• Strict, dreary town in the midst of lively, free cities

• “Magic Forbidden” rules; everyone born with it, no one allowed to us it
  

• Marriage is for gain ONLY
  

• Proper society, freedom frowned upon
  

• Lively society, no rules.
  

• Children are dark, guilty creatures.
  

• Girls are decorations
  

• King rules the so called “kingdom” (town) in the empire
  

• Town governor/mayor/ruler is the so-called “prince of denial,” or the illegal child of the empire’s king and a peasant.
  

• The town/kingdom is hated upon
  

• The town/kingdom is loved

• No humor, dull town
  

• Beautiful forest with lively creatures

• Being part/serving the military is the ‘ideal’ job, with a farmer being a close second

• A desert of coldness, sheets of ice

• Poorness is frowned upon, wealth is power
  

• 3 rival families, one love triangle
  

• A circle symbolizes the good
  

• A triangle symbolizes the evil
  

• LGBTQ+ is so frowned upon on, you can go to jail (“the triangle of misery”)
  

• As legend states, only once the town finds happiness will the fog surrounding it disperse, and only then will the sun shine.
  

• Witches are only helpful, with angels being the dark one
  

In the midst of all the free, lively cities of the biggest empire of history, tucked into the middle, lies the sad, dreary Insinqi Town, pronounced “In-sin-gi”. Insinqi is quite hated by the rest of the cities, villages, and towns- it has a strict, “absolutely NO magic use” policy, no humor, and proper etiquette is everything. Over at Insinqi, there are two main symbols: the circle, which means good, and the triangle, which symbolizes evil. Much like this, a boy-girl marriage is the only “correct” marriage for them. This is why LGBTQ+ is such a sin here; if you tried to commit against the “correctness,” you would be sent to the “triangle of misery,” or jail. Of course, to match this, you’d be ignored if you were poor- only the wealthy have room here, apparently. If you’d look closer at all the couples, you could really see the fact that ‘marriage is for gain only, and girls are decorations.’
The mayor of Insinqi has been said to be an illegitimate child of the emperor, Sarchiri (or “His lord of our empire, may the sun rise with you day after day”), and a measly peasant. At the closest towns to Insinqi, there is a legend. This particular legend states that once the town finds happiness, the fog will finally disperse, and then the sun will shine there.
Another very important part of society there is the fact that they believe children are dark and guilty, and they grow out of it in time. That being said, the amount of children who are actually found guilty is very low.
And finally, there are three rivaling families. Two of the families have 16-year-old boys, and they’re all fighting for the one, 15-year-old girl from the last family. While the girl’s family despises the two boys’ families, they are the only ones high enough on the social rankings for their beauty.

I walked quietly along the main path of my town, Insinqi. I was walking to the jail, the prison, or however you wanted to call it. One of our town legends (we have a lot of those), states that along with all the spirits, the fog in our town comes from the prison, because it becomes thicker the closer you get. My brother had went and gotten himself involved with one of the children gangs, and it had wound him up in prison. As my sore feet, after a day of farming, carried me, a young, fourteen year old girl who could be delicious prey for some, my mind wandered through stories, rumors, and gossip.
I finally reached the jail. Its layout was the definition of “evil”: it had the base of a triangle, the evilest shape for us. I drag my body to the front desk, desperately hoping that the richest person that guards the front desk isn’t there today. Of course, my wish is in vain- Wincer “Rich” Carmeli is sitting, glaring at me. He signs me in, probably with a comment like “Girl visits her brother too much; visitor for cell #34”. I honestly didn’t care; my brother had done what he could to keep my mother and I safe, even though it was him going to a gang, joining, and getting caught, ending with being sent to prison. Even the thought of my wonderful brother, only five years older than me, put a smile on my face. Unfortunately, one thought always dimmed my smile: it would be hard for him to get a wife, get higher on the social status, you get the idea.
As I neared cell thirty-four, my head started pounding, my footsteps getting slower and slower, until I stopped, and let his green-milky eyes stare into my freaky blue ones. One gaze, a glance, was all it took; words that were unspoken flew between us, back and forth, back and forth. While he was here, our sibling bond had only gotten stronger, until it was unbreakable. A new smile pulsated on my lips; I could imagine his warm hands around me, and I could almost sense the fog lifting. I longed to touch him, have his warm body curled around me during the current cold winter nights.
My time with him, just staring, mesmerized, was over too quickly- I had been too late to have more than ten minutes. My feet started to walk me back home, the fog settling in my mind, and my heart aching.

1. How common is magic, and are all characters aware they possess it?
Around four out of five people potentially have magic. However, only three out of the four can actually use the magic, harness it and change it. The other “one out of four” is the one that has magic, but can’t form it, a, “title without the hard work.” The final one out of five has absolutely NO magical ability, and the only way one with no magic can so-called “perform magic” is by using special stones that disappear after one use, no exceptions. At the age of three, every person’s magical ability (if there) will appear; at noon on the day of their birth, golden sparks will fly around them. If they are part of the one fifth who has magic but cannot harness it, there will be red sparks.
2. What is the origin of your magic?
One simple word: Legends. In this world of mine, legends and happiness are some of the strongest weapons. There was one sorcerer, granted the ability of magic by a strong gemstone, one of the special stones that disappear after one use. This stone had magic because of how it mixed with chemicals and minerals, cold and heat. So when the sorcerer, only three years old, swallowed the stone, the magic grew inside of him. And it was genetic. So it got passed down, and down, and down. However, mere seconds before he died, a legend has said that he cursed any town, city, or village that was unhappy: until they could find true happiness, even for a single millisecond, immediately the fog will lift- until they aren’t, it’ll stay. In most of these housing settlements, happiness was found in days, until one town was left, Insinqi.
3. What kind of magic is used in your world?
All sorts. There are special sorcerers who specialize in plants, who can heal them with a touch, will them to ripen their fruits, to grow stronger and higher. There are special blacksmiths, using metal magic, that could fix metal shields, reiron the magic swords, and craft a bow and many, many arrows. You could go to a healing house and visit a healing witch, where they would use your “life strings” to fix a broken bone, massage a clenched muscle, or just bewitch your cold to fly off and away. There is even Music Magic, which a band or singer absolutely needs to create good music.
4. What is an important symbol of your world?
The most important symbol is the circle. For a circle means many things, from a never ending cycle of love, or maybe friendship, to a shape with no bumps, or, in Insinqi Town, the main and only path of the town is a never-ending loop of intertwined circles. The entire empire is built of a circle, the so-called “royal castle” of one of the small kingdoms in the empire is a circular tower, with four more towers branching off at the top.
5. What are some slang terms or other words used in your world that are related to magic?
Unsurprisingly, in the town of Insinqi, there are no slang terms for magic- here, it is forbidden to practice, although some do, maybe the herbalist erging the plant to heal itself, or the blacksmith to fix a tricky spear. However, in other cities, there are some- as well as the most popular one, “MG’ed,” which means “magicked.” Another popular one is “M”- such as “Did you just do the M?” Of course, every town, or gang, or anyone really, develops some of their own slang, but “MG’ed” and “M” remain the most used.
6. Are there any sensations the characters feel when they are using magic? Describe these sensations using their five senses.
Yes, for instance, MM, or Music Magic (also known as Musyc Magyc) would give you a tingling sense in your fingers, your fingertips would smell of one’s favorite smells of the world, and taste of your favorite food or drink. M2M (Metal Magic) would give you, after a particularly hard job, the metallic taste of blood on your tongue, and the feeling of harshness. T3TM (Healing Magic) would give you the sudden urge to k1ss somebody (a reason why many T3TM healers have stuffed animals), and a 8M (a Seer) would give you the breath of peppermint.
7. Does magic affect the government of your world? If so, how?
Magic does NOT affect the government at all. Magic is used for jobs (ect. MM), but was originally created for each person on their own, if they can harness it. So technically, no, it doesn’t affect the government, but people might vote for a Seer (8M) to be their president rather than an MM, because music magic doesn’t exactly help run a government. Likewise, metal users (M2M’s) would probably be put to shifts as security guards, like for prison, instead of a herb worker.
8. How can you ensure the magic in your story is realistic, and is written as a normalized part of your world?
I can, for the most part, make the character seem a bit “unafraid,” or maybe unsurprised by magic- after all, if you are unsurprised by something or someone, (or some ability), it is probably part of the norm, right? However, to include that more magical element, I’ll still be adding some surprise; you do need surprise for magic. Also, adding laws and punishments help- they show the reader that this world is used to magic, and actually is quite strict when it comes to it (everything from almost free reign to absolutely no magic.)
9. What are some noteworthy examples of problems (in your world) that characters solved with magic?
One of the biggest ones: the first sorcerer, Mahi Ali’Shua (the one who swallowed the stone), set up an intricate curse and spell system that, if a town, village, or city is happy, they have a sunny, just right weather, if sad, mad, or anything other than joyful and related feelings, then it would either be way to hot (over 130 degrees fahrenheit at night) or too cold and dreary. The second and other most noteworthy example is when the dragons were killing humans and eating them, or using them as pets. Mahi’s own daughter, Sha’ati Yaefa, was the one who used her metal and fire magic to tame them.
10. What happens when magic gets out of control in your world?
Oftentimes, when magic gets out of control, there are natural disasters that happen. Some of these natural disasters include avalanches, fires (often the worst), blizzards, heat waves, the list could go on to cover over ten pages, but you get the gist. There’s a legend known as “A Volley Wave,” and tells of what happened when Sha’ati Yaefa died. Apparently, for the 31 days of mourning of August, it rained everyday volleyballs on the people. While most believe this is a made believe legend, there is actual proof to support it.

