The Skellingcorner

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See, that’s what the app is perfect for.

Sounds perfect Wahhhh, I don’t wanna
fuckyeahcharacterdevelopment
trikruwriter

“This is your daily, friendly reminder to use commas instead of periods during the dialogue of your story,” she said with a smile.

onewordtest

“Unless you are following the dialogue with an action and not a dialogue tag.” He took a deep breath and sat back down after making the clarifying statement. 

evildorito

“However,” she added, shifting in her seat, “it’s appropriate to use a comma if there’s action in the middle of a sentence.”

tenoko1

“True.” She glanced at the others. “You can also end with a period if you include an action between two separate statements.”

cj-amused

Things I didn’t know

prismatic-bell

“And–” she waved a pen as though to underline her statement–“if you’re interrupting a sentence with an action, you need to type two hyphens to make an en-dash.”

jawnwats

You guys have no idea how many students in my advanced fiction workshop didn’t know any of this when writing their stories.

Source: theclonewriter-blog
thehistorymonks
disgruntledinametallicatshirt

you know what actually pisses me off? when I finally start to feel a smidge of confidence in my writing ability and then some JERK POSTS A SINGLE LINE FROM A TERRY PRATCHETT NOVEL AND IT’S BETTER THAN ANYTHING I WILL EVER WRITE NO MATTER HOW MANY MILLENNIA I SPEND TRYING!

thebaconsandwichofregret

Terry was a professional writer from the age of 17. He worked as a journalist which meant that he had to learn to research, write and edit his own work very quickly or else he’d lose his job.

He was 23 when his first novel was published. After six years of writing professionally every single day. The Carpet People was a lovely novel, from a lovely writer, but almost all of Terry’s iconic truth bomb lines come from Discworld.

The Colour of Magic, the first ever Discworld novel was published in 1983. Terry was 35 years old. He had been writing professionally for 18 years. His career was old enough to vote, get married and drink. We now know that at 35 he was, tragically, over half way through his life. And do you know what us devoted, adoring Discworld fans say about The Colour of Magic? “Don’t start with Colour of Magic.”

It is the only reading order rule we ever give people. Because it’s not that great. Don’t get me wrong, very good book, although I’ll be honest I’ve never been able to finish it, but it’s nowhere near his later stuff. Compare it to Guards Guards, The Fifth Elephant, the utterly iconic Nightwatch and it pales in comparison because even after nearly 20 years of writing, half a lifetime of loving books and storytelling Terry was still learning.

He was a man with a wonderful natural talent, yes. But more importantly he worked and worked and worked to be a better writer. He was writing up until days before he died.  He spent 49 years learning and growing as a writer, taking so much joy in storytelling that not even Alzheimer’s could steal it from him. He wouldn’t want that joy stolen from you too.

Terry was a wonderful, kind, compassionate, genius of a writer. And all of this was in spite of many many people telling him he wasn’t good enough. At the age of five his headmaster told him that he would never amount to anything. He died a knight of the realm and one of the most beloved writers ever to have lived in a country with a vast and rich literary tradition. He wouldn’t let anyone tell him that he wasn’t good enough. And he wouldn’t want you to think you aren’t good enough. He especially wouldn’t want to be the reason why you think you aren’t good enough. 

You’re not Terry Pratchett. 

You are you.

And Terry would love that. 

rsfcommonplace

I only ever had a chance to talk to Terry Pratchett once, and that was in an autograph line.  I’d bought a copy of The Carpet People, which was his very first book, and he looked at it with a faint air of concern.  “You realise that I wrote that when I was very young,” he said, in warning.

“Yes,” I said.  “But I like seeing how authors grow.”

