick. I do think the novel uses its chosen framing device really well, but the ultimate mystery was such a let down for me it left a nasty aftertaste. I would still recommend this novel, though, because at the end of the day, it's a unique piece of writing with a lot of thought and effort put in. And besides, I am difficult to please when it comes to mystery novels, so others might enjoy this more than me. (PS for the best experience, make sure you know the story of the MsScribe drama.)

The Call of Cthulhu, The Curse of Yig, The Man of Stone, The Horror in the Museum, The Thing on the Doorstep, The Tree on the Hill, and The Shadow out of Time by HP Lovecraft

This month I finished Lovecraft's Cthulhu mythos stories. I still hate this guy's writing and am relieved that I'm finally able to leave it behind. From this month, the ones worth reading if you're interested in Lovecraft's worldbuilding are The Thing on the Doorstep, The Shadow Out of Time, and The Call of Cthulhu. This man's writing is never not racist but I'm specifically warning for racism in The Call of Cthulhu, in particular in regards to mistreatment of voodoo, racism against Inuit people and repeated usage of the esk*mo slur, and repeated usage of the word 'mongrel' to refer to a diverse group of people of colour.

Phoenix Extravagant by Yoon Ha Lee (Did Not Finish)

I bought this book about three years ago for my birthday but never got around to reading it. Finally decided to pick it up because I was in the mood for something lighter, and unfortunately I did not enjoy it. I read up until about halfway through the book before deciding I did not care. The premise of this book is absolutely killer (giant mechanical dragon powered by magic paint does revolution against an imperialist nation), but unfortunately the writing/execution is just not every good. The worldbuilding's pretty interesting, as is the actual dragon, but the author does not seem to have a good grasp on how to distribute information, leading to either over- or under-explaining, which ended up being the death knell of this book for me. It's incredibly difficult to care about the plot when you barely explain the rules of the magic system your plot hinges on. This, combined with a small slew of other minor problems (the prose is mediocre, the pacing a little-less-than-mediocre, and I find a few of the narrative decisions this book makes to be annoying/baffling) made me frustrated while reading more often than not, and unlike what my Lovecraft adventures would have you believe, I am not a completionist and I do not make a habit of reading through books I don't like.

The Murderbot Diaries: All System Red, Artificial Condition, Rogue Protocol and Exit Strategy by Martha Wells

Currently listening through Network Effect. Picked this series up in a bundle of audiobooks sold for charity basically on a whim because it was an insanely good deal (less than 20 euros for the whole series + a lot of other books). I'd vaguely heard of the series but went in pretty much blind. Delighted to announce that it's great and I'm enjoying it immensely. Murderbot is a fantastic protagonist/narrator, and tbh it's hard carrying the series, because while the rest the narrative (worldbuilding, other characters, prose, etc) isn't bad, I feel like thusfar the only other stand-out elements are ART's character and maybe the portrayal of the Company. But Murderbot is just such a compelling character it's impossible not to be charmed by these books. They're funny as hell too. Favourite book so far is Artificial Condition.

Shows Watched

Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury

Finished season one, on episode two of season two. Having an absolute blast watching this show; I really enjoy most of the characters and I'm interested to see where all that political intrigue goes. However, I do think that the school setting works against the show (it feels unnecessary most of the time and is boring compared to alternative options imo) and I feel like the transition between season one and two was pretty poor. It also has intermittent pacing issues. In addition, this is my first ever Gundam show and though I'd heard this was accessible to newcomers, and that's probably true bc I'm following along fine, I really do feel like I'm working with half the information most of the time. How exactly Gundams work is very underexplained in the show. I assume this is background knowledge long-term viewers are expected to have, but maybe it's a flaw in the worldbuilding, I can't say. At the end of the day though, most of the issues I have with this show are nitpicks and don't affect my enjoyment.



Games Played

The Great Artists

A game with minimal gameplay elements, in which you follow a group of phantom thieves and a detective right before and after a painting gets stolen. You can jump back and forth through time, allowing you to follow different people who are doing things simultaneously, which is the only interactive element. It's cute and interesting, plus I love the art, but I found the lack of interactive elements a little boring. You can get it here on itch.io.

