https://youtube.com/shorts/Pl5oa5Km-RQ?feature=share

Poema recitado por hamster.

Monday's MLB game of choice is joined in progress. In the 1st inning, the St. Louis Cardinals are leading the Cincinnatti Reds, 2 to 0. As I usually do I'll follow the game's scores and stats in real time via MLB's Gameday Service where we can also find links to the radio-call of the game provided by announcers of either team we choose.

And the adventure continues.

HOLA A TODOS.

I have a combination of cheap and good quality pencil sharpeners. The former I’ve bought from Dollar Tree and Target and the latter from the KUM brand. I also have a Bostitch hand crank version I bought for less than ten dollars from Facebook Marketplace. Despite the quality they all have one thing in common.

Whenever I sharpen my pencils the half is sharpened longer than the other. I have to fine tune to make sure the tips are even. However, the main risk was that I shave off a good chunk of graphite and it doesn’t take too long to resharpen again after writing a few sentences.

So the best solution was to buy a pocketknife and shave my pencils the good old fashioned way. I wanted a Made in the USA knife within my budget and found A.G. Russell Knives. I bought the CaseXX Sod Buster black folding knife for $44 and the CRKT Stokes sharpener for $16. The knife has a 3-5/8” blade and is 4-5/8” when closed. The sharpener is the size of a flashdrive that also has a large key ring, bottle opener, and seatbelt cutter.

After opening both packages I found the first dull pencil I could find and followed instructions from the book How to Sharpen Pencils by David Rees. Not too shabby. So instead of buying disposable pencil sharpeners buy a good quality pocketknife and take good care of it.

Just don’t bring it at school, the courthouse, or airports.

#writing #knife #pencil #pocketknife #sharpener

High Fantasy Epic Sword Fighter Tournament Finals

al'Lan Mandragoran vs Xena, Warrior Princess

This is it. I don't think I really need to introduce either of these characters at this point since they've cut their way through three opponents. To me, this fight boils down to absolute discipline and skill vs improvisation, plot armor and ferocity. There is no doubt Lan is the better sword fighter. But Xena has overcome “better” opponents many times before. So lets set up this premise.

The gods have summoned Lan and Xena to Mount Olympus. They are to fight to the death to determine who is better. The loser will be resurrected, so there are no stakes other than the physical pain of death and ego pain of losing. Each is there to answer a simple question... who is the greatest warrior of all time? Legends like Achilles and Aragorn have fallen, they are the only two that remain. So, the final matchup:

The plateau atop Olympus had been built for the question. Marble temples stood among shattered columns and enormous statues of forgotten gods; narrow bridges crossed fissures in the mountain, braziers burned beside crumbling stairways, and beyond everything waited cliffs dropping through clouds toward a world impossibly far below. A god sat alone upon a stone throne and explained the rules. They would fight with everything they normally carried and hold nothing back. Death was required. The loser would be resurrected immediately, whole and unharmed. There was no kingdom to save, no loved one held hostage, no cause greater than themselves. For once, the question really was as simple as it sounded: which of you is better? Xena looked across the plateau at the tall, stone-faced man with the color-shifting cloak and sword. “Sounds fun.” Lan drew his blade. “Does it?” Xena grinned and drew hers. “You'll see.”

The chakram came first. Lan had expected something, though not something that curved around a statue after he moved aside and returned toward the back of his neck. He ducked, heard it whistle overhead, and Xena was already upon him. Their swords met hard. Xena attacked high, changed direction, kicked at his knee in the middle of the exchange and spun away as Lan's counter nearly opened her stomach. The chakram returned to her hand. Lan's expression hadn't changed. Xena threw it again. This time Lan didn't watch the weapon. He watched her. When she attacked behind it, he moved toward her instead of away, forcing Xena to abandon her combination to avoid his blade. She flipped backward onto the base of a colossal statue as the chakram passed harmlessly behind Lan. “Quick learner.” Lan settled back into guard. “You announce your surprises.” Xena's eyebrow rose. “Do I?” She stopped announcing them. Xena vaulted from the statue, landed behind Lan and attacked before her feet had properly touched stone. Lan turned the first cut and somehow intercepted the second. Xena kicked him in the chest; Lan yielded with the impact rather than fighting it, caught himself against a column and answered before she could follow. For perhaps a minute they crossed the plateau in a blur of steel, Xena continually changing the nature of the fight while Lan continually dragged it back toward fundamentals. She attacked from above, below and behind; Lan began cutting off the places she needed to land. She incorporated kicks; he stopped retreating from them and began threatening the supporting leg. She used the chakram to divide his attention; he positioned statues and columns between himself and its return path.

Then Lan attacked in earnest. The Boar Rushes Down the Mountain drove Xena backward, flowed into The Courtier Taps His Fan, then changed again before she could identify any rhythm. Xena caught three strokes and avoided the fourth by bending impossibly backward. The fifth opened her shoulder. She sprang away and looked at the blood. Her smile disappeared. Xena changed the battlefield. She kicked over a burning brazier as Lan approached, scattering coals and flame across the marble, then hurled the chakram into the leg of a weathered statue. Stone cracked. Lan heard it and moved before the enormous marble figure toppled across the plateau. Xena had anticipated that direction. She came through the dust and struck him hard across the ribs. Lan's armor turned most of the edge, but Xena's follow-up kick launched him down a flight of marble stairs. He rolled, came up bleeding from the mouth and found Xena descending after him. Their blades met again. Lan cut her thigh. Xena slammed him into a wall. Lan's pommel split her lip. Xena caught his wrist, and suddenly Lan discovered just how much stronger she was. She twisted, drove him against the parapet and nearly threw him over the cliff. Lan abandoned leverage he could not win, dropped his weight, struck behind her knee and tore himself free. Xena's sword missed his throat by inches. Lan's counter missed hers by less.