“Jade.” The teacher, who is a white male who despises females (well, all my teachers are the exact same), doesn’t even see it fit to ask a question in the right tone. Instead, it’s his normal, harsh, why-is-there-a-female-in-my-class tone.
“Yes, sir?” I asked in a polite voice. The only other girl in the class was Clementine, a bright, straight 100’s girl.
“Did you do your homework?”
“Almost done, sir, it’s due tomorrow,” I said with a quick smile. “I’ve got it in my pack, sir.”
“Get it our right this second, Jade, this second.” He growls at me, “Or are you such a bad student, not to mention you are a girl, that you can’t do homework?”
“It’s right here in my pack.” I say, giving him a fake smile. I know it doesn’t reach my eyes, but do I care? No. “Here sir.” I handed him over my project, a poster talking about why girls were so dumb and why we were the only ones that couldn’t use magic. I hated the subject, yes, but the topic might give me some extra points. It was technically complete, I just had to add some old stickers I found that matched the topic, but now, thinking about it, it was probably better this way.
“Nice work,” he says, lifting my hopes up, “for a girl.” This guy, I swear.
“Thank you sir, now I’ll be on my way,” I grabbed my pack, then ran out the door before he could catch me. I was heading down Cathae street, following the ever-so familiar path. Unfortunately, I couldn’t wear a hood- that would draw very much unneeded attention to me. The becomation of the uneven stones told me I was getting closer, before I turned a sharp right, then straight for three more yards, then right again. I finally arrived at GAM headquarters.
“Girls, almighty, for magic,” I whispered then, making sure nobody was watching, I headed in, humming ‘Babe, It’s Gotta Be You’ by the Musyc Magyc Musycians (the MMM’s are the most popular boy and girl band now). “Shallo, Carni,” I said as I passed the guard, then continued humming. And in there, stood the grand glory of our headquarters, in what appeared to be shambles.

“You are under arrest for trespassing on government property-”
“Oi, really Jen?” I complain as she puts handcuffs on me. “Not cool, putting your best sister and best friend in handcuffs because you don’t recognize me, girl.”
“Riley?” Jen asks, but finishes tying me off, just in case.
“Yes, no get these stupid things off me!”
“Oh uh right- wait. What’s the password?” Jen asks again, giving me a suspicious look.
“There isn’t a password!” I screeched.
“Fine Riley,” she signed, “c’mon, though, something interesting finally happens and it's you!” She uses magic to get the handcuffs back around her belt, and we walk together to the headquarters.
“Where’s the trespasser?” Jamie, or our eldest sister, complained.
“Riley, how about you explain?” Jen said with a grin, then slipped away to the rankings. I rolled my eyes at her, then turned around to face Jamie.
“You guys thought I was a trespasser even though you set me up for a mission. End of story. But I did find something interesting…” Everyone leaned in; I repressed the urge to giggle.
“You know McKayla Parker? She was there, talking with the mayor.” In our town, we have a police force, yes, but is it the leading protection? Absolutely not. The mayor is the only one to have complete power, and she ultimately has the best security guards- including McKayla Parker, the most famous and the best police woman.
“And that’s why… Jacqueline,” I paused for the effect, waiting for my sister to turn her head, “would you like to explain to us why you had a hard time remembering Jen and I apart, McKayla?” Jacqueline, or should I say, McKayla, paused then glared at me.
“Well, you got me there, Riley Joahnbur. Maybe you should connect me to a lie detector, and I can explain some things for you?”

“Emi, stop daydreaming! We’re going off to look at the coast!” My best friend, Akari, was dragging our friend group out to the Japanese Coast, to a small secluded place where we could swim.
“Akari, you owe me a new jacket,” Shiran, our other friend, complained.
“Yeah, why are we going out to the beach?” Efi, our other other friend asked.
“There’s been rumors of mermaids!” Akari clapped her hands excitedly, and we all shook our heads. Akari always drags us to the closest places she can if it has to do with mermaids. We all signed once more, then followed Akari to the car. Her Suzuki, a small white car, was big enough to fit us four. “Let’s gooooo!”
“Coughing up to you, giving you all you want… but how come it’s always, ‘not’? I give myself to you, for you, but all you give me back is ‘not’!”
“It’s always not, not, not, so when will you…”
“Finally give me a yes? (yes, yes, yes)”
“You lot are definitely crazy, remind me why I hang out with you guys…?” Shiran groaned. “What’s so special about the Girls? Except for the fact they’re a world-wide sensation?” I laughed, then gave my cousin a hug.
“Shiran, we need to work on what music you like, you know that, right?”
“I know, okay?” Shiran patted my arm. “Put still, could you, you know, tone down the music? I mean, we’re going to look for mermaids, and you guys are blasting music into my ear.”
“Anddddd…. We’re here!!” Emi yells, puts the car in park in a very bad place, and hops out. I come out, with Shiran and Efi following me.
“Is it just me or did it take less time to get here?” I ask, swallowing the traces of sea salt in the air.
The water dancing in front of my eyes, blue and green, the girl swimming only wearing seaweed, the taste of salt- wait, swimming in seaweed!?!? I glanced back, thinking my eyes were playing tricks on me, but there she was, waving at me.
“Erm, am I the only one who can see that girl?” I pointed at where she was waving.
“Emi, are your eyes okay? There’s nothing there!” Akari hugged me. “I mean, I don’t see a tail or anything- Emi, NO!” I jumped. Into. The. Freakin’. Sea.
“NOOOO!!!” I heard the wails of Akari, I could almost see Efi’s “what-the-heck-did-you-do” look (the one I knew all so well), and Shiran’s horror. Absolute, complete, horror. My feet finally hit the sea- and as I submerged, My tight white shirt turned into a mosaic of seashell on a bikini, my short-cropped denim jeans turned into a seaweed short skirt, and I could actually feel three pearls appearing embedded on my skin, upon my eyes (where eyeliner would go).
“Oh look, you have a Count’s ranking,” a lively, bubbly voice said beside me. I turned around, and there was the girl. “I’m Elly, by the way.”
“I- I- how can I breathe?” I ask, terrified.
“You’re part Undper!” Undper? Okay… “It means your mom was an Undper, and your dad was a human! Oh, and I know it’s your mom, because of the pearls on your eyes!”
“I- right. Erm, could you maybe give me a tour…?”

