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Journal – I just watched Avatar for the first time

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I had a sheltered childhood by circumstance.

So my closest friends made it their mission to take me through all three seasons, or books I guess, in their bid to witness what they had in its true form.

Was it all they had claimed it to be?

Ehhhhhh….

This isn’t one of my formal reviews so I’ll just say it now, I think it was a solid 3 out of 5. I’ll be honest, with how much my friends gushed about it I was expecting a 4. Maybe they think of it higher because they grew up with it or something?

But my ranking isn’t just because I didn’t grow up with it and in its initial form it wasn’t my taste. Yes there were some incredible highs, but it was countered by some baffling lows. So baffling it was bizarre that people still regarded it as the best animated series of all time.

I feel I’m gonna get hate for saying this, but I don’t care that I disagree. I’m a critical mind. I’m gonna critique Avatar. Here we go lads.

Pros

The worldbuilding was very fluid and strong. I don’t recall when anything was made contradictory, for one thing. You could distinctly find that the kingdoms were different but the same in such a small world. Even the various Earth settlements had different character, and there was a lot.

It showed cultural appreciation, not cultural appropriation. I was immediately concerned about this being based off of Chinese cultures, but it rooted itself in similar spiritual and customary beliefs for it to feel like its own culture while still appreciative of its roots.

Zuko. And Iroh. Their stories and arcs were incredibly fulfilling. I almost cried on several occasions. This was also surprising considering upon first seeing Iroh I didn’t like him and now he’s one of my favourites. I heard a lot about Zuko’s redemption arc being one of the best ever written, and he didn’t disappoint.

Book 2 was incredibly well written. That was absolutely the volume I was most engaged in and the one that featured my favourite episodes. The narratives imposed there were very clear, flowed expertly, and I can agree that there is no war in Ba Sing Se.

Cons

They didn’t know how to write villains, sans Azula. Azula was the only main villain with any sense of character, motivations and true threat. The Book One and Three villains were each so pathetic I don’t even remember their names, and one of them is the main villain of the series.

Their female lead characters were poorly written, sans Azula and Toph. They were either inconsistent or without personality, which is a shame when some of them were to powerful. Suki was a big red flag, for instance. She had no personality aside from being a noble fighter and loving Sokka. She was basically fridged in the third book too.

There were too many characters to keep track of. I especially found this an issue when there was a big reunion of characters in book three. My friends chorused over each of them and I kept asking who they were or trying to remember where they came from. They clearly didn’t leave an impact on me. Also, I’m sad that those secret tunnel nomads weren’t among them.

A tonne of episodes were filler, but my friends claimed them not. About a third of all episodes hardly progressed the main narrative. This was especially a bad thing in book three, where in the episode before the climax they go off to see a play that makes fun of the rest of the series. What good does that do to the plot? I don’t care about this – just go attack the fire nation already!

The narrative was solved with a deux ex machina. This is the biggest sin of them all. You don’t just give the character a superpower in the climax that was never explained or built up prior which also contradicts the lessons being taught to Aang. His character arc felt incomplete as a result.

So there’s my short take on the series. Zuko and Iroh are precious, Toph is an icon and there is no war in Ba Sing Se.

Yours in writing

Amy

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With A Pinch of Salt – A review of Calamity by Brandon Sanderson

by with No Comment Fantasy

I was excited to get to this book – the final book in what I quickly assumed from book one would be one of my most favourite series of all time – the Reckoners series! With the first two books being highly rated in my eyes, I jumped into reading Calamity with hype.

But you know how they say that sequels don’t quite hit the original, especially with a third sequel? Why is it that the third one is the most frequently the worst in the series? But I don’t mean one star when it comes to this book, anyway.

With his mentor and leader having been corrupted by the sheer nature of Epics, David Charleston steps up, whether he wanted to or not, as the new leader of the Reckoners. And he’s got plans. His knowledge that the Epics’ descent into darkness isn’t permanent sends him not only on a quest to make his mentor safe again but to stop the one responsible for their corruption, Calamity. His quest takes him to Ildithia, the former Atlanta, as he tries to discover the weaknesses of the Epics around him not to kill them, but to have them face their fears to bring out the inner good inside of them.

