World Map: The World of the White War

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At long last, here she is: my world map. I'd love to be exciting and proudly declare her name, showcasing a wondrous imagination as to her title, but sadly, I happen to suck at naming worlds. Sure, cities, countries and even rivers and seas are a cinch—but any name I come up with for a world seems horribly contrived, and usually curiously Elvish. She used to be "Eluvas", but I decided it didn't suit her, didn't sound 'right' and left her subsequently nameless. 

This isn't a huge problem; it might be if the important things lacked names, but the name of a world to me is about as important as labelling every single city, village and tree! What matters is there. What makes a difference to the story is there. 

Lovely, isn't she? 

I've been deliberating adding a key to the map, but I do think the symbols/shading used speak for the effects they represent; the 'sands' are obviously desert-like, the 'marshes'—well, come now. And so on and so forth. 

The story revolves around the city of Kroysonne, capital city of the White Kingdom. This isn't to say that the story takes place primarily here—it doesn't. Rather, Kroysonne is the seat of Lady Kalvina; Living Goddess and ruling deity of the White Kingdom. The King, too, dwells in Kroysonne, making the city the pulse of the kingdom. 

Farther afield lies Ijmaviska and Tyyant; both as mysterious as each other in their own rights. The Elves dwell in the split (both geographically and politically) Ijmaviska, whilst the Fae occupy the secretive, hidden land of Tyyant. 

Between Sendar and Tyyant stands a powerful Fae barrier, the coastlines are silent, showing little sign of life, and even the Sea of Silke denies access to Tyyant's westernmost point with a scattering of rocky masses and islands. People know better than to venture to the veiled lands of Tyyant, so contact with the Fae is isolated and on the whole, non-existent. 

To the east lies Sendar; land of marshes, harsh ground and few lakes. Lashed by the ruddy Copper Sea and cut off from both her neighbours—by harsh mountains to the west, magic to the north—Sendar's only company comes in the shape of the shadowed creatures hailing from the Voidpool in the Deadlands—the very lands they used to call their own until much of it was reduced to ash and bone by the powerful magic of the Fae, after the Sendi waged an arrogant war. 

Across the Copper Sea, the Dragonscales beckon the curious and foolhardy to a land where only dragons and their lesser kin dwell. There are few dragons left since the Elder Dragons forsook their place in the world, becoming instead great spirits that dwell between the worlds, deep in the Ether—the very place mages and sorcerers draw their power from. The ancient dragons became a part of magic itself. 

Many, but not all chose this path: the remaining dragons live and hunt on their secluded islands, surviving somehow, scarcely sighted afield of their islands. Dragons remain a respected entity; powerful, old, though little-considered in a flesh-and-blood sense by the Whytish. 

The Sendi are different, partaking in active worship of their 'Dragonlords', whom they revere as living deities in the stead of their Living God—Arath—whose demise came through his own selfish folly as he took a dangerous war to the lands of the Fae, destroying the first Veil. 

Let's talk of the Elves. 

Caught in a constant civil war long turned cold, the relations between North and South Ijmaviska are strained at best, violent at worst. The Ice Elves in the North consider themselves the betters of the nomadic, wandering Sand Elves in the South: neither side sees reason, and it is a blessing in recent history that conflict has frozen, lowered to subtle, dangerous machinations and courtly intrigue. 

The quiet—albeit stiff—appearance belies a cruel game of one-upmanship and subterfuge. In response to this, the Living God of the Elves refuses to leave, yet he refuses to support one side over the other, choosing instead to dwell on the small island between the two, tended to by a council formed from both sides. In addition, both the North and South formed ruling assemblies of their own to govern their individual lands. Despite this, the council on which the Living God, Rainier, sits has ultimate power over both assemblies—though he'll rarely interfere in matters unless demanded by both bodies, or deemed necessary by his judgement alone. 

The Whytish humans received a mention when speaking about the overall plot, although little was said of their country in the same terms discussed here. The Living Goddess, Kalvina, rules supreme, aided by a King to whom she binds herself for a span of years—usually fifty. Together, they rule, deity and mortal united. The White Kingdom is lush, green and vast; mountains climb and slope, dense woodlands roll on for miles and great rivers and streams connect to great lakes, aiding transportation and trade within her own borders. 

The White Kingdom is divided into daenens. Each daenen is ruled by its Daen. These minor lords govern their own lands, but answer to the Lady and the King on all that is asked of them. As such, a council is formed on which all Daens sit: the Council of Kings. Headed by both Kalvina and the King, the council is the practical ruling body for the whole kingdom. 

The northernmost daenen is under the half-rule of the Elves (presently, North Ijmaviskan rule). The colder lands of Yns'daenen are more suited to the Ice Elves than than Whytish humans, used to their temperate, green lands. This arrangement serves to strengthen the alliance between the Elves and Whytish humans, and is valued by both Kalvina, and her brother-god, Rainier. 

Relations with the mysterious Fae exist only in stories, and the Sendi remain a people with whom they have contact for the purpose of trade alone. The same can likely be said for the Sendi. The mountains separating them are viewed as a blessing, not a barrier. 

