Caladria

At Caladria we us a Terran Proximity Scale when engaging in world-building. It helps us consider the question of how different to 'Earth' we should build our world. There's a creative urge to aim for the unusual, but that comes bundled with the risk of producing a world so alien that fans and readers of our stories cannot engage with it.

In Star Trek, many of the alien species resemble humans wearing strange, bulky costumes and/or having suffered from back-street plastic surgery. They have enough difference for us to accept them as not-human but not so much that we do not engage. By comparison, Ambassador Kosh Naranek, installed on Babylon 5, has almost nothing along bi-pedal lines and he never seemed capable of engaging with his (human) audience. Like Star Trek, we tend to start with a Terran model and then bend it a bit.

Visitors to Caladria and fans will know that we have undergone a fair degree of building, ramped up of late. We have five main species and a long-term historical arc sketched during which events will occur. With a truck-load of cultural development to fill for the species (not to mention their subdivisions), the question of direction arises. Applying the TPS means starting with broad cultural paradigms that have evolved in our welt-society and addressing questions that arise therefrom. Endless analytical paradigms exist, but we've concentrated on three for illustration.

First, we have the acquisitive and improving culture best dubbed North Atlantic. We might see societies sheltering under this umbrella as outward-looking with a road-map to survival based on control. These people use technology, based on free-will, unencumbered with religious guidance, to control the environment (and climate effects), their health and other cultures. They are expansive, aware of and willing to engage with other societies.

Then there are the 'circle-the-wagon' cultures evident in China (shelter behind a big wall and a language equally challenging to foreigners) on a large scale and in, say, the Menonites (refuse to accept recent technological developments), on a smaller one. They have awareness of other cultures, but little inclination to engage.

Finally, there are the Inuits, kayak artists formerly known as Eskimos. We have to take care, of course, because our view has a North Atlantic filter, but, if they form a single culture (again more assumptions), their history suggests a different outlook to their southern neighbours. We might hypothesise that this culture may have had little awareness of others.

These are just conceptualisations scrawled on the back of a fag-packet - plenty of other ways to slice and dice Terran cultures exist - but they form the first stage in generating Caladrian cultures.

The second stage consists of using the W-word.

We could apply (he may have done so, but I can't find my copy of 'Guns, Germs and Steel') Jared Diamond's killer question and ask WHY the Inuits didn't invade and conquer Europe or North America (or both).

We could also apply the same question in a slightly different way, as does Gavin Menzies in his book about the Chinese navy discovering America before Columbus. The question this time is WHY did they stop their explorations beyond the wall and get back behind the wagons?

We’ve been thinking about this concept a little bit and I thought I should share it for our weekly Monday blog.

It is important to differentiate between 2 areas of awareness when building a world. We could draw a nice venn diagram to explain it as there are overlaps, but I’m not very good at drawing. The two areas are the following:

What the builders know

What the characters know

When it comes to the number of deities in the world/universe the actual answer could be both the most important detail but also the most immaterial. What is important is that the builders know the true answer. Let’s say for example that there is only a single deity, that’s fine, and our builders and authors can work with that.

So, the question is; do the characters know there is only a single deity? In my mind it makes sense to say no to this question. There is a difference between knowing something and believing in something. Let’s imagine the following:

Culture A: knows there is only one deity.

Culture B: knows there is only one deity.

Culture C: knows there is only one deity.

There isn’t much variety between these three cultures if they all know there is only one deity. It’s not impossible to get variety, as we could develop the concept of denominations and work with that. But let’s imagine the following scenario:

Culture A: believes there is only one deity.

Culture B: believes there are multiple deities.

Culture C: used to believe in multiple deities, but now believes there is only one deity.

Our builders and authors all know that according to our codex, the truth is there is only a single deity. Our audience isn’t sure because they can only go on what we tell them. Our characters have a range of differing beliefs, but none, or only a very few of them actually know there is single deity.

The range of possibilities in the second world far outreaches that of the first world regarding confrontations between cultures based on religious belief.

If we stand back a moment and consider theology from a scientific point of view we can comfortably see that there is no real difference between a polytheistic and monotheistic religion beyond perception. Whether a community believes in a single all powerful deity or a group of deities, which when combined make-up a single divine force is irrelevant. The key point is that they believe in some form of higher power or divine power.

