Tag: fabled

Writing Wiki: Not Wiki Writing

So if you’ve been following along with the madness that comes with my obsession with writing, you’ll know that I took the jump from excel spreadsheets to a writing wiki to organize my writing. If you haven’t been, well, today is a fantastic progress update so I’ll explain the methods behind the latest stint at the wheel of a ship called creative madness!

As you can see in the title, I am talking about creating a writing wiki. You may wonder why that is any different than writing for a wiki. There are indeed many parallels, and I have enjoyed learning the wiki syntaxes alongside my writing. It gave me the perfect reason to take a break and think about something other than the world I am creating. Also writing an article for a wiki is fun, but using it for a story to organize your thoughts is an incredibly powerful tool.

The wiki page is simply that of a text editor, but through valid and important linking you create actual notes and links from one section to another. Planning foreshadowing and adding layers of depth to the story has been easier than just writing. Normally I do what I would call “free writing” where I have an idea where I want the story to go and start off almost on the adventure myself. As I write, new ideas present themselves and I begin to get distracted. This is the first time I have ever managed to plan an entire novel (just completed the chapter summaries). The fun thing is making the beginning of the story have significant relevance to the end of the story while both tie into the title of my story: Fabled.

As the hero, Brennet Vanniston, stuggles to understand why his brother left him before his eighth birthday, his mother reads him the story of the three monsters of creation (A lore I adapted to my story from stories from history). Within a few years, he quickly finds his life spiralling upwards and beyond his control. Finding himself travelling the lands of Ethos and uniting the kingdoms against Death himself, Brennet quickly finds himself the protagonist of his own story.

The story at the moment has a few possible endings (One definitive for a one off novel, one to set up a single sequel and one to set up a trilogy), I have been focusing on the trilogy ending in hopes of writing another story in the same world. After all, I’ve done lots of planning in this world, why wouldn’t I want to make more stories in it? Also the Vanniston lineage is a history rich blood line with a rags to riches story. The evolution of the name from as far back as the little known Nistons to the destiny changing Vlad Van Niston shows how one moment can completely change a family’s course forever.

To give you a bit of insight into the great ancestor of Brennet Vanniston, Vlad Van Niston was actually originally a blacksmith by trade. A man who saw forging weapons and wielding them as one and the same, he quickly became known through tournaments in the King’s name. He practised often with the weapons he crafted, and this lead to his advantage with many different types of arms. Also he was secretly ambidextrous, but he was afraid to use his left hand as it was considered a sign of evil lurking within. Vlad found himself recruited into the Kingsguard for his skill as a blacksmith, but eventually found himself fighting on the front lines after single-handedly fending off attackers at their camp.

Vlad’s defining moment was in the great battle for the kingdom of Anglia. He had just turned twenty and before they could celebrate, shadows fell over the camp, slaughtering half the men in mere minutes. Alarmed by the ambush, Vlad with sword and shield, leapt haphazardly into the fray. He met a man who met his every swing perfectly, and matched his speed and accuracy. As the two men danced in the flickering light of the camp fire, all eyes turned to them. The blades sung out as they sliced the air perfectly, almost in eagerness for the taste of blood. Suddenly Vlad felt his sword turning unnaturally in his hand, it seemed the other man was about to disarm him. In his panic, Vlad dropped his shield and caught the falling sword in his left hand; his sword sang as it cleaved easily through his opponent’s wrist. The other sword’s slight blue glow landed in Vlad’s right hand, and with both blades, he ended the war.

Vlad’s story continues as he learns from his captive enemies that the sword is ancient, its old master called it Revenant. Adopting the sword as his own, he continued fighting with the King’s armies until he passed the sword down to his son upon his retirement. The sword then was passed down through the ages, usually to the first born son, but only when the father retired from battle. As Vlad’s skill dramatically improved his family’s wealth and reputation, the tradition of naming your son or daughter with the middle name “Van” became a popular practice. This eventually lead to the surname of Vanniston, which brings us to our hero, Brennet.

This is one of the many pieces of history and lore I’ve added into my stories to enrich the experience and through the use of a wiki, added more than I probably should have. You see, whenever you are writing a note, lore, description or anything really; You simply make a link of anything that sounds interesting or important to you. Eventually you create this web of links which build the story and the events for the most part. The history of my story shaped the direction and conclusion of its main plot, while the sub plots describe things I want to tell you about through the eyes of my characters. Some animals are fantastic, and I can’t wait to discuss them!

