SC 2024 Reading Challenge
My Summer Camp Experience
Summer Camp 2024 is over, and that's 10 articles more for the background lore of my Kingslayer Saga.
I'm really happy that I made it work around my vacation and current health troubles. I also connected with the German channel on the Discord server, and I helped my friend Alka-Di-Kijarr settle into WA with her project.
Overall, it was a very successful month, and it felt good to reconnect with the community after all the stress around finishing my doctoral thesis. Now, on to the reading!
I'm really happy that I made it work around my vacation and current health troubles. I also connected with the German channel on the Discord server, and I helped my friend Alka-Di-Kijarr settle into WA with her project.
Overall, it was a very successful month, and it felt good to reconnect with the community after all the stress around finishing my doctoral thesis. Now, on to the reading!
The Reading Challenge
Well... as life goes, I only found time for half the challenge. Not enough for the badge, but nevermind - the point is to look at other people's work and learn from them. So here's what stood out to me.My Selection of Articles
The Ups and Downs of a Man
I enjoyed reading the story of this talented magician, who first became known as a hero but then wiped out an entire city in anger. I like how personal ambition, unfair blame for "robbing" his brother of his destiny, and the death of a friend all contribute to turning him into a hateful monster.
The Fading of a Treasured Tradition
The original form of the pilgrimage was heartwarming to read. I liked the emphasis on social connections, either by going on the pilgrimage with existing companions or forming completely new relationships along the way. The idea that pilgrims would look after the temple was lovely as well.
A Symbol of Commitment
It felt lovely to read about these charms, and how much care is put into their creation to ensure that they draw the attention of the fertility goddess. Every detail around their use contributes to a vivid picture of this culture, and the role that starting a family plays in their lives.
Surviving Destruction
This relic is rooted in real-world history and transferred to the backstory of a science-fiction setting. A fragment of an intentionally destroyed statue becomes a treasure for the related culture, and quite literally proves that it's possible to survive against the odds.
A Meaningful Bond and an Excuse to Party
This ritual establishes a bond between a person and their spirit guide. It is treated like a wedding between two people and compared to its mundane equivalent. The ceremony is described with great attention to detail, including its evolution over time.
My Worldbuilding Goals for the Rest of the Year
This is what I take away from this exercise.- I want to put more thought into a character's reputation, consider how it varies between people, and what led to these differences.
- I want to dig into the wider consequences of events, both from a factual and an emotional perspective.
- I want to explore the most fundamental milestones in any person's life, and how those are treated by the respective cultures.
- I want to look at real-world history to find inspiration for fictional events - especially for people's reactions to certain event types.
- I want to consider different perspectives within the same culture. Different social ranks or professions will care about different aspects of the same thing.
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