2023 Resolutions
2022 taught me about hubris and the balance of life and creativity. I spent a lot of it with my attentions split into too many directions—some necessary, some not—and I hope to take the lessons of last year in stride as this one is spent chasing our longtime goal of a playable Ethnis.
Ethnis an infinite canvas of infinite ambition—something we've slowly had to learn to cultivate, rather than allow to run rampant. This year I want you to be able to take that leap into lore, to become someone within it through the increasingly complete Character Creation.
As an outlet for my desire to write prose, I would additionally like to work on my story prospect, Star-Crossing Lovers, as the lesbian complement to Barron's upcoming gay romance novella, Gruesome Ends; New Beginnings.
Wish us luck!
2022 taught me many lessons about myself. I learned how to push myself, without burning myself down. Still gotta work on it. This year I want to put my new knowledge about myself to the test. I have been working non-stop of my first published book. Set in Ethnis, it's giving me a great way to practice my own voice within World Anvil, and give something that feels distinctly me. I plan on finishing the draft before April (preferably March) this year, and getting down into editting a full draft for the first time.
I will also be working hard on Ethnis' second Zine, a compendium of wildlife from Jhoutai. This will be a good chance for me to learn some publisher tricks as well as how to keep articles extremely compact and entertaining.
In order to do this, I have to be better to myself both mentally and physically. I need to be able to plan and organize, which I plan on doing using discord. It's going to be the next step of what made 2022 such a productive year for me.
Goals
TTRPG
In order to be complete, E.N.Core should be playable standalone, with all the requisite pages: Character Creation, Game Loop, Gear System, Vehicular Mechanics, and Magic.
With over a million words on WA you'd think the Codex would cover the bases, but... nope! We've spent a lot of time out in the grass, and now it's time to polish up all of the bits and bobs necessary for us, and you, to run games in Ethnis.
Modules
A single-player playable module set entirely within WA using the map as a means to unveil the story and explore the city of Yak'koli as you follow the dire thread.
(Adult) Stories
When scavver Calhoon finds an abandoned space freighter, the SWV Resolute Roar, in Federation space, he thinks he's found the answer to all his debts. Instead, what he finds Ja-Guen, the lone survivor of an onboard pack of ferocious predators. Fears and passions arise as they plot their escapes.
8 chapters in. Come join the Beta read in the Discord!
Orrah and Raga are a duo of vagabonds trying to get as far from their homeworld as possible over a months-long journey. Each chapter is about them having to evade discovery, get supplies, fit in, escape, and so forth, all while falling deeper into a torrid and passionate love.
Ethnis began in the 90s as the rambling childhood imaginings of Ademal who was unable to shake herself of the constant thread of stories and visions—some created by musings, other seeming to unravel themselves like arcane archaeology—offered by the increasingly elaborate setting.
By the time she met Barron in college in 2009, the setting had produced one book, a stack of journals, a folder of illustrations, and a several-hundred page OneNote. At first, Barron wasn't interested in all The Nerd Shit , but Ademal had his number, and he was addicted in no time.
By 2017, Ethnis continued to accrue a thick OneNote (over 600 pages) of Entries, some of which had made their way onto GSites as reference for the players picked up during Ademal's high school and college experiences. As GSites announced its new version, it became clear to Ademal that this was the year she needed to find (or make) a host for the Codex.
This is when she joined World Anvil, and it was not long after that that Barron made the leap from player to writer.
In the time since, they've found Oscar in their basement, set him onto drawing, and wrangled years of lore into something meant (and fit) for human consumption, though there is always more to do. They also published a Zine, took part in many competitions, and are well on track to release their TTRPG!
Beyond that, a thousand aspirations for a thousand worlds still await.
Ademal
Barron
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Author's Notes