SummerCamp 2024 Pledge
Preparing for Malkora's sixth Summer Camp... and Ayun Sovos's first!
"If I don't get some prompts to work on soon, I will start biting people."SummerCamp season is upon us, but somehow time crept up on us so stealthily... I still can't believe it's June! It's time to prep for the best season of the year, and get our worlds primed and ready for the feast of prompts!
Whoa! This is my sixth year of Summer Camp!
I started a diamond streak last year, and I'm going to keep it going!
Week One: Change
Assignment 1
Consider what kind of changes would fit in with your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.
Malkora
Change is a pretty foundational theme in Malkora already, given the world's shifting nature and the impending changes set to further destabilize its present world state in the narrative. The world is bound for something darker, and the changes in motion are meant to draw Malkora into ruin, as it was in its darkest age.Ayun Sovos
This world is brand new, and I have yet to fully explore what is typical, let alone what within that is changing. I know thus far that this setting is bright and ever hopeful — this is not something I plan to change, though there may be some breaks in the light in specific locations. That could be my start!Assignment 2
Decide how many prompts you'll go for during Summer Camp. Then, download the pledge document and fill it accordingly!
Camp Feral Badge by Strixxline
Dewy Diamonds Badge by Strixxline
Assignment 3
Get your categories and tags organized!
Malkora
I'm fairly content with the state of Malkora's categories. There's space to fill, but it's all organized in a way I like. IntroductionPeoples
Faithkept
Eldwrought
Leyborne
Powers Divinity
Leylines
Worldspirit
Places
Nefyran
Compendiums
Herbarium
Bestiary
Community
Events & Challenges
Patron Halls
Ayun Sovos
Due to Ayun Sovos being a brand new world, I didn't have many categories figured yet, so let's start simple! IntroductionAdventures
The Path to Adventure
RealmsDenizens
The Owlworks
Community
I don't have an intro for this world yet, and might not for a little while, but I'll prepare it to match Malkora! Otherwise, Ayun Sovos is meant to be story-focused, so adventures is my first category.
From there, I think what's most important is the realms of the world (exploration destinations!) and the people who live throughout them!
The Owlworks category in Ayun Sovos is my meta section, and I'm debating if I want to change my Community category in Malkora to match it. It just seems more thematically appropriate to Ayun Sovos than to Malkora, so I'm not sure.
Assignment 4
Take a look at your meta, primer, and any other high-level document and update it according to the current state of your world.
Malkora
I believe Malkora's meta was last updated prior to WorldEmber, and not much has changed for the world since then, but I did find some sections during my re-read where some re-writing might be needed. Fundamentally, though, I'm still pretty pleased with Malkora's meta, and feel that all of the themes listed are quite accurate and on track with my vision for the world.Malkora Meta
Ayun Sovos
My meta for Ayun Sovos was completed not too long ago, so I feel as though it's still superbly up to date! Regardless, re-reading it was a great reminder for what my goals and vision were for the world at its creation, and I'll be carrying that inspiration into SummerCamp!Ayun Sovos Meta
Even if I don't plan to make many edits to my meta(s), going through and giving them a fresh read left me with a lot of hype! I'm holding a lot of bubling excitement about my worldbuilding after reading through my goals and motivations for each world.
Week Two: Refuge
Assignment 1
Consider what kinds of refuge would fit in with your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.
Malkora
Refuge is something many in Malkora seek, from all manner of ills. The innate hostility of the landscape leaves few of these spaces intact for long, but there are sanctuaries like the Kingdom of Arsavela where the leylines appear to have no effect on the lands. The previous week's theme of change might have devastating effect on what is considered refuge in Malkora, but I have yet to determine how exactly that will play out.Ayun Sovos
In a land of adventurers, refuge is a commonly sought out thing. When dungeon diving, there is always somewhere safe you're looking forward to returning home to, whether it's your base camp or the local tavern! There's a pretty clear delineation between places that are hostile and places that are safe in Ayun Sovos — it will be interesting to see which of them we might come to dive into next month!Assignment 2
Find a community—whether that’s our Discord server, Facebook Group, your RPG or friend group, or something else.
Tune in for co-working and chatter!
I host regular streams where we sit down and get some work done together! If you're in need of some company or a body double while you push through prompts, stop on by my Twitch channel!
Our chapter: Seven Tomes!
Events are always more fun with friends! I run a chapter for fantasy-minded folks who love the genre! There are lots of other chapters out there on the World Anvil Discord server! Read more about them in #info-chapters!
by Strixxline
Join the Owlworks Discord!
If you're looking for a cozy community for worldbuilding, creating, and general nerdery, join us in the Owlworks! This is also the best place to get updates on my worlds, my art, and my streams!Assignment 3
Find ways to improve styling and layout in your world!
Even while making this pledge article, I found bits and pieces of CSS that needed adjusting and correcting, and I'm sure I'll find even more as I go along. I don't foresee needing any major fixes, and making standard article templates in the past hasn't really paid off for my creation style. Overall, I feel like I have a pretty strong grasp on my preferred way of organizing and styling my work, so this is something I'll be tackling on a need-to-fix basis.
Assignment 4
If you’re a CSS wizard, maybe take the time now to give it a polish!