Main Cabin Weekly: Fantasy Worldbuilding

Part 1: High Fantasy

1,802 words

Quick Links: Part 1 // Part 2 // Part 3

Author’s Note (261 words)
To start off, this was a very fun and interesting weekly, and I very much enjoyed worldbuilding and creating stories for these five worlds! Fantasy writing is one of my favorite genres to read, but it can sometimes be a struggle to write in. However, the workshops were very helpful, and I learned a lot about how to worldbuild for fantasy worlds! This particular piece comes from an idea for a world that I’ve had for a while, but I mixed up the magical powers a bit, inspired by my writing competition entry’s world. It was really fun brainstorming how the magic and society of this world works, and I feel that the guiding questions in the workshop really helped make the world more structured and realistic.

I had quite a bit of fun connecting all the dots together, and I ended up picking most of the elements in the list :3. Also, for the story, I wanted to explore what would happen if someone with extremely powerful powers was, at the same time, in a position of power herself, as the daughter of one of the most important people in the Heptad Isles. However, I also wanted to experiment with terrible parents, which I haven’t written a lot about before, so voila, there goes the first part of my weekly .

I might return to this world in future SWC tasks, since I do like the way it is going. High fantasy seems like an interesting genre, and I look forward to writing in it again in the future!

Main Cabin Weekly: Fantasy Worldbuilding

Part 2: Magical Realism

1,520 words

Quick Links: Part 1 // Part 2 // Part 3

Author’s Note (420 words)
Magical realism was always a genre that I didn’t fully understand very well. It sounds like an oxymoron; how could something have magic and be realistic at the same time?

After doing a bit of research, I assumed that magical realism was a genre where magic is introduced into real life, usually as a ‘hidden magic’ behind everything. I was wrong, XD, and this weekly really helped clear it up for me.

I was confusing magical realism with Hidden Worlds Fantasy, and magical realism itself is practically the opposite from what I was assuming.

Magical realism is where magic is a normal part of everyday life, but it isn’t the focus of the story. Unlike other fantasy stories where the magic is an essential part of the problem that characters have to solve, magical realism assumes that magic was part of life all along, but the real problem is one that could happen in real life. Magic is simply used as a tool to help solve it.

Magical realism runs very strong parallels to realistic fiction, and any story written in magical realism could also be rewritten in realistic fiction, replacing the magic with real-life tools. Looking back on the books I have read, magical realism is not a very common genre, but I have read a couple books that use it!

Now, luckily, for the weekly, I didn’t have to actually write a story in this genre, simply build a world for it. Originally, I was going to make a world where people could turn into different types of animals, but that made it a bit hard to answer all the questions, since I couldn’t really imagine how this was going to serve as a tool for the people of this world.

So instead, I gave them all KOTLC powers! (don’t sue me for unoriginality I’m the leader of Fan-fi I’m allowed to take ideas from other places from time to time)

It was pretty interesting to think about how people could use these powers in real life if they were a normal part of the world, and I enjoyed answering all the questions! Perhaps I’ll use this world in future works, since it would be fun to finally put a character into it and see how things go!

Anyway, overall, I learned a lot about magical realism, and it was interesting to see how the world evolved and developed as I answered all the questions! Now that that’s over with, it’s time to move on to part 3!

Main Cabin Weekly: Fantasy Worldbuilding

Part 3: Fantasy Sub-Genres

2,329 words

Quick Links: Part 1 // Part 2 // Part 3

Author’s Note (189 words)
Usually an Author’s Note
Is not written in verse
But it’s cabin wars
So here it is, for better or worse

I’m discussing the third part of the weekly
The first story, to be exact
I chose dystopian fantasy
It was fun, that’s a fact

Usually a dystopian world
Focuses on the people
A rebellion, rising up
From the ashes of oppression

But this time I wondered
What if I did something new
Wrote about the oppressors
A change of heart in view

I never introduced his name
But Prince Tristan is an interesting royal
He’s just realized that all his world
Comes from his people’s spoils

Clearly he’s not as bad
As he thinks himself to be
But thoughts are not as powerful as actions
Will he act? Will he?

I’ve said before
That my stories write themselves
I don’t know what the prince will do
After the final words were written

Overall, this piece
Was very interesting to write
Not only with the genre
But the main character’s self-spite

Perhaps I’ll continue the story
Then again, perhaps not
But I’ll definitely continue
To explore Dystopian Fantasy’s lot

Author’s Note (163 words)
Thought the poem would stop back there?
Haha think again.
For I still need about 300 words
To win the war that Lio sent

Now let’s talk about the second story
Of part 3 of this weekly
I haven’t read or written
Much Urban Fantasy

But the style appeals to me
So I decided to give it a try
This story wrote itself as well
Started with onomatopoeia (but how to spell this :cry:)

This character’s attitude
Is not one I’ve written before
Great personality for a teenaged bounty hunter
Note’s not over yet, there’s more

Urban Fantasy’s interesting
I might do it once more
Hopefully I didn’t botch it too much
But at least 4000 points I’ll score

Will I continue this story?
Maybe, maybe not
If I need a horror piece
I’ll definitely take this back out

So that’s it for this note
I look back at how much I wrote
It’s not over yet, so
Onto Science Fantasy let’s go

Author’s Note (229 words)
Now for the last author’s note
After this one I’ll be done
I'll try
To write
In free verse this time
So that I won’t have to think up rhymes

Science Fantasy, my
beloved

I love this genre
so
very
much

It combines
two
Of my favorite styles

Sci-fi and Fantasy
They seem different
But are so fun
To write
When they are connected

Of course, in this story
The characters have a
SPACESHIP
*insert lightsaber and engine noises*
That’s the Sci-fi part

But there’s also the alien ambassador
With a magic wand
It’s made from those
Icky
Plants, the ones that the main character got stuck in
Really should look where ae’s going, shouldn’t ae?

Xylar’s a little clueless
But ae’s still fun
to write about

On another topic
I made up
Random
Words for the ambassador to say
Please don’t be mad at me

I don’t have much
Experience
Writing alien languages,
And I had to rush to be done for
CaBiN WaRs (yay)

While this piece wasn’t my
Best,
I feel proud of it
In its own way
And I will definitely keep
Writing
This genre in the
Future.

This weekly,
Overall,
Was a great experience
I learned a lot about Fantasy
And writing in general
And I can’t wait until the next one

Now it’s just time to format
And then I will submit.
Bye!

- Animal world (but not really? More like animal-people ish)
- Gods n demons
- Dif hair color = different social hierarchy
- Everyone should be dressed in black
- Flowers are extremely poisonous
- Studying and playing are reversed positions
- underground/water
- Blood as currency (purity = worth)
- Tech is banned
- Magical powers
- Kill to live
- Maze world
- Woman can have multiple husbands
- No physical touch w others except mother/father or wifey/husbando
- clans/realms -> symbol of recognition
- Death is cool + looked forward to (don’t ask??)
- Kids > parents
- Art as a way of living (need to submit an art piece every year, like a draft)
- Dazzling world w lots of diamonds
- Dystopia ish in which ruler is v bad

Each house in the kingdom of Yeiata is decorated with thousands of dazzling diamonds- yet they have no use, and are only a symbol of shame. Each year, every citizen of Yeiata are required to submit a drawing of Litien, the dead queen of the kingdom that had caused the king to indulge himself in wine and no longer care for the kingdom. The result of refusal to this request- which acted more like a law, a command- was the beheading of the citizen and a diamond that replaced the name in their family tree, a mark of defiance that had been put out too quickly, that would cause the social class of the family to degrade down to the bottom level. Yet citizens that produced drawings the king liked were rewarded with a promotion in class and a bottle of quality blood, the currency used in Yeiata- the purer the blood was, the more it was worth.
In Yeiata, physical touch is not allowed, as even a slight brush of hands would signify the risk of the execution of a whole family; it is only acceptable for your birth parents, or else your wife or husband, to be able to touch you. Technology is banned, and so is the usage of magic; because if you dared to conjure magic or tamper with electronics, it would mean a rebellion, an act of defiance against the king.
In this world, everyone is a literal copy of one another, all dressed in black from head to toe, the only difference the hair color, the representative of social class and hierarchy.

