tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post7134501329786037197..comments2023-09-07T07:16:10.305-04:00Comments on Flights of Fantasy: Five alternate fantasy environmentsMarian Pererahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-60897857850929860602009-01-23T14:57:00.000-05:002009-01-23T14:57:00.000-05:00Thanks for the recommendation, Barbara. If I see t...Thanks for the recommendation, Barbara. If I see that book in the library, I'll pick it up.Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-89324491682703229902009-01-21T02:44:00.000-05:002009-01-21T02:44:00.000-05:00Marian, if you would like to read a great book abo...Marian, if you would like to read a great book about deserts, though not fantasy, but a thriller: try "Thunderhead" by Douglas Preston. It might give you some ideas.Barbara Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00610140328527165017noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-67128770051777450022009-01-19T12:19:00.000-05:002009-01-19T12:19:00.000-05:00Living in Singapore, having relatives in rural Mal...Living in Singapore, having relatives in rural Malaysia and doing plenty of training stints in rainforests in Malaysia, Thailand and Brunei during my conscription days, I can safely say it's a nice place to visit, but absolutely terrible to live in.<BR/><BR/>You've got bugs everywhere, the constant moist and wet encourages diseases to spread like wildfire, mud gets everywhere, etc, etc, etc. My relatives used to live in stilted houses to protect against flash floods and vermin.<BR/><BR/>Villages do tend to be small--the soil is naturally poor due to constant leaching, which results in native tribespeople and plantation owners to resort to slash-and-burn techniques of clearing, so the ashes will fertilize the soil. Even then, in the former case food production isn't enough to support a large population and leaching of nutrients results in tribespeople having to move on after a while. <BR/><BR/>You're right in that it's not a good place for pitched battles--for humans, to whom the trees and lianas are merely barriers. More agile races might easily use the interlocking canopy as a route for attack.<BR/><BR/>Have you considered writing in sentient settings? My current WIP is partly set in the MC's homeland--a sentient, spiteful rainforest charged with protecting his race--but not as individuals. Imagine the (probably largely animistic) cultural mores that might arise if the land itself could punish you for not doing as it commanded, if it was feeling particularly ornery today, etc, etc.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-64756438101688578492009-01-11T15:26:00.000-05:002009-01-11T15:26:00.000-05:00Hi Lauren, and thanks for commenting!I looked up d...Hi Lauren, and thanks for commenting!<BR/><BR/>I looked up deltas on Wikipedia, and realized that there was another type of terrain I hadn't mentioned - marshland. <BR/><BR/>That would come with its own unique fauna too. As you said, the geography affects the people and the animals who live there. Now I wish I lived near all these environments and could take a quick day trip out to explore them.Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-59146774405876019392009-01-08T08:24:00.000-05:002009-01-08T08:24:00.000-05:00Hi, I'm new to your blog. I'm currently working o...Hi, I'm new to your blog. I'm currently working on worldbuilding and I actually have a desert in my WIP, but no Savannah. <BR/><BR/>Actually I have been looking through Wikipedia to find various interesting landscapes and how the geography in the region affects the animals and people that live there (for example, Vietnam's delta region is very interesting and another part of my same book has a landscape similar to this).<BR/><BR/>These are all terrific ideas. Thanks so much for posting them.Laurenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11795668965659926769noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-23765975129450323362009-01-05T15:42:00.000-05:002009-01-05T15:42:00.000-05:00"One of my planned upcoming manuscripts will be se...<B>"One of my planned upcoming manuscripts will be set in the desert...interesting you should post about deserts."</B><BR/><BR/>You guys are beating me to the deserts. :)<BR/><BR/>Luckily it's a big enough playground for all of us!Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-72225767092004316842009-01-05T14:48:00.000-05:002009-01-05T14:48:00.000-05:00"Ooh, did you know I've been thinking about settin...<B>"Ooh, did you know I've been thinking about setting one of my fantasy stories in the desert?"</B><BR/><BR/>Go for it, girl!<BR/><BR/>And I'd be happy to look it over from the perspective of someone who lived in the Middle East for fifteen years. <BR/><BR/>Granted, I never actually ventured into the desert after we set out on a hike and got stuck in the sand before we'd driven more than a few miles. But I know all about heat.Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-80842056641570278522009-01-05T14:39:00.000-05:002009-01-05T14:39:00.000-05:00Angela, I'd forgotten about His Dark Materials! I ...Angela, I'd forgotten about <I>His Dark Materials</I>! I loved the armored bears. Way to work every aspect of an arctic environment, including the animals.<BR/><BR/>I look forward to reading an Extreme North Setting on your blog in the future. :)Marian Pererahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15700524210146863718noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-7658892632703246392009-01-04T21:45:00.000-05:002009-01-04T21:45:00.000-05:00One of my planned upcoming manuscripts will be set...One of my planned upcoming manuscripts will be set in the desert...interesting you should post about deserts. Synchronicity?Barbara Martinhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00610140328527165017noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-20401593759331183732009-01-04T21:10:00.000-05:002009-01-04T21:10:00.000-05:00You know, I totally agree that one place that is u...You know, I totally agree that one place that is underutilized is artic environments. I think that's one reason why I enjoyed Pullman's His Dark Mterials books so much--because they really freshened up the landscape of the story by exploring the artic tundra. That's definitely on my Setting list!Angela Ackermanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01808259088625142389noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2125325709844932289.post-74748986132146783802009-01-04T15:31:00.000-05:002009-01-04T15:31:00.000-05:00Ooh, did you know I've been thinking about setting...Ooh, did you know I've been thinking about setting one of my fantasy stories in the desert? But I think I like the idea of the arctic better. Or the African landscape. The possibilities are endless in our genre, aren't they? :DMadisonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05216166392239865356noreply@blogger.com