The Shining Continent (World Building)
In the fantasy world of my new series, The Shining Continent, there are four different nations, each one with their own magic system built on power that flows from their own Source Font of magic:
- Vulpesh: The northernmost of the four nations. Vulpestrians evolved from the foxes that hunted in the forests beneath the Northern Font. Their magic, Astrometry, is based on the stars. Astrometrists developed techniques to crystallize the magic of their source font using power derived from stellar constellations. These “sparkstones” are the source of a sophisticated magic-based technology. Vulpestrian society is rigidly hierarchical and historically conflict torn, as different family lineages of their aristocracy compete for dominance over the nation.
- Orsin: To the southeast, the people of the nation of Orsin evolved from a particular species of bear, since lost to history. Their magic, Poetry, uses written language to harness the power of the Eastern Font. Orsino culture is also hierarchical and competitive, though not as bloodthirsty as that of Vulpesh. Power is divided between the Great Conservatory, which trains only the most elite of poets, the ten Academies, where the poetic training is more practical in nature, and the numerous Trade Lords with domains spread out across the country. Above the all is the High Poet, a position elected by the deans of the Great Conservatory after a competition in which Conservatory graduated must demonstrate their excellence.
- Merovar: At the south of the continent stands the nation of Merovar, its people evolved from the badgers who burrowed through the foothills of the Southern Font. Merovian magic, Masonry, draws its essence from the earth. Merovian society is divided up among a dozen or more Foundries: part cities, part factories, part workshops. Above them all sits the Stonewright, a powerful mason who gains his or her position as leader of the most prosperous of the Foundries.
- Anthris: The western reaches of the continent is home to the clans of Anthris, evolved from a species of ape found in the forests beneath the Western Font. Their magic, Physickery, is of the body. Adepts are divided up into three disciplines: Blood, Bone, and Breath. Blood is the domain of ancestral knowledge and martial arts, Bone the domain of practical magic that binds a tribe together, and Breath the domain of subtler, healing, magic. Anthrians have a very loose hierarchical structure. Men and women of the clans are generally equal in social standing, the clan leader chosen according to the unique traditions of their tribe. The clan leaders only come together annually and in times of trouble.
- The Midlands: The territory where the four source magicks overlap. Only the hardiest and most well-trained individuals are able to tolerate the ambient source magick of the other three fonts. As a result, the borders between the nations themselves are fairly rigid, but because of the overlap of energies, the Midlands is a place where the four nations can meet and their cultures can blend.
Books Set In The Shining Continent
A prequel novella set several years before the events of The Third Secret, it tells the story of a young poet who is made an offer she can’t refuse.
In the two thousand years of surviving recorded history there have been three Darknesses, three times when too much magick was held by one individual or faction that threatened the entire continent. This is the story of the aftermath of the Third Darkness and the struggle to prevent the Fourth.