They separated on a narrow bridge between two sections of the plateau, both bleeding now. Xena was breathing harder. So was Lan. Neither smiled. Xena understood what Aragorn and Jaime had understood before her: with the swords alone, she was losing. Not quickly, not overwhelmingly, but unmistakably. Every prolonged exchange moved slightly in Lan's direction. Lan understood something equally important: Xena knew it, and therefore there would be no more prolonged exchanges. She threw the chakram low. Lan stepped over it. Xena charged behind it. Lan ignored the spinning weapon and met her blade. Xena kicked at his knee; Lan withdrew it. She struck with her free hand; Lan turned his shoulder into the blow and cut toward her ribs. Xena twisted away. The chakram returned behind him. Lan heard it and ducked. Xena didn't catch it. The chakram passed over Lan and struck one of the bridge supports. The marble cracked. Lan looked down. “Announced that one,” Xena said. The bridge collapsed. Both fell with it. Xena caught a protruding beam with one hand. Lan struck the cliff face below her, his sword disappearing into the clouds, and caught a broken length of chain hanging from the ruins. Xena swung herself upward. Lan began climbing. Xena reached the ledge first and looked down at him. For an instant she could simply have cut the chain. Instead Lan swung away from the cliff as her sword struck where his hand had been, kicked from the rock and caught another ledge several feet away. Xena moved to intercept him. Lan climbed faster than she expected and caught her ankle as he came over the edge. Xena fell. Lan came up on top of her without his sword and drove an elbow toward her throat.

That was a mistake. Xena caught the arm. The fight became hers. She rolled Lan beneath her, struck him twice in the face and drove a knee toward his ribs. Lan blocked it, twisted free and got halfway upright before Xena kicked him across the ruined platform. He hit a column hard. Xena came after him. Lan drew his belt knife. Xena knocked it away with her sword. Lan avoided the next cut, caught her wrist with both hands and tried to control the weapon. Xena headbutted him. Lan staggered. Her kick caught him in the chest and sent him through the remains of a marble railing. He landed near the cliff edge, weaponless. Xena approached with her sword lowered. “You're better with a sword.” Lan wiped blood from his mouth. “Yes.” Xena almost laughed. “I like you.” Lan's eyes moved once toward something behind her. Xena didn't look. That saved her life. Lan lunged. Xena sidestepped and brought her sword around, expecting him to be reaching for the knife. He wasn't. His hand closed around the fallen chain from the bridge. He yanked it with both hands. The broken support above them gave way. Xena heard the stone falling and threw herself aside as several tons of marble smashed between them. Lan disappeared behind the dust. Xena rolled to her feet and immediately moved rather than waiting to see where he was. A knife flew through the place she had been standing. “Okay,” she muttered. “I like you less.”

They found their swords almost simultaneously among the ruins. After that, the fight became quieter. They had both run through the obvious advantages. Xena knew she could not dominate Lan with tricks. Lan knew he could not force Xena to remain in a conventional duel. They moved through the broken temple slowly, each wounded, each watching the other with complete attention. Xena threw the chakram once more. Lan positioned himself beside a column. It struck stone, changed direction and returned. Lan moved exactly when Xena expected. Xena attacked. Lan had expected that too. Their swords collided. Lan turned hers aside and cut her across the ribs. Xena ignored the wound and kicked his sword arm. Lan retained the weapon. Xena spun and attacked again. Lan parried. The chakram was returning now, screaming through the ruins toward his back. Lan stepped sideways. Xena smiled. The chakram wasn't aimed at Lan. It struck the cracked column behind him. The top half broke loose. Lan looked up. Xena attacked beneath it.

Lan had nowhere clean to go. Stone fell behind him, Xena's sword came from the front, and the cliff waited to his right. He chose left. Xena had expected left. Her blade changed direction and drove toward his chest. Lan stopped retreating. His sword moved once. Xena's blade passed beneath his arm. Lan's passed across her throat. For an instant they stood beside one another. Then blood appeared. Xena dropped her sword. She put one hand to her neck and looked at Lan with genuine surprise. Lan turned toward her, his own side opened deeply where her blade had caught him during the exchange. Xena sank to one knee. Lan caught her before she fell onto her face and lowered her onto the marble. Xena tried to speak. She couldn't. Lan understood anyway. “Yes,” he said quietly. “You almost had me.” Xena's eyes narrowed. Even dying, she looked annoyed by almost. Then she was gone.

The god rose from his throne. For several seconds nothing happened. Then light passed across Xena's body. The wound vanished. She inhaled violently and sat upright. Lan offered her a hand. Xena stared at it, then at him. Finally she took it. “Best two out of three?” Lan considered that. “No.” Xena laughed.

