Tag: fantasy

Club Meeting Minutes2 Comments

Minutes from November 26, 2018 Meeting

noodlepoet

Happy last week of November! Just a quick reminder that we are holding write-ins this week to wrap up NaNoWriMo. Anyone who’d like a motivation boost is welcome to come by the library at Penn Highlands between 4 and 7 on Tuesday (tonight!), Wednesday, and Thursday. At yesterday’s meeting we discussed some of our difficulties with character development, and we continued our worldbuilding discussion, this time focused on culture. Though creating new geography and language can be difficult enough, creating a new culture or showcasing an existing one involves a lot more care. Some of our character building discussion: how … Continue reading Minutes from November 26, 2018 Meeting

Craft Talks, Writing ResourcesLeave a comment

Mapmaking and Worldbuilding

noodlepoet

We had a great worldbuilding discussion during our most recent meeting. One of our writers brought in a map of her current fantasy project, and it was clear from the details that she’d put a lot of thought into how her world is organized. Geological features, place names, coded symbols serving as shorthand descriptors for different nations and societies—she’d even spent time researching river basins in order to draw a detailed hub of the world. She’d generated an indispensable reference tool that will help her keep track of not only the physical facts of her world but also the potential … Continue reading Mapmaking and Worldbuilding

Club Meeting MinutesLeave a comment

Minutes from November 12, 2018 Meeting

noodlepoet

At today’s meeting we welcomed a new member, tossed around some NaNoWriMo ideas, and decided to hold some write-ins this week in the library at Penn Highlands. So: from 4-7pm on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday of this week, there will be a table set aside for anyone who’d like to drop in at any point in the evening to get a little writing done in the company of other writers. Noelle unveiled a map she’s working on for her current fantasy project and we discussed mapmaking as a worldbuilding tool. We’ll continue the discussion at next week’s meeting (Monday, November … Continue reading Minutes from November 12, 2018 Meeting

Messages, promptsLeave a comment

Story break!

noodlepoet

NaNoWriMo leaves little time for other pursuits, but getting out of your head and into somebody else’s words for a few minutes can do wonders for your writing. At least, it’s been good for mine—especially when I’m steeped in something I’ve been working on for a long time. It’s so easy to fall into patterns and forget there are other things you can do with words. Anyway, here’s The Rose MacGregor Drinking and Admiration Society by T. Kingfisher. It’s a charming story that sets a common fairy trope on its head in the most delightful way. On a similar note, here’s Blessings … Continue reading Story break!

Book Festivals1 Comment

Book Festival Season Part 2: Fall for the Book

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Fall for the Book at George Mason University is one of my favorite literary festivals, and well worth the three-hour drive, especially if you live in Johnstown and are accustomed to driving to Pittsburgh to attend literary events. First off, the vibe. The campus is gorgeous in the fall: trees everywhere, leaves crunching. Tiny laminated festival posters, book covers of participating authors on the backs, hang fluttering from trees that line the walkways. There’s the requisite handful of big-name authors—the first time I attended this festival was purely to see Neil Gaiman—as well as nearly 200 other poets, journalists, historians, … Continue reading Book Festival Season Part 2: Fall for the Book