So about that Calamity, the main antagonist… the way he was defeated, in the most spoiler free way possible, was pathetic. You know how villain monologues are frowned upon? This was the reversal. A hero monologue. That somehow defeated the main antagonist. After a high action climax for it to slow down in such a way, it was just plain BS! This was not what I came to read this series for. It made the conclusion feel absolutely hollow and feeling like there was a catch, a plot twist, a rogue’s sneak attack. But nothing came. For a series conclusion!

In spite of that, there was one character’s conclusion and character arc that really shone in this book. I didn’t really like this character too much in the first book, and she grew on me in book two. But in book three, Megan Tarash was at her best. The way her arc concluded made me thoroughly enjoy her, which I didn’t even think would be possible. She went from average to great. Books two and three really added some depth and points of interest to her which really shone in book three especially. Other characters were very nicely explored as well, even less serious characters showing some depth that previously felt hidden.

What also shone like an oily pimple was how much Sanderson didn’t understand his audience, more so how smart they were. For some reason, he withheld plans that David had made and their intentions from the audience even though the story is told from his perspective. This happened on multiple occasions where the solution to this plan we didn’t know got built up like crazy and it made for cheap plot twists. On the other hand, there were some plot points which were so obvious it was ballistic that David hadn’t noticed so either. It was almost like I was proven done when one plotpoint and plan David made went right over my head, and to forgive me Sanderson made a point that I noticed a quarter of the book earlier than the main character. And sometimes I’d forgive this, but not this time.

Still, none of that took anything away from the worldbuilding, what this series excels at. The world didn’t quite expand in the way that I expected, but it was still fascinating to see it occur in such a way. The powers, abilities and origins of the superhumans known as Epics were the focus of this worldbuilding here. I wasn’t quite a fan of how much it focussed on two Epics’ abilities more than the rest, but it was still very insightful to see how everything connected. If I wound up satisfied with anything in this book, it would be getting closure on the nature and abilities of Epics.

The same can’t be said about the narrative.

Calamity gets a score of 3.5/5. While retaining the core of the series, it leaves me wanting more in a bad way.

And what’s this? Another series done on this blog? Well I suppose I should review the whole thing now!

Steelheart – 5/5, an action packed start to a very unique series.

Firefight – 5/5, more great worldbuilding and the depth of the characters was incredible.

Calamity – 3.5/5, a conclusion that works well but is not quite satisfying.

Right from this start I knew I was in for something great with the worldbuilding and the uniqueness of it alone. I haven’t seen any piece of media quite like it with such high action and stakes. As many reviewers had previous said, it’s a blockbuster in book form. The characters were also of great interest, various ones getting their chance to shine in many different ways throughout. My only major complaint would be how it finished. I wished it was just as engaging, full of stakes and just overall exciting as the rest of the series.

The Reckoners Trilogy gets a score of 4/5. This series is a keeper.

Yours in writing

Amy

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Finding and using Inspiration

by with No Comment Uncategorised

People claim that inspiration gets them going when writing and that they cannot create when their brain isn’t buzzing.

So how does that buzz come about?

Many people have their stimulants for inspiration, so to speak, and they can come in a variety of forms. But the difficulty can be finding out how to take those stimulants of inspiration and be productive with them. It’s good to have them, but better to put inspiration to use than to go down a rabbit hole.

So I’ve got some tips for your inspiration to take action, whether in music, picture or film form.

Passively Collect

This is the biggest part where people get it wrong. This is the white rabbit you follow down the rabbit hole. Might I suggest taking photos of the rabbit instead?

You don’t need to go out to find inspiration like you’re researching your final thesis. If I were to compare passive collecting to anything, it’d be like checking your social medias. Minus the addiction.

If you happen to pass by inspiration, then add it to your collection of inspiration. Take the channels that you already collect things you like from and find it from what you already know. For if you search actively for inspiration it becomes hollow. Find and consume media and aesthetics for your own personal pleasure only. And then your inspiration piles can follow.

Make it present

Inspiration was never made to collect dust in boxes at the back of your wardrobe.

But how’s an easy way to keep it present? Take it wisely, like prescriptions. Avoid indulging in your inspiration and make it a backdrop for your life as a way to remind you of what you’re working on and why. You could make your desktop background your aesthetic pictures from pinterest, regularly listen to your music playlists on commutes or read books in similar genres.

