Dandelyon's Worlds

A friend of mine on Facebook asked, "I've been meaning to ask you for a while--is there anywhere to actually begin at the beginning of your stories?"

That's an interesting question, and not a simple one. It's not as if all my stories and poetry are set in the same world, after all. I started this web-busking with Fireborn, and there's certainly a beginning spot for that: With Wings on his Fingers. And there's a Table of Contents.

And then I started doing #FridayFlash--and those stories are set all over, from deep space to potentially right next door, and range from speculative fiction to stuff that is (or at least could be) set in the world we all live in. There is a Landing Page for this project as well, which lists many of the stories, with a little teaser text to help people decide which ones to read.  Some of my favorites are the Feather-Blessed Dragons, Deep Dreams, and Fog and Lembas.

And even in Torn World--well, the world is wide (as worlds should be), and I have stories set all over the map. As such, there's more than one starting place even there. Some of those stories are deeply entwined with things other writers are doing (the stories about snow-unicorn riders, for instance), while others are intersect more tangentially (the stories of Dini and Lalya). Still others, like my stories of Neteilyu and her friends/family, and my stories of Rai Kunabei, are in parts of the world that, so far, remain explored by only me.

If you've never been to Torn World, we have a page for new readers, under the words Start Here.  That's a good place to get oriented.  There are links to stories there, though not all of them are mine. 

Once you've picked a place to start, each story also includes links to related stories, characters, artwork, and articles.

The next step is to choose one of the many ways to navigate the site.  Each page (story, poem, art, article, character description) has links to related pages.  You could start with any of the pages listed on the Start Here page.  Or you could click on Characters, and start on stories of a character you think you'll like.  All of the character pages have links, but the first page you'll see is a Lead Characters page.  Most of the lead characters have a number of stories.

If you're adventuresome, you can even click on the "previous" or "next" story in the timeline, but that story could beset anywhere in the world!

If you want to check out my stories in particular, you still have options. 

If you're interested in gender and families, Building a Home is the first Dini and Lalya story.  This is one of the first stories I wrote about how the Empire's licensing laws affect families.

Another of my favorites is We Shape Our Lives Like Clay, which shows a different family intersecting with the Empire's licensing laws.

If you want to read about sea monsters and the people who make food or tourist knick-knacks from their remains, you could start with either An Irresistible Attraction or Monster Teeth and Art Glass. 

If you want to read about snow-unicorn riders, try Beads and Memories or Wild Snowy Chase.

I also have stories and poetry that are for subscribers only, including a story arc set in a wild and beautiful area of Torn World (starting with Under The Waterfalls) and Stillborn Dreams, which I think is the best poem I've written in years.

Or you can go to my "Creator" page and pick a story or poem, but that page is up for a serious redesign--the initial design is just not adequate for a writer with multiple storylines.  You have to read the fine print to see which stories I wrote, and which ones I sponsored or edited, and you have to guess which ones are related to each other from the story description.  Right now it's a great place to go to see how much work I did during the last year or so, or for someone to see which of my stories they've missed, but it's too chaotic to serve as a recommended reading list for a new reader!

(And I forgot to mention Harp of Feathers, which won the Torn World Short Music-Theme Story Contest, though it doesn't have a sequel (yet))

Um, yeah, I've been busy!  If anyone has particular interests I didn't cover, above, feel free to ask!

Oh--and the drawing above is my rough pencil sketch to accompany my poem, Got to Have a License; I'm in the process of staring at it a while before inking it, since I can still fix stuff at this page.  But only if I can figure out "What's wrong with this picture" before it's inked.  (Someday I'll have photoshop...)

People might ignore this, but I'm going to make a prompt at Sketchfest for drawings of any of the types of human beings in my Fireborn stories. In that world, the different forms of humans arise from basically the same genetic code, since any two humans can mate, and their child is often the same form as one or both parents, but not always--and could be any form, depending on how the genes are expressed.

So the basic form is the same--a skull and body structure much like our own--one spine, one pelvis, one set of shoulders, four major limbs. However, they also do have tails with two tips, and opposable big toes. All are mammals, and have thick head hair unless otherwise specified.  There's a number of different physical forms, though in Fireborn, there are five mentioned:

So, we start with the landborn. These are most like Earth humans--about the same amount of body fat, short (normal length to us) fingers and toes with nails like our own, soft skin and sparse body hair and thick head hair. Their tails are monkeylike and prehensile, but not particularly strong. The tail tips are hidden in longer hair, much like head hair or beard, and if the hair doesn't obscure them, they are expressive enough to gesture with.

