Summer Camp Pledge '25

Well this has come around awfully fast...
This'll be my 4th Summer Camp, though only my 3rd entry to the competition - I missed SC'24. Time to get stuck in once more!

— Fall

Homework (June)

Week 1: 'Nourishment'

Assignment 1: 'Nourishment' theme exploration

Task: "Think about ways the theme of Nourishment affects your world. Do people generally have what they need? What happens when they don’t?"   I think that this theme should be quite beneficial for VISCERIUM as I have lots of room for creativity here. I could look towards the Myrkild and perhaps dive into a couple of their Underlings, the Naranor and their Choirlings, or even take the theme quite literally and expand my articles on cuisine. For example, the Tungl syrin I wrote about previously would fit this theme quite well, so perhaps I shall create more plants or even just different food/drinks that exist on Errack.  

Assignment 2: Pledge

Task:"Download the pledge document and fill it out with your goal for Summer Camp!"
  This year I want to collect my third badge, so I'll be aiming for copper again as I find this to be a good balance of pressure whilst still allowing me space to breathe and take breaks.



Summer Camp'25 Pledge

Assignment 3: Updates

Task: "If you found any outdated articles in your world, update the most important ones now! Do the same with your worldbuilding meta."   I've just about wrapped up some updates that I had planned prior to June and so a lot of previously public content is temporarily hidden whilst I uplift them to higher standards and apply a new coat of paint. So, in the spirit of Summer Camp, I'll be revising my world's meta and re-publishing my Introductory articles with new content: Introduction to VISCERIUM, and About VISCERIUM.
  All of this year's Summer Camp entries will be for the CITADEL era of VISCERIUM as I feel I may have made a mistake opening the other eras up before they were at a good place. So I shall refine! refine! refine!

Week 2: 'Roots'

Assignment 1: 'Roots' theme exploration

Task: "Look at the cultures and areas you’ll focus on for Summer Camp, and think about how their past shaped them."   This couldn't be a more perfect task for me as I am currently doing exactly this for the CITADEL setting. I have been redesigning flags and heraldry for my nations, and I have also been expanding upon/altering their lore to create more comprehensive cultures and distinct nations/identities.

Assignment 2: Review

Task: "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?"   I think I was slightly ahead of the curve with this task as I had previously update my introductory articles (see above).
However, I am always looking for ways to improve the homepage, so I'll take a look at this and see if I can improve it at all.
 

Assignment 3: Reflect

Task: "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!"   Oof, my earliest worldbuilding project?... That's a tricky one as I have always been a bit of a dreamer. I've always looked at ways to integrate something/someone of my own creation into the stories and settings that I have loved since childhood.
The most notable one that stands out as 'proper' worldbuilding I suppose though would be from a time when I was heavily into the Star Wars universe - obsessed with YouTube documentaries, lore dumps and watching any and all Star Wars content I could get my hands on...
During this period of fixation, I created a character that mostly used the EU sources (because there is so much more content), and I attempted to weave them into the timeline of Star Wars, and with events that I found interesting. I did this by creating my own timeline of key events and describing what my character was doing/where they were. I didn't want this character to interfere with the story but rather carve out their own place in it. An example of this mentality would be that I recall having the character serve as one of Count Dooku's minor-bodyguards on Geonosis during the Petranaki arena sequence. This way, my character could be present, and yet not alter the timeline/outcome.   Is there anything I could integrate into my current project from this? Well, I suppose in a way I already have, as I have multiple crazy timelines tucked away that I am slowly transitioning onto WA for all you lovely folks. This theme of linear-interconnectivity has really driven VISCERIUM into what it is today.

Week 3: 'Metamorphosis'

Assignment 1: 'Metamorphosis' theme exploration

Task: "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?"  

Assignment 2: Steal like an artist

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

Assignment 3: Explore WorldAnvil

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

Week 4: 'Tomorrow'

Assignment 1: Future impact

Task: "Think about current events that will impact the future. Who is working to create a specific kind of future?"  

Assignment 2: Prep and check

Task: "Make sure everything’s ready—from your writing space to your writing schedule—before Summer Camp begins!"  

Assignment 3: Support and stratergy

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

Challenge time! (July)

Week 1

Coming soon!

Week 2

Coming soon!

Week 3

Coming soon!

Week 4

Coming soon!