Basically think about how you take in the things you love when it’s not for writing inspiration. You need to do that just the same.

Pre-writing routines

This can be helpful for those writers who struggle to dive right into their manuscript. A naturally forced inspiration, if you will.

Many writers have a ritual or routine they undergo before they start writing, and this is often using a stimulant to get them inspired once again. Reading a chapter of a book before they started writing, listening to their playlists to get pumped, whipping out their Pinterest board for their assignment… everyone has their strategies.

But remember your priority is to start your writing from it. If you have a habit of slipping into rabbit holes, set aside a timer. You shouldn’t spend any more than 10 minutes getting inspired for a 1 hour writing session. Or longer. Do not take that as a ratio.

Don’t Rely on it

We gotta get real now.

Inspiration is your crutch, but only for when you are creatively injured and if you absolutely need it. Some writers rely on it too much that without it they’ve hit a wall. Do not keep pushing.

If your normal stimulants for inspiration fail you, do not keep consuming them. It won’t be the problem. There is more to not being able to write than just a lack of inspiration. Something may genuinely be wrong with your story, you may be burnt out or have other external factors get in the way. Analyse what may be wrong instead.

Because inspiration is valuable, but not worth its weight in gold. It has no mass.

Yours in writing

Amy

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Journal – Getting Back Into Writing

by with No Comment Uncategorised

With book one of the Aster’s Coda series being officially out, I already couldn’t just sit back and relax. Book two is on the horizon now.

And it was a draft that I hadn’t touched in roughly three months. It’s amazing how much a book release can stray you from your work, among other things. It wasn’t until the week of release, when I finally scheduled all my work, that I finally was able to get back into creative writing again.

I had been more on and off with writing book two than I expected. I started writing it when I sent book one off to beta readers late last year, into the new year and then half-abandoned it during the crunch time of release month. My priority then was the release blitz and creating content for Exposure’s release.

It is odd, to say the least, knowing that I wrote my first draft in High School while classes turned to monotonous lectures of the same old things. And I had time in between assignments and without a writing platform to maintain. This time feels all the more foreign. I’m balancing my author platform, part time job and uni assignments while trying to find and prepare myself for a full time job.

Needless to say, this draft won’t get finished for at least a year.

I know I will have to seize any tiny amount of time to work on this novel and set aside those little moments to do so. The ten minutes or half hour I wait for my dinner to cook. The fifteen minutes after I get ready to go out too early. An hour after I shower. I peak creatively after showers.

And I’ve started to do that when I can. Unfortunately, my next scene to write is a fight scene. I need an hour at a minimum to work on that. I’ve started, but stopped short at the beeping of the oven timer.

That being said, I have missed creating entire scenes again. Even if the contribution was small, it was sensational adding a page to the draft. And I don’t care how bad it is, in the moment it is thrilling. I had a stroke of genius creating a point of tension in said fight scene which adds so much more the characters and their relationship. It’s amazing what small yet crucial changes can come up when you actually write the story out.

So Aster’s Coda: Semblance looks promising. At least more promising than the version I wrote in early high school.

Yours in writing

Amy

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Just Watch Hadestown Instead – a review of Percy Jackson and the Greek Heroes by Rick Riordan

by with No Comment Fantasy

Riordan was my inspiration to start creative writing, almost as soon as I finished Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief when I was 10 1/2 years old. His Heroes of Olympus series still stands as one of my favourites and shares a place of pride on my bookshelf along with the Percy Jackson series.

And then I picked up this book.

In this short story collection, Percy Jackson takes the tales of famous Greek Heroes into a modern lens and recites the tales of ones as famous as Hercules or as underrated as Atalanta.

I didn’t think I’d have big issues with any of Rick Riordan’s work, especially his character voices, but I for some reason did have a problem with Percy’s voice in this one. The modern lens he put things through was framed as the reality to what happened and it broke immersion way too much. The funny quips and dialogue between characters was fine, but I loathed every time he directly put something from modern society into the plot. We know there wasn’t an ancient greek walmart, and so every time I saw that I just blinked.