I kept my head down as we hurried towards the town hall, my left hand clenched tightly onto the neatly folded, pressed drawing kept hidden in my coat pocket, my right grabbing onto my mother’s hand as crowds pushed in on us from all sides, sweeping me off direction as we struggled to reach our destination in time. The cold, crisp air cut into my bones like a dagger, yet all I could do was pull the thin, tattered cloak around me even tighter and continue my way on through the snow. Carriages, decorated with patterns of blood red and black, rushed by us, splattering my mother and I with muddy, melting snow as the owners inside them, dressed in black suits and uniforms, their black- or else white- hair slicked back or styled into an updo, looked out the window at us. I wanted to look up at them, staring back, as if daring them to say something. But I couldn’t- because as rude as they were behaving, they were the upper class and we the lower, which meant that no matter what they did to us, as long as it wasn’t unforgivable, we had no right to fight back or resist.
A carriage sped right in front of us just as I was about to put my foot out onto the street. A step forward, and we would’ve been hit, the full impact coming at us, leaving us hospitalized- if we even had the money, or the right- for months. I glanced up furiously, pulling my mother backwards as she lost her footing and stumbled. “Hey..!” I started, my mother scrambling to hush me.
“They’re the upper class,” she hissed in my ear, her grip on my wrist hardening as she pulled me forward, urging me on. “We- can- do- nothing.”
“They might not actually be,” I argued, “hair colors can be dyed-”
One look from her shut me up.
I lowered my head and continued walking, my violet hair wet and sticky, reeking of muddy dirt and old snow.
Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a young boy, no older than 17- or at least a few years older than me, I guessed- sticking his head out of the carriage that had almost hit us, his hand waving to me, gloved in a sleek, satin color of black. The bustle of the city drowned out his voice, but- believe it or not- I swear I knew he said, “Sorry.”

My world is split into two realms- Heaven and the Underworld. Angels and demons (called spyrrei and spyrrae) operate on mana; the more mana they have, the more powerful they are. They use the mana to respond to prayers in the mortal world; they lose 50 mana every year, and gain 100 mana every time they respond to a prayer. Some spyrrae/ei have special gifts that can make them more powerful in some way, but will in another limit them.

Spyrrei, the angels, mainly help people in the mortal world, or else either keep track of records of all the mana everyone has (the analysts), have meetings on the next step regarding the Underworld (the advisors), or conduct personal affairs given by the Emperor. Spyrrae, the demons, mainly use their magic powers for destruction, causing little conflicts here and there, or else they do the same jobs as the spyrrei do and are either analysts or advisors. Each side has an emperor that rules over the land.

Spyrrei/ae have to do things in alignment with their role. If they don’t follow their role, for example, a spyrrei, an angel, does something bad such as murder or something similar to that, they get planted with some type of chip that causes pain during their birthmonth (the month that they were born) and get banished to the mortal world to live the rest of their life as a mortal with no magical powers.

For the spyrrae/ei, definitely all of them know they possess magic. A spyrrae/ei is born when a mortal in the mortal realm performs a blood sacrifice, and the first drop of blood that hits the ground becomes a spyrrae/ei. They are randomly chosen to become either a spyrrae/ei and become an official adult spyrrae/ei at 15 years old; before that, they are an apprentice under a spyrrae/ei with rare powers (as mentioned earlier). All should know by the age of five if they possess a rare power, and are assigned a role (analyst or advisor) when they become an adult. Teachers teach in both directions.

Unless a spyrrae/ei possesses a rare power, they are unable to do something big, for example, reincarnate someone or kill a human being. Magic, in fact, even weakens a spyrrae/ei’s adaptability under extreme conditions, which means they might even be easier to be killed by another spyrrae/ei in war. When a spyrrae/ei “dies,” their spirit dissipates, and unless it is fed with a lot of mana and is managed by another spyrrae/ei who has the power of rebirth, will technically be gone forever.

Magic is not viewed as a talent; rather, it is more like something that you should know since you were born or should learn naturally as you grow up, such as talking or eating. Rare gifts are seen as precious and amazing, and can get you a higher position in your society, although jealousy might also appear along with that. The benefits of having a rare gift also include being able to accept an apprentice (which might potentially increase your mana) and can choose to be reborn, getting another chance as a spyrrae/ei if you are not happy with your current position in life.

Firstly, this world is set in a historical period time setting, back a few thousand years ago in one of the Chinese dynasties. People in the mortal realm are not majorly affected by the spyrrae/ei, except for the fact that their prayers actually bring upon real help, not based upon belief or faith of religion. There is no social hierarchy in the Heavenly realm, as everyone is, more or less, treated as an equal, but power dynamic is cut more harshly in the Underworld, as it’s more of a ‘kill to live’ power dynamic.

Politics are majorly affected by religion and whatnot. People in the mortal realm more or less side with the Heavenly realm, the good side, but as caused by greed, if a person wants to be particularly powerful instead of just living on with their life, they might look towards the Underworld for help. If the emperor in the mortal realm is being bad and looking towards the Underworld for power and money (since the Underworld is underground, they are very rich), the Heavenly realm might step out to stop them.

Special objects, often in the shape of jewelry, can possess special benefits that come from rare gifts. For example, the main character Su Rui’s past life, in which her name was Lan XiYun, got gifted with a hairpin from her lover, a spyrrei with the rare gift of reincarnation called Xu YingXiao, that had the ability to both strengthen the mana of the wearer and combine the effects of spyrrae/ei birth and reincarnation, in which if the blood of the person reincarnated fell onto the pearl in the center, they would be reborn with a new identity. Objects like these (Lan XiYun’s hairpin, Su Rui’s tear pearls) push the plot forward and solve problems in both the magical and mortal realms.

As said earlier, spyrrae/ei officially turn into adults at the age of 15. They continue aging in count but not in appearance, and are generally immortal until they die in battle or murder or turn into a mortal, which means they could be 845 years old but still have the appearance of a 15-year-old. Before the age of 15, from when they are born all the way to the age of 15, they are an apprentice of a rare spyrrae/ei, whom they apply for to be their teacher, similar to occupational searching in the present world. If the spyrrae/ei they apply for accepts, they become their apprentice until the age of 15, in which they become an adult; if they do not, they continue to apply for other rare spyrrae/ei until someone is willing to accept them. A teacher can have up to 3 apprentices at one time, and they generally teach magic history and operation of mana, along with directions toward being both an analyst and advisor.

I stand up and brush off patches of dirt stuck here and there on my dress. It shouldn’t really count as a dress now, with the bottom ripped off, the sleeves missing and the collar uneven, but it was my grandmother’s and my mother wouldn’t be happy to see me let it go.
Surveying the amount of plants and flowers in my basket, I let out a small sigh of dissatisfaction as I turn and trudge back home. The amount of plants we had been able to savage since the start of the new government has been decreasing ever since the other families in our neighborhood ran out of food and turned to the woods for help. It isn’t easy, but it’s harder for the ones surviving alone, evicted from our country for crimes that they were framed for.
The door squeaks as I open it and step inside, kicking off my shoes as I set the basket on the counter. I pick up a handful of chrysanthemums and wash them in a wash bin, the water already muddy with dirt and grime and left unchanged for days. Everything - even clean water - has become more and more valuable as the days drag on, the value of money plummeting as we are able to buy even less from the barely adequate amount of money my father left us before he was evicted.
I drop the chrysanthemums in a paper cup and head into the bedroom, feeling the walls through the darkness. It isn’t easy living in the dark every day, the windows boarded in fear of the police and even the lights and crystals on what used to be our chandelier sold to the wealthy in exchange for meager amounts of cash. I miss the days when I would awaken to the sound of birds chirping and rays of sun probing lazily into my window, when I could enjoy the fresh air and stare at the little rainbows reflected on our wall as sunlight shines through the crystals. It’s all gone now, though. As much as I miss those days, I know for sure that they aren’t coming back- not until someone does something to change this mess.
“Ma?” I ask quietly, slipping into the room, a dim, warm circle of light surrounding the bedpost, providing a small amount of light to the otherwise pitch-black room. I head over, guided by the candle light, wincing as my leg hits the bedpost and numbs briefly, but I ignore it. My mother sits next to the candle light, squinting her eyes at her trembling hand holding a needle, attempting to pass through the fabric. She’s grown old - suddenly - after my father left us. What used to be a smile on her rosy cheeks is now a grimace on wrinkly skin. The new government had not only taken away her vitality, but also had extinguished the fire inside her. It should have been expected ever since my father and brother were dispelled, but I still can’t help but mull over- over and over again - the possibilities of our current life if we had just ran away before the new government took control of our lives every time I look at her.