Winner: al’Lan Mandragoran

This was a very close fight, but ultimately, Lan pulled it out in the end. I think with a little luck, it could've gone Xena's way. But if we simulated the fight a hundred times, Lan would win more than Xena.

Anyway, I'm burned out on tournaments for the moment, but down the line I have other ideas:

Heavy Hitters (superman, hulk, Thragg, etc...) Wizards at War (Dumbeldore, Merlin, Mordenkainen, etc) Vampires and Werewolves Reality Warpers and many more possibilities...

Sent off the new REVISED & EXPANDED edition of THE SOLAR GRID to everyone who downloaded the previous version. A rather embarrassing message to have to send, but at least it's something that could be salvaged, unlike the shipping of flawed physical copies (so it's actually a plus I never took it to print earlier in the year).

Some of the most major revisions made (spoilers abound, naturally):

Chapter 01:

The Tianzi Hotel is a real place in a province 50 km southeast of Beijing. I originally chose it because I wanted something to visually indicate China without needing to include a big “China” caption at the top, and I had originally referenced it and its surrounding buildings from a photograph. Its surrounding buildings however offer a quaint and rather dated impression of China, which doesn't quite measure up to the “rivalry” felt by the US and referenced earlier in the chapter, all of which takes place in the future. So it occurred to me that all the architecture surrounding the Tianzi Hotel needed to be projected into the far future. The new line-art turned out a little thicker than I would've liked, but I think it works well enough.

Chapter 02:

When I first drew this page early on in THE SOLAR GRID's development, I left the background in the first panel blank because I had intended to put in a big “EARLIER” caption in big, bold sans serif type (probably set in Govan, just like the chapter titles), which I didn't want to clash with an overly detailed background. This might've been the SCOTT PILGRIM influence at work, which is amusingly full of such captions. It works really well for the tone of SCOTT PILGRIM, but I ultimately decided it wouldn't be right for THE SOLAR GRID. Yet, I never went back in to fill that background, and its bugged me ever since. Once I got that background in there, I had to change the background in the second panel to match. There's a bit of a style disconnect—to be expected when adding something to a drawing you originally made over 10 years ago—but it isn't too glaring and I think it works much better than the original version.

Chapter 03:

Always wanted to include a post-flood Egypt travel ad in the backmatter portion of chapter 3, but got too preoccupied with wanting to finish the actual comics of the book to get around to it way back when.

Chapter 04:

I was never satisfied with how tightly cropped the face in the second panel turned out (bottom left). Strikes me as just a tad confusing who the eyes belong to. So for the revised edition, I took a crop from a panel on a different page entirely and blew it up. Not a strategy I like to employ often, but applying it here improves the storytelling immensely.

The original bit of dialogue on the left adds nothing of genuine value. The revised dialogue on the right tells us something about the belief system prevalent in Wastecountry in regard to the titular Solar Grid. Which helps make certain scenes later in the book far less confusing.

Added to backmatter to further make clear that “the oasis” where the bunnylynx was found actually sits within Kovsky's lair.

Chapter 05:

Added a scannable QR code in the backmatter, which takes the reader to the actual THE SOLAR GRID SOUNDSCAPE tracks created by N Slash A.

Chapter 06:

In the original version, I had the “camera” swivel from the side of the character's face to the front in 3 consecutive panels. Ultimately, that motion doesn't quite translate very well in comix, and keeping the frames fixed on her profile works much, much better.

Chapter 07:

Added smaller versions of the text behind the panels in an effort to improve legibility and better make clear what is going on.

Earlier in the book, when not plugged into Hively, we have Mickie Stardust's train of thought fill the page behind the panels, something that gets completely obliterated once plugged in; he can no longer hear himself think. For Pierce Arcadia, I'd originally opted to not fill the entire page because he's intoxicated here and thus I figured his mind would largely be blank. This I think doesn't quite come across as intended, and the blankness of the page becomes a little odd after what we'd established with the Mickie Stardust sequences. In keeping with consistency, I opted to fill the page with a relevant train-of-thought for the new “revised & expanded” edition.

The original face in the 4th panel (top right) hadn't quite turned out as celestial as I would've liked (at all actually!). Messed with it, and made the dialogue stronger/more relevant.

Chapter 08:

Originally, the chapter title was overlayed on the art, making the text far less legible than I liked. I prefer it with the crop a lot more.

The revised dialogue (bottom right) ties better with something already established in the Galactic Geographic interview which appears a few pages earlier.

Even after using image-enhancing software, the excerpt from the 1812 edition of The Examiner is just awfully lo-res to be legible. Thus I decided to include 2 pages instead of 5, and fill the remaining 3 with an excerpt from Frederick Engels' The Conditions of the Working Class in England in 1844. Which was written long after the 1812 Luddite revolts, but there's enough of a thematic correlation to include it. And it beats relying entirely on a bunch of newspaper pages that are kind of impossible to read.

Chapter 9:

Opted for a less headliney title for the second appearance of Holly Badchapel's column.

Chapter 10:

The original dialogue exchange (top) actually says very little. The revised version (bottom) becomes shockingly revelatory to young Mehret, and better ties to a couple of other scenes earlier in the book.

Such a delicate and pivotal scene that became clunky primarily due to the largely nonsensical dialogue (much of which is actually too small for comfortable legibility). The revised version below really makes the scene count (also, the tongue's color in the top right panel needed a little pop).