If anyone is considering using a wiki to start structuring their writing, please feel free to email more or comment here and I will help you as best I can. Not only that, but on my back burner there I can see that I would like to create a tutorial for using one as a writer. I believe this tool has been incredibly useful for making me seem more organized than I am and most likely saving a forest of trees with the amount of notes I usually scribble haphazardly only to require rewriting(read: translating) them. I hope you enjoyed today’s post and feel free to drop me a line! I’d be more than excited to hear from anyone out there!

Fabled World Lore: The Sainthood of Alistaire, The Iron Knight

So I am writing a lot of detail into this story I am working on and this is just one of the many side stories that has become a folk tale in the world of Fabled. Fabled will be taking place in a fantasy setting following a young boy who runs from conscription into the King’s Guard like his older brother did before him. In an attempt to make a name for himself, he heads to the neighbouring kingdom to offer his help in finding the princess.

The Sainthood of Alistaire, The Iron Knight

In the land of what is now Archanglia, a sole ancient dragon swooped down upon a kingdom in a furious attack. As the fire from the dragon’s mouth engulfed many a soldier, the King screamed for peace. The dragon had been making weekly attacks, and the King wanted desperately to know why. As he exited the castle walls alone, the dragon made its descent before him.

“Why dragon, why does someone so great, powerful and wise such as yourself choose to attack my kingdom every week? What harm have we done to you?” The King demanded answers from the dragon, unsure if he was even being understood.

The dragon’s eyes narrowed at the King and he leaned in, his long steaming snout barely inches from the King’s face. You wish to know why young King? Your hunters have taken my younglings, slain them, and kept them as trophies. The dragon’s message came across loud and clear, but it spoke only to the King’s mind. Alas, I am now the last of my kind.

“Well, how can I appease you? An apology will not do, and if it is justice you require, I may grant it!” The King’s pleas echoed in the silence following his offering. The dragon stared at him pensively.

I will accept your form of punishment. However I will require the bodies of my younglings so I may give them a proper rest. In a wagon would do fine, I can carry them that way. The dragon’s eyes narrowed even more, almost to the point of being closed. But I will require one thing from you in return.

The King was already ensuring the cart with the dragons was on its way out when he was baffled by the request. He knew it was best for the kingdom, and if he were to have a kingdom at all, he would have to appease the dragon. “Anything for peace my friend, I will give you…”

Your twin heirs. The dragon’s eyes widened and he snarled as if to say, two lives for two lives.

The King stifled back a grin and bowed low. “Of course I would, but alas I have no children!” As he bowed, the cart with the two bodies on it appeared outside the gate.

The dragon’s snout inhaled deeply as it retreated its head from the King. Ah, but you will. With that, the dragon spread its enormous wings and kicked up a cloud of dust, disappearing amid the clouds with the cart in his clutches.

Years later, the King finally wed into a wealthy family to unite two kingdoms. His political power and their funds made them extremely prosperous. As the King found out his betrothed was with child, he checked with his healer to see if it could be twins. The healer assured him it was not possible.

Weeks turned to months, and finally the day arrived. The King stood by his Queen’s side as she gave birth to his first born heir, a boy. As he revelled in the glory of fatherhood, he forgot about the prospect of twins until his wife suddenly had a sharp pain in her abdomen. As the healer tried desperately to stop the bleeding, the King began to panic. What if he lost his wife? Would she be the other life the dragon was asking for? As the healer worked tirelessly to help her, she found a small hand amid the blood. As she forced the child from the Queen, she unfortunately put the Queen into a shock. As the king was handed a twin daughter, he lost his Queen.

He toiled with the thought of having to give away the last reminders of his beautiful wife. Finally he came to a solution. He would have the hunters slay the dragon! As he sent his guards to every household, no hunters wanted to face death head on. Finally the search expanded, until no more were available. As he broke down to his armourer, he told of how he dealt away his children to the dragon in exchange for peace. The armourer shook his head, but in the background a young man clamoured forward.

“Hello M’Lord, I am the apprentice here, and I have heard your plight.” The young man said, his grey eyes shining like steel. “I have heard it, and I wish to help.” The King hugged the young man and promised him riches and his family wealth beyond their dreams. The young man looked to the ground at the mention of his family. “M’Lord, they all died of plague a few years ago. I have nothing left but this job.”

Despite the King’s offer of the greatest armour and weapons, the young man wanted to forge his own armour and sword. The King sighed heavily and sat, watching the young man forge his sword. “What is your name, hero?”

The young man smiled at the King’s compliment. “I’m no hero M’Lord. My name is Alistaire.”

“Alistaire of what house?” The question from the King seemed to sting his hero.