Before I knew what I had just done, everyone’s eyes turned to me. I looked at Rio, his round eyes in fear as he looked at me, stunned.
“Litien..?”
I opened my mouth, but nothing came out, because the truth was, I didn’t know how to explain. We had been together for years- and this whole time I had been keeping from him my biggest secret, which I had sworn to keep from everyone. Even him.
Seeing no response, his eyes filled with tears, his lips trembling as he took a step back from me, his hands gripped into fists by his sides. I stared at him, my face offering no response as I fought back the urge to run away from him, so I wouldn’t need to see the look on his face right now.
It was fear. He was scared of me.
My hand reached out to him, but he gasped and stumbled back, as if eager to get as far from me as possible.
I hesitated. “Rio…”
A scream suddenly broke the silence, and I turned. “He tried to kill him! He tried to kill Rio!”
“He’s a sorcerer!”
“Get away from him!”
I tried to explain, and yet, my throat seemed like it couldn’t come up with the words to do so.
“I’m not… I-”
But nobody listened to my feeble attempts to deny what they accused me for, and the shouts only increased, in volume, number and enthusiasm.
I’m not sure when the first rock hit me.
But not before long, everyone was throwing things at me, screaming at me, their eyes full of disgust- and some, though they didn’t know what had happened, joined in- because all of the sudden, in a matter of seconds, I had become an evil sorcerer who had tried to hurt his best friend, who had been using some type of dark magic and attempted to release chaos on humanity.
Right after I had just saved them.
And when my eyes fell on Rio, he looked away, and I realized that he had never said a word in attempt to protect me.

Octavia stepped into the room, her eyes roving over the carnage. Books were littered everywhere, a pair of old leather boots in the corner; the bed was undone, pens and ink bottles scattered around the floor. The whirring of gears and machinery created a constant hum that was eerily unsettling, yet more strangely, comfortably so. She surveyed the room, searching for any sign of a human being beneath the mess, yet there was none.
“Hello?” she called cautiously, her hands fidgeting as she walked towards the desk, buried under heaps of paper and notebooks. She flipped through a few stacks of files, her mouth opening subconsciously in amazement and surprise. “Wow,” Octavia breathed, thumbing through sketches and models of machines, diagrams and maps, long lists of notes and ideas, considering topics and perspectives she had never dared to think of before in her life.
“Hey,” a voice behind her made her jump, her hand instantly shrinking back from the notebook she was holding in her hand, her hand lightly tracing over the pencil sketches, long smudged with lead, the paper old with eraser marks. “How may I help you?”
Octavia turned to see a young man, at most 22 of age, with sleek, silver white hair, and crystal blue eyes, deep and clear like two little gemstones. Blushing beet red, she bowed, her hair flopping forward and hitting herself in the face. “I’m really sorry- I didn’t mean to-”
“She’s your new apprentice, Mr. Prescott,” a young lady butted in, her high heels polished and shiny as she brushed off her sleeves, the once silky, white satin now ashy gray with soot and steam. “Octavia Landell. Have fun.” She looked at the young man- Mr. Prescott- one last time, in her eyes something that Octavia understood only too well- before leaving, her heels clacking on the wooden floor.
Mr. Prescott turned back to Octavia, a relaxed smile on his face. “Nice to meet you, Octavia,” he said, holding out his hand, brown leather gloves over fair, white skin, like a lady’s. After a moment of hesitation, he pulled off the glove, so that the ashes wouldn’t get onto Octavia’s hand. “You can call me Lucius.”
Octavia gaped at him, before blushing again and nodding furiously. “Of course. I’m Octavia.”
Lucius smiled, before turning back to the desk, rifling through the pages. “Nice to see someone finally interested in my work,” he commented, glancing at her with a sideways smile. “It’s been years since I’ve met someone like you.”
Octavia gaped at him. “Really? But you’re amazing! I love the ideas you have- and you make wonderful designs- you’re lovely!”
She blushed again, realizing only later on what she had thoughtlessly blurted out.
Lucius laughed, looking at her. “You’re very cute.”
Octavia turned a deeper shade of red. “Thank- thank you-”
Lucius just smiled, looking down at his watch, a white glass plate nested inside a copper ring, the little needles on the clock face ticking by. “It’s late,” he said, pushing up his glasses, styled in a way that matched with his watch. “You should go rest.” He walked towards the door, looking back at Octavia, his hand resting on the rim, a sheet of copper painted over black granite. “I’ll be in the engine room if you need me for anything. You can also call Victoria, she’s the lady who just came in.”
“Of course,” Octavia smiled, her eyes turning into little crescent moons as dimples appeared on her cheeks.
Lucius smiled and left, leaving her alone in the room, subconsciously tucking a piece of hair behind his ear before realizing that he had cut it all off. His smile dimmed, his hand hesitating before falling down, tightening into a fist, compressing all his emotions.
He stepped outside, the wind ruffling his hair as he looked up at the sky, the stars glittering above matching the tears swimming in his eyes. Before he knew it, a tear slid down and fell onto the ground.
“My name is Lucius,” Basil whispered, her hand trembling to wipe away the tears. “As it will be for the rest of my life.”
“There’s no turning back now.”

Part 1 Word counts: 926 for brainstorming, 458 for connections, 497 for narrative (1881 total),
Part 2 Word counts for each question (respectively): 189, 172, 224, 264, 270, 261, 187, 231, 231, 226 (2255 total for this part)
Part 3 Word counts for each subgenre: 425, 414, 472 (1311 total for this part)
5447 words total, 5557 words with my notes in parts 2 and 3.

1. Magical ocean water
2. Rainforest
3. Constitutional monarchy
4. Life on clouds
5. Crow considered as holy bird
6. World of lies
7. World of truth
8. Witchcraft practiced
9. Magicians considered as the most powered people, apart from the monarch
10. Tropical Island
11. Set in a castle
12. Set in the Amazon rainforest
13. Everybody is vegetarian
14. Parrots considered bad omens
15. Everybody must have a pet necessarily
16. Strong crime rate
17. Severe punishments in schools
18. Wild animals kept as domestic animals
19. Flower garden
20. Underwater world

The isolated, tropical, mysterious island of acornville, holds a lot of secrets. It can be titled as what some people may call utopia, or dream land. It is situated in the middle of the acorn ocean, whose water is magical. Drinking some of the salty water could heal any sort of disease, be it cancer, or pneumonia!
Apart from this, There is underwater life. Mermaids and Sirens along with urchins are quite common to be spotted.
Acornville is a beautiful place, and so are its people. The residents of acornville, though not many, are humble and generous people. A praiseworthy fact about this place is that lying is a punishable offence, which is why you would find the most honest people here! The people here worship crows, and parrots are considered as a sign of evil. Quite contradictory to most of the rest of the world right? but thats just how acornville is! Different. In the world of acornville, Having pets is a must over here. It is a law from the government. They believe that pets bring prosperity to the family and the animals also have a home. No animal found here is stray. Every animal has a family to live with, and those who don't, reside in a nearby animal shelter. On the island, there is a rainforest which is evergreen. Not even the wild animals from the forest are stray. It is quite common for people to have tigers and lions and bears as pets over here! About 80,00 feet above acornville, Yes, in the sky, there are magical clouds. There is a particular kind of species of crows only found on top of the clouds. There is an arrangement by which tourists can go and view those crows. Crows have really boosted the tourism and economy of Acornville This is partly why crows are considered holy.