Revised dialogue (bottom) better ties to the collage sequence that came before.

The Tsiolkovsky-1's launch into space didn't feel dramatic enough, so I added a double-page spread.

The Solar Grid's destruction—ostensibly the most important moment in the entire book—was way too abrupt. A couple extra pages help take the scene to a far more heightened level.

Again, revised dialogue (bottom) helps tie the scene to the pivotal collage scene that came before.

The joke towards the end didn't quite land very well the way I had originally depicted it. A couple extra pages allow the scene to breathe and make it work.

And finally, the very last closing page needed considerable reworking, but I'll refrain from showing that one here :–)

Sadly, none of the above revisions will be reflected in the serialized edition(s) from Radix Co-op or the boxset that collects them. But at least they get exclusive covers that don't appear in the “revised & expanded” collected edition.

Despite a considerably positive critical reception of THE SOLAR GRID to date, landing a publishing deal for the collected edition has thus far proven to be surprisingly challenging for some reason or another.

#comix #tsg #work

High Fantasy Epic Sword Fighter Tournament Semifinals, Fight 2

Xena Warrior Princess vs Geralt of Rivia

This is a fun one. Let's look at some of the choice items on their resumes. Xena has defeated:

Ares- God of War Mephistopheles- King of Hell Alti- Shaman who can manipulate time Velasca- Amazon Queen who obtained god-like powers Julius Caesar- She beat him with political cunning and countless War Lords...

And then there is The Witcher:

Dettlaff van Der Eretein- A Vampire Lord Eredin Breacc Glas- King of the Wild Hunt Vilgefortz of Roggeveen- An immensely powerful Sorcerer Striga- Cursed princess with incredible strength Xeugl- A massive, subterranean monster built out of pollution itself and countless Monsters...

They say styles make fights, so this one is really a toss up. Both have incredible toolkits, experience and battle IQ. While Xena isn't magical, she's certainly defeated plenty of enemies with more magic than Geralt, so this can go either way.

Let's say, they are pitted against each other in the halls of unknown gods to fight to the death. The winner gets to return to their home world. The loser is trapped.

The halls seemed to have no end. Black pillars rose beyond sight, supporting a ceiling lost in darkness, while statues of gods neither Xena nor Geralt recognized watched from alcoves along the walls. There were no doors behind them anymore. A voice without a source gave the terms: one would die here; the other would awaken in their own world. Geralt drew his steel sword and drank a potion without taking his eyes from Xena. She watched his pupils darken and smiled faintly, then drew her sword and chakram. “You always look like that after a drink?” Geralt cast Quen, golden light passing briefly across his body. “Usually worse.” Xena's smile widened. Then the chakram left her hand.

Geralt ducked. The chakram struck a pillar behind him, ricocheted toward another and came back from an angle that should have been impossible. Quen shattered as it struck his back. Geralt spun and caught the returning weapon on his sword, sending it skittering across the floor. Xena was already there. Her first stroke nearly opened his throat. Geralt parried the second, slipped the third and answered with a cut that Xena somehow bent backward beneath before kicking him hard in the chest. Geralt slid across the stone, raised one hand and hit her with Aard. Xena flew backward, twisted in the air and landed in a crouch. For the first time, she looked genuinely surprised. “Okay.” Geralt reset his guard. “Yeah.” Then both stopped testing. Xena came at him with sword, fists and feet woven together so seamlessly that Geralt could never defend against only one weapon. Geralt met her with everything he had. Igni forced Xena sideways; she sprang onto a pillar, kicked away from it and attacked from above. Geralt rolled beneath her, cut her thigh and caught a kick against his forearm that nearly broke it. Xena recovered her chakram and sent it bouncing among the pillars, forcing Geralt to track two threats at once while she closed with the sword. He cast Quen again just before the chakram found him, and Xena immediately smashed through the weakened shield with a kick. Geralt answered with Aard at point-blank range. Both went tumbling apart. They rose bleeding, and neither smiled anymore.

Geralt understood before Xena did that he was losing. She was at least as fast as he was, stronger than he was, and her movements violated expectations even his mutations had difficulty following. Worse, she was learning the Signs. Igni no longer surprised her. She recognized the movement preceding Aard. Twice she deliberately struck Quen with the chakram before closing, using the ranged weapon to strip away the protection she now understood. Geralt changed Signs, rhythms and angles, but Xena changed with him. He had spent his life defeating creatures physically superior to himself by learning their patterns. Xena seemed almost offended by the concept of having one. So Geralt stopped trying to solve her and tried to kill her. He threw a Samum bomb against a pillar. Xena saw the throw and turned away, but the explosion still blinded her for an instant. Geralt crossed the distance immediately and his sword opened her side. Xena twisted away from the killing follow-up and struck blindly with the chakram. It caught Geralt across the temple. He staggered, blood filling one eye, and Xena's vision cleared quickly enough to see him vulnerable. She attacked. Geralt barely turned the first stroke. The second knocked his sword from his hand. Xena kicked him against a pillar and drove her sword toward his heart. Quen flashed into existence at the last possible instant and shattered beneath the thrust.

