Me, having a pre-chapter huddle with a bunch of my characters
*at this point, I’m writing book 4 in my series and going into this meeting I’m starting to feel like I know what I’m doing*
Me:“OK, look this is going to be a pretty straightforward scene. I just need you all to have a conversation that helps establish why you’re splitting into different groups and what your goals are to get the plot moving. Everyone remember their lines?”
Sassy New Etherial Being Character: “I mean, I skimmed the script, but it seemed really bland and boring, so I edited a bunch of my lines. I also added a bunch of lines.”
Me:“You’re not authorized to do that.”
Sassy: “I used permanent marker. Whatcha gonna do?” *shrugs*
Regal Enchantress Character: “I don’t trust the new Sassy character.”
Me: “I mean, I guess that’s understandable, but don’t let it draw too much focus from the objective of the chapter, OK? We need to keep things moving.”
Enchantress:“You will need to split it into two chapters just to resolve my trust issues, or I’m going back to my trailer.”
Me:“What?!”
Sassy:*shouting and pointing finger* “The Kindhearted Healer Character has been having dreams of apocalyptic visions that he’s been keeping a secret from everyone!!”
Me:“WHAT?!”
Healer: “Wait, I have?”
Sassy: “Yeah! After all, the author doesn’t have any ideas to make you interesting or give you a story arc in this book, do you Dave?”
Me:*sighs* “I mean, I guess you have a point. Just as long as it’s not too distracting from the goal of the chapter.”
Sassy: “You will literally have to include another whole chapter where I explain the nature of reality just for the vision to make sense to the reader.”
Me:*groans* “Alright fine! What even happens in this big epic vision anyway?”
Sassy: “How am I supposed to know? You’re the writer, you figure it out!”
Wizard Protagonist:*raises hand* “Hey guys? Does anybody remember that I’m still here, and the whole point of this meeting was to kick off the search for my parents?”
The character formerly known as “Seftis” (introduced in Book 2) has had an official name change in all the books. He is now Gravine.
There are a few reasons for this change. The biggest reason is to help avoid confusion with his character and the character Seth (my wife pointed out how similar the two names are, and how easy it is to mistake them when reading out loud.)
This name change has now happened across the board on all chapters posted on the book blog, as well as newer chapters posted on our Patreon page. If I happened to miss it anywhere, please let me know.
The wind howled as Keledrain continued her climb towards the icy mountain peak. Every now and then she would look over her shoulder, just out of habit, but she knew there was no chance of anyone following her. The dwarves of the Hulfraust nation only ventured outside the mountain when a specific need drove them to do so.
Keledrain once encountered a goatherd in the snow looking for a lost goat that had wandered outside of the mountain. She occasionally saw small teams of three or four dwarves performing maintenance duties, such as replacing old pipes that stuck up through the rocks below, or clearing stubborn snow off the array of mirrors that directed sunlight down into their tunnels. And of course there were the annual combat drills the Hulfraust warriors would participate in for a week every year to ensure they could fight in the snow when necessary.
But those encounters were rare, and never this high up on the mountain. Keledrain was certain that the cave she was climbing to near the mountain’s peak had never been touched by any of the Hulfraust dwarves. It was one place she could go and be certain she was alone.
Our twin hearts pound in our chest as our wings strain to carry us beneath the clear, moonless night. Death comes for us as surely as the stars continue their silent paths across the sky.
Creed has killed our nephew, Khan the Hoarder. He killed our uncle, Nash the Hunter. They did not heed our warnings, and they paid with their lives.
And now our cousin comes to kill us.
There is a spasm in one of our left wings, and the uneven load causes our other three wings to fail as well. We have pushed them beyond their limit trying to escape the inescapable, and we land hard on the desert sand below.
We are not alone for long. Creed’s wings flap as he lands, creating a localized sandstorm in the process. The pride emanating from him is palpable.