I, Emily, reside on the island of Acornville along with my family. Not many people live here, it has a total population of only about 500 people.The people here are very trustworthy, as everyone (almost 99% of the population) are completely honest. Lying is a punishable offence over here. How would anyone know if you're lying, you wonder? Well, at the time of your birth (if you're born in acornville), A spell is casted on you, and your nose grows when you lie, yes, pretty much like the story of pinocchio. and if you are not born here, when you come to get citizenship, the spell is casted and only then you're allowed to reside here. Tourists are excluded from this spell. This is such a strong practice that one could call the cops on you if you lie! This spell has also been extremely helpful to cops while catching criminals. It might seem a bit too harsh, but trust me it really has benefitted acornville, The crime rate has reduced by over 85% in the past decades.
My family consists of me, my parents, my older brother, brownie (our pet lion), Poppy (our pet dog) and pidgie (our pet crow).
Having a pet is compulsory law in acornville, it brings prosperity to the house, atleast thats what my parents have been telling me all my life. We recently got pidgie when my grandmother passed away, since crows are considered holy. My father thought getting a crow would bring back the positivity in our house. Brownie the lion is 11 years old, and has been with us ever since I was three and he was a cub! Poppy is a * dog, 2 years old. I'm fourteen and my older brother is eighteen.
I was five when I first heard about the legend of our island and the surrounding ocean, how it has magical water, mythical creatures, and about the crows found on clouds! I enquired my dad about it, and soon he took us on a trip to all of those places. Turns out it is true! and now, my visits to the ocean to meet the mermaids and sirens has been like a daily thing to do! I have grown up with them and we are great friends! I also often take brownie on a walk to the rainforests, his second home, and actually his birthplace. Living a life on acornville is really exciting!

The laws in the world of Acornville are severe and might seem harsh. There’s a law for complete honesty. A spell is casted on each resident and it is pretty similar to the tale of pinocchio. Your nose will grow when you lie. One can get sued for lying and can be sentenced for upto 2 years for telling a single lie! Seems very harsh but this has helped reduce the crime rate. This has also helped the cops with catching criminals.

An important symbol of my world is crow. Crows are considered holy and are worshipped. They are considered as a symbol of good luck. This is mainly because of the extremely rare variety of crows found in acornville, on top of CLOUDS! Nobody has the scientific proof of why they live on clouds and only clouds, but it does attract a lot of tourists! Crows have helped a lot in boosting acornville's popularity and tourism and have been beneficial for the economy.

A folk tale I heard that involves magic is that of pinocchio. It was one of my favourites when I was younger and I was often afraid that my nose will grow when I lie. I took inspiration from that tale by inserting a similar spell in my world. Every person is casted a spell which makes their nose grow when they lie. This is why most of the people here can be trusted and are very honest. Lying is a punishable offence.

In the world of acornville, different people have different opinions on the different types of magic. For the spell that grows their nose when lying, some people might see it as a curse to the society, while some may call it a blessing in disguise since it has really decreased the crime rate of Acornville. For the crows living on clouds and the magical water, People fantasize them and really feel blessed to be born in such a beautiful place.

The popular infrastructure in my world includes a lot of things, especially the rare variety of crows living on clouds floating in the sky. Another fascinating thing is the mythical creatures like sirens and mermaids living in the magical water of acorn ocean. There is also a rainforest which is evergreen and has an amazing climate. One may love to have a trail in the woods. You wont be afraid to encounter wild beasts since all of them are either adopted or with the animal shelter.

The kind of magic used in my world has healing powers and it is used for the prosperity and internal development of people of Acornville. Some of the few magics used include a lie detector, which, similar to the tale of Pinocchio, causes your nose to elongate when you lie. This has hugely reduced the crime rate of Acornville and has been beneficial in a lot of ways. There is also magical water in the surrounding ocean which treats any disease. The magic is also useful for boosting tourism as rare crows are found on top of clouds over here. 

One of noteworthy examples of problems which can be solved by the power of magic in acornville is definitely the healing power of the magical water of the acorn ocean. It can treat any sort of diseases, be it typhoid or cancer! Just one drop can make the disease go away! Also the spell that detects lies also helps the cops in catching criminals. This seems a bit too harsh but it has reduced the crime rate of Acornville by a lot!

The magic in Acornville really helps in internal development of a person. A spell is casted on them at birth which causes their nose to elongate whenever a lie is told. People refrain from lying due to this helps in developing their quality of honesty. Acornville has the most honest people on earth! Most of the people here are telling the truth ninety nine out of hundred times, of course, they wouldn't want to be another pinocchio in the making!

Magic in acornville is an extremely helpful way of character development and health. A spell is casted on each resident which causes their nose to elongate every time they lie. So due to this spell, people do not wish to lie often and thus are very honest. The healing power of the water in the acorn ocean has the ability to cure any kind of disease, whether it is common cold, typhoid or something as deadly as cancer! Due to some certain, unknown magic, rare crows live on top of clouds, and the clouds hold them instead of getting sunk.

The education system of acornville is quite impressive. Even though it is an isolated island, away from the rest of the world, the literacy rate here is quite high! People attend school upto 16 years of age, and may pursue higher education later on. The educators are either self-taught people, or foreigners who originally come from other parts of the world. The children are taught more than 9 languages in schools, some of which are english, french, dutch, spanish and vietnamese.

Around four parallel universes ahead of ours, there was a planet, identical to the earth, with life on it. This was called the planet of utopia. It was the only planet with life on it in that particular universe, just like the Earth. A spaceship entered the atmosphere of this planet and soon landed onto a barren land. A couple came out of the spaceship and examined the new surrounding. It seemed quite normal to them, like it is on the Earth, until, an unfamiliar creature approached them. The creature, couldn't really be termed as a homosapien, for he was green in colour. Well, it couldn't be termed a zombie or goblin either. What was this creature?
“who are you both? Why do you look so different?” the “weird” looking creature enquired the couple. “Hey, we are romeo and juliet, Two astronomical scientists from Earth. Oh, you wouldn't be knowing what Earth is. Well, its just another planet like yours, with life! We reached here with the help of really advanced technology. We time travelled to the year 2065, met our future selves, who gave us the plan about how to reach here, and well, here we are! Sooo are you a human?” “Human? whats a human? sounds like a vegetable to me! Well people here are mostly coogles, if that's what you were asking.” the green creature said. “A coogle? interesting!” Juliet said. “So tell me more about.. what was it? Earth?” the coogle asked. “The Earth is a part of the galaxy milky way. Life on earth consists of humans, plants and animals.” Romeo answered. “Oh, here we have coogles, bobs and pluts!”
Alll of this was really fascinating for romeo and juliet. They couldn't believe they were in another universe and practically talking to…. an alien right now.

The screen widens and you see a set of five people who were extremely small, even smaller than dwarfs. This species of humans was called the oblivio and was unknown to the rest of the world. To the “normal” human beings, oblivios may just seem to be some ants, thats how small they were! They had only one goal in life, making the life of normal humans hell. They had a community of their own, spying on “normal” people, and living a lifestyle, yet no one was aware of their existence. They were very smart people but they believed that they would be wiped out of existence if regular humans knew about them. So, in order to continue their species, they lived a very mysterious and secretive lifestyle, causing chaos to the regular humans, yet no one having a clue about it.
That was, until recently. The oblivios had been such a nuisance to the world that too many suspicious activities were noticed in the world. Scientists and cops were investigating, but no trace of evidence. That was until a toddler grabbed the attention of one oblivio and alerted his parents, who thought of it as a regular ant. Later on research, this was all over the news and people were now mercilessly looking for ant-looking humans.
The oblivios were tensed, so they decided to go undeground until this heated up news was silenced. They started creating less chaos for the moment. They made sure to avoid as many humans as they could. Who knew a little toddler could cause them so much trouble? They did everything secretly now and made sure to create minimal nuisance, so as to not gather too much attention. Soon the suspicions of “ant-looking people” were discarded and announced as fake and false rumours. “We're safe!!” A voice remarked.

