Summer Camp 2025

Overview

Thoughts

Last year I started a new world and managed to get the Copper badge. I came up with ideas for many more than 8 articles and eventually I will write those, too. The themes worked well for my new world.

This year will be my first year as a fully retired person. Of course, that doesn't mean I'll have more time since I have family and volunteer obligations. I also want to resume writing the second draft of my WIP. But, of course, I still need to do a bit more worldbuilding for that novel, so I plan to focus this Summer Camp on my world of Ruartei, the setting for my novels.

URLs

Preparation/Homework

Week 1: Nourishment

Assignment 1

Think about ways the theme of Nourishment affects your world. Do people generally have what they need? What happens when they don’t?

Nourishment is a pretty broad theme. There's just enough food, good food, cultural food, special needs. There's emotional and spiritual energy. There's technology energy like fuel and exotic matter. Too many types of nourishment to really list. Depending on the prompts, some things I could write articles on are: the exotic energy used for space travel and communication; dimensional beings that draw their energy from the life force of organically living creatures or their emotions; how the food available to high society differs from the common (or lower status) folks; about various cultures and their relation to food and energy.

Assignment 2

Download the pledge document and fill it out with your goal for Summer Camp!

This year I'm going to try for Silver. I may do more, depending on real world interference. Who knows? Maybe I'll actually get to Diamond.

Summer Camp 2025 Pledge for JoellaKay showing pledge of Silver on the world of Ruartei

Summer Camp 2025 Pledge for JoellaKay by World Anvil Fillable PDF

Assignment 3

If you found any outdated articles in your world, update the most important ones now! Do the same with your worldbuilding meta.

I've been going through my older articles over the last month or so, and will continue to do so.

I reviewed my meta and fixed a bit of wording, but more importantly changed the description of the warp drive technology (since I've changed that recently). Many areas are still not filled in — mostly because I haven't decided those areas or do not have them clear in my mind yet.

Week 2: Roots

Assignment 1

Look at the cultures and areas you’ll focus on for Summer Camp, and think about how their past shaped them.

I'm not sure exactly what areas I will focus on — it really depends on the prompts. But I want to focus on the minor planet my main characters come from, the capital star systems, the Court, and the University planet (where the more than a third of my WIP takes place). All of these areas are either part of the background of my POV characters or are locations where events occur during the novel.

I've already decided a great deal about how their pasts shaped these cultures and areas, but I haven't yet written articles for this (with a couple of exceptions).

Assignment 2:

Go to your world’s homepage and imagine you’re a new reader discovering the setting for the first time. What should you change to make the experience more engaging?

My home page needs work — a lot of work. That will have to be later this year.

Assignment 3

Find your earliest worldbuilding project. What mistakes did you make that you want to avoid? What good ideas from those early days can you integrate into your current project? Remember to take a moment to be proud of how far you've come!

Considering that I started worldbuilding in the late 60s, I don't think it was a word back then. Since I was quite young then, my worldbuilding has grown and developed over the decades. Minus a few years when the people around me convinced me that worldbuilding was evil — I got over that, but not before I lost a great deal of ideas and notes about my worlds. So I started over. In addition, I've updated my world's technology over the last couple of decades. Mine was originally at the level of Star Trek — the original series — which certainly isn't advanced anymore.

Week 3: Metamorphosis

Assignment 1

What transformations and adaptations have the people in your world gone through? What changes are going on right now… and who is trying to stop them?

My world is going through change right now. The biggest changes aren't ones that I'm ready to discuss yet since I have to figure out what would be spoilers for my WIP. The three POVs are each going through life significant changes. And there are other (non-spoiler) changes throughout the world as well. I'll figure out which to write about when I see the prompts. Oh, and yes, there are a lot of people (or beings) either trying to stop the change or change it the way they want.

Assignment 2

Choose a new genre, style, or author, and take a look at their art! Write what you learned from them and what inspired you.

I try to look at new art every day, at least a few times a week. Sometimes I can see a different perspective, other times it's just interesting, and yet other times I find art that is soothing to the soul. I don't really keep track.

As for genres, music, and other types of inspiration, there's only so much time in the day. I take inspiration from many things — it finds me, I don't usually have to go looking for it.

Assignment 3

Read a couple of articles from the community, give them a like (and why not a sticker!), and write about what inspired you.

I've been reading quite a few articles from the community. I follow a lot of worlds, and I run into interesting articles that people post in the challenge channel on the World Anvil discord. I make a few comments, give out stickers, and mark them as liked.

Many of the articles are inspiring — to write my own articles more often, to consider some new ideas for my world, to think about new presentation or writing techniques. I didn't keep track, but I'll try to add a few articles to this section over the next week.

TBD - list of articles here

Week 4: Tomorrow

This is an interesting theme. One of the things I need to figure out is how to have a world with multiple entry points. My current plan is for two series of novels which are about 50 years apart. And the world of the second series is definitely impacted by the events in the first one. I'm still thinking aout it. But the idea of writing what the people in my world think is the future is intriguing.

Assignment 1

Think about current events that will have an impact the on the future. Who is working to create a specific kind of future?