“Ah, the Destiny Sisters at last,” says Creed. “Good evening Vy. Good evening, Bea. I’ve been looking for you. It seems you’ve somehow wandered a long, long way outside the borders you and those other traitors agreed to.”
“Bold of you to call us traitors when you’re the one killing the last of your own kind,” we reply in unison.
“You have only yourselves to blame,” Creed spits back, malice dripping from his voice. “The moment you and the others betrayed what you are and entered into this farce you call peace, you sealed your own fate.”
Creed’s face twists into a hungry grin. “But then, you know all about fate, don’t you cousins?”
“More than you ever will,” we reply.
A jet of fire lights up the scene as Creed roars in fury. “Then why choose the path of blindness and a slow death by atrophy when it came time for us to make our choice?” Creed bellows. “The others I understand. Khan just wanted to be left alone to admire his ridiculous pile of trinkets, and Nash only cares about his fun at the top of the food chain.”
“But I expected more from you,” he says, a quiet sadness now creeping into his voice. “You were supposed to be the wisest of us all. If the two of you had sided with me, Khan and Nash would have been outnumbered, and they would have listened to reason.”
We stand on our feet. Our limbs and tail are strong and ready for a fight, but it makes little difference while our wings are still useless and spent. “It was your sense of superiority and entitlement that made you deaf to reason,” we say.
“Am I not Creed the Proud?” he roars back. “If I don’t speak up to uphold the pride of our kind and all those who look to us for inspiration, then who will? We spent an entire age of this world enduring wars and attacks from those who should be little more than insects to us. And when our enemies finally wore themselves down into broken fragments, it should have been the hour of our great final victory over them. The dawning of an age where they would have to scrape and struggle against us! And instead you accept a truce?”
“You imagine a future that would not have been, because you lack the sight we have been entrusted with,” we say. “You say that we should have been the wisest of our kind. Do not delude yourself, Creed. We Destiny Sisters ARE the wisest of our kind. And if you were wise, you would listen as we tell you what you are blind to under your own nose.”
“And what is that?” Creed asks derisively.
“That the Primafolk are far more important to this world than you realize,” we say, “and they were at their breaking point. If our kind had pressed our advantage while they were at their lowest point, it would not have caused their subjugation. It would have caused their destruction. Followed by the destruction of us all.”
“You speak nonsense,” says Creed. “Excuses invented by the weak.”
We do not argue. Creed knows we speak only truth, but is too proud to admit it. Instead, we let our flame speak for us. Black flame with the sheen of a hundred colors washes over Creed, and for the first time since he began hunting us, Creed looks truly afraid. He was not expecting this.
Creed’s body is unharmed of course, but his eyes cloud over with the same color as the flame. He whips his head wildly from side to side as he sees the vision we have shared with him. When it is over, his eyes return to their natural golden color.
“I see,” he says. “It appears there are powers at play greater than I had realized. Powers that even our kind would stand no hope of defeating, though it wounds my pride to admit. You’re right, cousins. The Primafolk must survive.”
“Yes,” we say. “You finally understand.”
“And yet, there’s something that bothers me,” he says, narrowing his eyes. “Vy used her Obsidian Flame to show me this vision, but where was Bea’s Opal Flame? In all the centuries we’ve known one another, I’ve never seen the black without the white. Could it be you’re holding something back from me?”
“You underestimate how far our sight extends,” we say. “We knew you were coming to kill us and take both of our flames. Every destiny has two sides, and it is impossible for any being to possess both at once. So we have already entrusted the Opal Flame of Destiny to other caretakers.”
“Is that why you’re out here in this worthless desert?” Creed asks with spiteful laughter. “You know I’ll simply find whatever gullible worms you’ve doomed with your gift. All you’ve done is ensure your allies will die, and I’ll still claim both your flames.”
“No, you will not,” we state as simple fact. “You will hunt high and low for the Opal Flame for a hundred years, but you will not find it until it finds you.”