Xena hesitated for perhaps half a heartbeat. Geralt hit her with Aard. She crashed through a stone bench. Geralt dove for his sword and came up as Xena exploded from the rubble. She struck his wrist before he could establish his guard, caught him by the coat and slammed him against the pillar. Geralt drove his forehead into her face. Xena answered with one of her own, then threw him hard enough that he rolled twice across the floor. His sword landed beside him. Xena approached with blood running from her nose and side, sword in one hand, chakram in the other. Geralt reached for the blade. The chakram struck his hand and knocked it away. Xena kicked the sword across the hall. Geralt looked at it, then at her. “Fuck.” Xena attacked. Geralt threw Igni directly into her face. Xena crossed her arms and drove through the flame. Her sword knocked his reaching hand aside and punched through his chest. Geralt went still. Xena held him there for a moment, breathing hard. Geralt looked down at the blade, then back at her. “You're not human.” Xena gave him a tired smile. “Neither are you.” She pulled the sword free. Geralt collapsed.

Xena stood over him until she was certain it was finished. Then she picked up his steel sword, examined the strange weapon briefly and placed it beside his body. The darkness at the end of the hall opened into daylight. Somewhere beyond it waited Greece, Gabrielle, and a world that belonged to her. Xena retrieved her chakram and walked toward home.

Winner: Xena

And this sets up our final match. Xena vs Lan. Get hyped.

High Fantasy Epic Sword Fighter Tournament Semifinals, Fight 1

Al'Lan Mandragoran vs Jamie Lannister

Well, as is inevitable in many tournaments with weaker and stronger seeds, at some point you will end up with a real once sided smackdown. Jamie Lannister is the greatest living swordsman in his world and time, but, ASOIAF is not Wheel of Time. The protagonists of the Wheel of Time would probably take out the the Night King before lunch, without breaking a sweat. By dinner time they'd have united the Seven Kingdoms.

Still, we gotta play this out. Let's see how long Jamie lasts. We will change the stakes here. The Dark One has Cersei's soul. Says Jamie must kill Lan to get it back. Lan has orders from Nynaeve: Kill Jamie as quickly as possible so we can get back to real fight—he's a servant of the Dark One.

Jaime came at Lan with the speed and confidence that had made him the finest natural swordsman in the Seven Kingdoms. There was no banter; Cersei's soul was at stake, and Jaime intended to kill the stranger before him and keep moving. His opening combination would have butchered almost any knight he had ever faced. Lan turned the first stroke, yielded half a step to the second, and answered the third with something Jaime had never seen. Jaime barely parried it. That would be the moment the fight changed. Jaime was accustomed to discovering within seconds that he was better than the man opposite him. Instead, within seconds, he would realize that Lan was better than him. Jaime would accelerate, taking risks because he had no alternative, and for perhaps another twenty seconds his extraordinary talent would keep him alive. He might even nick Lan once. But Lan wouldn't be dueling for pride or testing an interesting opponent. Nynaeve had told him this man served the Shadow, and every additional second spent here was a second stolen from the real battle.

Lan would end it brutally and without flourish. Jaime would feint high, change lines beautifully and commit to what he believed was finally an opening; Lan would recognize the sequence before Jaime completed it. A tiny movement would carry Lan outside the killing stroke, his sword would knock Jaime's blade just far enough off line, and the return would enter through the gap beneath Jaime's arm and pierce his heart. Jaime would probably still try to strike—because Cersei was waiting—but his strength would disappear before he could finish the motion. Lan would catch him rather than let him fall, lower him to the ground, and perhaps realize from Jaime's expression that whatever the Dark One had told this man, Jaime had believed he was fighting for someone he loved. There would be no satisfaction in Lan's face. “May you shelter in the palm of the Creator's hand.” Then he'd pull his sword free, wipe it once, and go find the actual servants of the Shadow. Lan wins decisively

I think Jamie wins less than 1% of the time here. He's completely and utterly outmatched.

For roughly 20 years, the closest I've come to actively practicing religion is crossing myself with holy water when I go into Catholic churches. But I’m fascinated by religion as a concept, even though I don’t believe in one personally, and I find it to be a particularly interesting and useful tool to employ in speculative fiction. The beliefs, rituals, symbolism, history, terminology, and traditions that come along with a religion can be very helpful in clearly establishing a culture within an invented setting, and giving that place a sense of history.

If you're looking for examples, the first one that always comes to my mind is Dune, where the beliefs of both the Fremen and the broader galaxy aren't just window-dressing setting details but are critical for the development of the plot. The Actual Star by Monica Byrne is another one where the religion is woven in, and it also uses a long timeview that explores how traditions and beliefs shift over thousands of years, which makes it a particularly fun read for folks with an interest in mythology. On the fantasy side, Ann Leckie's The Raven Tower and Kerstin Hall's Star Eater are two I've read in recent years that employ religion and mythology in a very interesting and effective way. In the horror realm, V. Castro's Goddess of Filth twists real-world religions into new speculative plot threads.

Creating a religion wholesale might sound like a very daunting task, and it can be if you let it be. But just like with creating your own language, you don't necessarily need to make a religion fully practice-able for it to come across as real on the page. Here's the steps I take when I'm creating a religion for one of my story worlds, as someone who has done a significant (what some might call excessive) amount of research into both real-world and fictional religions.

Step 1: Establish who or what adherents worship.