You are a born *. You are tired of being trapped in your own house and you wish that you could roam around freely without being noticed and risking your life. You did not like traversing through tunnels and always having to be cautious about your surroundings. Who knew being so intelligent would also cause harm to you! You had to think a thousand times before leaving your house, because humans were always around to attack you. Even the government had officially granted them the right to kill endless number of *, without being punished or sentenced! How cruel the world can be!
A * is a creature, similar to humans, with a similar body structure and internal organs, but they have much more intelligence quotient than humans. The only feature that differentiated a human from a * was that there were no ear lobes in *, you could call them advanced humans, just like humans are evolved monkeys. You could call * a sub-division of homosapiens, but the humans on earth definitely did not feel like it. The human race has become extremely cold-hearted and selfish over the past few decades. They also believed that humans were supposed to be the most dominant and intelligent species in the entire world. Therefore, The *, not considered as humans by them, were extremely intolerant for humans. They believed that at this rate * would dominate the world and humans would have no value. When in reality the * had no such plans and wanted to befriend the human race. Humans have always been a threat to the lives of *. They never wasted any chance of making their lives hell and/or killing them. Selfish, cold-hearted humans only have one life goal- to wipe out the existence of the *. Ugh, Jealousy is a drug.

SWC Weekly #3: Fantasy
Part 1 - High Fantasy and Worldbuilding: 900 Words
Part 2 - Magical Realism: 984 Words
Part 3 - Fantasy Subgenres: 1567 Words
Total: 3451 Words

Part 1: High Fantasy and Worldbuilding: 900 Words

Brainstorm

Description (319)

Narrative (581)

Part 2: Magical Realism Questionnaire: 984 Words

What kind of magic is used in your world? (89)

What are the laws of your world, specifically about magic? Punishments? (110)

What is the origin of your magic? (92)

How can your world’s magic aid character development? (80)

How common is magic, and are all characters aware they possess it? (93)

How can you ensure the magic in your story is realistic, and is written as a normalized part of your world? (103)

What are the limitations of your world’s magic? (83)

How is magic viewed in your world (ie. as a boring normal, as a fascinating element of their life, or as a curse on society etc.)? (124)

What happens when magic gets out of control in your world? (96)

What are some noteworthy examples of problems (in your world) that characters solved with magic? (114)

Part 3: Fantasy Subgenres: 1567 Words

Dystopian Fantasy (560)

Hidden Worlds (524)

Steampunk (483)

— sunlight is essential to survival
— no vegetation, etc, however other animals exist
— ruled in egalitarian fashion with people’s councils
— strong aversion to large factions
— everyone has equal levels of magic, but are divided into 5 large groups (healer, builder, weathermage, summoner, listener — each with distinct culture)
— large emphasis to benefit for all equally (no sort of “greater good” mindset without sacrifice in the other direction)
— blood family not that important compared to bonds formed by individuals
— community members work for the community till the day they die
— after severe biases in the past, community now works to communicate with each other better
— gratitude towards sunlight: not quite an understanding of how it works, but acknowledged that it performs some sort of life-giving role — closest thing to a god
— once sunset happens, everyone lost in a coma until the morning
— respectful honesty prioritized over kind lies
— once aggressed upon by peoples from the north, built large mounds in order to keep them out
— perfect climate year-round
— dress in gender neutral, light-weight clothing made from translucent fabrics, with comfort first and aesthetics second
— “childhood” ends early: after 6 or so years, whenever the parents feel is suitable, they give their child to age-based schools for their chosen magic specialty
— much of their conception of beauty comes from wide-open, blue skies
— once in a while, have a few days of low or no energy (falling into coma state) due to unknown reasons (which is actually just eclipses)
— when resting, tend to simply lay on the ground and absorb energy
— elders do not hold any special power by virtue of their age

Landlocked, surrounded by man-made mounds to the north and natural mountains to every other direction, the Synodun people live in a detached utopia. In their area there is no flora; instead, these people live strictly on the sun’s energy, which they require to use their magic.
This magic is broadly divided into 5 main categories, although of course there are smaller subcategories within each — the caretakers, the builders (who were the ones who created the mounds), the weathermages (who control the temperature and work towards clear blue skies), the summoners, and the speakers. In the beforetimes there was bigotry and polarization between these different groups, but after they learned to communicate, there is now a general distrust of large groups or factions. People chose what specialty they would like to practice at a very young age, often 6 or 7 years after birth, when they are given up by their parents to separate schools. The first day, they are presented with a series of five items that are imbued with different types of magic: the one they choose determines the category they will work in.
This disregard for blood family is due to the fact that individually-formed ties (such as friendships and mentorships) are considered more personal and chosen, as opposed to being forced into a relationship with someone you never chose. Despite this, most people respect their biological parents in the same way that all people respect the sun — understanding that they are the reason that they can be alive.

I scarcely remember the time I became a healer — I suppose it would be around ten years ago, almost exactly, but after all our memories are not quite developed at that time. I know how the ceremony works for all of us: how we reach for whatever talisman synchronizes with us. I just don’t remember it happening to me personally.
I have little memory of my own biological parents, either; I have a vague memory of a weather-wizard for a mother, but that could just be a construction. All I know is that I’ve grown up in this Healing School, with my sisters and brothers. We’ve watched each other gradually develop our magical talents, our barely-there quirks and proclivities. We’ve watched each other grow and grow and grow, buoyed by the life-giving force of the sun. We’ve gone from eagerly watching grown mages in their flowing gowns to becoming those mages, healing the cracked skin and sudden weakness that came, sometimes, to people who absorbed too much.
Although we must live with people of our own specialty, we often meet with the other skills — sometimes adults, sometimes people the same age as us. We talk and reminisce and joke. I look forward to it: it’s refreshing (and as much as I love my classmates, they can get quite annoying sometimes!) It is nice to know that after our training ends (only a few years left) I’ll be out and about among such thoughtful, practical people.
Recently, we went to a people’s council with students from all the other schools. We were allowed to mix and mingle — the different schools don’t have different dress rules, in order to prevent factionalism. It was an illuminating experience. It’s reassuring to know that there are no changes made covertly or behind our backs — all of it is carefully and meticulously tweaked and edited here, with the voice of all of us audible and heard.
After a full day of light and learning, night comes. None of us really know what happens during the night; for when the sun falls we cannot move, or even think. We cannot move to defend ourselves from whatever there may be, but none of us have been lost to the dark yet. But there is so much we don’t know. We don’t know how long we’re gone, for example — it could be an hour or a millenea. There is a certain kind of fear in that unknowing, but there is a comfort as well.

What kind of magic is used in your world?
The kind of magic that is used in my world is called domestic magic, often abbreviated to DM or domaj. This is used mainly to make mundane chores easier — for example, washing the dishes, doing the laundry, and organizing a bookshelf. This works in a fashion where simply by saying a quick charm with prepared ingredients (usually normal cleaning supplies, but there are some exceptions, such as for organizing tasks) for each task (provided it is not too difficult), it will finish around a half hour later.

How is the magic in the world used in the character’s everyday lives? What are the different abilities?
In everyday life, this magic is often used for housekeeping and maintenance. Most of the abilities fall under the categories of cleaning and organization. There are few applications outside the home, although some people use these abilities to work in jobs which are helped by this, such as being a librarian or a logistics manager for a hotel. Many find that the convenience of this magic outweighes the bother of trying to learn it, especially those who spend most of their time at home, as it opens up time for other activities.