Creed’s hungry grin then returns. “So you violated your own borders to grant one of our kind’s greatest weapons to our oldest enemies,” he says. “I can think of no greater act of treason.”
He steps towards us, slowly and menacingly. His sharp teeth illuminated from behind by his own crimson red flame. “A hundred years you say?” Creed asks, closing in. “Perfect. That will give the Primafolk enough time to recover and prepare so they can actually survive the coming war.”
He looms over us, and we lay both of our heads down to the cold sand, resigning ourselves to the fate we could not escape.
“You know what?” Creed taunts. “I think I’ll even give them a little help to make sure the fight is worth my time.”
In short, because showing the faces and bodies of these characters is important, and high-quality character art is the best way to do that. And the best way to make more character art available, is to let other people help.
You see, there are several aspects of the Enemies of Creed series that I’m very proud of. The emotional weight of the journey, the suspense of the mystery, the relatability of the dialogue, and the openness of the world and its history are just a few.
But one aspect in particular that I’ve become increasingly proud of (especially given the how much I’ve learned this year about my own implicit racial bias) is how diverse the cast of characters is.
There isn’t a “default” skin color in this world, and the characters come in a variety of shades, shapes, and sizes. Multiple body types, facial features, and age ranges are represented, not just the ones that Hollywood considers ideal for marketing purposes.
And I believe one of the best ways to celebrate this diversity of characters is through the amazing art of Ryan Salway. Ryan approaches character visual design with a careful eye and genuine respect for each character as an individual, and I think you can see that in the art I’ve commissioned from him in the past. Every piece that Ryan has created for Enemies of Creed has never failed to far surpass my expectations, and further fuel my excitement for the series and provide endless inspiration.
And that’s why I want to be able to provide SO MUCH MORE of this incredible and diverse character artwork to all of you. But funding those commissions on my own requires saving up, and that takes time. (Usually just about two pieces every other year.)
That’s where Patreon comes in.
Ryan has agreed to partner with me in creating this Patreon page to see if we can use it to successfully fund new ongoing character art every month. It’s an experiment and we’re taking a chance on it, but I’m hoping you’ll help us make it work.
By becoming a patron, you’ll be helping to support the creation of independent fantasy art that both enriches the Enemies of Creed series AND promotes the idea that not all fantasy characters need to look like they’re Europeans in their mid-twenties.
Patrons at ANY tier of support will be able to continue new chapters of Enemies of Creed as they come out each month (yes, I’m committing to that) and they’ll be able to see new character art as it appears within those chapters. (In other words, you’ll see the art for a character when they appear in the story.)
Patrons at the next tier and above will get early access to character art as soon as it is shared by Ryan (even if that character may not show up in the story for a long time.)
I won’t go into all the different tiers and there benefits here. My main point is that by helping us fund this art, we want to make sure you’re getting something out of it too. And if you have any suggestions or feedback on how we can do that better, please don’t hesitate to share your thoughts.
I’m excited to be on this journey together with you all! Now let’s make something FANTASTIC!!
It’s when my wife knows that I’m trying to be responsible and spread out spending money on character art for @enemiesofcreed, so months ago she goes behind my back and commissions two of the character art updates from @giant-bean as an anniversary present instead.
ALTALT
Have I mentioned lately how MADLY IN LOVE I AM WITH MY WIFE?! She’s my favorite person of all time, no contest.
I’m currently writing a chapter with a council of 12 dwarves (mix of genders) and they all need names. Anybody up for helping me come up with some ideas?
The proper nouns in this dwarven nation are a blend of Nordic and Germanic influences. Below are a few examples:
Hulfraust - The name of the dwarvish nation
Brynwolfn - General of the Hulfraust army and new protagonist introduced in Book 4
Malvapn - Special war hammer axe that is the main weapon used by Hulfraust infantry
If anybody feels like participating, I’d love your help!