Every religion or spiritual system has something at its core that is the primary target of prayers, rituals, and other activities related to the religion. This can be literally anything, if you're inventing a religion of your own, but there are a few common categories among extant religions:

• Monotheistic - Have a single, central deity who is typically also seen as a creator figure. The Abrahamic religions (Judaism, Christianity, and Islam) are the most obvious example of this from Earth religions.
• Polytheistic - Have a set of deities, which often have their own internal hierarchy or regional affiliations, and are frequently assigned specific areas of dominion (e.g. the sea, the earth, death, rain/storms, etc.). Familiar examples of this include Hindu gods or Norse, Greek, and Egyptian mythologies.
• Animistic - Belief that spirits inhabit or govern aspects of the natural world, which can include landscape features, weather, celestial objects, specific locations, or living things like plants and animals. Many religions from Asia and Oceania are examples of this, including Ainu, some forms of Shinto, and Aboriginal Austraian and Pacific Island traditions. The beliefs of the Sami people of northern Europe also fit this category, as do many beliefs from across the Americas.
• Pantheistic - A single “god” that is amorphous and seen as synonymous with the universe, reality, or nature. Some Hindu and Taoist traditions can be seen as examples of this.
• Ancestor veneration - Real historical people are the target of prayers and ritual practices. These could be immediate ancestors who are remembered by living practitioners or distant, semi-mythologized figures. Examples of this can be found in Shinto and Japanese Buddhism, as well as many indigenous religions from across continents.
• Object veneration - You might also see this called fetishism or idolatry, and is when a physical object is the target of worship. Usually the object is seen as having supernatural powers or origin. Pure object-based religions on Earth are fairly rare, but some form of this can be seen in things like the icons of Greek Orthodoxy, the treatment of relics in Catholicism, or the shintai in Shinto.

...this is certainly not a comprehensive list, and you'll see variations or combinations of these practices, too, but that at least a place to start.

If you're going with a pantheon or animistic system, then it's also smart to establish roughly how many spirits or deities the religion has and whether those are seen as universal or regional, or a mix of both. In the ancient Greek pantheon, for example, there were some core gods like Zeus and Athena that had adherents just about everywhere it was practiced, but there were also many localized gods seen as the patrons of specific areas or cities.

Another thing to think about that can help to shape the other aspects of the religion is the distance believers see between themselves and the subject of their devotion. In other words, how much do the spirits interact with the physical world? Again, there a few levels of this in Earth religions:

• Deism – “God as clockmaker,” where the central deity created existence but doesn't involve itself in day-to-day affairs
• Distant deity reachable through intermediaries – The central deity (or deities) can't be directly accessed by humans, so humans instead ask for other figures to intercede on their behalf, often lesser deities, ancestors, or supernatural beings like spirits, angels, daemons, etc. It's also common for specific humans to be capable of more direct or higher-level interaction with the spiritual realm, like if some prayers can only be made by trained priests. Yoruba is a prime example of this, as are Christian concepts like praying to saints.
• Direct prayer to nontangible deities – A very common model in extant world religions, seen in most Protestant Catholic sects as well as Sikhism, Judaism, Islam, Hinduism, and many, many others. Individuals can directly make offerings or prayers to the target of worship.
• Deities or spirits are physically present on Earth – This is typical of animistic religions, where spirits are seen as being physically embodied by aspects of nature, but is also common in polytheistic traditions. Ancient Greek gods were thought to regularly come to Earth and interact with people, while Hindu deities regularly manifest on Earth.
• Spirit mediation/mediums/shamans – A variant of intercession, where trained individuals are able to interact directly with the spirits, deities, or ancestors. Examples of this can be found across Asia and the Americas, including the Sami noaidi, the Buryat and Mongolian böö, the Korean Mudang, the Vodou Houngan/Manbo, and the Candomblé Babalorixá/Iyalorixá.

....basically, you want to figure out if regular people can interact with the target of worship, who does it on their behalf if not, and how likely they think it is that supreme figure(s) will intercede (or even care).

Step 2: Choose and sketch out their holy texts.

Note that these don't have to be written texts, if it's an oral tradition, but that's a shorthand for the broader concept here: every religion has some kind of scriptures, liturgy, mythology, or other core set of words that are used in prayers and religious ceremonies. This text often includes stuff like:

• Creation or origin stories about the world, humanity, and/or the religion itself
• Explanation of the cosmology (e.g. any heavens, underworlds, spirit worlds, etc.)
• Afterlife structure and beliefs
• Legends or myths about the gods, ancestors, spirits, saints, prophets, culture heroes, etc.
• Apocalyptic narratives or end-times prophecies
• Geneaologies or hierarchies for ancestors, deity pantheons, or major figures like prophets, priests, etc.
• Doctrines outlining the core beliefs
• Rules or tales to establish the religion's moral compass, sins, virtues, and good vs. bad behavior
• Commandments or laws followers are expected to follow (forbidden behaviors, family/marriage rules, dietary restrictions, etc.) and the rewards or punishments for adhering to/breaking them
• Instructions for or descriptions of rituals, prayers, ceremonies, initiations, rites, festivals, offerings, etc. and any other strategies for interacting with supernatural beings
• Calendar for sacred days, important festivals, or other religious observances
• Descriptions of and rules related to sacred objects or locations
• Prayers, hymns, or incantations used during those things above
• Direct accounts that are attributed to gods, spirits, prophets, founders, or other figures related to the religion
• Descriptions of (and rules for) religious offices and practitioners

It's important to note here, you definitely don't need to include all of those things among an invented religion's texts. A lot of real religions don't include all of them, either. Look at this like a menu more than a recipe, and pick and choose the things that will be the most useful for your world and story.