He brightened and reached for his pen.  “That’s all right then,” he said, and signed.

mariah-wants-to-live

Endless Writing Possiblities For “Said”…

gothicblueeyes

acknowledged            added            admitted            admonished            affected            agreed            allowed            amplified            announced            answered            apologized            articulated            asked            assured            avowed            backpedaled            barked            began            begged            bellowed            blathered            bleated            boasted            breathed            burped            burst out            cackled            cajoled            calculated            called            chanted            chastised            chattered            cheered            chimed in            chirped            choked out            chuckled            clarified            coaxed            commanded            commented            complained            complimented            concluded            concurred            confided            confirmed            conjugated            contemplated            contended            continued            conversed            conveyed            cooed            corrected            coughed            counted            cracked (joked)            cried            croaked            crowed            cursed            declaimed            declared            demanded            denied            dictated            digressed            disagreed            disclosed            discoursed            drummed in            echoed            elucidated            embellished            emoted            emphasized            ended            enlightened            enthused            enunciated            exaggerated            exclaimed            explained            explicated            expounded            expressed            extemporized            exulted            fabricated            fibbed            finished            fired back            flattered            flirted            flung            foreshadowed            forewarned            formulated            fumed            gasped            giggled            gloated            goaded            grated            ground out            growled            grumbled            grunted            guessed            gushed            harangued            hinted            hissed            hollered            howled            huffed            hurled back            implied            importuned            informed            injected            inquired            insinuated            instigated            instructed            insulted            interjected            interpreted            interrogated            interrupted            intoned            joked            joshed            jumped in            justified            kidded            laughed            lectured            lied            mentioned            mimicked            mocked            mumbled            murmured            muttered            nagged            narrated            noted            noticed            objected            offered            opined            ordered            outlined            paraphrased            placated            pointed out            pondered aloud            pouted            praised            predicted            preened            presented            prevaricated            proclaimed            professed            projected            promised            pronounced            proposed            provided            punned            purred            pursued            put forth            queried            questioned            quipped            quoted            raged            rambled            rapped            rationalized            ratted            raved            read            recalled            recounted            reiterated            related            remarked            repeated            replied            reported            responded            restated            retold            retorted            reviewed            rhymed            ribbed            riddled            riposted            roared            rolled onward            rumbled            sang            scolded            screamed            screeched            shared            shouted            sighed            signed (as in sign language)            simpered            simplified            snapped            sneered            sniffled            sniped            snipped            snitched            snorted            sobbed            soothed            spat            spewed            spoke            sputtered            squawked            squeaked            stammered            started            stated            stressed            stuttered            submitted            suggested            supplied            swore            taunted            teased            temporized            thought            threatened            thundered            toasted            told            translated            trumpeted            twittered            uttered            vented            verbalized            verified            vocalized            volunteered            voted            vowed            wailed            warbled            warned            wept            wheedled            wheezed            whimpered            whined            whispered            wondered            yapped            yawned            yelled            yelped            yodeled            zigzagged(verbally)            zinged

Source: gothicblueeyes
its-a-writer-thing

Creating an army

contes-de-rheio

For the needs of Rising Queens, I had to create an army. Since I’m an accountant and have never served in the military nor lived sometime between 1650 and 1820… I knew nothing about how to do that, so I researched, not a lot, but enough I think to give some tips and directions to anyone planning to do the same crazy thing.

Let’s get started. Please note this is for fantasy writers, a number of elements do not apply to modern or futuristic armies. (words with a * are translated in French at the end, because I’m a little chauvinist)


1. How big is your army ?

So, if your army is a professional army, in clear if soldiers are soldiers all year long and paid for it, the size of your army is limited. Mostly because resources are not infinite, and your army depends on the rest of the population to be fed. This rule would also apply for mercenaries, as your nation must still be able to pay them.

In consequence, its size should not be more than 1% of the population. This number was true in the past, and is still true today. And 1% is the upper limit, it assumes your nation is able to collect taxes efficiently!! If it’s not, your army must be smaller, or your nation will go bankrupt.

If your army is not professional, then the problem is a little different: your soldiers are no longer working all year long. The question is how big can your army be during x time? The longer the war/conflict lasts, the smaller your army will be, as your resources are limited and you need people to tend to the land. Or you can have a big starving army, your choice (or a starving population… or both…). After some research, it happens that number is 7% of the population for a period of 90 days (which was the length of a campaign season).