[adventseven]

Ms. Marvel Series Review

           This is… cosmic. Disney+’s latest addition to the MCU, Marvel Studios’ Ms. Marvel, is possibly the most refreshing show I’ve seen this year. Kamala Khan has made her debut, and she’s going to be a star.

           Ms. Marvel stars Iman Vellani as Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel. Filling out the supporting cast is Matt Linz as Bruno Carrelli, Yasmeen Fletcher as Nakia, and Laura Marsden as Zoey Zimmer. Kamala’s family is played by Mohan Kapoor (Yusuf/Dad), Zenobia Shroff (Muneeba/Mom), and Saagar Shaikh (Aamir/Brother). Other characters of note include Rish Shah (Kamran), Nimra Bucha (Najma), Aramis Knight (Kareem), Adrian Moayed, and Alysia Reiner (Damage Control).

           Before reviewing the episode, I want to talk about Kamala’s history. “Ms. Marvel” was created by Sana Amanat, G. Willow Wilson, and Adrian Alphona in 2013. In the decade since her creation, Kamala has been a central figure in many plotlines such as "Civil War II" and the “Marvel’s Avengers” video game.

           Kamala, in the comics, is a Muslim American teenager living in Jersey City who was one day exposed to Terrigen Mist, unlocking her Inhuman abilities. The mist gave her the ability to stretch her body parts like Mr. Fantastic. She can also shrink or enlarge her body. In recent iterations, she can change the shape and hardness of her fists.

           As the first Muslim American superhero, Kamala has given necessary representation to a marginalized group. And best of all, Kamala is just a relatable teenage girl facing the same problems as the readers. Some could consider her this generation's Peter Parker. Now, let’s talk about the Disney+ show.

Spoilers for All 6 episodes of Ms. Marvel

           Ms. Marvel is probably the best Marvel/Disney+ show since WandaVision… for the first 3 episodes. The editing is pitch perfect. It matches the feeling and energy of Kamala. One of the most impressive aspects is how they implement text conversations, for example: having the words appear in neon lights near the characters. We are even occasionally treated to seeing how Kamala sees the world. When she meets Kamran for the first time, we see fire and 100 in emoji/doodle style. It’s a little cheesy but very fitting of Kamala’s personality.

           The end credits for all the Marvel shows so far have matched the feeling and style of their shows. For me personally, Ms. Marvel’s end credits are the best. The references to Ms. Marvel's iconic comic book covers…chef's kiss. The Pakistani-inspired music is a vibe. There are also two versions of the credits: one in Jersey City and the other in Karachi.

            Okay, let’s address the glow-y elephant in the room: Kamala’s powers. I understand that no one wants to deal with the hassle of making people stretch like Mr. Fantastic. The hard light they use instead is kinda cool and a nice dig at DC by Marvel. But I will never forgive Marvel for throwing out Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. The show had a perfect explanation for why Kamala would be an Inhuman. At first, I was going to get over it because they decided to tie Kamala's powers to her culture. But they kept changing the origins: first, she was a Djinn, then a descendant of extra-dimensional beings, and finally, at the end of the series, she's potentially a mutant. Why!?!

           My other complaint about the series is a complaint that many have for all the Disney+ shows. Most of these shows are not written as shows; they are written as six-hour movies. The real problem is that the writers have ideas for maybe 3 hours but still need to fill the other 3. There are always at least 2 episodes in these 6-episode series that are either unnecessary or kill the momentum of the series. These shows either need to be 13 episodes or made into movies.

           What’s really upsetting is that this show had so much potential at the start. Episodes 4 and 5 were even okay for worldbuilding but do very little in advancing the plot. At first, it felt like this was a simple coming-of-age, superhero origin story. Then, there's a potential end-of-the-world plot that wraps up in episode 5. Then, the finale is all about protecting Kamran, not Kamala, from Damage Control. This show is still really good, but it suffers from whatever executive decided streaming shows can only be 6 episodes long.