How common is magic, and are all characters aware they possess it?
Magic can be learned by anyone, regardless of bloodline or talent. Often, it is taught by parents to their children, but it is also passed around among friends, and can even be self-learned using literary materials. Despite this, it is too bothersome for some people, as it takes around two months to learn and practice in order to work correctly. In addition, some do not see the benefit of learning this magic if they already live with someone who knows how. The percentage of people who can use this magic is around 30 percent of the total population.

Are there any sensations the characters feel when they are using magic? Describe these sensations using their five senses.
Characters feel a sensation of satisfaction, like the warmth after eating a light meal. Their body feels warm, the tension in their body relaxes slightly, and their eyes clear. In addition, their hands get cleaner with a sort of light scrubbing sensation. Some report smelling a faint mint smell, while others report smelling lemon or no scent at all. Many hear a soft tinkling sound as from a far-away windchime. There are no reports of visions or sights, as well as tastes.

How can you ensure the magic in your story is realistic, and is written as a normalized part of your world?
As the magic is quite mundane (as it is just an easier way to do something that almost everyone has to do), I don’t think it’ll stand out very much. However, I can normalize it by having characters mention it casually, such as by saying “Yeah, I’ll go there right after I charm my dishes.” These phrases could also be used interchangeably with phrases we already use, such as “do the laundry” or “fold clothes”, with no distinction being placed on the method.

What is the origin of your magic?
This magic was originally published by a grandmother, who discovered it after decades of cleaning her house. After trying many different methods, trying to find which was the most efficient and effective, she wrote a short article about her newfound discovery of domestic magic. It was ignored at first, until it eventually spread through word of mouth. Many were skeptical at first but were either convinced after seeing it in a friend’s house or trying it out themselves and seeing the results.

Describe the popular infrastructure in your world.
A relatively popular service — especially among busy, well-off young people — is to hire professional domestic magic users to clean their living places. As this is often faster and less invasive than traditional cleaning, as it does not require the cleaner to go into all the places which need to be cleaned, it is preferred by those people. (It is also cheaper, which is also a benefit to these young professionals.) This service can also be found among hotels, who hire their own legions of cleaners, and wealthier families with palatial homes.

What are the laws of your world, specifically about magic? Punishments?
There are no laws, specifically, about domestic magic, but the governments of the world tend to provide guidelines for their own countries. These guidelines often include reminders, such as to be careful to clean what belongs to you, instead of someone else’s; to use the proper amount of supplies, as if not, the clean can become contaminated or not be completed properly; and to make sure that one is giving the right directions when teaching someone else how to do it.

What are the limitations of your world’s magic?
In addition to being quite limited in scope (only usable in domestic settings), it also has strict resource needs and casting limitations. Although the caster may be decently removed from whatever they are trying to do, they must still be within a 100 feet of it. This is fine for a normal-sized living space, but for exceptionally large tasks or tasks that can only be attempted from afar, can be crippling. Reports have been made about some people being able to cast from further away, but they are uncomfirmed.

How is magic viewed in your world (ie. as a boring normal, as a fascinating element of their life, or as a curse on society etc.)?
It is quite normalized. It has been associated with the same things as normal housekeeping — i.e. that it is boring, that it is useless, that it is unimportant, etc. It is also seen as rather old-fashioned to it oneself, due to its association with ancient grandmothers and prim older cousins with pristine rooms. Despite not being seen as cool, however, many young people secretly practice it themselves, as its practicality (especially for busy young people) can not be overstated.

Urban Fantasy
Sheila winked at the bouncer, as he wordlessly let her into the exclusive Cat Club. She came here often, and all the bouncers knew better than to keep her type out. She smiled a mirthless, dangerous smile: not one of kindness or happiness, but a threat. Here in the depths of Hollywood, the city of glamour and celebrity, was were she liked to prey.
Even compared to all the… creatively-dressed stunning young men and women in the club, she was especially head-turning in her flowing black-and-red dress and lightly tapping stilettos. Eyes involuntarily followed her as she stalked across the room, in search of her victim tonight. She was magnetic.
Sheila had little preference as to who she would take home and feast on tonight, at least in regards to gender or appearence. Really, all she needed was someone who looked young and vibrant and lively. Yes, she thought, youth was all that matteredAfter taking a seat at the bar and flippantly ordering something strong, she prowled the room with her eyes… She recognized a few who were like her, trying to find someone to devour, chatting up girls using their sultry eyes or guys using their devilish grins. Some of them she knew, others she had heard of. She continued scouring the room, spreading her smoldering gaze, until she found what she was looking for. Perfect.
Leaving some random collection of payment (way too much, Sheila knew) on the counter, with her drink undelivered, she strolled to the other side of the room. There, a flushed young women stood alone, rather lost-seeming — perhaps a “friend” had dragged her here only to abandon her, Sheila thought. All the better for Sheila, though, to swoop in and make both their nights much more interesting.
“Hey, darling,” she crooned. “Wanna go somewhere more private?

Steampunk Fantasy
Ani ponked the steel with her hammer. “Curse you! Curse you! C’mon, work!”
She had been working on this project — a hot air balloon, one with which to travel the world — for around a half year now. She had been waiting for this specific day for ages. She had so many ideas on where to go — first, Saints Petersburg, and then Neo Amsterdam, and then Berli — only to be blocked but this stupid stuttering engine! Was all her effort (from scrounging up the parts, to sewing the entire balloon by hand, to cobbling together some sort of safe basket) gone to waste?
Just when her hope seemed to be lost, a hit from her hammer seemed to knock something into place internally, and the engine sputtered on with a huge exhale of black, belching smoke. Ani wheezed. Yes, while she was making it, she knew that her boiler was not the most efficient or clean, but she hadn’t expected it to be this bad. Oh well, at least it was on.
All of her belongings had already been packed into the basket, along with a map and a compass, so all that was left was for Ani to get in herself. After jumping over the edge and dumping a bit of the ballast (old parts) out, she turned up the strength on the burner.
After a few tantalizing seconds, she felt the balloon rise up into the air. She was ecstatic. Until this point, she hadn’t quite believed it would actually have worked. Slowly, Ani rose higher and higher. The air was colder up here, and somewhat thinner, so she was glad she had brought a nice quilt.
Once she got to what she felt like was a nice height, she decided to cut the engine, and floated among the clouds. She had never felt so bright than she did now, looking down at the rolling hills and pastoral towns. To Saints Petersburg she go!

Science Fantasy
“Now, now, students, what do we know about the Benedictans?”
A kid raised his hand. “They’re evil?”
The teacher laughed. “Well, that’s true, but I’m asking about what sort of technology they have, what sort of techniques they use, how they fight… that sort of stuff. Yes, Baln?”
Baln, the smartypants of the class, took a deep breath and started to speak. “Well, we’re not exactly sure how they do it, but they seem to have some sort of plasma that they can shoot from their hands. Their bodies don’t seem to suffer any consequences for doing this, nor do any of their technology, but it is incredibly devastating to us, because it tends to light everything on fire. Not only that, their generals are capable of someone making those blasts from lower-ranking soldiers stronger, as if some sort of amplification power.”
The teacher stopped him there. “Very good, Baln. Now, how can we use our technology to help stop them? Yes, Juli?”
“Well… Um, I know that our ships are faster, and our movements tend to be more dextrous… so those could be advantages, especially since our weapons are designed to maximize those advantages.”
“Very good!!” Baln sulked. He hadn’t gotten exclamation marks. “Well, kids, I know you’re still very young, but you should know that the future rests with you. We don’t really understand how those weird Benny bodies work, but we’ll figure it out, and then it’ll be up to you guys to work it out. What we know now is that they have some sort of magical — yes, I said magical, I know we say magic doesn’t exist, but it does — energy that they can use. Now, obviously, since we don’t have magic ourselves, we can’t counter that directly. But even now, our scientists are experimenting with special shields that are based on their magic. Now, don’t tell your sisters that, okay? It’s top secret.”