Next are the woodborn. These humans are designed for climbing trees. They tend to be a little skinnier than landborns, longer of arm and leg, with thicker body fur, strong prehensile tails (strong enough to hang from), and strong claws instead of nails. The tips of the tail are longer and much stronger than landborns' tail tips.

Lakeborns: Lakeborns are designed for warm freshwater. They are nearly hairless except on their heads, and their tails are short with webbing between the tips. They could use them to propel them through the water, however, it is customary to twine the tail between the legs, covering the genital area much like the bottoms of a bikini swim suit. Their fingers and toes are quite long (twice as long as our fingers), and likewise have webbing between them.  Lacking hair, lakeborns tend to be heavily tattooed in adulthood.

Seaborns: These humans are designed for cold waters. They have a very thick layer of fat and also are heavily furred, much like an otter. They also have webbing between their fingers and toes, but the fingers and toes are shorter. I'm still considering the best way to do the tail for seaborns.

Windborn: These humans are smaller than the rest, and (by our standards) quite gaunt, with thick skin and dense fur instead of fat. They have fingers and toes much like woodborns, but a little longer, and have very long--well, they don't call them arms, because they have webbing that turns their arms into wings. Their tails are wide and long enough to provide some stability in the air, and are covered in longer hair, like their heads.

In addition, of course, we have fireborns--people that can be of any of the physical forms, but who have a talent for magic.

Now, off to sketchfest to leave this as a link, and see if anyone wants to try their hand at drawing my strange people!

And then to sketch!

The Rose and Bay awards are open for nomination. You can nominate your favorite creative crowdfunded projects for this award. Here is a post linking to each nomination page (fiction, art, poetry, webcomics, other creative projects, and donors are this year's categories).

Anyone is eligible to make nominations, though a creator cannot nominate their own work.  Each of you is welcome to nominate any crowdfunded project you've been enjoying.

A sample nomination, with Torn World information, is as follows:

Project Title: Torn World
Creator Name: Ellen Million, Elizabeth Barrette, Deirdre Murphy, Valerie Higgins, and others
Link: http://www.tornworld.net
Category: Other Project (an original unique shared world with fiction, poetry, mythology, art, and encyclopedia-style articles about the world)
Summary: Torn World is a shared science-fantasy world where the co-creators write, draw, paint, and othewise create a complex world by telling the stories of the people of that world.
Crowdfunding Method: Torn World is crowdfunded through subscriptions to the site, sponsorships to specific stories, and donations to the creators during monthly Muse Fusion events, where the Torn World creators create cool new stuff in response to the prompts and questions posed by the audience.

Torn World is eligible in the "other" category, since Torn World includes poetry, fiction, mythology, art, and worldbuilding articles.  If you wish to nominate Torn World, the other category nomination page is here. 

I also crowdfunded other projects:

• Dandelyon's Verse (for instance, Green Eyed Friend and Grandmother's Stories).  My poetry landing page is here, and it includes poetry since I started the project

• Fireborn, which I had hoped to finish in 2010; I still owe you the end of this story, and will get bak to it.. The landing page for Fireborn is here.

• Feather-Blessed, my series of short stories about girls turned into dragons by a magical feather.  You start the series here.

If someone wants to nominate any of these projects and needs more information to fill in the blanks, just let me know.

It feels good to be back writing this story! I've missed Orchid, especially. To the people who've been following her story, welcome back!

To my new friends, Welcome to the world of the fireborn, where, according to the myth, people were divided into different forms so that there would be no more fear and hatred and prejudice.

(If this is your first visit, the myth is better recounted here, and this story starts with Wings on His Fingers.)

ORCHID

The rocks felt very heavy. Orchid would have laughed at their weight a week ago. Of course, she reflected, yesterday she’d barely been able to fly with a net full of food.
( In which Orchid finds... )
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This story isn't making me rich, but it has introduced me to new friends. So I hope you'll take a moment to comment or at least wave before you move on.