But the odd thing is, I was fine and thoroughly enjoyed Percy’s voice with the origin stories of the Greek Gods. I don’t know why it doesn’t translate well here when talking about Greek Heroes. Maybe it’s the fact that each hero gets stripped of the core of their stories as they get turned into what feels like Tom and Jerry episodes, making fun of violence and tragedy.

Orpheus was a key example of this one, and his tale was also told in my favourite musical Hadestown. It wasn’t told in a traditional sense either. Instead of having his story with 21st century twists in it, it took place during the industrial revolution. The medium of the industrial setting added more to the story than I can say in Hadestown, talking about how with music and artistic expression we lose our senses of self and love.

Percy Jackson’s take just turned him into a generic husk of a D&D bard. Like not even with emotion and character like all the best bards in D&D do have – this is the kind of bard that gets memed over being a douchebag with a guitar but on a battlefield. That is not Orpheus.

Few of these heroes seemed to keep their substance or their cores with the way that Percy referred to them, or if they are it is done so as a side note. This is to the point that I believe in some cases it genuinely disrespects the core of the Greek Hero. Rarely were the hardships key to the hero’s’ journey communicated as harrowing. Except perhaps a harrowingly long journey. This was fine with the Gods and their menial issues and the power they held, but the purpose of a mortal hero is within their suffering. And it is made a joke.

In the Percy Jackson and Heroes of Olympus novels, Riordan and his narrative voice knew when to take things seriously and when to emphasise the suffering and the comedy within the tale of these heroes. There wasn’t anything of this nature present, as if the core of Percy Jackson had gone.

So yeah, this book stripped the concept of Greek Heroes INCLUDING Percy Jackson himself. It’s only redeeming quality is the dialogue quips between characters without 21st century product placement. Those were funny.

Percy Jackson and the Greek Heroes gets a score of 2/5. This was just a marginally funny classical studies shitpost.

Yours in writing

Amy

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My Debut Novel is Out – What next?

by with No Comment Uncategorised

You thought this was over? Aster’s Coda: Exposure is just the first book in a five part series. And that’s just ONE of the story ideas I want to write.

As heartwarming and rewarding as it was to publish a novel and set my author career off, I am ambitious and want to eventually turn my storytelling into a full time gig. And we know that doesn’t happen overnight.

So here I am, ready to say what is in the works of a little indie author at the bottom of the world. Holy shit, I can call myself an author now!

Aster’s Coda: Semblance

Of course we have a book 2 in the works! Aster’s Coda: Semblance sees Abby Tacker embracing her Aster identity and trying to work out what it means as conflict rises against the Merus Imperium.

This is currently in the drafting stage, and I’m up to chapter 10 of the first draft of this. I’m already excited for you guys to meet the new characters in book including Dina, Lily, Tyrell and Fray!

And of course we have some amazing fights and conflicts, I’ve already written two gripping fight scenes!

#DungeonMarch

Last year I decided to commemorate a year of playing D&D and my quickly discovered passion for the game with a month long celebration, and I’m gonna be expanding it across my platforms! More than just YouTube and Instagram.

Among this I’m planning to release some homebrew content based on the magic systems in the Aster’s Coda series, worldbuilding tips and more!

The Rose Bulletin

I’ve been working on creating a newsletter, and it will soon be ready to go live! This will be a monthly newsletter featuring updates on my media, insider information on Aster’s Coda, life updates and more!

Let me know what else you’d want to see in this email newsletter and keep your eyes peeled!

Writer’s Block 2.0

My blog is getting a revamp! We now have more than just book reviews and book updates coming up on this blog – there will be posts every Friday! Whether I’m talking about what I last watched, some writing advice or providing writerly updates, expect a post about it on Friday!

I’m so excited for you to be joining me on this ride, thanks so much for sticking around! And keep watching for big things coming up in the next year.

Yours in writing

Amy

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Nate Hallows – Aster’s Coda: Exposure

by with No Comment Aster's Coda

“You hated yesterday, so shut up next time.”

You could take one look at Nate and discover that he is an asshole. He’s not hiding it. He wants to watch the world burn.

In fact, he’s got a temper. He will lash out at anyone who crosses his path and blow up like a firework. That is most people who would say even the slightest contradictory point. If you’re not the target of his retort, it’s actually kind of funny.

