Star Spun Souls

This post is Part 2 of a series to augment the Author's Manifesto available for free download. Start with Part 1 here . This and other inspirations of mine are gathered in the Spark Directory for you to explore. Find more map-making content in my Cartography Directory . In Part 1 of this series , I shared some of the reasons I love making maps. Fun and games aside, I've come to see maps as powerful tools that enhance the stories they accompany. Most authors commission their maps during publication, and the resulting artwork is great for readers. But the mapping process impacts the storyteller , and that world-building juice is best unleashed while the manuscript is young. Whether invented or historical, the setting of a fictional story is only as real as the writer's imagination. Mapping that setting immerses writers in their worlds, solidifying the core geography and bringing hazy zones...

This post is part of a series to augment the Tips for Writing Fiction available for free download. This and other writing workshops are gathered in my Workshops Directory for you to explore. Find my world workshops in the Worldbuilding Directory . Readers anticipate a story as it unfolds, but the best stories delight them anyway. Their expectations are right, but delight and surprise unfold along with their predictions. They are wowed by the tale they were expecting all along. Good storycraft embraces this tendency for readers to predict outcomes, leveraging it as a foreshadowing tool to enhance intrigue and suspense. Foreshadow different details of your events in separate places, and you give your readers the satisfaction of putting the clues together. But to keep your readers interested, also plant vague or misleading details to influence their conclusions. As storytellers, let's c...

This post is Part 5 of a series to augment the Fictional Cartography by D.N.Frost available for free download. Start with Part 1 here . This and other map commissions are gathered in my Portfolio Directory for you to explore. Find more guest-inspired content in my Guest Directory . Thanks to the collaboration we started in Part 1 of this series , Zach and Christian are delighted with their new map: Through the entire process, D.N. was wonderful to work with! As world-builders without cartographical experience, this allowed us to maintain complete creative control of our world, but also drastically improved the "real-ness" of the geography. Our world was greatly improved by her input. We absolutely recommend D.N. to anyone with a fantasy world! – Christian Madera, co-creator of The Once and Future Nerd ...

This post is Part 1 of a series to augment the Author's Manifesto available for free download. This and other inspirations of mine are gathered in the Spark Directory for you to explore. Find more map-making content in my Cartography Directory . I create maps as part of my writing process. While planning a new book, I map the whole of the Known World and percolate ideas for the upcoming story. Before drafting each section of the book, I also map an important or conceptually relevant area of my world. And before I revise each chapter of the book, I map an area featured within that chapter. This mapping serves as an inspiration tool, allowing me to ruminate over the upcoming content in a fun and productive way. During the long and arduous revision stage, mapping also provides a much-needed respite from my intense editing frenzy. And in many ways, creating a new map is my reward for completing edi...

In the novel Broken , there are 24 portents fortelling the events of the unfolding saga. Start with Portent I here . These and other riddles in rhyme are gathered in the Portents Directory for you to explore. Enjoy! The prince from hall renowned Departs the weary sage Comrade forgoes for lurid sight And surface trades for water mage Whom timeless would impound Bereft of coral stage The timeless few invite Advent of royal grace uncrowned And dread incur with prince's blight To end a dying age Awash in wisdom's bite The prince of laws unbound Broken by sea in timeless cage For wending voice and gateway drowned In time becomes the light. Can you decode the future Tales of the Known World ? Share your interpretation! Comment below with your take on this portent. Part 3 of Broken is titled "By Sea", and this portent deals with Tirrok...