Masters House

AND HOW IN ONE SONG PENELOPE TELLS ODYSSEUS THAT NONE OF THAT IS TRUE, AND WE BELIEVE HER. BECAUSE SHE'S RIGHT.

This happened to me a month ago and it's terrifying because the email comes from them spoofing your emails.

It's also antisemetic and plays into it at one point. (It claims the spyware used was developed by Israel). No, the "hackers" bought your information from databank lists.

Also it claims to know you're porn history and will use it to ruin your life unless you pay them. With anti-porn laws coming into place, this will get worse.

Please talk about this scam and help people stay safe. It's pretty new.

Tropical Rainforests

Scrubland/Dry Forests. For extra effect make them the sort that burn very often; some native plants never germinate until after a fire, and some animals not only rely on fire to smoke out prey, but may even start them themselves.

Savannas/Tropical Grasslands

Temperate Rainforests. I almost didn’t include this bc New Zealand is covered in them, and that’s where they filmed Lord of the Rings. But tbh, no one really knows about them, so it belongs here

Taiga Forests

Barren Tundra, perfect for some extreme seasonal dichotomy

Polar Ice Sheets

Desert-Grasslands (arguably the same as Scrubland but Australia’s good at adding its own twists)

Barren Desert

If you like Cacti, look at American Deserts like the Sonoran

Salt Flats

Soda Lakes and Alkaline Lakes

Madagascar’s Karst Limestone Formations

Madagascar’s Spiny Forests

Madagascar’s Baobab Forests

Madagascar’s Subhumid Forests (Madagascar is cool as hell ok)

Danxia Landforms

Badlands/Mountainous Deserts

Steppes and Highland Prairies

Flood Basalts

Newly-Formed Islands, still rife with Volcanic activity

Now for Underwater Environments, sure Coral Reefs are cool.

But there are SO MANY other kinds of environments for aquatic settings, it’s unbelievable:

Seaside Cliffs

Archipelagos. Not just Tropical Island chains like Polynesia (Moana anyone?) but also Coldwater Archipelagos like the Aleutians.

Tidal Flats

Bayous/Cypress Swamps

Tropical River Basins, AKA Seasonally Flooded Rainforests

Mangrove Swamps/Deltas/Beaches

Kelp Forests

The Open Ocean

Coastal Seabeds

Rocky Beaches with Tidepools

Have their ideals be right but their methods be wrong

Make it seem like their dastardly methods are really the only way to achieve the goal for the “greater good.”

Have them develop from a flat antagonist to a well-rounded protagonist

How to not write a morally gray character

OR ‘PEAKED’

BUT PIQUED

‘PIQUED MY INTEREST’

YOU ARE NOT ‘PHASED’. YOU ARE ‘FAZED.’

IF IT HAS BEEN A VERY LONG DAY, YOU ARE ‘WEARY’. IF SOMEONE IS ACTING IN A WAY THAT MAKES YOU SUSPICIOUS, YOU ARE ‘WARY’.

ALL IN ‘DUE’ TIME, NOT ‘DO’ TIME

‘PER SE’ NOT ‘PER SAY’

BREATH - THE NOUN FORM

THEY ARE NOT INTERCHANGEABLE

WANDER - TO WALK ABOUT AIMLESSLY

WONDER - TO THINK OF IN A DREAMLIKE AND/OR WISTFUL MANNER

BALL- A FUCKING BALL

It’s a treasure trove.

And a goddamn delight.

The Characters and the Fiction

Tips for writing about pirates

10 Tips for writing pirate fiction

Types of pirates 1

Types of Pirates 2

Not Even Pirates Spoke Pirate

6 Absurd Pirate Myths Everyone Believes

Ten Facts About Pirates

Life

What did pirates drink? 

Pirate Life

Oh to be a Pirate

Real life pirates

Real-life pirates of the caribbean

Ten Facts About Anne Bonny and Mary Read

Historical Female Pirates

Women Pirates, Female Pirates in Story

History of Black Pirates

Raids, Not Race, Were What Mattered to Black Pirates

Wikipedia’s List of Pirates

Historic Periods

The Golden Age of Piracy

1680-1730: Pirates and Anglo-American Piracy in the Atlantic

1700-1725 The Golden Age of Piracy

Big Cities during the Golden Age

The Ships

Category: Pirate Ships

6 Famous Pirate Ships

Ship Parts (possibly flawed but very long list)

Ship Parts

Definitions of Caribbean-used Ships

Positions and Duties on Board of a Pirate Ship

Weapons and Fighting

History of Pirate Weapons

Pirate Weapons

Sword Fight and Pirates

Writing Sword Fight Scenes 101

For Writers: How to Write Sword-Fight Scenes

Books

Villains of All Nations

The Pirate Primer: Mastering the Language of Swashbucklers and Rogues

Popular Pirate Fiction Books

Websites

x The Way of The Pirates

x Historic Naval Fiction

x The Pirate King

x Swashbuckler

x Pirates & Privateers

-why don’t they want to be there? 