Brynwolfn character art by @giant-bean please do not use without permission
On a side note, I’ve never shared the Old Norse words I took inspiration from to come up with “Brynwolfn” and “Hulfraust,” so I decided this would be a fun time to do that.
Brynja - Chain mail armor
Fremja - Accomplish, perform, commit
Hulfr - Holly
Hraustr - Brave
Hraust - Health
The one Germanic element in all of this was that the “frau” in “Hulfraust” was (among other things) a reference to the fact that of the most elite group among the warriors in the Hulfraust army, the vast majority of them are women.
(Art by @giant-bean, commissioned by @flavoracle, please do not repost without permission and attribution)
I have SO MUCH I want to say about this amazing woman and the elite army of dwarves that she commands. But for now, I’m just gonna bask in this awesome new art for a little while.
I’ve got the day off today, and I only have two more chapters to write until I’ve completed the first draft of Book 2 in my @enemiesofcreed fantasy series.
Who here thinks I can get it done today?!
(To avoid being vague, yes this is me blatantly asking for encouragement.)
Tiny Brain Me: “I have to nerf the abilities of this telepathic wizard in my books because otherwise his abilities will be too much of a liability when trying to create situations with narrative tension. There are just too many problems he could easily solve if I’m not careful.”
Average Brain Me: “Ugh, it bugs me so much how many plots essentially boil down to a misunderstanding or lack of information between characters. I mean, pretty much all of Shakespeare’s tragedies could have had happy endings if the characters just communicated better.”
Large Bain Me:*lightbulb*
Galaxy Brain Me: “Go my sassy brainy son. Destroy ALL my lazy tropes!!”
I’m always nervous to begin writing chapters with Shon, and then once I actually get started I remember how much I love writing chapters with Shon.
It’s been several months since I added a new chapter to my Enemies of Creed fantasy series. Last night I finished chapter 35 of Book 2. Tonight I hope to write chapter 36.
Can I please get a woot woot?
(The woots help fuel future chapters.)
WOOT WOOT
These woots shall fuel many chapters. Thank you all.
Sometimes in life we have lofty dreams. Not because we think they’re realistic, but because they give us something to aim for and carry us through hard times simply through the POSSIBILITY that they may come true.
With that in mind, I want to tell you my ultimate dream for how the “Enemies of Creed” series will end. (Don’t worry, there’s no spoilers this time.)
I dream of fan fiction.
I don’t want my readers to close the last page and think, “Well, I guess that wraps everything up and there’s nothing left to tell.”
I want them to feel satisfied with the conclusion of the series story arch of course, but I also want them to think, “I wonder what will happen next?” And in my dreams, after they think that thought, SEVERAL OF THEM DECIDE TO WRITE AN ANSWER.
I dream of creating characters and settings and ideas and conflicts that inspire my audience to become creators and collaborators with me.
I dream of establishing an official channel for submitting fan-created content so I can look at it, enjoy it, select a number of submissions for editing and approval. I dream of creating an official publication where these approved stories can be published, and the writers appropriately compensated for their work.
And every time I think about this dream of mine, I can’t understand why it doesn’t already exist. I can’t understand why so many authors jealously guard ultimate creative control over their works, rather than enjoy the fruits of sharing the burden of creation with others who are eager to create.
Will I ever achieve this dream? I honestly don’t know. But it’s a dream that I believe is worth working for.
we need more books that are written like YA novels but have characters in their 20s… like I can’t keep reading books about teenagers but I’m also not ready for the weird adult romance section of the book store
preach
I just realized this is a goal I never realized I had for the “Enemies of Creed” series, but it’s totally there. The writing style is meant to be similar to YA novels, but all of the main characters are adults. (And the only “romance” in the entire series is one character having a vague crush on one other character, and that gets very little screentime.)
One of my favorite aspects of the “Enemies of Creed” series is the fact that the climax of the series isn’t focused on “taking down the bad guy,” or “winning the war.” It’s not even about achieving peace.