I think the major issue here is the difference between knowing something and believing in something. Knowing something might lead to struggles with storylines, because if characters know something there is no way for them to make wrong decisions regarding the issue. Some of the following options might be considered:

Only a small percentage actually know something, the rest merely believe in something

Originally something was known, but now it has been forgotten and most merely believe it

Nobody knows, but they all believe in it

Nobody knows, but they all believe in something else

Nobody knows, and they believe in a range of different things

We caught up with Martin West, the Chief Publisher with us at Caladria to find out what it is like to be a publisher for an Indie Fiction Syndicate. Check out what he had to say: So you're the Chief Publisher? What do you do? I aim to find the best opportunities for creating publications. We develop ideas about the target segments which offer the most opportunity for sales. After that we generate concepts for publications. So far we have Fab Fables Collections (several short stories in one volume), Fab Fables Singles (single stories), The Full Story (omnibus editions of serials previously published in episodes and enhanced with additional material first published here). We also have a 'non-fictional' publication - Scrolls of Caladria - that fills in the historical backgrounds on Caladria's key periods and characters (In-World Documentation). I'm also encouraging the team to develop brand 'franchises'. These consist of a range of publications that relate directly and indirectly to one or more central characters. We're launching with Tales of Varjan. How does publishing on Caladria work? It is a collaborative process in keeping with everything else behind the scenes at Caladria. During the development of story or franchise ideas we haggle with the editorial and building folk. Writers then work on their story in our Projects System. I pull that through the Publication System and get it ready for market. When books are published where do they go? At the moment, we sell our fictional output through the Caladria Store. Our upcoming publication Scrolls of Caladria will head out via Smashwords to all the major distributors for free once it comes on stream. Does Caladria give away any free books? We certainly do. We sometimes write guides and how-to books relevant to our field which we almost always give away for free. Our publication called Guide To Caladria is a good example of this. Most of the Scrolls of Caladria publication will also be available for free.

We generally charge for the stories that we produce for Fab Fables and similar publications because they are worked on by our authors and builders and we want them to earn commission from sales. Is there space for more publishers at Caladria? Always. What do I have to do to become a publisher there? Get in touch. Tell us about your experience. Develop some ideas for discussion. Do I earn anything for my efforts? Yes. Caladria uses a distributive sales commission system, whereby all the individuals involved in a book receive a share of the revenue. As publisher you would share in that revenue stream. What kinds of things do you guys publish? We generally divide our literary output into three categories. Stories, in-world-documents and guides.

Stories are just what you would expect them to be. They range in length from flash pieces all they way up to full novels and chart the detailed actions of characters in the world.

In-world-documents are written by our team as well, except they are designed to appear as though they were written by an actual character in the world. Their aim is to provide our fans with interesting insights into the world of Caladria, which they might not pick up directly from the stories which they read.

We sometimes write guides on how to use the world-building engine that we utilise for our enterprise. It can take quite a bit of getting used to, but is extremely powerful and we couldn't manage our world without it. What is the difference between a collection publication and a franchise publication? Right. The best way to understand the difference is to think about the kinds of things that would appear in them. Let's say that we are publishing stories in each issue of a collection publication, it would be a collection because each story that appears in it has no planned connection to any of the other stories. Fab Fables is an example of that.

The stories that appear in a franchise publication join together to form a continuous stream of fictional output centred on (but not exclusive to) a key character, a period in Caladrian history, or a place. The Tales of Varjan is an example of that.

The Olympian size of this question would keep a million monkeys busy on their word processors for a million years. No easy answer leaps onto the page.

One tentative place to start consists of striking a different question back over the net: 'How do events occur on your world?' The issue is determinism. Will your inhabitants - both flora and fauna - make their own decisions or will their lives run along a groove of predetermined directions like cars on a Scalextric or Hot Wheels track? If you choose the former, then the place for 'Gods' becomes hard to accept, while, if you choose the latter, 'Gods' do not necessarily come into the reckoning. You might favour an all-embracing, amorphous entity called 'Fate': a kind of one-call-gets-all force. You might also distinguish between 'What I do' (including how my body develops and ages) and 'What I choose' (distinguishing between physical and mental activities).

Another route into this Dark Continent of a theme consists of considering how your inhabitants should perceive their world. For example, how would they explain thunder and lightning (if you have such events) to each other? Even here, some care is required. If you invent a 'God' such as Thor to explain the mechanism of thunder, then you should consider the additional factor of Thor's motivation for striking his anvil. Since thunder most likely will frighten creatures, they will see it as something 'bad', causing them to speculate on the reasons for Thor's rage. It is an easy jump from here, therefore, to how (or whether) you include the idea of evil, sin or general badness in your world. If Thor has become angry, then we must have done something wrong and, hence, have perpetrated a sin.