But if you are targeted by Nate, you best watch out. Revenge is a dished best served poisoned, in his eyes. If he has the smallest vendetta against you, he will send it back twice as hard and twice as fast. This doesn’t necessarily make him feared in the school, just known as dangerous. Like the same way you’d normally avoid a spider.

Just as long as you don’t get trapped in his web on your way past him. You could be a pawn in his little games, on his side or his oppositions’ side. In spite of his reckless nature, he is wise enough to know when someone else can do a job for him and he will go at lengths to get this person on his side.

Theme song: Twisted by Missio

Five Facts:

  • Nate will wear a jacket even if it’s too hot for one
  • He was spoiled as a child and likely threw a tantrum a fortnight
  • He is easily spooked
  • It is impossible for him to tan
  • He loves pranks, unless he is the target of one
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Eli Da Ferric – Aster’s Coda: Exposure

by with No Comment Aster's Coda

“I started to think you were too big of a coward to show your face here.”

Eli is the cold hearted snitch of Beauclark High. His bored expression, only ever replaced by steel-eyed curiosity, makes him ever unapproachable and an enigma

He is the quietest out the his three friends, and the only one who has any piece of common sense in his eyes. Being a friend of his is a feat in of itself, as he never opens up. It takes a mighty social prober to pry anything out of him. Sadly, this mysteriousness is in no ways attractive when you know what he’s done.

He knows how to target your worst insecurities and spread them around like a virus. Is it Eli’s incredible perception, his unwavering insight or his cold way with words that lends him such an advantage? Regardless, the number of kids he’s made cry just from a year at Beauclark is horrifically astonishing.

That being said, he doesn’t hold anything against anyone or hold grudges. The most unsettling thing about his seemingly sinister nature is that he almost never gets angry. It’s a calm like being watched in the middle of the night.

Theme song: Buzzkilll by Mothica

Five Facts:

  • Eli practices meditation regularly
  • He will never resort to violence and is pathetic in a physical fight
  • He was once very studious but is now careless about his ‘insignificant’ grades
  • Most of his wardrobe is grey
  • He is a big fan or horror stories
Copy of Character quote

Kyrie Werman – Aster’s Coda: Exposure

by with No Comment Aster's Coda

“We don’t have time to hold on. We have to move on.”

Kyrie is an immigrant from Faetos and a total badass. She’s had to lead her sister Jada across continents and through Overlaps, fend off all who threaten their survival.

This incredible fighting prowess lend her in a rather high position amongst a secret otherworldly organisation – the Sub Rosa. This organization aims to keep peace amongst the Three Worlds, but that isn’t Kyrie’s only goal within the ranks. She aims to get a high enough ranking to lead the Sub Rosa.

Most of her friendships come out of her work within this organisation because she knows she will trust her coworkers, and then she will open up to them and call them her friends. This may mean some of these relationships can seem cold but with warmer intentions.

When Abby gets involved in her otherworldly peril, Kyrie is among the first to help her and her allies out. She’s there to offer the training and the nerves of steel they need to finish this blood feud.

Theme song: STFD by TeZATalks

Five Facts:

  • Kyrie is on the asexual spectrum
  • She has little ties to her own culture but is very appreciative of others
  • Her alignment is lawful neutral
  • She wasn’t added to the Aster’s Coda series until the rewrite
  • Kyrie also has the abilities to heal and detect thoughts

Character quote

Abby Tacker – Aster’s Coda: Exposure

by with No Comment Aster's Coda

“What can I say? Trouble loves me nowadays.”

Branded the nickname Canary from her bright orange hair, Abby Tacker is ever self-defensive. And not just by her position in Soccer – she’s always watching her back.

She’s a soccer-playing history buff with an affinity for her family’s history. She’s been told of it by her mother through bedtime stories, giving her a love of discovering more about her lineage and of battles past. Her family was one of warriors, but Abby is far from one.

Her emotional side has especially revealed itself with a bullying problem at school piling on top of her mother’s unexpected death to start off the year. Talk about tragic. Maybe because she doesn’t expect her life to get any worse, she heads into the start of her final year at Beauclark High School with dreary optimism and the goal to turn her life around.

Though by turn her life around, she didn’t mean to discover that her family is in an otherworldly blood feud. This was a fact withheld from her, never mentioned in her bedtime stories or in regular conversation. This could mean she has inherited some otherworldly abilities too.