2. Support

So, yes, your soldiers are soldiering, or at least a part of them is… the rest is working as support, they are the spine of your army, without them everything could crumble. Without them you don’t have supplies, or meals, or doctors, or clothes, or payslips or…

Among the various support departments in military, we will first start with one that probably was the biggest: Supplies (aka Furir*). They originally were in charge of housing and food for men and animals, but over time they came to be in charge of all supplies, including their logistics. In the French Navy, they once were in charge of payslips. Without them, you don’t have food, but you also don’t have uniforms, weapons, or munitions…

While we are here, let’s note that most armies, while away from home, survived through plunder of the land around them. Which is great if you’re not staying in the same place too long, and if your enemy does not decide to burn everything left behind. Mercenaries, who were not paid by their employer, also plundered the land of their employer as a form of revenge.

The Postal Service* is like a web, they have a presence everywhere in the military organisation (including schools, jails, navy…). Not only do they make sure the letters are sent to the right person, but they also take care of censoring the letters of the soldiers. This is a job that require discretion as you might end up in the confidence of secrets that do not concern you nor the public.

The War Commissaries* are in charge of the administration of the army, which includes: finances, human resources, audit and control, law assistance, accounting. In some cases, Furir and Postal Services are also incorporated under their supervision.

One of the support functions we probably don’t think much about are the surgeons. Doctors, especially, surgeons were a priority on a battlefield. Mostly they acted after the battle, but they also took care of the soldiers all year long in a professional army. Military hospitals were created, some of them were used as medical schools too, and not all of them were situated in a military base. I haven’t been able to find if any ancient military hospital was opened to the public, but I personally don’t see why not. Generally each company (about 100 men) had one surgeon.

I will not discuss soldier being soldier, if you want more information on this, I will leave some links at the end of this article, please refer to it.

3. Army or Not ?

Some people, depending of your organisation, of your country, may be considered part of your army, even though their role is unrelated to the protection of the country against foreign forces, such as: police, spies, customs…

It really depends on how you see your organisation as a whole, and also who pay who, or what Minister these people depend from. For example, the police might be paid directly by the city thanks to local taxes, while customs are under the supervision of the Finance Minister, and spies answer directly to the Crown. Or you can incorporate them in your army.

4. Equipment

The main question in regards to equipment is who provides what. There have been times, when each soldier was expected to procure themselves their own equipment: armor and weapons, horse, sometimes even food. You could tell a soldier's social background with just a look. 

In some cases, the obligation to procure one’s own equipment was attached to citizenship. Only citizens were required by law to serve in the army, and to be citizen you were required to have a given level of revenues.

At all times, heavier weapons (for siege, and later canons) were provided by the State or the lords.

5. Hierarchy

There are two main type of hierarchies: hierarchical (or traditional) and flat. My partner could tell you all about the advantages and disadvantages of both in details (and how mixed/new models exist), but for our purposes let’s keep it simple.

Here is a drawing of both systems:

image

The bigger your army is, the less likely your hierarchy will be flat, for the very simple reason that your general in chief (or king, or whatever their actual title is) cannot be everywhere at once and has to delegate their power to keep the whole system working. In fact, at some point, the higher men in the hierarchy become strategists and/or administrators. Furthermore, if the official leader of your army is indeed the king, they might still need to delegate as 1) they are running a kingdom, and might need the time for something else, 2) they are very bad at leading an army (not everybody can be Frederic II or Napoleon…).

Next thing to determine is the numbers of levels in your hierarchy. I would advise to keep it as simple as possible. As an example, in Rising Queens, my army has 7 levels of hierarchy (including the soldiers without rank). Each rank correspond to an unity (i.e. company, regiment…). I merely added some nuances to distinguish some Navy ranks: a General and an Admiral have the same rank, but the later serves in the Navy.

If you want to get an idea of what ranking system you can implement, I would suggest you hit Wikipedia, as they have the organisations of a few armies listed. Just never forget reality is always more complex than fiction.

6. Magic

If you have magic in your universe, consider how it changes war strategy and organisation.

And since someone wrote extensively on the subject, allow me to redirect you to @warsofasoiaf post, right here.



Don’t hesitate to drop me a message for questions, clarifications or comments :)


Some Useful Links

On Demography

On Armies and fighting

Vocabulary - French translations

  • Furir - Fourrière (du mot fourrage)
  • Postal service - Vaguemestre
  • Commissaries - Commissaires (du mot commission, dans le sens de paie)
Source: contes-de-rheio