Welcome back to the world of the Fireborn! If you are new to Fireborn, or if you may have missed any installments, here are links to all the installments. 


ORCHID

Orchid ate the seaweed raw, though it got less appetizing with every bite. But she was exhausted, and hungry enough that she wouldn’t sleep unless she ate.

Once she had finished it, she wedged herself high in the tree, sinking her claws deep into the bark, and closed her eyes. Soon, maybe even before sunrise, her mother would wake her, and this nightmare would be over. They could fly home together, and be safe. Then she sighed. She didn’t really believe her mother would fly off to safety leaving any child in danger. ( Read more... )
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Please feel free to friend me, and to refer my stories to your friends.

Thank you for reading!

Welcome back to the world of the fireborn, where, according to the myth, people were divided into different forms so that there would be no more fear and hatred and prejudice.

(If this is your first visit, the myth is better recounted here, and this story starts with Wings on His Fingers.)

DRAGON

Dragon swam on top of the water as he approached the huge old oak tree they’d chosen for their rendezvous, so she would know it was him. Orchid was finishing the last of the huge bag of food he’d cooked for their lunch as he pulled out of the water under the tree.

He really had thought he was going overboard when he gathered more seaweed while he swam, just in case.

Orchid greeted him with a smile and a huge yawn, the empty net bag dangling from one foot. ( Read more... )

The story continues here.)

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This work is supported solely by crowdfunding. You, my readers, are the patrons who support this work, both financially and with your words. If you enjoyed it, please take a moment to let me know, or refer me to a friend. Your comments can help shape the story, and funds received speed the posting of the next chapter.

And I love to hear from you!

I guess this is my catch-up weekend. :-D

It's been too long since we all visited the world of the windborn, the lakeborn, and the magically-talented fireborn.

For my new friends (and anyone who's lost track) the story starts here and the chapters are listed here. But now, back to the story:

Black Berries and Butterfish

ORCHID

Orchid dreamed she was traveling with her mother, sleeping on a beach and waking in the silent twilight before dawn to eat berries from a bowlful they’d gathered the night before. Mist, who was very young, just a teenager, was crying for a little boy in a distant town, who’d been killed because he was fireborn, and the grownups around him feared him, and attacked him. Even little children fight back when cornered, though the effort is doomed.

The weeping embarrassed Orchid; it seemed too private to intrude on, so she pretended she didn’t hear the sobs and very quietly ate the berries to calm her stomach. As she ate, she noticed the bowl was a shell of some sort. It looked very bright on the dark sand, and slightly blue, the berries inside like black stones. Somehow she knew black stones were safe, at least this week.

That didn’t make sense, ( but... )

The next chapter is one of Dragon's:  Homecoming, with Tea
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Thank you all for your patience and support!  I hope you'll take a moment to let me know you were here.

Welcome to my new friends and readers! We're kind of in the middle of things here; if you'd rather start at the beginning, you'll find that here: Wings On His Fingers.
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MIST

It was still light when Starfish and Lotus came for her, both looking grim. Starfish picked her up like a child and walked into the water with her. ( The water was shockingly cold... )

The story continues here.
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This work is supported solely by crowdfunding. You, my readers, are the patrons who support this work, both financially and with your words. If you enjoyed it, please take a moment to let me know. Your comments can help shape the story, and funds received speed the posting of the next chapter.

Besides, comments are like chocolate!

I have a new Torn World story published. Wide Sky With Small Critters is a rewritten version of one of the Muse Fusion stories I posted here.  If you want to see the benefits of having readers and editors critique a story, you could check it out even if you read the rough draft.

Also, if you want me to post the next Fireborn chapter before Monday Night, go vote in my poll.  Yes, I know it's underneath distractingly cute kitten pictures.  Well, pictures of distractingly cute kittens, anyway.  I've done better pictures.  These guys aren't exactly willing to sit still, much less pose, at this point.

I posted a bonus chapter of Fireborn a few minutes ago. If you should be able to see it and can't, drop me a line and I'll make sure you're on the filter.

If you want to be on that list, it's easy enough to get me to add you.

Also, for patrons who don't have LJ accounts--just tell me that, and I'll e-mail you the chapter.

 
This computer is running like half-crystallized molasses tonight, and I've got work (with no net-access) tomorrow.  But I'll check my e-mail when I can, and update the list ASAP.