Abby struggles to identity who is on her side and her true place in this conflict, but more importantly if she is a good of a fit as the warriors in her ancestry.

Theme song: ANTIHERO by AViVA

Five Facts:

  • Abby originally had green eyes in early drafts
  • She loves to read classical literature
  • Her ideal holiday is at the beach, she loves summer weather
  • Abby is bisexual
  • Her dream job is to become a personal trainer

Character quote

Rocco Tacker-Sanders – Aster’s Coda: Exposure

by with No Comment Aster's Coda

“The Three Worlds can’t wait for me to be ready.”

He may seem careless and a goofball on the outside, but Rocco has got heart and ingenuity. If you need to find anybody to trust in, he’s one guys you can surely count on.

Though he finished an engineering apprenticeship, he instead took up a babysitting job just to spend more time with his falling apart family after his stepmom died. He does try to find time to tinker in his spare time however, even if it is tinkering with joystick of game controllers. He’s clever when it comes to most things with wires.

But of course, his priorities go far beyond his career. He puts more effort into his social connections than his career connections. This is especially the case for his family. Rocco is willing to have a good time with you AND will go out of his way to better someone else’s wellbeing instead.

However, his ability to do so with his little sister Abby is put to the test as secrets get revealed about his involvement with Abby’s curse. And it’s not something she may be pleased about.

Theme song: Polarize by Twenty One Pilots

Five Facts:

  • Rocco’s original faceclaim was YouTube personality Joe Sugg
  • His fighting style is based of off Yang from RWBY
  • His mum is Maori, but because Rocco doesn’t live with her he doesn’t associate himself with that culture.
  • He has an ever extensive collection of graphic tees
  • Rocco got bitten by a snake when he was 12

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Jada Werdeau – Aster’s Coda: Exposure

by with No Comment Aster's Coda

“After all, nobody can truly lie to me.”

While Jada resides from Faetos, Jada doesn’t remember much of it. She had to flee from it with her big sister Jada due to a conflict that broke out from back home.

That, however, has never defined her, as she has made a fresh start with her life since them. She’s spent most of her recent years acquiring a normal life on Earth, which she’s managed to fit into pretty well. She’s got a spot on the under 18 girls soccer team and is an ever studious student at Clinkard’s Girls Grammar School.

Her personality is as bright as her blue skin and hair. She’s the cinnamon roll of the series for sure, very bubbly and chipper to most people she meets. She’s quiet yet outgoing, looking to make friends with whomever she can and develop a connection with them.

I say most people because she’s scarily good at reading them and will be among the first to call out anybody she doesn’t trust. Her insight has even scared off some friends, but that just means she keeps those who are truly close to her.

Maybe it’s her otherworldly home calling to her or the monotony of school life, but Jada wants something more out of her existence. She dreams of fantasies where she uses her inherent sorcery to make the Three Worlds a better place. Sadly, people don’t give 15 year old girls many opportunities to spread their wings.

Theme song: Lunchbox Friends by Melanie Martinez

Five Facts:

  • Jada’s fighting style is based of the Bladesinger wizard subclass in 5e D&D
  • The tattoos on her head are a cultural tradition, abandoned since she left home
  • She loves to wear skirts
  • Jada used to also do gymnastics but gave it up in High School
  • She hates the cold

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Geoff Latu – Aster’s Coda: Exposure

by with No Comment Aster's Coda

“Better to put the burden to something good.”

Geoff Latu is the one person in the whole of Beauclark High School you’d least want to cross. If his stature wasn’t enough to intimidate you, maybe his dark-eyed stare or his seemingly stagnant frown will drive you out of his path.

Many rumours about him have circled around the school grounds as time after time he gets suspended. He’s been expelled from at least two high schools prior, he broke out of Juvie, the only reason he hasn’t been expelled from Beauclark is because his family is paying the school big money…

His closed nature doesn’t help with determining which ones are right. He’s very slow to trust, but very few have given him that virtue at Beauclark High anyway aside from his closest friends Nate and Eli.

But there’s more to him than he lets on. Music helps him cope with his internal struggles. He’s long wanted to do songwriting and music production as a side gig, ever since he join his church’s choir.