It’s about the protagonists developing the strength and fortitude to stand together in the war that’s coming. It’s about establishing a foothold strong enough to act as a refuge and relief for the innocent bystanders caught in the middle of the conflict. It’s about having the courage to keep humanity, integrity, and compassion intact, even if that means choosing to be on the defensive instead of charging ahead on the offensive.
I can tell you right now that the series doesn’t end with the main villain dead, imprisoned, or even really weakened. In many ways, the climax of the series sees the antagonist at the peak of his power. But it’s not a “sad” or “dark” ending either. Because despite the antagonist being at the height of his power and resources, the protagonists have grown and developed to the point where they can still stand against him and defend the people they care about without fear.
The whole series centers on building up to a great conflict on the horizon. And the journey of the protagonists (even if they don’t realize it for the majority of the series) isn’t to prevent that conflict or put a definitive end to it, but to prepare and fortify themselves so they will be equal to it.
That is what a “happy ending” looks like in the “Enemies of Creed” series. And since that’s not what many readers expect, I figured I’d help adjust those expectations upfront.
At this point you might be asking, “Why should I still read these stories if you’ve just said how the series ends?”
To which I would reply, “Because the real fun is in seeing how they get there, and what it all looks like when they arrive. Want to come along for the ride?”
Oh, in case I forgot to mention this already:
Do NOT assume the @enemiesofcreed blog is going to be spoiler-free.
Because I can tell you right now that some posts are going to be downright spoilerific!
(Plus I’m terrible at keeping secrets, and I believe that most of the enjoyment in my books come from the fun of the journey. Shocking readers with twist endings and saving major surprises for the conclusion isn’t really my thing.)
On that last point, I’m sure there’s plenty of people (like me) who’d rather go into said journey for the first time with no spoilers and not know the ending when possible, as such spoilers do lessen the experience for us. Some people don’t have that preference - certainly you exemplify that - but some do nonetheless.
Since many @enemiesofcreed posts are gonna be full of spoilers, I imagine readers of the series who share my spoiler preferences would request and appreciate unmissable spoiler warnings at the top of posts spoiling details of unreleased novels, and perhaps “keep reading” links to separate the spoilers from those who’d avoid them, if that’s not too much trouble.
That’s an understandable request, and whenever I create a post on my computer, I will likely use “Keep Reading” links for several reasons (like the fact that I can go back and edit/update the content whenever I want to) but unfortunately that’s not an option when I create the post on the mobile app.
I will be sure to include spoiler warnings at the top in the future, but there’s a specific reason I didn’t for this first post: As the author, I genuinely want the reader to be aware of the ending from the very beginning (though not necessarily the specifics.)
I haven’t figured out exactly how to include it in the opening narrative yet (which is why it’s not there in any of the current chapters) but it is my intention to add a brief prologue that gives readers a glimpse of the climax/conclusion before they even get to chapter 1 of the first book.
This kind of narrative hook that aims to draw the reader in by starting with a peek at the ending is nothing new. A classic example of this is the narrator in Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet basically summarizing the entire premise and ending as the very first lines of the play. A more modern example is in Disney’s Tangled and the opening line, “This is the story of how I died…”
I guess what I’m saying is that I hear you, and I’m not going to be reckless with my sharing of story details that really are spoilers and will negativity impact the narrative experience by sharing those elements too soon, out of context, or otherwise delivered in a way that would spoil a satisfying payoff. I don’t want to ruin my own books after all!
But I also want to reassure you that the information I just shared is not going to do that. I genuinely believe that as a reader, access to this information early on will help with framing expectations and focusing the lens of what to look for and pay attention to.
I really want readers to be aware early on that this isn’t MEANT to be a story about dudebros who form a posse and solve every problem by beating down a Dark Lord. It’s meant to be a story that finds its happy ending, not in definitively solving every obstacle the characters face, but by becoming strong enough to face the never-ending challenges that are part of life.