“I have no house, I was too young to remember our name.” Alistaire shrugged as he dipped the scalding hot sword into a cauldron of water. As the steam rose from the heated metal, he looked upon his blade with great pride. “This is a technique I remember my father writing about, it is called star forging.” As he swung the sword in an arc, the blade sung through the air.

As the King felt the time passing, finally his hero came to see him. “Are you prepared for the battle?” He asked politely, unsure if any man could prepare to face such a creature. Much to his surprise, Alistaire shrugged as if he were fetching some bread.

“M’Lord, I have nothing but my life to lose, and I assure you. It isn’t worth much.” Alistaire got down on a single knee and bowed his head. “But I will give my last breath only after I have defended your heirs good King.” Suddenly, Alistaire rose to his feet and removed his iron helm. “But you must promise me something.” Having learned not to promise anything, the King nodded for him to continue. “You must promise me not to make deals with dragons.” The King grabbed Alistaire and hugged him tight. “Never again will I, my friend.”

Alistaire received a blessing from the counsel of clerics and healers and was bestowed a holy symbol. It was an iron sword, depicted diagonally on a silver and gold shield. As the symbol was draped around his neck, the healer smiled warmly. “The Gods watch over you this day.” As Alistaire looked at the charm, the healer pointed to the various symbols. “The Sword, Governor of War; The Shield, Governor of the Protectors.” She paused a moment and raised the charm to her lips, muttering words Alistaire couldn’t hear. The healer nodded and sent him on his way.

The trip was long and perilous but he had to get to the dragon before word got to it about the children. Finally after a few days of travel, he happened upon a large cave. As he peered back down the mountain side, he could see the kingdom in clear view. Alistaire thought to himself that this must be the place. Arming himself with his iron sword and shield, he advanced from his perch amid the brush.

So, the King had his twins.

Alistaire’s face most likely looked shocked, but lucky for him, he had a helm on. “Can you hear me dragon?”

Aye boy. I can hear you. I hear you and what your heart wishes.

The voice echoes throughout Alistaire’s body, resonating off the very essence of his being. “Then you know I’m not afraid of you, so show yourself!”

The dragon heeds his wishes and clamours out of the cave, staring wearily at the mass of iron before him. I also know you’ve come to kill me, human. As his voice resonates through Alistaire’s mind, the two stare at each other and respectfully size up their opponent.

“Well, you will not have the children! I have vowed it to-” Alistaire’s rant is cut short but a voice shatters the silence in his mind.

I know. You vowed to kill me. But you’ve never killed anything before, let alone a dragon. The dragon lowers his head sympathetically. You are but a youngling yourself. His sad eyes blink slowly as he draws his head back. I am the last of my kind, and it is my duty to survive.

As Alistaire stared at the dragon, he remembered he had come here to slay it, not befriend it. He lunged forward, swinging his sword at it’s belly. The dragon drew back, unscathed and reacted with fire. Alistaire lunged behind some rocks as the trees behind him turned to ash. The dragon glanced around cautiously as his eyes darted to any movement.

You finally decided to get on with my murder I see. Puffs of smoke billowed from the dragon’s nostrils as he readied more fire.

Alistaire was ignoring the dragon’s taunts as he climbed atop the cave opening. As he peered over the edge, the dragon looked left and right for his foe. No. I fight for the innocent children in a deal made between two monsters. Alistaire’s thoughts alerted the dragon to his location just as Alistaire leapt forth from his perch.

The fire blew forth from the dragon’s mouth as if Alistaire was leaping toward the sun. The darkness of the helm turned to sunshine as it melted away in the intense heat. His iron shield melted as if it were made of butter, and his chest piece poured over his legs like mercury. As the metal ran down Alistaire’s skin, it singed every nerve and tore skin from muscle and bone. The flames felt cold on the skin however, most likely from the shock of many nerves being destroyed in unison. Alistaire landed half in the dragon’s maw with a clang, and together the two fell to the ground.

Rising from the ground, Alistaire stared at the dragon. His father’s technique had paid off. The sword had cleaved clean through a few of the dragon’s teeth, through its jaw and the point was sticking out the top of its skull. As the steam rose from his scarred skin, Alistaire looked to his chest. The one thing that didn’t melt away was the holy symbol. He kissed it and drew his sword from the dragon’s skull.

Upon Alistaire’s return to the kingdom, the King stared at the broken and charred knight before him. “I am quite sorry for what has happened to you young knight.” His sympathetic look masked his utter disgust. “I will grant you all that you desire, just name it.” Alistaire pondered for a few moments and then attempted a smile. “I wish for the freedom of your children.”