And he has a sense of nobility about his actions. Though how, considering he gets into a fight every two months, I’m not sure. Still, he claims that he won’t fight just anybody. He has reasons that he gets provoked, particularly if his insecurities are targeted.

Theme song: Fairly Local by Twenty One Pilots

Five Facts:

  • Geoff plays the guitar
  • He is the middle child of a single mother and never met his father
  • His fighting style is loosely based of the 5e Barbarian class
  • Geoff is Samoan
  • He loves reggae music
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The Magic System of Aster’s Coda

by with No Comment Aster's Coda

One of my favourite tropes of all time is magic connected to emotion, especially when it’s rage induced. So yes, I am a big fan of the Wild Magic Barbarian in 5e. This trope is also seen in RWBY and Brigid Kemmerer’s Elementals series. Comment any other media you’ve spotted this trope in!

If you commented my book, Aster’s Coda: Exposure, you are a psychic.

Magic, or casting as it is referred to in my series, I find to be reflective of the character wielding the power. I wanted to create a magic system that reflected this, in part inspired by how magic works in Dungeons and Dragons. I have characters based off of Sorcerers, Druids and Wizards in my novel, just to name a few. Additionally, with my novel taking place between Three Worlds I wanted the magic between each world to have a particular distinctness while still being versatile.

Let’s explore.

Each caster has a particular source or domain from which they get their power from, and while it seems to limit what they can do it leaves room for the magic to be more versatile in each domain. Across the Three Worlds power can be drawn from the elements, nature, sources from energy and even cosmic concepts. The integration between the Three Worlds has even enabled variations and amalgamations on casting.

Let’s start with Faetos. The main power to come from this world is Myst, pure energy which has enabled the Three Worlds to connect in a chain. Casters from here use sorcery, which is defined by being born with the ability to cast in a certain domain and harnessing inner power to put their source to use. Because of this, casting a spell too powerful can be taxing on the user and injury can further weaken the strength of their power. Sorcery is the most malleable casting type and users can forge exact effects from their energy, but the domains they control are typically limited. It is rare in Faetos to not be born with sorcery abilities, but it is mainly used in mundane and daily life. Pure casters usually require many years study of their own abilities and would typically only use their casting in battle.

Corryn is different. They use derivation, which involves drawing power from an external source, most commonly nature. While in proximity of their domain, be it water or the earth, they can control or absorb the element for their use when casting. Similar to the use of spell slots in D&D, this power is expended like pouring water from a bucket. Any derivation caster can store the same amount of energy, but inexperienced casters expelled their power far more inefficiently. Casting in Corryn is typically dependent on the species, but those who can’t cast have the ability to wield Powerstones, which work in a similar fashion and can cast force, necrotic, radiant, lightning and psychic damage. Derivation users can also draw energy from powerstones.

That leaves Earth. Nobody native to Earth is born with the ability to cast, but connections to the Three Worlds have left many deities interested in the lives of people on Earth. Therefore, the only way to cast if you’re human is through bargaining. Deals can be made through deities, malevolent and benevolent, to gain the ability to cast based on the domain of the deity. Similarly to derivation, their power is also a well but it can grow with the bond to a deity. Still, few humans have gotten the ability to bargain for magic. Less than 0.5% of Earth’s population have had the chance. However, bargaining is also of interest to Faetos and Corryn for either the power hungry or those in service of deities specific to those realms.

Woah, bit of an info dump, but more will come to light when reading Exposure and the rest of the series. Check it out next week when it releases, and be sure to pop into the livestream on July 22nd!

Yours in writing

Amy

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Free Snippet of Aster’s Coda: Exposure!

by with No Comment Aster's Coda

It’s release month! Woohoo!

Because you guys are eager, and if not, then this will get you, I have now got a free snippet available for you to check out here! In these chapters, we get introduced to Abby Tacker, Beauclark high and a few more key characters twisting around the fingers of her fate.

Once you’re done, you can go here to preorder a copy – now in paperback too! It comes out July 22nd!

Want to join the hype on release day? At noon NZT – that’s 8pm EST or 5pm PST – I’m doing a release day livestream! We got an hour of chatting, games and more in honour of my book baby!

Hope to see you there

Yours in writing

Amy