Because seven books is a LOT to write, and if/when a reader gets to the end of that journey, I really want them to feel satisfied that the ending delivered what was promised to them from the very beginning.
One of my favorite aspects of the “Enemies of Creed” series is the fact that the climax of the series isn’t focused on “taking down the bad guy,” or “winning the war.” It’s not even about achieving peace.
It’s about the protagonists developing the strength and fortitude to stand together in the war that’s coming. It’s about establishing a foothold strong enough to act as a refuge and relief for the innocent bystanders caught in the middle of the conflict. It’s about having the courage to keep humanity, integrity, and compassion intact, even if that means choosing to be on the defensive instead of charging ahead on the offensive.
I can tell you right now that the series doesn’t end with the main villain dead, imprisoned, or even really weakened. In many ways, the climax of the series sees the antagonist at the peak of his power. But it’s not a “sad” or “dark” ending either. Because despite the antagonist being at the height of his power and resources, the protagonists have grown and developed to the point where they can still stand against him and defend the people they care about without fear.
The whole series centers on building up to a great conflict on the horizon. And the journey of the protagonists (even if they don’t realize it for the majority of the series) isn’t to prevent that conflict or put a definitive end to it, but to prepare and fortify themselves so they will be equal to it.
That is what a “happy ending” looks like in the “Enemies of Creed” series. And since that’s not what many readers expect, I figured I’d help adjust those expectations upfront.
At this point you might be asking, “Why should I still read these stories if you’ve just said how the series ends?”
To which I would reply, “Because the real fun is in seeing how they get there, and what it all looks like when they arrive. Want to come along for the ride?”
Since this blog is going to be focused on posting articles about my worldbuilding efforts for the “Enemies of Creed” series, I figure it will be worthwhile for me to start off by providing some names and terminology with specific meaning to that world. I will likely refer to these terms fairly regularly, so it will be helpful for me to link to this post, rather than have to provide definitions every time.
It’s very likely that I will come back and update this post from time to time as I decide to add more names and terms that I find useful to reference. To avoid a common scenario where the version that people see is an outdated reblog, I’ll be putting all the actual content below a Keep Reading link. (Plus that way, I can make this as long as I want without annoying anybody.)
So, with that introduction out of the way, let’s get started with some grand, mythic-level terms and names (it’s worth noting that while these terms and names will likely be referenced a lot in articles on this blog, they actually appear very little or not at all in the books.)
Reulla - The name of the world in which the series takes place.
Domas - Referred to only in the books as “The Ancient One.” Domas is a being possessing essentially godlike levels of magical power and knowledge. Originally a mortal who lived on a world very similar to Earth, populated by a species that is practically identical to humans, Domas learned to harness life magic that allowed him to become immortal and leave his world to explore the cosmos. After spending countless centuries traveling among other worlds, Domas found a planet with no life or magic of its own, but otherwise so similar to his home world that he decided to make it his home, naming it, populating it with life, and cultivating magic. After struggling for centuries with his contentious mortal “children,” Domas eventually left Reulla to travel the cosmos again, entrusting the world to the stewardship of the Immortals.
The Immortals - The closest thing that the world of Reulla has to gods and goddesses. The Immortals do not age, and they are much more powerful and difficult to kill than mortals, but they are not technically invincible. Individuals among The Immortals can be challenged, overthrown, and replaced by mortals capable of defeating them, but this happens so infrequently that most of the mortal population believes that the pantheon of Immortals is unchanging and constant. By the time the events in the “Enemies of Creed” series take place, The Immortals have all but completely removed themselves from the workings and affairs of mortal beings and civilization. This is due to the observation that any time they do get involved in conflicts between mortals, even with good intentions, their involvement invariably escalates the conflict.