           Before I wrap up, I have to praise the entire cast. Besides the amazing representation of Southwest Asian culture and Muslim communities, Iman Vellani is a perfect Ms. Marvel. Like how RDJ is Tony Stark or Ryan Reynolds is Deadpool, Iman is Ms. Marvel in every way. She’s bright, funny, a superhero fan, and just the character come to life. I also give props to Matt Linz, Yasmeen Fletcher, Zenobia Shroff, and especially Mohan Kapoor. They all played their characters extremely well. I can't explain why but I think the dad is my second favorite character.

           Here are a few other highlights of the series. Episode 1 is a perfect series opener. In episode 3, there's a whole Pakistani/Muslim/Bollywood wedding scene that is absolutely lit. How the Mosque behaves when Damage Control comes looking for Kamala and Kamran, felt true to life. Seeing Kamala's costume come together piece by piece made the wait worth it. Seeing the community rallying around Kamala against Damage Control, including the local police, was very satisfying. Also, she says, “Embiggen”.

           The final moments of the series did something I did not expect at all. As some of you know, Ms. Marvel will be joining Captain Marvel and Monica Rambeau in The Marvels. We now know that part of that plot will involve Ms. Marvel and Captain Marvel switching places. This does make me a little more excited to see The Marvels in 2023.

All episodes of Ms. Marvel are now streaming on Disney+.

TL/DR: Ms. Marvel has a strong start, great acting, and a distinct personality.

Episodes 4 and 5 drag the show down a bit.

SCORE: 9/10

By: Tré Hanzy

Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/Advent_Seven Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/AdventSevenMedia See us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/advent_seven/ Join our Subreddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/AdventSeven/ Find Us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AdventSevenMedia/

[calowlmitygoddess]

I love stupid overcomplicated magic systems/worls like any other nerd, but reading LOTR or Dune, both works that fit this description is such a boring dry experience wich sucks because the worldbuilding is dope as fuck

[flux-yggdrasil]

Desperately want the Disco Elysium Fandom to remember not to apply our world cop lenses to the world of Revachol since it exists in a completely separate societal positioning than our own worlds “State-Sponsored Violence Squad.”

(THIS IS NOT A PRO-COP POST BLUE LIVES F%}* OFF)

[canismajors]

ppl genuinely trying to argue against that post saying fanfiction isnt the same value as published books... ok

[stories-by-rie]

Happy STS! :D What was your worldbuilding process like for your wip? What details came to you first? What kind of vibes did you want to give the settings?

Thank you, Cilly! This is an interesting question and I think I can answer it nearly generally for all my wips, though I had to think about it for a while ^^ Also, this is Long.

I usually start with a white room.

Worldbuilding has no priority in first drafts, I suppose that largely because I am an underwriter and have trouble with descriptions. Instead I focus on plot, characters, and the magic system that I don’t consider part of worldbuilding. Sometimes the worldbuilding even contradicts itself at this stage. Rarely, the room already has wallpapers and even a bit of furniture, like for GLMGK, which sort of plays in our world. (I still needed to rearrange and decorate, but the room wasn’t white at the beginning.)

~ then i read the first draft again and cry ~

Next, I try to decide on an actual setting.

Note that I said try. Sometimes the decision making process is long and convoluted. I decide what the world actually looks like, this is mostly on a very geographic level. Islands? Forests? (It’s usually forests at the beginning!) Desert? But also at a socioeconomic level. What kind of technology exists? How does society work? Politics? At this point, the room is not white anymore. There is wallpaper (sometimes multiple layers) on the walls, and basic furniture. You could live in this! It would not be fun but it could work! This often happens before I tackle draft two.

Now, the items.

Clothes into the closet, plates into the kitchen, plants on the window sill. Or, getting in touch with the room. This is the part where I actively try to interweave characters, plot & worldbuilding. This also automatically happens before this stage, but here I work harder on it. This also means that I start to prioritize. Yes, plates belong into the kitchen, but if my characters never walk into the kitchen, I don’t actually need to put any plates in there. If they sort through the bookshelf, though, I really should make sure there are books in there!! Maybe, though, I also know that the plates are in the kitchen and if they don’t get attention, they start to scream (as plates do), so I have to make my characters walk into the kitchen now. Worldbuilding at this stage might influence the plot and then, well, I have to rewrite a whole chunk to make it work. This means more tears, draft two is evil, I said it first.

The decoration.

