Gormhan
1314/04/08
Scope
The motivation behind building Gormhan
First and foremost, I write novels in this world. That's the reason I created the Kingdom of Crathlia, Inis Baile Mor (once called "Draca Isle"), and the rest of Gormhan.
But I didn't need this level of detail. So there's a reason I stayed, a reason I keep building: I want to create a fantasy world that's technologically advanced, with no conflict between magic and technology, but no enchantments either. I want to explore the dynamics of strict class structures and how they're affected by magic. I want a world full to the brim with history.
The goal of the project
I want my readers to be transported to a vivid, realistic world full of magic and humanity, both good and bad. I also want readers to meet one of my novel's main characters, Cordelia Colbreak Evenbrook, who "writes" all my articles!
Gormhan's Unique Selling point
In this 1950s-inspired world, dragons, holograms, sock hops, and class warfare all swing together. Most citizens of the Kingdom of Crathlia have telekinetic abilities - they're called Amalgams. The elite Paragons have two abilities--telekinesis and something else. Powerless Dregs are in the minority...
Theme
Genre
My world is fantasy with an atompunk twist! The technology is mostly inspired by what people in the 1950s thought technology would be like, though there do exist smartphone-like devices (with holograms!).
Reader Tone
In Gormhan, the outside is bright and polished, but the inside is stagnant pond water. Inequalities are everywhere if you know where to look, hidden behind the happy-go-lucky suburbs and the airbrushed nobility.
My narrator Cordelia attempts to pull back the curtain into the realities of noble life with a critical eye, giving the articles a bit of a darker tone... but with a strong focus on the ancient nobility, mostly ignoring the lives of commoners--both good and bad. She'd freely admit she isn't exactly the person you'd consult for a realistic look at the lives of Amalgams and Dregs. Watch out for her biases and read between the lines. She does try to be as objective as possible, but a Paragon born and raised can't know what it looks like from the bottom, after all...
Character Agency
Character agency seems low. Even those of high status feel powerless to truly change their world, even if they want to right the rampant inequalities. The most successful world-shaker, the ambitious and selfish Empress Calida, started a world war, the aftershocks of which still vibrate across Gormhan, but even her newly-forged Lumen Empire may not last. In general, those who do try to create change are met with resistance and a general feeling that nothing they do will last. Many are viewed as naive for even trying (see: King Leonard Whitewave Alderley). Still, some have hope that together, either slow policy change or through revolution, this stubborn world can be made better...