The climate is as might be expected. Ijmaviska North flaunts icelakes, snow-fields and cities that glitter in the constant winter sun, whilst farther south, her sister boasts warm sands and gentle winds. Sendar's marshes bring an insidious dampness which in turn brings rain, the temperature of which differs according to season. All that is known about the Fae lands, is that the trees outnumber the cities, and it never snows. 

So, this is her—this is my world. Be nice to her; she's very shy and gentle. 

I hope to post more about my work next time—most likely not excerpts as I'm being coy about my work—and to further introduce the characters and the plot. Furthermore, I intend to post not only more reviews, but a news-style post detailing new and upcoming books that I'll be reading, to not only give a little news, but to share what I'm really about what it comes to fantasy. 

An Introduction to The White War

When any new blog takes its first little steps out into the big, hungry forest that is the internet, it can feel as though its papa is talking to himself (and perhaps he is!).

But instead of wallowing on the sidelines of the fantasy world, stepping softly about the fortress walls for fear of waking sleeping dragons (you know what they say about that), it's probably best to try and scale the grand stone walls of the castle with little more than a rope and grapnel, with a bundle of determination stuffed in a knapsack. 

Presently I'm writing the novel that's been clawing at the grey squishy stuff in my head for years, desperately seeking release. Unfortunately, it has transformed into something of a gargantuan beast, having been kept under lock and key for umpteen years, whilst I've been toiling away pretending to be an academic, when really what I wanted to do, was let this thing run free. 

The novel is by no means finished, but neither is it a blank page with a title and good intentions. It's currently sitting somewhere in the awkward middle, neither here nor there, occasionally rolling onto its back for a belly rub when it's feeling lonely, otherwise running about in circles like a thing possessed, just waiting to become words on a page. Since this blog is about the project itself, and not about why it's not finished already, I won't go too deeply into the evils of my time at University, writing for a degree wherein genre fiction is not only regarded with a surprised, arched eyebrow, but also a small titter when your back is turned. Essentially the beast was tamed and instead of pure roaring fantasy with bells on, it became a purring mess that liked a snooze in the midday sun. 

It finally began to shake off the cobwebs, yawning widely, when I took another route (read as, chose a different genre) for my Masters Degree, and let the beast slowly awaken. That's where we are now: my beast and I are ready to make this happen (whatever, "this" is!). 

As a plot, The White War has been solid for a very long time. The summary of the story would go as follows, if presented as a synopsis: 

The White Kingdom, a varied realm of humans, flanked on both sides by the kingdoms of the elves and fae, has always known that its single weakness is also its greatest strength: it's Lady. Kalvina is the Living Goddess of the White Kingdom, a tangible deity whose power has protected and nurtured the realm since the Creator moved on, leaving the world he'd craft in the hands of his immortal children. 

Though the Lady rules with kind firmness (so say those who love her), there are factions who would see her expelled, those who consider her as a meddlesome obstacle on the true path that the realm should walk towards. Protected by her own power of foresight, Kalvina dwells in a glorious palace whose towers breech the clouds, and there her mortal soldiers pledge their lives to her service. 

Greyan Xar'hail—half-elven, half human—is one of these soldiers. A major in the White League, outranked in his regiment only by his father, Greyan is more than happy to spend his life away from his native Ijmaviska. All Ijmaviska holds for the half-elf is a constricting life as a noblewoman's son, whereas in the human White Kingdom at his father's side, he may serve the Lady in peace, honouring too the elves' Living God—Kalvina's brother—with his gesture of alliance. For Greyan all is well. 

Until, that is, news of an ancient god-slaying weapon reaches the keen ears of the White League; a weapon that could take their Lady from them and plunge the kingdom into chaos. More troubling still, whisper of this evil has drifted from the West, from the ever-peaceful lands of the secretive fae. And that's not all; tense rumours of a resurrected cult linger about the darker passages of the realm, rumours linked to a handful of bodies and talk of monstrous creatures that prowl the winter darkness. 

With his father acting strangely, a shadow of himself, and the Lady under threat, Greyan has his hands full, let alone when he receives a letter he's been dreading for years: a summons back to Ijmaviska, for reasons undisclosed. 

The colour of the White Kingdom is about to change as a darkness rolls in, a darkness that threatens to stain the realm blood-red.

 

As with any fantasy novel there's much more to it than what the synopsis promises, but I feel this gives a nice little taste of it to whet the appetite. 

There will be elves and fae; two races that I want to cast in new moulds and give a sizeable chunk of time in the spotlight alongside the customary humans. Dark magic, white magic—and grey magic too, for that matter! 

There will be horribly monstrous, yet delectably cool creatures; ones that you'd stare in awe at if you saw them frolicking past in the forest, and those that can rip your face off at thirty paces. Add a generous helping of politics and religion, with ample backstabbing on both sides, coupled with that old fantasy guilty pleasure—romance—and The White War is set to be something I can stand there and grin proudly at upon its completion. That is, until I delve into the sequel, and begin the dark journey afresh (fun, isn't it?).

In the next update, I'll be sharing a map of the world in which The White War is set as cheap ploy at piquing interest further—and come on, who doesn't love a good map? I'll also be talking more about my depiction of elves and fae. 

Keep checking back for an assortment of articles, reviews and general blog updates on everything from my work, to anything else in the genre circle that grabs my interest. In addition, I'll be posting about my involvement with the Ranting Dragon team, and more about my article writing for Fantasy Faction.