-does the other character feel the same?

-what do they talk about, if they do talk?

Meanwhile Hades is in the background “????? UM??? PRETTY GIRL??? WHY ARE YOU HERE?????? YOU AREN’T DEAD???” 

And Persephone (who was originally called Kore just a little fyi) just looked at him and said “I like it here. I’m staying.”

And Hades kinda just went with it, until Demeter started throwing the temper tantrum of the millenium upstairs and Zeus had to intervene because this shit was getting out of hand and its actually his job to be admistrator of justice. Which considering the shit he gets up to is kinda histerical but that’s another story there. 

And basically Persephone wasn’t a prisoner or kidnap victim at all she just really loved the Underworld and her (eventual) husband, and the Greeks feared her arguably more than her husband because Hades could be reasoned with but Persephone was the one laying the smack down on sinners, and really, who wouldn’t be at least a little scared of someone who’s name means something along the lines of “the destroyer”

So you’re creating a fictional world and you’re ready for a pantheon. SWEET! Let’s go!

Where to start? Everybody is different, but I found that searching for already existing gods and goddesses helped to get a good feel of the type of pantheon I wanted to go with. Think about all the pantheons you’ve learned about. What role will yours play in this world you’ve created? What’s their motif?

What kind of characteristics do your gods have? Are your gods vengeful and easily angered, or are they wise and just? It doesn’t hurt to think of ways for their themes to tie into your story. 

I have a goal for the pantheon I’ve created and it’s similar to a common theme in my WIP - each of the Eight Divine Immortals have stories that highlight human nature. In the creation myth, The Goddess gave humans the same characteristics as The Eight. Good and bad, the humans of this world are a reflection of their demigods and demigoddesses. (And they are spoiled, naughty, rotten children. Every last one of them!) These characteristics tend to be on the more extreme side, and that’s because their moods are INTENSELY GODLIKE. –Like, you’re kinda mad about something and Kezza’s like “wow BIG MOOD” and by that she means, “Last time someone made me ‘kinda mad’, I burned a few fields down and put a curse on their entire family.” 

How does the existence of these gods affect day-to-day culture? Do your gods like to meddle with humans and their petty affairs, or do they prefer a hands-off relationship with mortals?

In my WIP, some people believe that humans can be blessed by one of The Eight. These may be signified by birthmarks (ex. a child born with an owl-shaped birthmark has been blessed by Rian) or other physical characteristics (ex. pale skin and hair with bright blue eyes has been blessed by Droh). In these cases, it is quite common for parents to give their child a name that is similar to the name of that demigod or demigoddess. It is bad luck to give a child the exact name of one of The Eight. (Ex. a child with a mischievous look may be named Pux, like the trickster Demigod, Pyx.) And, just like that, I have a unique naming structure to use for some of my characters.

Having trouble coming up with some personality traits? Why not have a character who is really blasphemous when they curse? I can see a mom character saying, “I swear by Pyx and all of the Eight Divine Immortals, if you do not get back in this house I will END YOU.” or “Wise Rian, give me patience, child if you do that one more time I will END YOU.”

How can your gods tie into the physical aspect of the world you’ve created? Natural phenomena (like northern lights or unique stone structures) are a great place to start! In my WIP, the world has two moons, called The Eyes of Droh, and they are named after the Demigod of love. With something like this, the possibilities are endless, giving the world a more authentic feel.

How do the devout show their devotion? Do they build altars? Do they leave tiny trinkets? Do they fight wars all in the name of their gods? Do they build monuments or carve sculptures? What about rituals and ceremonies? 

Don’t forget the non-believers too!

If you have a pantheon, why not write up a creation myth? This was actually something that surprised me. I started with the creation myth and the rest took a life of its own. It also made for a fun writing exercise, and a productive way to stretch my creativity as well. 

if you’re an action writer but want to write a compelling romantic subplot, get yourself someone who knows how to lay the rose petals and light those candles. if you’re a mystery writer but want to write some killer action sequences, get yourself someone who knows how to tactfully smash skulls with a mace.

- your most sought-after goal

- a strongly-held belief or conviction

red

1. “I can see you took the job.”

2. “Maybe I wasn’t clear enough last time.”

3. “You knitted a hat for my dog? Marry me.”

4. “This isn’t exactly legal but as long as the guards don’t show up we’re good.”

5. “Look at me, I’m doing it!”

6. “I am the best at hide and go seek.”

7. “Are we going to plan the murder or sit here and eat cookie dough?”

8. “I smelling winning in my future!”

9. “You’re funny when you think I’m a nice person.”

10. “Leaving us alone was your first mistake.”

11. “Not my middle school photos!”

12. “Haven’t we done enough?”

13. “Did you hear that? That’s what I call a great way to end the day.”

14. “If I want to sit and cry on the floor over my burnt pizza on my kitchen at 3 am while Beyoncé plays in the background, I will.”