As far as whether to actually write them or not, I would say that's a story-by-story question. If the religion's practices directly impact the day-to-day lives of the characters or are central to the plot, then it likely will be helpful to at least write their core tenets or commandments as a reference, even if those never get directly included in the story. But that doesn't mean you need to write out the religion's equivalent of a Bible. For most stories, just knowing the mythology's big-picture arc, major players, and core beliefs will let you build it into the fabric of the society. If you do plan to have characters quoting scripture or saying prayers on-page, you can write those on a per-need basis then compile them into your notes for future reference.

Step 3: Decide where, when, and how the religion is practiced.

A lot of these details are things that might be included in those religious texts from the last step, but they're also something you want to solidify independently because this is the physical manifestation of the religion that you'll actually be able to portray on the page. A lot of these things are going to flow organically out of the other things you've already decided about the religion. If it's an animistic belief system, for instance, then it's logical that their rituals would take place in nature, and would likely follow the rhythms of that landscape, aligning with things like weather patterns, the position of celestial bodies, or the lifecycles of local plants and animals.

Some questions you can ask yourself that can be helpful at this stage:

• Are there specific buildings where this religion is practiced? If so, what do they look like and where are they located within communities?
• Do certain members of the religion live in designated places? (e.g. a monastery for monks)
• Do individual members of the religion have altars or religious iconography in their homes?
• Do prayers or rituals need to happen in a specific place?
• How often do religious ceremonies take place?
• Are similar steps repeated in every ceremony, or are there different traditions for different occasions?
• How do people dress during religious ceremonies?

Again, you don't need to spell out every little detail, but you want to go deep enough that you have a sense for how belonging to this religion impacts the rhythm of your characters' daily life. It can also be useful material to mine for story beats or world details that can add depth to the story for readers.

Step 4: Identify the religion's symbols and sensory details.

Speaking of mining things for world depth, these are the details you can really make some hay with, as it were, more than the big-picture concepts. The symbols associated with a religion become a shorthand for those beliefs, and you can sprinkle them in selectively to quickly give readers information about characters or locations once you establish what those symbols represent.

Sensory details, meanwhile, are what really give the religion that lived-in feel. This includes sight details, like ritual attire, the architecture and decor of religious spaces, or iconography that believers would display or wear. Sound is also a common aspect of religious ritual: specific hymns, chants, or music that accompanies rituals, the use of instruments like bells or horns, or regular sonic rituals like a call to prayer are common examples.

And don't neglect smell and taste, either. As someone who grew up Catholic, smelling certain kinds of incense immediately transports me back to Christmas mass. Catholicism also hits the “taste” point with the Eucharist ritual, and other religions have similar practices. Integrating the typical food or aromas associated with the religion into the story adds another layer to the reader's immersion into the world.

Step 5: Place the religion within the broader cultural context.

No aspect of worldbuilding exists in a vacuum, and how the rest of society works around the religion you've built is key for how you'll present it in the story. The first thing to decide is how much influence the religion has in the society of the story's world. This is another place where you can see things on a spectrum:

• Governing - The story takes place in a theocracy where religious figures either are political leaders or have direct influence over them, and the religion's moral laws are also encoded into the legal system
• Dominant - The majority (or all) of the people in the story belong to the religion, and as a result it has a profound influence on culture and society, though it is not officially linked to the government
• In a melting pot - The religion is one of many that are practiced in the world, and is one of two or more that have a significant reach or influence
• Fringe - The religion is practiced by only a small portion of the population, and may be little-known or seen as a cult (whether or not that is fair)
• Persecuted - The dominant society actively opposes the religion by forbidding its practice, discriminating against its members, or attempting to eradicate it

...and, again, things won't necessarily fall along those cut-and-dry boundaries, but you can use that as a guide to figure out where the religion falls relative to the broader world you've built around it.

History is something to think about here, too. Is this religion ancient or more recent? Did it start from scratch or branch off from another faith? Did it originate in the place your story is set, or was it brought here by immigrants? All of these things can influence the way people engage with the religion (and characters who practice it).

That's really the bottom line when you're creating a mythology or religion for a fictional world, whatever the context. The most important parts of it are the things that directly impact the characters, because those are going to be what shape your story and give you points of tension and conflict to exploit. Those are the places you want to focus your time and energy when you're creating one for your stories.

See similar posts:

#Worldbuilding #WritingAdvice #Fiction #SciFi #Fantasy #Mythology

Our Father Who art in Heaven Hallowed be Thy name Thy Kingdom come Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven Give us this day our daily Bread And forgive us our trespasses As we forgive those who trespass against us And lead us not into temptation But deliver us from evil

Amen

Jesus is Lord! Come Lord Jesus!

Come Lord Jesus! Christ is Lord!

The apiary be Scottish run to mute Late December this hugger And seeing simply rise What time in Hearst for Will Enough of oak And seeming simpler For five octet and lane And pasture by the law Economy forever- and nines to the Moon Giving ray to God And night shall let us be- the end of war.