Nishpari - The first “mortal” race of beings that Domas created in his image. The Nishpari did not age, and they had great physical attributes and intelligence, but they had no dealings with magic, nor could they use magic. They were also aggressive and competitive in everything they did, each one of them refusing to settle for second best. Because of this, their civilization tore itself apart while trying to secure their dominion over Reulla. By the time Domas decided to try again and create the Five Mortal Races, the Nishpari had faded into the realm of legend.
The Five Mortal Races - Orcs, Goblins, Dwarves, Elves, and Humans. Domas created these five races modeled in his image, but also influenced by many of the great people and civilizations that he encountered and admired during his years traveling the cosmos. While humans were created to be most similar to the people on his own homeworld, Domas created all five with attributes that he valued, and created them with the ability to interbreed, in the hopes that by doing so their future generations would become united as one, and achieve gradually all the gifts he had given the Nishpari, without the arrogance and strife. (Spoiler: It hasn’t worked out that way so far.)
The Great Diminishing - One of the constant attributes of magic on Reulla is that magic abhors being tamed. It’s magic after all, not science. It thrives on what is novel, original, and intense. So while magic is not inherently violent or malicious, it does not tend to thrive in periods of uninterrupted consistency and peace either. It tends to increase and grow most during times of conflict and excitement and upheaval. The beginning of the events in the “Enemies of Creed” series take place during the longest period of peace that Reulla has ever experienced, and that has caused a great diminishing of magic that the majority of Reullans either don’t understand or don’t notice at all. The “Enemies of Creed” series focuses on the gathering conflict that is destined to usher in a new era of magical growth and innovation, and the two branching destinies that foretell who will have the upper hand in that conflict for generations to come.
Alright, I think that’s enough to get us started for now. I will likely come back and add more in an update later. For now though, I think this will suffice.
A few of you might know that I am currently writing a seven-book fantasy novel series called “Enemies of Creed.” (I have finished book 1 and I’m nearly done with book 2.)
The series is intended for a wide audience, and I’m trying to make it appropriate for ages as young as ten or eleven years old.
But here’s the thing. I am building a world that is complex and filled with cultures that are diverse and multifaceted. That means that there’s a LOT more detail about the world and its inhabitants in my head than will likely ever make its way into the actual story.
This is partly due to the goal of keeping the content appropriate for younger readers. (I can’t imagine many parents approving of their kids reading about the details of how the matriarchal dwarven society views sex as a central aspect of recreational, educational, and and philosophical experience. Or how they view blacksmithing as a metaphor for sex. Or how elves consider sharing one’s gender to be as intimate as getting naked in front of someone. Or that asking an elf their gender is basically as offensive as shouting out, “Hey, show us your genitals!”)
Honestly though, even more than the age-appropriate aspect, it’s just a reality that many of those details are highly unlikely to be relevant to the plot of the books. So there’s no justification to include them in the actual novels.
And yet I definitely WANT to share those details! Partly because I’m an extrovert who processes information most efficiently when I’m engaging with other people. Partly because I’m really excited and proud about some of this stuff, and I want other people to be excited with me. And partly because if I screw up and create something that’s insensitive or offensive to a marginalized group that I hadn’t considered, I want to be corrected on it sooner rather than later.
I don’t my readers to feel the same way I feel whenever J.K. Rowling posts some random Wizarding World fact that nobody asked for like “Hufflepuffs have orgies in the common room” or “back in the old days, wizards and witches would just crap right in the hall between classes, and then use magic to clean up afterwards.” (I’m not even making that stuff up.)
I don’t want to wait until everything is already written and published before I start sharing world building details. I want to start putting that stuff out there now.
So my question is this: Do you think I should create a separate blog for this kind of content? Or just post it on my regular blog with an “Enemies of Creed Worldbuilding” header, and a warning that some content may not be age appropriate for younger readers?
Please let me know what you think!!
Yes please. I would love to know more about that world.
ALT
ALT
