Worldbuilding...

Because I just started my worldbuilding of this new awesome novel I'll be writing, so yeah... I want to share what I do.

So for me to do any kind of worldbuilding I need to have a plot. A basic idea of what is going to happen, like the one-line-pitch you give when someone ask you to describe the plot of your novel.

Once I have this pitch I will make a word-document in which I make four headlines

1. World
2. Magic
3. Characters
4. POV

World

Backstory - It doesn't need to be this 2000 year old backstory of the world, but more a backstory that explains why the world is in its current state. That can be anything from a natural event to maybe a war. The possibilities are endless on this matter.

After this we have the basic information. Things like gender roles, traditions, religion... all of these are relevant here. Now if you have other races than humans, you might want to describe them and write down why they are different. My story only has humans.

Magic

Who has it? Who doesn't? What are the rules for the magic? These are all questions that you need to ask yourself when creating a magic system. I have found that magic systems are really fun to make up. And seeing how it interacts with the world is a journey in itself. 

Characters

In this section I write down all the characters who are going to play a special role in the story, and I write down a few lines about what kind of journey they come out during the story. You can also put down descriptions like what they look like, but I would rather discovery write this than have it outlined. That way they just feel a bit more real to me. 

POV

In this story I have a 3. person limited POV between four characters. This might expand to more, I haven't really decided yet, but so far this is how it is going to work. Some might argue that POV isn't really a worldbuilding thing, but to me it is. All the POVs are eyes which interpret the world differently, and their view needs to be shared.

As you can probably tell my worldbuilding is not as deep as someone like J.R.R, but this is my style, and it helps me get the details down without making me tired of the story, which is important in my book.

Keep Calm and Write On.

- Nanna.

Review: "Daughter of Smoke and Bone" by Laini Taylor

I am not going to go all filosophical about this review. This is mainly my own opinion of the book and why you should go buy it...NOW.

A short summary

Meet Karou. She fills her sketchbooks with monsters that may or may not be real, she's prone to disappearin on mysterious "errands", she speaks many languages - not all of them human - and her bright blue hair actually gros out of her head that color. Who is she? That is the question that haunts her, and she's about to find out.

When beautiful, haunted Akiva fixes fiery eyes on her in an alley in Marrakesh, the result is blood and starlight, secrets unveiled, and a star- crossed love whose roots drink deep of a violent past. But will Karou live to regret learning the truth about herself? - Credit: Goodreads.com

The Good

I could go on forever about what I love about this book, but for your sake I am going to control myself.

The story

It is unlike anything I have ever read before. First of all I think I should explain: I am not a huge fan of the urban fantasy genre. But this book has changed my opinion on that! I did not know a lot about the story going into it, but once I started reading - and I mean right from the first page - I was hooked. 

The characters

I. Want. To. Be. Karou. It is that simple. I love her. She is funny, quick on her feet, funny, smart, she has friggin' blue hair. BLUE. After reading this I want to colour my hair teal and get matching tattoos.

I may not be Karou - yet atleast *wink, wink* -, but we share the same love for Akiva. He is perfect. But not in a "he could never be real" kind of way. I know that he isn't real, but in the world of the book he seems real. Laini Taylor made me believe he was possible. And I understand their relationship... maybe not at the beginning, but keep reading and you'll figure it out. And you will feel so smart while screaming "I KNEW IT!"... I totally didn't do that...

Sulfur... He's like...I mean... he's Sulfur. He is so caring and lovable... even if he is a monster - fysically -, he has the biggest heart in this book. At least in my opinion.

There are a lot of other characters in the story, but these are just some of my personal favorite. I liked all the characters, and I actually remember them all, which says a lot.

The setting

As I said this is an urban fantasy story, which if you don't know, means that it takes place in our world but implies fantasy elements. This book does that in a wonderful way. The main setting is in Prague. Even though I have never been to Prague, I could get an impression of the environment around Karou. It was almost like I was there myself. But we don't just get to spend a weekend in Prague. Oh no. We go To Paris, Marrakech and the fantastical world of Eretz, or "Elsewhere". Everything is described in a detailed, yet amusing, way, It doesn't get boring reading about these places because Laini Taylor has an amazing gift of voices.

The Bad

Okay so trust me, when I say; it was super hard finding something wrong with this book.

But if I had to say ONE thing I didn't like...or could have gone without... it was the cliffhanger at the end. I am really not found of cliffhangers. Like Brandon Sanderson says: "Write a standalone book with sequel potentiel, not a sequel dependent book." okay... not a direct qoute, but that was pretty much what he said! And I fully agree on this. 

That said, I am going to buy the 2nd book once it comes out in Danish. No question there. 

So yeah... I am not a master reviewer, but there you have it!

When it comes to my own writing; I am exactly 3/5 through with the editing! Only 10 chapters to go and I can start my 2nd draft! I seriously can't wait.

Keep Calm and Write On.

- Nanna.

First impressions: "Daugther of Smoke and Bone" by Laini Taylor

This is going to be a short one for a change. But I need to talk about this book to someone, because I am addicted.

First impressions

I had heard a lot of good things about this book from a number of people, but I never really looked into it or anything. Seeing the cover I thought it was some sort of romance story and a masquerade. I was so wrong. But anyway! I was pretty annoyed one day and decided to buy something for myself. So I went to my local bookstore and there I saw it; Daugther of Smoke and Bone. Hardcover. For only 9,5 $. Little to say, I had to buy it.

I started reading it immidiatly and right from the first page I was sold.  The characters are funny and the plot is unlike anything I have ever read before. It's been a while since I've wanted to be a character from a book, but I can say without doubt; I want to be Karou. She is beautiful, funny, and has a freakin family of chimaeras! Oh and Akiva! I am falling for that angel! He sounds so perfect... I just... I can't even! 

Something that I don't have a problem with, but I can't not notice is the amount of passive voice used. It might be because I am reading the danish translation, and maybe it is different in the original one, but I have started to count the amount of times the word "was" is being used.

As I said, I don't have a problem with it. The book is amazing. And I am actually off to reading it right after writing this! Unfortunately I will have to wait quiet a while for the danish release of the sequel. One may argue that I could just read it in english, but I like to finish a series in the language I started it in, so I'll have to wait... #sadface.

Anywho. That's my first impressions. I will probably do a review of the book this coming Wednesday, because I can't keep myself away from it. And I want to share my final opinion on it once I finish it.

Just a little update on my writing; I am about 2/5 through my chapter revisions! Hopefully I will be done by the end of December... hopefully.

Keep Calm and Write On.

- Nanna.