Connected, but separate to this point, the question of 'justification for action' might enter your thinking. On one level, this takes the form of admonition, most often for children: 'If you do this, Thor will punish you'. On a greater level, the existence of Gods provides a ready rationalisation for aggressive activity: 'You have insulted Thor, so we're coming to attack you.' For some reason, in our world, this provides a more acceptable reason for aggression than the more truthful: 'You've got resources we want'. Of course, the Gods do not have to exist for this justification to come into play.

The geography of your fantasy world can often make or break it. Your audience needs to understand what the world looks like so that they can imagine it in their minds as they read your stories. These points of reference are crucial to a successful world.

If you don't mention anything about the geography of your world your readers will assume it has identical properties to the real world that we all live in. You might find some people chastise you for throwing away the opportunity to come up with some really unique and mind-boggling creations to make your world stand out. Other people will thank you because they're not really interested in the weird and wonderful, and much rather prefer recognisable geographic features so that they can focus on the plot.

There is no right or wrong answer to this question, but it is certainly something that you will want to consider before you get too deep into your building. If the world you are building is for commercial purposes, you need to think about what your audience is willing to accept. Can they handle obscure and unexpected geographical concepts, or will these things put them off reading your stories?

Some Ideas For You

Mountains that grow continuously taller during the day time and then sink down and disappear completely at nightfall

Seas which glow bright purple every 3rd Sunday of Spring

Reverse-rain, where water from the seas and oceans rises like rain to form clouds

Stones made of frozen chocolate in the desert

Five species inhabit Caladria: dragons, elves, goblins, dwarves and humans. What kind of relationships could or should occur between them? A good question for writers and world-builders to consider.

Dragons antedate the others, so early cultural history consists of the rest gaining elbow room from them. Since newer species emerge in different parts of Caladria, their first relationship issues will always involve dragons. An important initial question for a writer, therefore, lies in deciding whether each of the species will relate to dragons in the same way. If we see dragons as Borg-like entities, bent on retaining their world domination by absorbing anything else, then we might miss opportunities to explore relationships other than hostility.

For example,the nature of elves (whatever that is) might cause them to enjoy a parasitic relationship with dragons, while commensalism might characterise the connection between dwarves and dragons. Negotiations could define the cultural border between goblins and dragons, while fundamental hostility might offer the only way for human to engage with them. It is perhaps also useful to look beyond a behavioural determinism based on nothing other than the characteristics of each species. We should allow for ‘rebels’ or ‘crazy ones’ (as Steve J once said).

Eventually, of course, (I’ve peeked at the timeline) encounters between species will exclude dragons. The issues considered now become more complex as multiple opportunities occur. We’ve already explored this in our first serial - Rangers Clash by Blair Watson - where a group of goblins encounters dwarves while exploring for new territory. Blair had an interesting twist on this by casting this encounter against the background of an attack made by a dragon, a common enemy. There remain an enormous range of options for writers to consider as they look for stories that might involve two or more species.

OK, enough of all this social anthropology malarkey, we want to know if physical relationships might occur between species on Caladria and, if so, what might result.

Will we get a Spock or a mule?

We're very happy to say that the wonderful guys over at (www.teriyeri.com) have recently updated the interactive mapping system our software uses. They have kindly improved the method we use to load data onto the map.

Originally we used to have to click a button and wait for the map to load absolutely everything, and let me tell you that on Caladria that can take quite a few minutes. At last reckoning we had something like 5 continents, around 120 continentalAreas, 2,800 regions, over 200 seas, 20 odd mountain ranges (not including the individual mountains), and well over 400 rivers.

The new system allows us to choose the types of data we want to load so that we can get at just what we want when we want it.

The first writing competition at Caladria closed on May 31st, and our editing department has been busy reading through all of the fantastic entries since then. We want to say a huge thank you to everyone who entered; we have enjoyed reading your creative works immensely.

Alas, not everyone can win, and while Chief Editor, Leah Osbourne, struggled to pick a single winner, in the end she found one story that really captivated her, and that was by the author Grace Haddon, from Leicester in the UK. Grace's story - The Ugliest Goblin - followed the plot of a group of goblins looking to find the perfect match for the most beautiful girl in their village, only to find that the one selected from far away was perhaps the ugliest goblin anyone had ever seen. Congratulations Grace, your fantastic story will be published in an upcoming issue of Fab Fables, and an Amazon voucher will be winging its way to you!

We would like to say a big congratulations to Kris Holt who came in second place and Christopher Muldong who came in third. We will be publishing both of your stories in the upcoming months in an issue of Fab Fables.