The guards and noblemen in the castle gasped in disbelief. The King stirred uncomfortably in his throne. “What do you mean, freedom?” His words spat forth with venom. “And choose your words wisely, hero of our kingdom.”

Alistaire looked to the blade his father had unknowingly taught him to forge and considered his next words wisely. “I have come to free the children from your grasp as well.”

The King stood from his throne and scoffed at the suggestion. “I just sent you to kill the dragon, so I could keep my heirs!”

With a stern expression on his scarred face, the young Alistaire nodded. “They will still be your heirs, but you will not raise them. You have gambled their life away and sent another to protect them. You are no father figure.” He scowled while considering his next words. “Let someone else raise them.”

The King was disappointed in his champion, but at least he wouldn’t lose his heirs completely. He nodded begrudgingly and pointed Alistaire to the castle door. “Your request shall be granted. I will put them in the care of… the healer who brought them into this world.” As the King watched Alistaire leave, he sighed heavily.

Outside the castle walls, Alistaire collapses in the street. The young healer who gave him the holy symbol appears from nowhere, but directly to his aid. “Come brave knight, you have saved these lands.” As she ushered him into an alleyway, Alistaire braced himself on the wall. “It is done. The healer who helped their mother will take care of the children.” The young healer smiles politely. “And you are now in the hands of the divines, Saint Alistaire.” As she leaned over and slipped the holy symbol from Alistaire’s shoulders, he slumped down to the ground motionless. “Rest easy fair knight, may the Governor of Compassion take you amid his court.”

As the skies slowly cried for the low born knight, the young healer disappeared into the crowd. However even until this day, Saint Alistaire’s battle with the dragon and the King is known among all the kingdoms. Who has recounted the story no one knows, but it is known among the circles of compassion. Praying to Saint Alistaire is common among the burned for a healthy and speedy recovery.

The Ideathon: My Imaginary Adventures

This has been a busy week and I have neglected many things. My lawn for one will require a machete to cut soon, as well as a whip and brown fedora. Hopefully there are no Nazi’s in there too! As I neglect my lawn, and occasionally my dishes (I still rinse!) I find myself sleeping, writing, eating or working. Yes, I do have a girlfriend, but I try and give her all of the time we have together. That choices leaves me with plenty of writing time still, but I just feel guilty about not writing, you know what I mean?

This past week saw me come up with another story idea which is fresh off another story idea I am already working on. As I beat out solely the plot points, I find myself with easily 40 points to focus on and loads of conspiracies to have fun with. The story in one sentence is: A man grows from nobody to martyr to unify the world against an alien threat. (Next up, on FOX.) Wow, that one line had actually no spoilers and sums it up quite nicely. Not bad, not bad at all. The idea may sound a bit dull, but with the 40 plot points I’ve jotted down just this morning, the conspiracies and twists run deep. Still, it’s not my main idea so off to the back burner it goes.

That being said, one of my friends really enjoyed the story of the Mediocre Assassin. They suggested I run with that, and even after rereading what I wrote, I can’t tell you why. Do I think that it was fantastic? I did! Now do I? I really feel as though my writing has improved significantly since I wrote that story, and that was not that long ago. I think I should do old Sherman a favour and revisit his story, give it more tact, more sarcasm, more… awesome. Even as the ideas jump around in my head, I already feel guilty enough not focusing on my main idea which for now is named “Fabled”.

“Fabled” is currently my baby, and it has not been given the attention it deserves. As I hash out the details, I find myself immersing in lore and even figuring out religion in my world and how it works. Magic? Rare. Relics of the Gods? Few and far between. Secret orders? Many, and varied. Even as I type this I consider myself to be leaving the story to fend for itself. In part, I almost believe I have so many ideas because I am terrified to finish one. What if it’s not good enough? What if that other idea is better? Why write story when I can blog about writing?

The Ideathon will be happening this week. What is the Ideathon you ask?! Well, this week I will not write a single word in any story. I am going to attempt to drain my imagination of all of its ideas. Yes, this laptop is about to become extremely overwhelmed with text and excel documents. I am doing this so that I will not be tempted to follow any single line of thought. I frequently get ideas and inspired by other things I read, write and experience. This will be an attempt to see if I actually can just get the creativity out so I can focus on the story at hand. My muse has “inceptioned” their muse and I find myself always imagining things, running away with ideas and never able to focus. If gluttony is one of the cardinal sins, then I have sinned in the gluttony of ideas… I just can never get enough. My punishment is never being able to complete the task.

I will post some of the crazy one sentence story ideas here in the following week, so if you need some inspiration, feel free to hit me up for a few ideas! For now I am off to sleep, I have many social commitments this weekend and the routine begins on monday! Until then!