Iconic female characters for SFF are hard to find… and by iconic I mean they will be easily known by any reader with a good knowledge of the field even if rendered by disparate illustrators. Elric of Melniboné, who was in last week’s post, is one: armored albino man with a sword. Molly Millions, who …
I’ve posted almost 1,000 randomly generated names on Twitter so far, and I thought it would be interesting to showcase my favorites. These are names up to June of 2018 that may be used for characters, either in a story or in a gaming situation. Characters I Queen Kapranje Liegestrud, an imaginary Scandinavian monarch …
One Thousand and One Arabian Nights is a treasure trove of literature of the fantastic. I’ve randomized its pseudo-Arabic names and places here, and the titles of the stories themselves also make for an interesting randomization stew. They stick to a simple formula of “Tale of the Something” or “Something of Something” repeating elements such …
Sometimes, when you’re writing, you need to pull something out of your ass, or your gluteus maximus using the medical term. Perhaps it’s something for a game or cartoon. Or the anatomy of some newly discovered space or fantasy creature. Or perhaps it’s a different world with a different sort of anatomy altogether. If you …
In the dog world there are hundreds of different breeds, some ancient and just now gaining recognition, others created recently to fulfill some aesthetic or work demand. These puppies, for example, are Turkish Catalburuns, a rare breed that is born with two noses ** or rather one nose divided into two chambers — split nostrils …
Coffee in Seattle is big business. Small roasters abound, creating their own special mixes and blends. I give name suggestions for those coffee houses here, and as for the specialties they offer, why not one of these randomly generated ones? Coffee Blends Sunny Aztec Down Under Midnight Mountain Eden Southeast Cascade Sunrise Diplomat Lazy …
In Vonda McIntyre’s novel Dreamsnake a herpetologist/healer (also, rather creatively, named Snake) on a post-apocalyptic Earth relies on Mist, an albino cobra, Sand, a rattlesnake, and Grass, an alien creature that resembles a snake, to cure the patients she meets. By feeding them different chemical concoctions, their venom becomes a means of healing rather …
In the mid-1970s British Author Richard Adams forever re-defined the talking animal fantasy with Watership Down. “A group of adventurers flee their doomed city… and they are rabbits” was one of the taglines. Thrust into the wider world, they encounter predators, roads, hostile or indifferent humans, and unfamiliar territory as they search for a place …
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