Thank you again to everyone who sent in an entry, we're sorry we couldn't give you all a prize, but we hope the certificate of entry will go a little way towards that.

We will be running another competition later this year, so please do come back and enter a brand new story for that.

Thank you to everyone who kindly submitted a story for our competition. Our team are busily reading through them all and picking out our favourite ones. There were some fantastically written pieces about the little known island of Molai north of Leanaria, and we are itching to let you know the results.

Molai is a medium sized island off the northern coast of the continent of Leanaria. It is approximately 280km from east to west and is one of the few regions within the island chain known as Zevoia. It is the most southeasterly of the chain and the closest to Leanaria. It’s terrain is best described as barren. For the most part it is covered in wide sweeping tundra. There are no discernible forests in the region, but there are many small copses and groves of hardy evergreens dotted across the land. The coastlines are varied. High cliffs run along most of the western shores, while intermingled sandy and stony beaches are present along the northern, eastern and southern sides. The region of Molai is the meeting point for two seas; the Uflana Sea to the west and the Molaian Sea to the east.

The year is 283 in the Era of Unrestricted Growth (EUG). The second era in the history of Caladria. 1,933 years have passed since the birth of the world and much has happened in that time. Many species have appeared, of which 5 have come to dominate large areas. The strongest of them all, dragons, dominate much of the world. Of the 5 species, only dragons can fly, and according to historical records they first appeared over 1,000 years before any of the others. The next to appear were the goblins, who have existed now for over a millenia.

The goblin species has slowly been expanding its dominance in Zevoia. In 279 EUG, they dominated 2 of the 8 regions in the island chain. By 289 EUG they will dominate 6 of those regions, with a further 7th (Molai) having no clear dominance between dragons or goblins. Goblins are the newcomers, pushing out any dragons who were already there. The two species have fought with each other ever since they met for the first time.

283 EUG is on the cusp of a technological shift. For the last 670 years, approximately, stone tools and weapons were the mainstay of daily life. It was a period of time known to Caladrian historians from later on simply as the Stone Age. In the last few years copper has begun to be harnessed for tools and weapons in some parts of the world. While the current inhabitants of Caladria are unaware of this, they will soon enter the next technological age, the Emelthite Age, where copper will replace stone across most of the world. Later historians placed the beginning of this age in 296 EUG, only 13 years after your story takes place. Copper items are not prevalent, but could appear sporadically, and be of extremely high value to those who own them.

There are no political states in the world in 283 EUG. Life is simple, especially in remote regions such as Molai. Coincidentally, the first to appear, a goblin republic in Tuzdel, will be founded in 297 EUG, only 14 years after your story. The characters of your story will have no concept of a political state in their minds. Their concept of community revolves around the family and extended family unit. At this time in Caladrian history there are distinct cultures amongst the 5 great species. The goblins spreading throughout Zevoia are of the Orcanian culture and you can read about their customs below. The Orcanians were the first goblin culture to appear in the world, and as such are probably considered the most traditional. In 283 EUG there are 5 known goblin cultures including Orcanian, but none of the other 4 are anywhere near Molai. Of the dragons, there is and has only ever been a single known culture; Erebian.

Orcanian Customs

There is a good amount of knowledge on the customs and rituals regarding marriage within the communities of the Orcanian. Most things are documented and known, although there are a few unconfirmed accounts regarding one or two of the individual customs.

The Orcanian, are polyandric. That is to say, when it comes to marriage, a woman may have multiple husbands at the same time, yet the males are not afforded the same right. Divorce, no matter how emotionally scarring it can be is an accepted part of Orcanian life. While some other cultures may disdain the concept and ridicule those who practice it as unworthy, the Orcanian care not for the impracticalities of others and accept the concept on its own merit. Orcanian culture believes in the sanctity of marriage both up to and after death. Widows and widowers are not expected to remarry after the passing of a partner.

There are far more questions about where newly wed couples take up residence than one might think. Yet when it comes to the Orcanian, the topic baffles scholars. It is unknown whether they generally prefer to locate closer to the home of the groom's family or the bride's. Perhaps there is no precedent, and the happy couple choose to live wherever they wish.

The continuation of bloodlines is important, but maintaining exclusivity amongst groups can lead to all kinds of nightmarish results. Consanguinity and the rules regarding it are present in all cultures in the world. The Orcanian are aware of the effects of inbreeding and have taken some steps to prohibit it. They feel that their minimum level of for consanguinity deals with the problem to an acceptable level. Yes it is rumoured that some are born disfigured, and other cultures whisper of them being cursed by the gods, but they themselves seem not to care.

