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 …
Tag: Fantasy
Worldbuilding Wednesday 6/5/19: A Land Fit for Heroes
I did not think too much of Richard K. Morgan’s fantasy novel The Cold Commands, but I do admire the care the author put into his naming systems for the trilogy. Each culture of his universe — Kiriath, Yhelteth, League, Majak — has its own naming conventions, and all are distinct from each other and …
The Cold Commands [Review]
The Cold Commands by Richard K. Morgan New York: Del Rey, 2011 The Land Fit for Heroes trilogy by Richard K. Morgan is a very odd and divisive fantasy series. Don’t let the title fool you. It is meant sarcastically. There are no real heroes in this book, or anti-heroes, really. The main characters are …
The Geek Feminist Revolution [Review]
The Geek Feminist Revolution by Kameron Hurley Tor, 2016 Kameron Hurley is one of a new generation of feminist SFF writers who began to publish in the 2010s, when social media began is phase of near-ubiquitousness, a cornucopia of hype, much of a geek-related. By geek I mean SFF in its many media — games, …
Worldbuilding Wednesday 4/24/19: Madeline L’Engle
Author Madeleine L’Engle wrote a heckuvalotta novels. In addition to the Wrinkle in Time (or the Kairos series as she called it) books pictured above, she also wrote a second generation series about the same family, plus the Chronos series about the Austin family, the Katherine Forrester series, and the Camilla Dickinson series. One thing …
A Swiftly Tilting Planet
[Reading Challenge 2019]
A Swiftly Tilting Planet by Madeleine L’Engle Dell Yearling, 1978 [Challenge # 4: A children’s book, middle grade or younger.] A Swiftly Turning Planet is a hot mess of a book, but not without its rewards. The third installment of the Murry family saga that began with A Wrinkle in Time, it features the insufferable …
Worldbuilding Wednesday 4/17/19: Lapine II
Since it’s the week before Easter, here’s some more Lapine words with generated meanings. Lapine Words Airn Avathru Elnurd Elnarn Esclay Flayarn Flysith Fouthu Frainda Frowtha Hith-ru-Hrin Hliefrag Hlothlev Hlymbroi Hrussu Lembrath Ifrai Nolfai Norp Noospet Olief Oori-elth Piambre’ Pru-thaing Sith-Mo Sivra Slesayn Thivlal Thrap Thooflong Vrelthai Vulflay Vyloo …