Places to Chat
Fantasy Dictionar
Chatterbox: Crowd Sorcery
Fantasy Dictionar
Fantasy Dictionary
Writing a fantasy story often involves world-building: creating the setting in which your story takes place. Physical location is an important part of this phase—the house, cavern, mountain, forest, town, ship, island, or any other space your characters inhabit. But it is more than just a place. Building a world may mean thinking about the history, art, music, language, clothing, and customs of the story’s people—how they earn a living, what they do on holidays, and what everyday objects they use.
Of course a writer can’t design every aspect of a culture. If you did that, you’d never get around to writing the story! But here is the key: you want to think carefully enough about these things so that the reader believes your fantasy world goes on beyond the edges of your story. You want this imaginary world to feel real. And you do that with some well-placed, clear, creative details.
So let’s do some world-building! Please come up with objects, places, words ... any ideas for a fantasy story’s world. Tools, animals, types of clothing, dwellings—any of these and more may become necessary elements in our story! You may suggest as many as you like, or even post a strange word and let others suggest meanings. If you want, you can also write a sentence using the word or describing the fantasy place. Here are two examples:
haloris – a lantern that gives off both light and a pleasant scent. It is used by people who live near the swamps to counter the odors of mud and decay.
“Quill’s boots sank into the moss, deeper at each step, and ahead she could see a swamp, moonbeams glittering on pools that lapped around the tree roots. Catching the stench of stagnant water, she pulled the haloris lamp from her pack and set it alight.”
gnawk – a large, black bird with a raucous cry and uneven feathers that always look ruffled and untidy. Gnawks have a fondness for pecking and chewing on rope, and they are notorious for setting free dogs and farm animals tied with ropes. They unmoor boats tied to docks, and have been known to free certain fortunate prisoners.
Can you see how story ideas practically ooze from your Fantasy Dictionary, once you get your imagination going?
submitted by Fred Durbin
(April 23, 2014 - 10:11 am)
(April 23, 2014 - 10:11 am)
Thanks!
(November 28, 2014 - 2:31 pm)
The Aromana
a magical tool that is like a globe but if you touch it in a certain place it will give you a closeup of that area. There are only three of four left in the world.
(December 10, 2014 - 6:34 pm)
ebedee - a small bug that makes noises like this: ebedee, debedee
scipio - a giant scorpion
kekka - a type of sweetcake made with raisins and brown sugar
palindrom - a creature that repeats itself over and over again
(December 22, 2014 - 4:35 pm)
Proncation- A message sent through magic. They take much effort to send, however, as they include sight, sound, smell, and possibly taste. Only the most skilled enchanters can conjure one.
"She could smell thickening smoke and hear a desperate voice coming from the proncation."
Ajunet- A kind of enchanted flower used as a home for a fairy. The can be any kind of flower but must have had consumed magic.
"The fairy flew high above the other lovely ajunets, there petals soft and rosy."
Bibhod-A cloud capable of supporting life. Flying magical creatures often come to these, and sometimes even bring people and creatures unable to fly. You can not fall through these clouds.
"He cautiously stepped off the pegasaus. The bibhod felt as solid as the ground miles below!"
(January 6, 2015 - 6:59 pm)
Whispeser - A woman who flies and is banished from the ground, bound to live a restless life and to die one day of exhaustion. They dress in white, almost transparent silk and may hypnotise with their stony gaze. (see villian entry for a sentence on whispeser)
Lunaflies - flies that glow yellow when they are awake and lose their glow when they are sleeping or dead. They eat air and have the capability to summon magic.
(January 13, 2015 - 8:59 am)
Agoinier: a small animal like a squirrel, but brown with a flat, fluffy tail that hangs an inch above the ground. If you catch it, earn its trust, for it is rumored to have unimaginable powers.
Baleche: I have no idea what this could mean. An article of clothing???
Cergantan portals: networks of mirrors that link to each other.
Degeritz: a magical dagger which uses greedegar, or power of nature
fun words all buggies can make meanings to:
flinditch, hardsturt, callent, igspur, Janue ( maybe someone's name?), Kallern, and ligspith.
These are great words, Abigail! And I especially love your definition of Cergantan portals.
Admin
(January 19, 2015 - 9:19 am)
Thank you!
(January 19, 2015 - 11:29 am)
Finditch: A monster created from a misspoken spell. It takes different forms depending on the type of magic. Example; if a wizard were to start to speak a very powerful spell, but were to stumble over a word, or leave out something, the magic made by that spell would be 'confused' and create a Finditch.
Hardsturt: A rock spirit. it looks like a glowing ball of purple fire. If enraged, it can take physical form.
Callent: A salesman that sells magic items.
Igspur: A dragon of darkness. Usually purple, black, or green in color. They are used as assassins for dark wizards.
Janue: A name that means 'cursed one' in elvish.
Kallern: A type of dark magic that allows the user to create 'zombie warriors' by bringing armies of long-croaked skeletal soldiers back to life! Muahahaha-ha-(breaks into a fit of coughing)
Ligspith: A small, colorful bird that serves as a guide to whoever is lost. Usually they are quite pleasant creatures.
(January 22, 2015 - 10:18 pm)
Wow! Those are even better definitions than I could have come up with!
(January 23, 2015 - 8:19 am)
Thanks!
(February 3, 2015 - 9:46 pm)
Musan: the time when the moon and sun are bothe visible; in between night and day, when magic is at its hight of power.
(This post was made by help of Sadie's cousin, Abigail C.)
(January 25, 2015 - 3:25 pm)
Aranel- a book in which someone has written a prophecy.
(February 20, 2015 - 4:42 pm)
Sarcicirysis (say it with me: sar-tsee-see-REE-sis): A ritual in ancient jungle tribes. When someone comes of age (i.e., 15) they enter the realms of either Pyronie (PIE-ro-nee), where flames burn and a conflagration consumes everything, Hydrostiya (HI-dro-stee-ya), where the water is infinite, Terramisiro (TER-ra-mis-i-ro), a place of solid rock, Aerisimale (air-i-SI-ma-le) of eternal clouds and air, or Electristimirui (eh-le-ktre-STI-mi-rui), where everything crackles with electricity. They must come back in a year, and must have fully mastered their element of choice.
Mortisikilameti (mor-ti-si-KI-la-me-ti): Someone who has returned from Sarcicirysis without fully mastering their element. They must return to the realm for another year, but first must be stimualted by application of it... which is almost always fatal.
(March 4, 2015 - 12:06 am)
I just read the latest part of the story. Thanks for using some of my words!
(March 4, 2015 - 3:04 pm)
Coyalty- Inscriptions carved into a building, usually a religous temple.
"She traced ancient coyalties on the temple's worn steps with her thin fingers, trying to understand them."
(March 4, 2015 - 5:09 pm)