Like all other species and cultures in the world, death, no matter how frightening, is as much a part of life as anything else. The Orcanian dispose of their dead by leaving their bodies open to the elements. With death, so comes the inevitable, inheritance. The Orcanian are not strangers to the concept of inheritance and practice it as do all sentient creatures. The youngest daughter and only she is given the entire wealth and estate. There are some who may find this a little unfair, but such is the custom of the Orcanian. Why daughters over sons is unknown, and why the youngest instead of the eldest we can only speculate.

The inheritance customs of a culture can often be matched directly to their way of defining their line of descent. Are you your father's son, or your mother's son? Which takes precedence when you describe your identity. One culture's methods are different to those of others. The Orcanian are a matrilineal culture. They trace their lineage only through their female bloodline. One's mother, and one's mother's mother and so on back to what could only be described as the great ancestor. Their preference for the female bloodline over the male is not well documented, but nevertheless this is their custom.

When it comes to hospitality, the Orcanian rarely offer more than food to their guests, and they expect no more in return when they are guests.

The Orcanian do not restrict themselves to a single type of gift when giving. Both subsistence and ornamental gifts are accepted and welcomed.

Vengeance is part and parcel of Orcanian life. When disagreements and disputes flair up between community members, revenge by the wronged party on the other is not long in coming. Why they choose this method over debate and the passive settling of differences is unknown.

There is only one known custom for greeting a companion in Orcanian culture. While other cultures might be different, when one meets an Orcanian one is expected to engage in the ritual of bowing.

There is only one known custom for bidding a companion farewell in Orcanian culture. While other cultures might be different, when one parts ways with an Orcanian one is expected to engage in the ritual or bowing.

The competition

You are invited to write a fantasy short story between 1,500 and 3000 words.

So how does it work?

Caladria provides three themes. Choose one of these for your story.

You can enter as many times as you want before closing date.

Your story must take place on the fantasy world of Caladria (www.caladria.com). Sufficient briefing about Caladria is included here, but if you register in the world you will gain access to several free publications containing information that might help you further.

Entry is FREE.

So what are the Prizes?

The winner will receive a £25 Amazon digital giftcard and his or her story will appear in our e-zine Fab Fables.

The stories of two runners-up will appear in Fab Fables.

Additionally, all stories published in Fab Fables receive a commission from the revenue received for that issue.

Timetable

Competition runs from April 1st to May 31st, 2015.

How to enter

Entry is by email.

Please type your entry in double-line spacing and export content into RTF, DOC or TXT format.

Call the attachment by your name and the number of the theme you have chosen e.g. 1 Marjorie Smith.* Do not put your name on the actual entry.

Include the following details in the body of your email: your name, the number of the theme, and number of words.

Send your entries, titled ‘Caladria Competition Entry’ to ([email protected]).

Rules:

Entries must be in English and entirely your own work.

You can enter as many times as you wish, but each entry must be sent on separate emails.

The judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

Entries not complying with the competition rules will be disqualified.

Copyright of stories published in Fab Fables belongs to www.caladria.com. While copyright of stories not published in Fab Fables remains with the author, no content can be published about Caladria without permission.

Winners will be notified by email.

By entering the competition you agree that from time to time www.caladria.com may mail you with news (including other competitions).

The Themes for the Competition’s Stories

Theme 1

Two dragons, brother and sister, have an uneasy truce with each other. They have hit on a way to gain food without effort. One dragon guards a bridge over a dry river bed upstream, the other does the same for a downstream crossing over the same dry river bed. They exact tolls (in the form of food) from the goblins who cross the river. It has always cost the same to use either crossing. An entrepreneurial goblin, using his knowledge that the two dragons do not really get on, persuades one of them to take less food for the crossing. Soon all traffic uses the cheaper bridge. The other dragon is not amused (and hungry).

Theme 2

The goblin matriarchy has decided that a mate for their most attractive female should come from outside the village. They despatch a party to find a candidate and await their return with much excitement and anticipation. The party arrives bringing a goblin whose physical characteristics differ significantly from those in the village. Consternation! To accept him would add an unwanted difference to their society, but they cannot return him because they would lose face.

Theme 3

For years a dragon has ruled the island, but he has grown old and tired. A hard, tough young female dragon has arrived and laid down a challenge for his domain. Tomorrow, a fight to the death will occur. The old dragon does not feel confident. As he dozes, a deputation arrives from the goblins that he has allowed to settle in the island. They show him a liquid which they suggest will cause the young female to accept him as a mate, not a rival. While remembering that he should not always trust goblins, the dragon considers which of the two fates would suit him better.