Opening a story in another world is tough. To understand what’s happening, readers may have to learn the names of people, species, places, and special devices. If you throw these names at readers too fast, they’ll be overwhelmed. But if you wait too long, they … read more »
Werewolves with smartphones, vampires on motorcycles, mages with school in the morning, and nightclubs. So many nightclubs! We’re discussing urban fantasy today, revisiting a topic we first talked about way back in the olden days. We look at what makes urban fantasy so beloved, what … read more »
Prejudice and bigotry are inescapable aspects of real life, but they don’t have to be in stories. While it’s tempting to believe that by including prejudice, we’re making some kind of bold and progressive statement, more often than not, we’re simply reinforcing harmful norms. This … read more »
Hello. While I was worldbuilding, I noticed that my characters do not really use technology to do things like travelling – however, there are things like trains/cars/flying vessels in big cities. My characters come from a small town, where there are some bits of technology … read more »
Worldbuilding is a complicated craft, and with so many possible settings out there, it’s difficult to give advice on the subject as a whole. Fortunately, there are some principles that are useful across the board. That’s what we’re talking about today: best practices that will … read more »
Things are heating up this week on the Mythcreant Podcast, because we’re talking about monsters of fire and flame! From dragons to salamanders, from phoenixes to… actually, there don’t seem to be that many classic fire monsters. Hopefully we can get to the bottom of … read more »
We all lose things, but what about losing knowledge? How is knowledge lost, and what effect does it have on your story? When trying to find the lost knowledge, is it always in the last place you look? That’s what we’re talking about this week, … read more »
People create monsters that reflect the fears of their society, including fears about disability. Because of this, ableism has been incorporated into our depictions of monsters. In some cases, disability is used to make monsters seem dangerous, unsettling, or unpredictable. Other times, it’s used to … read more »
Hello, Sorry for pestering you with questions lately, but I could once again use your advice. I have a world with two factions at war with each other and a magic system based on magical pigments. One side uses written words to alter people/things in … read more »
Before your hero can clock in for a space 9 to 5, they first have to commute to work. To do that, they’ll need a rocket, space elevator, steam train, or maybe just a horse. That’s right, this episode is all about moving people, but … read more »
