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An Introduction to Qet

Keht

All is quiet on the mesa. The fractured moon, Niktaluez,? and its sisters gently reflect the light of the punctured sun, Yilek— the cold light giving the red-orange stone beneath you an almost purple hue.   You stare up at the glittering cosmos above, a beautiful, wild, cluster of distant stars seems as if to slither through the skies like a great serpent.   Subtle hues of yellow, green, and purple dance within its belly— and for a brief moment, you shudder as a chill runs down your spine— it's watching you, too.
  Somehow, as if in a dream, you have found yourself in the world of Qet. A red-walled canyon surrounds you. Nearby, a creek babbles, as brilliantly verdant shrubs cling to life alongside it. All seems calm, even peaceful, until you hear the crazed screams of ravenous Cichetet? somewhere in the distance. You think you can hear their victims, too.   Perhaps you instead have stumbled your way into the massive subterranean expanse of Tchaoxlik,? your torch has expired and your entry is lost. Frightening images begin to dance in your periphery— but fade away as you nervously dart your eyes towards them. Perhaps you stand on a great mountain before a strange square meteor, or within a vast rain forest surrounded by danger as distant music urges you towards safety.   Regardless of where you now stand, whether you lie in mortal danger knowingly or not— you now find yourself in Qet. Welcome.
A map of the continent of Rqet.
A full world map will replace the above later.

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Comments

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Jul 24, 2020 08:41 by Morgan Biscup

I just wanted to say, thank you so much for writing this article. It is beautiful, clear, informative, interesting, and does an amazing job of introducing your setting.   And it finally broke through my mental block that was keeping me from being able to write a world introduction that I loved. This is now also my "world intro Bible template," it is that perfect.

Lead Author of Vazdimet.
Necromancy is a Wholesome Science.
Jul 24, 2020 18:29 by Grace Gittel Lewis

Oh thank you! I'm really glad to hear that it helped! Also you've reminded me again I need to update a few things here. Now I'll have to look forward to yours!

Oct 14, 2020 01:00 by Dr Emily Vair-Turnbull

Ahhh reading this whilst listening to the Qet theme is amazing. It really adds to the feeling and the aesthetic. <3   I love that you go through the history of how you came to make Qet, as well as all the different inspirations that have drawn together to enrich this world. I think Qet is my favourite of your worlds, if only because it feels so unique and terrifying.   Just caught one typo - 'brevity' is supposed to be 'levity', I believe.   Great job! :)

Emy x
Explore Etrea | Summer Camp 2025
Oct 14, 2020 01:29 by Grace Gittel Lewis

Thank you for the kind words!   Yeah I always like hearing origins stories for these things, I can't not include mine!   Got the typo, thanks!

Nov 28, 2020 15:45 by Ariel Purkeypile

I can't even tell you how much I love this world, but here are some things:  

  • I live in west Texas, 2 counties from New Mexico and grew up with stories from the native peoples of both the U.S. and Mexico. Like, I see the Aztec rabbit in the moon, not the dude. (I literally can't see the dude, it bothers me.) So I'm really responding to the whole vibe here. I love your use of geometric forms. I'm a hexagon girl myself. You know how some Greeks worshiped triangles? That's me, but for hexagons.
  • Artistically, your implementation is fantastic. It's got a very uniform look, but there's something new to discover everywhere. I love the texture you're using. The whole things feels like pricey map-pencils on good paper stock. (I love map pencils and good papers, so this is intended to be a very nice thing for me to say about it.)
  • I love the intimacy of biological imagery in general and your use in particular. Intestines with little feet, ugh, I just LOVE it. And the background image feels like a spine and ribcage, and no one can take that away from me! I have a genetic disease that (among other things) makes my joints stretchy to the point that they dislocate and this week(month) it's my sternum and ribs, so maybe I'm biased because of that. I'll come back later and see if it feels like something else.
  • I have always loved the idea of dying and going back into the earth, and that was BEFORE I got Stage 3 cancer (twice), so I'm really into death imagery and sense-making about death. Another world that does this really well is Braed by icastbolt. I wish I could link those here but idk how.
  • Your organization is really strong. I love a well-considered hierarchy! I came to WA as an organization tool for my sprawling yet stupidly detailed world I write stories from, so I love seeing good implementations of its organizational capabilities.
  • Your CSS and styling are so so lovely. Your menu and its spinner are delightful. Your layouts are intuitive and easy to get through.
  • I have no concrit notes for you! I love giving notes on strong work, like polishing marble. I'm sure I'll find some somewhere, someday.   I'm going to be putting my outward facing stuff up starting in World Ember. (Well, that's the plan. I'm finishing NaNo and my brain is mush). I'm going to be using them as epistolary source material for my stories with a lot on a (maybe paid) subscriber basis to hide the layers of spoilers. God, it all sounds so pretentious, I can't stand it, but there it is. Anyhow, I'm going to start by making a mess of it myself because I know just enough CSS to not know anything. Then I'll probably pay someone to build me a few templates for the various types of documents I'll be using. This is both hugely inspirational and aspirational.   What is your pay structure like for commissions?

    Nov 29, 2020 00:20 by Grace Gittel Lewis

    Wow, thank you for all the kind words! Glad it resonates with you, and hopefully future work will continue to be enjoyable! The stone texture is one I instantly loved once I found it, though I did have to edit it to hell to be the more subdued, sandy one here. Yes, by the way, the background is meant to evoke imagery of a ribcage. Brushes with death do have that tendency, I hope you're doing well in spite of that! I am also already familiar with Braed, so no need to link it— but for future reference you'd use the same url BBCode used in regular articles to do so.   I'll look forward to your outward work next month! As for commissions, my structure is basically a graph looking at complexity and the amount of things I style. A single yet complex element will cost more than a full element family (say, tables) that are simple. If you'd like to see my actual sheet (which includes examples and prices) you can check it out here.

    Nov 17, 2021 16:08 by R. Dylon Elder

    Amazing changes and idk if it's always been there or if it's new but DAT MAP! good god that's beautiful. Thanks for the shout out as well! I've been meaning to do a thank you section. Its definitely mutual!   Side note: idk when but soon, I do plan on commissioning you for symbols and insignias in my worlds. Good lord your work is brilliant. would also love how you got a symbol on the header like you did in the TTRPG section.   Well done as always. It's a pleasure to rub elbows with such awesome creaters like yourself.

    Nov 17, 2021 21:06 by Grace Gittel Lewis

    Thank you! The map was done earlier this year! Glad to hear it's mutual too haha.   Ooh you'll definitely have to let me know when you want to get those done, I'd love to!

    Nov 28, 2021 03:30 by Stormbril

    What a fantastic update to an already excellent introduction article!   Like Dylan said, I definitely need to get around to making my own Special Thanks section. I really appreciate the shoutout, and you as well have a place in thanks of my own <3

    Nov 28, 2021 04:02 by Grace Gittel Lewis

    Thank you! And you definitely should! Few of us would have gotten where we are alone, after all.

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