Hormuz

By the light of time Seeing under siege At distance right To proper and in play Sights of angels Quadrants in relief The Earth of all And quarter ten Failing major men In accostment then The Japanese escape And play for speed Declaring solemn just And cannot trade a thing But getting older then With words upon his desk To remain the undefined Choruses be known- And rain and gold Until he sees the wake- of modifying truth And setting modern act The wishes we regret And falsifying news At June and wonder When will be a day Of leaving near to dusk The worded truth That people lay in chains At bitter Cobh And just because the Times- paid the world near To fight this course of there- the silent end of day And worth a Stalin To high regret When bitter snows recede And pipes to worth We caught up on renew The place of days To knighted men of terror For only you And psychs us to the core For all to be dismayed A harem and a lot The plan to rest; at east and Mott Every day this man For terror knows The peace of Israel awaits And standing early then No fights to end this war But bespoke and going home Best are we- A jury of the men In days near and free to time The fateful day of war Can be divided and suppressed And doing daylight forward Noted path and plan The edifice of man And calling near by shop In worry such as this,- the gratitude of London For this and year And leaving forward goals The dopamine direct Destroying the depraved Will never lead to shore And mercy forget you In this light of solemn view By man at hand A fateful post In gaining early message That Donald saw the truth By there and time The Sun as it were to find Lights to bear New York his only home And Justice hope To leave Iran at loss A pittance for esteem That terrorists recycled- all this cleric time And as afforded new America is not at war And might recede to ship A blaming art The failed three days But never gone to peace In plated news And ghosted men The Earth at in distress And Clement be No place of war Like in this ship Across and then Sending Sparrow home.

I get irritated easily, i cant help it. and i dont care enough to do so, but when it comes to walking into a room with a clear purpose, only for the thought to disappear somewhere between the doorway and the other side of the room. Does bother me more than my cat pissing on my bed. i had something to do, i know i did. i was not wandering around aimlessly like some unfortunate ghost with poor navigation skills. there was a reason i got up, presumably important enough for my brain to interrupt whatever i was doing. then i crossed the doorway. nothing, absolutely nothing. i stood there for a moment, staring at the room as if it had personally offended me. i tried to retrace my thoughts. i had been sitting there, then i thought about something, then i stood up then i walked here and that is where the evidence ends. so naturally, like all of you humans. i began walking back to where i had been, hoping the missing thought would simply be lying there waiting for me. spoiler, it wasnt. i returned to the exact position i had been sitting in, stared at the ceiling and somehow remembered three completely unrelated things instead. its irritating to know you’ve forgotten something without knowing what. my brain insists there was information somewhere. but wont return it to me. like an empty envelope that used to matter. my memory is perfectly capable of functioning. it simply chooses to do so when it would be most inconvenient. i got what i needed and walked back, already wondering how many times this has happened without me ever questioning it. Probably more than i’d like to admit.

And i forgot why i wrote this, i suppose that would be rather fitting.

Sincerely, Master of absentmindedness.

Van Voorbijgaande Aard – S/T

Er was Ver, Ver, Verveling Ver, Ver, Verdreven naar een plek Ver Ver Ver van Hier en daar aangekomen eens te lezen (mits ook u daar tijd voor over heeft)

Zo net wist ik niet wat ik met goed fatsoen nog kon doen voor deze snode wereld wentelend om poen en meer van dat soort vers verzonnen goed inmiddels weet ik beter is mijn kennis opgewaardeerd Ik ga mij voor die duiten dienstbaar opstellen zinnige verhalen over centen vertellen de ontvangen ingehuurden met zenders en al er op afstellen fijn tunen en malen van de boodschap zetelend op de kieslijst voor het verbale product geworteld in dustrie om meer waard te zijn dan alleen maar mijn lijf met alle lasten daarin, op en aan die ik moet dragen, ver, naar her en der en hier en daar en weer terug van winkel naar kerk van huis naar werk parkeren in de kelders behorend bij de kantoren des heren Ik ga voor de algehele balans tussen rijk en arm veel en weinig dom en slim veel telen, als ook kool rapen en rabarberstelen dan alsof dit alle maal nog niet voldoet lof tuigen ontspruiten, het wassen uit kluiten, ten slotte iemand anders bonen doppen zodat zij er uit kunnen kijken en indien nodig uitwijken voor opdoemend gevaar aan de kust, de einder en op de klippen bij beide polen en in het centrum, rondom de evenaar want als die ander door ongedopte bonen niet langer zich zelf, op regel, voor de vorm en binnen de tijd, systematisch kan belonen zou ik niet kunnen verteren en of verkroppen want anders gaat het ijverige, netwerkende, driftige bestaan ver voor het weer lente is al naar de knoppen en uiteindelijk ga ik al dit aan u nijvere dienders geleverde werk ergens goed verdekt op een vrij toegankelijke plek een locatie immer onbestemd en vanzelfsprekend onbemind waar niemand aan kan tippen of zo komen versstoppen

I told U Today that I think I am looking for something different and wished her the best. I fear that with R I will be doing the same soon. I wonder if younger me would expect the problem I’m facing now, or if I would be ecstatic with joy. I guess to some extent it’s reassuring for the bad times, that life has its way of making sure that everyone drinks their fair share of misery from its glass.