Technically, it would already work the way it is, but I think that is very boring and impersonal. So I add some clutter! Does the world need clutter? Yes, because I said so. Sure, a minimalist world works, but the longer I stay, the faster it starts to unnerve me and I’d move out really quick! So I fill it up with stuff. Magic system compliant books, made up songs, street lamp systems, anecdotes, feral mushrooms and the 200-years-spanning history of that island that sank a while ago (rip). The usual.

Congrats! I have made myself a whole new worl-

Oops, oh no, oh wait- what is that? Oh no there is a burst pipe in the bathroom, I totally forgot about the bathroom? Now I have to tear the wall down and it destroys a bit of the living room as well :( Well, that sucks but better fix that quick in the next draft or 3 x)

Ideally, once I am done, the vibes are immaculate. I adjusted the room so it fits it perfectly, so the vibes get more depth the more I work on it. Sometimes, I don’t really know the vibes until half-way through but that’s fine! Sometimes the room is just superior and knows this stuff earlier than me.

And that’s it! Wasn’t this a very professional of me, I am very proud, it makes total sense to me anyway *youtube influencer voice* hit like and subscribe!

[script-a-world]

NaNoWorldo - NaNoWriMoWorldBuilding for Pantsers

When you’re a pantser (as in “writing by the seat of your”), SFF presents a particular challenge. One of the main keys to good world building is consistency, but that’s hard to maintain when you’re throwing things in as you go. So with NaNoWriMo around the corner, here are a few tips for building the best setting you can when you’re working without a map.

Start with the big questions. Laying out a loose framework will help keep things in the right ballpark as you’re improvising later. This includes things like:

Broadly speaking, what’s the magic system? (This TV Tropes page offers a good breakdown of the general types of magic; falling down the TV Tropes hole can be a fairly productive way for pantsers to spend October, as long as you try to stick to things that might be useful for your own story.)

What limitations does the magic have?

What’s the tech level?

Are there any physical features of the world that might impact the story?

Broadly speaking, what’s the social structure? (Patriarchal/matriarchal, clans and tribes, kingdoms, democracy, egalitarian or rigidly divided, etc.)

Build a story bible as you go. Your story bible is all the reference material that helps you keep track of the various elements of your world and plot. (More thorough discussion of that concept [here].) Planners tend to make them in advance, but pantsers can have them too! The trick is to make a note of things as you’re writing--not necessarily in the moment if you’re in a good drafting groove, but when you’re reading back over things, like at the end of your writing session or the beginning of your next one, jot down any specifics you mentioned in a separate document. This will make it easier to refer back to things later without having to dig through the whole manuscript.

Steal from the real world. Trying to keep all the locations straight in your cyberpunk city but don’t want to build a map from scratch? Pick a real city with similar geographic elements, cross off the names of its buildings, and start plugging in your own locations. You can change things up as needed to suit your story, and you can go back later and file the serial numbers off further so it’s not obvious to anyone familiar with that setting. This can be helpful in the pinch especially for visual thinkers.

When stealing from the real world, plan for the pitfalls first. If you’re wanting to write, say, a fantasy version of feudal Japan, do some basic searches for things like “how not to write Japanese characters” or “misconceptions about feudal Japan”. This doesn’t mean you won’t mess things up, but it will make it more likely that those things will be fixable, and not baked into the foundations of the story.

Leave signposts for your revisions. If you need to refer back to a detail and it didn’t make it into your story bible, you don’t necessarily have to go spelunking back through the draft. Make notes either in a separate document (“confirm hair colors in Chapter 27”), or use your preferred marker within the text (I like square brackets, but anything that wouldn’t be used in the normal prose will do) to indicate that something will need to be fixed when you go back through (“King [whatshisface]”).

When in doubt, go back to your characters. Readers latch onto emotions and interesting people, so keep your focus there. If something doesn’t impact your characters, it’s not worth going into a ton of detail on it. Especially if you’re in a pinch, make the choices about the setting that will provide the most opportunity for conflict and character development. You can always go back and look for the common denominators later.