Lots of intrigue and different beings, individuals, and factions are striving to shape the world to their own advantage. There are a select few that want to change the world so that it's better for everyone. (I'm not sure if they're going to succeed.) But certainly things set in motion recently are affecting the current timeframe as well as the future. I'll have to think about which ones to highlight.

But more specifically, this will be a good prompt to help me think about what the people in the world think is going to happen as opposed to what is actually going to happen. Who knows? Maybe some of them will be right.

Assignment 2

Make sure everything’s ready—from your writing space to your writing schedule—for action before Summer Camp begins!

I'm retiring at the end of June so I've already been preparing my space for writing and worldbuilding. I'm also thinking about how to change my daily routine to support that.

I've been doing a lot of research over the last 2-3 months. So that will help.

I reorganized my world categories a few months ago. My stubs is something I will be working on soon. And perhaps some of them will work for the prompts.

Assignment 3

Who or what will help you achieve your goal? What will your sharing strategy be during Summer Camp?

As for community, I'm part of the Articles Anonymous chapter on the World Anvil discord — so I have good support there. And there's always the challenge channel. I'll probably share some of my articles in those two channels. And since I'm in competitor mode, some people may see my articles there.

Progress

Nourishment

Prompt 1: (Myth) A myth about a legendary food or drink
TBD

Prompt 2: (Material) A substance known for its unique smell
TBD

Prompt 3: (Profession) A profession related to spirituality or philosophy
TBD

Prompt 4: (Organization) A charity dedicated to helping those in need
TBD

Prompt 5: (Tradition) A ritual related to agriculture
TBD

Prompt 6: (Species) A species that feeds through a symbiotic relationship
TBD

Prompt 7: (Condition) A condition you can get from eating specific foods
TBD

Prompt 8: (Item) A delicious staple found on every dinner table
TBD

Roots

Prompt 11: An organization rooted in controversial principles (Organization)
TBD

Prompt 12: A myth surrounding the birth of an important person in your world (Myth)
TBD

Prompt 13: A character known for their numerous progeny (Character)
TBD

Prompt 14: A foundational document for a country, religion, or other organization (Document)
TBD

Prompt 15: A garment traditionally associated with a culture (Item)
TBD

Prompt 16: The place of origin of a people in your world (Geography)
TBD

Prompt 17: An ancient tongue from which many common idioms spring (Language)
TBD

Prompt 18: A war that resulted in the creation of something new (Conflict)
TBD

Metamorphosis

Prompt 21: A settlement that has been rebuilt several times (Settlement)
TBD

Prompt 22: An ever-changing location that requires its inhabitants to adapt (Geography)
TBD

Prompt 23: A subculture that appeared due to social changes (Ethnicity)
TBD

Prompt 24: A transformation caused by a celestial body (Natural Law)
TBD

Prompt 25: A formation known for its adaptability (Military Unit)
TBD

Prompt 26: A technology invented to prevent or delay a transformation (Technology)
TBD

Prompt 27: A ritual that's changed meaning throughout the years (Tradition/Ritual)
TBD

Prompt 28: A species that undergoes a metamorphosis (Species)
TBD

Tomorrow

Prompt 31: (?)
TBD

Prompt 32: (?)
TBD

Prompt 33: (?)
TBD

Prompt 34: (?)
TBD

Prompt 35: (?)
TBD

Prompt 36: (?)
TBD

Prompt 37: (?)
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Prompt 38: (?)
TBD

Wildcards

Prompt 9: (Settlement) A city many people want to visit
TBD

Prompt 10: (Geography) A place people aren't supposed to go
TBD

Prompt 19: A symbolic building (Building)
TBD

Prompt 20: A diaspora spread around the world (Ethnicity)
TBD

Prompt 29: An animal celebrity (Character)
TBD

Prompt 30: A job many people aspire to but few achieve (Profession)
TBD

Prompt 39: (?)
TBD

Prompt 40: (?)
TBD

Entry for Summer Camp Prep 2025

Competition Homepage

Cover image: Summer Camp 2025 by Tulonsae using MidjourneyAI

Comments

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Grandmaster Make lore, not war

Jun 23, 2025 00:06 by Imagica

Best of luck with your plesdge, Joella! I am very curious to see what you'll create. Have a great time during SC :)

I survived Summer Camp! Check out what I wrote in my Summer Camp Hub Article

Come visit my world of Kena'an for tales of fantasy and magic! Or, if you want something darker, Crux Umbra awaits.

Councilor of the Inner Sanctum JoellaKay

Jun 24, 2025 01:24 by Joella Kay

Thanks so much!

Grandmaster Tyrdal

Jun 26, 2025 12:05

Good luck with your run for silver - I hope you have a great time and even greater prompts.

Join me at the sandy beaches of Aran'sha for new adventures.

Tales from Aran'sha - Summercamp Edition is out!

Jun 26, 2025 18:59 by Joella Kay

Thanks!

Grandmaster Myth-X

Jun 27, 2025 16:23 by Myth Cross

I like what you said about inspiration coming to you. I think if you're open enough to ideas then that is very true. Best of good luck this Summer! : D

MYTH X

Tell me stories! Here's your Ticket to the World of Arc Sagas!

Jun 27, 2025 19:57 by Joella Kay

Thanks. Good luck to you as well!