help me write

Chatterbox: Inkwell

help me write

help me write a (hopefully publishable) book!

hello, my lovely CBers! would you like a chance to add a piece to a puzzle, so to speak, that will someday be seen by thousands? well, here it is!

I'm currently writing a book that I plan to publish within the next few years, or at least start the publishing process of. it's a very difficult process, and every once in a while, I get pretty stumped on what to name something, or what a character should look like, what shop to place here, what material this building should be made of, how many hours it takes to boat from an island to a continent... the list goes on. so I need your help!

and in return, I have a promise that I hope I can legally uphold: in my acknowledgements, I'll mention you! all of you! I'm sure I wouldn't be able to list everyone by name, but I will encompass all of you by one group name, whatever that ends up being.

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a few spare rules/notes:

- please don't be hurt if I say no to your idea on a certain thing! sometimes it just doesn't fit right in what I'm doing. I don't mean to hurt anyone's feelings, I'm just trying to make if feel right in my story.

- I might go for a while without asking for help. I won't really have a schedule for it, so if I go a long time silent, keep watch--I'll be back!

- if there are multiple ideas, I'll choose what fits best, so like I said before, don't be hurt if your idea doesn't get picked.

- try not to suggest something silly or, of course, profane (I know you guys would never but I still have to say it ':0 ). I'm seriously trying to make a book here, and although I'd get a laugh from it, I might actually need help.

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without further ado, here's a short summary of the story! I might not cover everything, so if something needs explaining in one of my help requests, I'll explain it. this summary is a bit vague; there was a TON of stuff to cover, so it was difficult. if you guys need more to go on, I can copy down some necessary parts of the story, but the formatting will get messed up.

ANYWAYS, here we go: 

For centuries, the people of Eclares have lived in a delicate peace. But tensions are rising. Clarissia's ruler is growing more greedy with every season, asking more and more of the other countries. The sun seems to be drifting further away. And there are rumors of the Nexus growing restless, the Shade growing more powerful, the Shadows getting braver.

The world is on the brink of collapsing into war.

But in the midst of the frail peace, two souls are thrown into chaos of their own. Lysander's life, in barely a day, changes from peaceful and easy into a continual run, the confusion of his strange ability chasing him. And Thaeel, once believing that she was only a tiny piece in the great architecture that was the world, finds herself in a whirlwind of doubt and fear.

Two destinies.

Three moons.

One planet, split in two. 

submitted by Ellesmere
(October 7, 2024 - 4:17 pm)

Sounds nice! I'm up for helping :)

submitted by Amethyst
(October 8, 2024 - 4:03 pm)

Yeah, sounds awesome so far! I love it!

submitted by Jaybells, Lost in a Mushroom Forest
(October 17, 2024 - 11:25 pm)

alright, so for my first help request, I need help naming the currency of a certain country.

for a quick explanation of the country, Stonehark--they're on the main continent, whereas Clarissia is on a separate, way smaller island. they're the largest country, but their population is spread out very thinly and mostly in dense, small locations, meaning that most of the country is woodland. up north are the mountains where its founder stood at their top, viewing all of the forest laid before him, and listened to the stones singing of a strong country--hence the name Stonehark.

so for the currency, I'll explain it with equivelancy (did I spell that right? I'm kind of tired) to the U.S. dollar.

1 cent - a small stone token, roughly the size of a nickel or a quarter.

5 cents - a bronze token, the size of a quarter

10 cents - a silver token, a little larger than a quarter

1 dollar - a large iron rectangle, a little smaller than the palm of the hand

the larger values get into the gold, but they're hardly ever used. none of these tokens/pieces/whatcha want to call them are named, so I need your help.

the language of Stonehark is kind of hard and "tight", if you know what I'm saying. words like "kuurk" and "ambrindgar" and "fridik" and "nurig". 

anyways, I hope that's enough explanation. 

submitted by Ellesmere, topping too :3
(October 9, 2024 - 2:12 pm)

1 cent= maybe 'piika'

5 cents= 'tukan'

10 cents= 'braytac'

1 dollar= 'caont'

I dont know if this is good at all, but i thought piika is cute and the one cent tokens are tiny so maybe that could work (???). also im really in love with tukan for some reason. 

submitted by Seapen, age 10, Amherst, MA
(October 9, 2024 - 4:22 pm)

I’m definitely up for helping!

submitted by Sempreverde
(October 9, 2024 - 10:52 pm)

ack, sorry if this thread seemed to die! I'm a bad procrastinator when it comes to writing, so I haven't needed any help. but please, if you have suggestions for currency names, do submit them! I'd like a wide selection of ideas to choose from. like a buffet. a word buffet... 

submitted by Ellesmere
(October 22, 2024 - 5:19 pm)

then can i suggest choosing a simple, intuitive word? Like one-coin, five-coin, ten-coin, full-coin? i know they're not the most interesting names, but since you're intending to publish it, it might make it easier for readers to remember. i mean, people can only remember so much at a time, and if the money isn't important, it'd be more likely to add frustration I think? if you wanted, in the lore, you could give it a cooler name and have that in a seperate lore-book and have this book just be translated :D

submitted by Blackfooted Bobcat
(October 22, 2024 - 10:38 pm)

that's a nice idea, actually... I might try it for a little bit and see how it feels in my book, and then decide. the idea of a lore-book is always stuck in my brain though lol, if I can't get out all my cool worldbuilding in the main arc then I have to put it SOMEWHERE, you know?

submitted by Ellesmere
(November 4, 2024 - 4:02 pm)