Infodumps are ok for a first draft. No one wants and info dump in the final product, but in NaNoWri, it's word count and speed. Just discovered as you're writing that your MC is a werewolf? Dump everything about werewolves and werewolf transformation into the scene and continue on. You can decide later what's important to that particular scene and if you need to change some facts to make it a little less cliche, which leads to…

That's a December!you problem. If you're discovering your worldbuilding as you go, don't worry about going back and fixing or changing things as you make decisions. Keep forging ahead with your writing and go back later (i.e. after November is over) to add in the foreshadowing or make something conform to your magical/technological rules.

That last bit is probably the most important: you can always fix it later. NaNoWriMo is for pushing through to the end of a draft. That might mean reverse-engineering explanations for your cool ideas when you rewrite, and that’s fine! Don’t let perfect world building be the enemy of good progress.

(Mod Miri note: thanks Constablewrites for getting this post idea up and organized, and the Pylons for contributing. Best wishes on your projects!)

[flora-legium]

30 Day Book Challenge- Day 1

Day 01 - Best book you read last year

Hrmmm...last year? tough one, I read a lot of good books last year. Let me think... Okay, excluding my annual re-reads of Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell and The Silmarillion (Because, really, they’re the canons of my heart and that feels kind of unfair xD) I’m going to have to say...

The Ladies of Grace Adieu by Susanna Clarke. Yeah okay it get’s pushed ahead a bit by the fact that it is by one of my favorite authors and it takes place in one of my favorite universes, and with it’s connection to Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell, I was kind of set up to love this book and the short stories in it from the beginning, but what can I say? I really love how Clarke writes her magic, how she writes Fairies and Faerie especially, and this was a whole book filled with short stories surrounding it? So yeah xD Definately one of my favorites out of the books I read last year.

I loved the chance to further explore the universe she built in her novel, seeing more of the folklore and magic that lives in that worls. The introduction of The Yorkshire Game and that fairy tale that Cassandra tells the children she and Miss Tobias and Mrs Feild are watching over in the titular story, “The Ladies of Grace Adieu?” Some of my favorite parts! And then, of course there’s getting to see more of the Raven King himself and an example of the riddiculous stories those in the North of England tell about him that were mentioned in Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell when we get to “John Uskglass and The Cumbrian Charcoal Burner.” I just...I love this universe and the worldbuilding is awesome, any chance to explore more of it’s hidden corners is one I’m going to leap at.

But even beyond the worldbuilding, I just really love the stories in this book. I love Clarke’s characters, especially her women. Getting to see more of Arabella -- one of my favorite characters in JSMN -- was awesome of course (and can I say her introduction in “the Ladies of Grace Adieu” was just perfect?! “A very smart barouche was just turning from the high road into the lane...it was driven with great confidence and spirit by a lady” I was seriously grinning as I read that bit, like “yes, yes, that captures everything I love about Arabella right there! 8D”)  but I also fell in love with Jane Tobias and Mrs. Field and Cassandra Parbringer, not to mention Venitia, in “Mrs Mabb” and her determination to save Captain Fox. We even get to see a little bit more of Catherine of Winchester’s character (who from what little information we have of her I’ve always found fascinating and wanted to know more about) in the excerpt from her book that we get at the beginning of “The Ladies of Grace Adieu:”

“Above all else remember this: That magic belongs as much to the heart as to the head and everything which is done, should be done from love or joy or righteous anger.

And if we honor this principle we shall discover that our magic is much greater than all the sum of all the spells that were ever taught. Then magic is to us as flight is to the birds, because then our magic comes from the dark and dreaming heart, just as the flight of a bird comes from the heart. And we will feel the same joy in preforming that magic that the bird feels as it casts itself into the void and we will know that magic is part of what a man is, just as flight is part of what a bird is.

This understanding is a gift to us from the Raven King, the dear king of all magicians, who stands between England and the Other Lands, between all wild creatures and the world of men”

It’s such a small section of the book, but it still offers us a glimpse into Catherine’s character, her way of seeing the world and magic and her love of the subject, and I really love that. 

And speaking of magic, this book is full of it and I love it. Clarke is one of the best writers I can name of actually capturing the feeling of magic and infusing it into her works. It’s wild and whimsical and dark and just...It’s great. So yeah, definitely one of the best books I read last year.