I don't claim the mantle of wizard, but I know I will inevitably find some tricky little CSS adventure to fall into over the course of the next month or two. I think most of the wizardry I need for this event is set in place, however. Malkora's theme is fairly complete, until I decide it's time for an overhaul, and Ayun Sovos's theme is brand new and thorough. I'm sure I'll find an excuse to fall into the CSS rabbit hole during SummerCamp, so don't worry!
Week Three: Belief
Assignment 1
Consider what kind of beliefs would fit in with your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.
Malkora
I spent a lot of time during WorldEmber thinking about the faith systems of Malkora, developing some of its pantheons and major gods, and considering the way that people's faith in the gods throughout the world can fragment the gods and alter their forms and presentations. Humanity's beliefs have a strong, yet unpredictable influence over the world's realm of the divines, and I can't wait to explore that theme more during Summer Camp, if I can.Ayun Sovos
The premise of Ayun Sovos's origin places focus on the gods of life and art, so these concepts are pretty foundational to many of the belief systems found scattered throughout the world. I like to imagine the hatching of the world is something that gets brought up often by the creaturefolk of Ayun Sovos, making statements about how the best ideas and creations are 'hatched,' as opposed to crafted, but that's a cute little thought I just invented.Assignment 2, 3 & 4
- Create a bank of inspirations! Quotes, music, description of experiences and shower thoughts, etc.
- Find art and pictures that inspire you, and grab a map if you don't have one (and need one).
- Check your inspirations again. Are they still relevant? Can you find any that better represent the current state of your project?
So, I'm not typically the type to gather a collection of inspirations, to line them up in preparation for creative sessions, but it is nice to go have a look at the content I have created to get hyped for creating even more!
Malkora's Inspirations
A lot of my worldbuilding drive for Malkora comes from this map. There is a lot of uncharted land out there, and even the parts of the map that you can see aren't really developed in a meaningful way. I have a lot of work to do, still, just setting up the primary continent of the world. Likewise, I'm finding a lot of inspiration from my world's leylines, and I really can't wait to explore more of what they can do through their influence on the world at large, and the people who live in it.
by Strixxline
by Strixxline
by Strixxline
by Strixxline
by Strixxline
Ayun Sovos Inspirations
This brand new world doesn't have nearly as much visual development as Malkora, which makes sense given how new this world is. All I've got thus far to work with is one ducky illustration and a cute little ducky story, plus another story that is mooooost of the way written and should be coming soon! I'm eager to explore more of this world through story and adventure, and here's hoping that more art can make its way into the world with some time!
Week Four: Decay
Assignment 1
Consider what kind of changes would fit in with your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.
Malkora
Decay is a topic I LOVE, especially for Malkora. As things begin to change throughout the world, including unchanged regions like Arsavela, many aspects of the world that people knew are in differing stages of decay. Empires are crumbling, refuges grow dark, and beliefs are shaken across the land. The most obvious connection Malkora has to decay as a theme, is the magic of decay brought about by the Leyline of Atrophy. There are regions of the world affected by this leyline that I would love to explore during Summer Camp, like Ba'logor — Kora's ancestral home.Ayun Sovos
One of the drama points I brought up in my meta for this world mentions a decline in the quality of some natural materials gathered in the world. This seems like a great connection to the subject of decay, and we can explore what is causing this negative change in the world, and what can be done to tackle it. As this world is heavy on gathering materials and crafting with them, I'm also drawn to thinking about what exactly our characters will be gathering, and a big one on the brain (with thanks to Mochi) is mushrooms! These fabulous fungi are one of the prime markers of decay out in the world, and don't necessarily carry strong negative connotations on their own (like the term "decay" can).Assignment 2
Think about any last-minute strategies to optimize your writing space and time!
I feel like a pretty low-maintenance writer, but I can scrounge up a few things for my list to make sure I'm SC-ready! My main focus will be on preparing my space with some decluttering, and planning out my stream schedule for July! Cleaning my desk - the clutter is so distracting!
My desk offers a lot of space for objects to sit, whether they be trinkets, snacks, drinks, or bits and baubles from my current project, but leaving these things around is making my desk into a very distracting space. Time for some cleanup!
Keeping a sippy on hand - gotta stay hydrated!
My Twitch community has successfully conditioned me to always have a cup of something yummy nearby to make sure I'm staying hydrated while I work. In this context, water does count as something yummy.
Plan out stream days - group productivity days!
I've got to create my July stream schedule! Sitting down together to encourage each other, focusing on writing sprints, and sharing positivity with one another in real time was a huge contributor to how quickly I was able to snag the diamond badge in SC '23!
I do like throwing on some tunes while I work, but not typically anything specific. I'll be sure to keep my headset charged for the long writing sessions!
Assignment 3 & 4
Review your world homepage to hook potential readers! Take a look at your author profile and pillar articles on your world and polish them!
I'm pretty content with the state of my profiles and homepages, but there are some changes and edits that I did decide to make. The first made me feel a little silly: I added my worlds to my author profile. Why were those not already there? The world may never know. I also decided to go touch up Malkora's home page somewhat, removing that box up at the top telling everyone that changes are happening. We know they're happening. They're always happening. I also decided to bring back the world title and subtitle! I'll be workshopping what the actual subtitle should be.
RAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA I hope you have the best Summer Camp!! Thank you feral overlord for creating such a lovely chaotic camp <3
It is my pleasure to spread the chaos of hype and love throughout the community >:)
Seek a new dawn, in Malkora!
Craft a bright new world, in Ayun Sovos!
The Feral Sovereign returns for Summer Camp 2024!