Category: Writing

Worldbuilding Wednesday 7/28/21: Places in Narnia (Narnia XXIV)

One thing Narnia did not have is a lot of human towns. In fact, I can think of only two: the Telmarine settlements of Beruna and Beaversdam. There’s also a town called Chippingford in The Last Battle but whether it is human or not is unclear. There’s also some kind of human settlement around Cair …

Continue reading

Worldbuilding Wednesday 7/21/21: Coriakin’s Magic Book (Narnia XXIII)

  It was written, not printed; written in a clear, even hand, with thick downstrokes and thin upstrokes, very large, easier than print, and so beautiful that Lucy stared at it for a whole minute and forgot about reading it. The paper was crisp and smooth and a nice smell came from it; and in …

Continue reading

Worldbuilding Wednesday 7/14/21: Witches of the North (Narnia XXII)

  “Long, long ago, at the very beginning, a White Witch came out of the North and bound our land in snow and ice for a hundred years. And we think this may be one of the same crew.” This throwaway quote by an anonymous owl in The Silver Chair made me think. Its casual …

Continue reading

Worldbuilding Wednesday 7/7/21: Seals of the Seven Lords (Narnia XXI)

One of the ways The Voyage of the Dawn Treader movie differs from the book is the role the Seven Lost Lords play. In the book, the lords, who opposed Miraz the Usurper, are exiled and depart on a sea voyage to explore the east, only to disappear; they are the impetus for Caspian to …

Continue reading

Worldbuilding Wednesday 6/30/21: The Green Witch (Narnia XX)

C. S. Lewis’s The Silver Chair featured the second most powerful villainess of the Narnia world: The Green Witch, known by her more popular title of The Lady of the Green Kirtle (a Medieval term for a woman’s petticoat/gown.)  She works by subterfuge, can transform into a serpent, has a knowledge of hypnotism and magic …

Continue reading

Worldbuilding Wednesday 6/23/21: The Twins of Archenland (Narnia XIX)

  Archenland is a country to the south of Narnia proper (that is, Narnia the nation-state not Narnia the world) and lies between it and Calormen, providing a buffer of sorts. Rather, its mountains provide a buffer. There’s a northern range lying between it and Narnia, and a southern range that provides a barrier to …

Continue reading

Worldbuilding Wednesday 6/16/21: Gallic Chieftains (Narnia XVIII)

  Where did the name of Mr. Tumnus, the helpful faun of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, come from? Gallic chieftains, of course! Where -umnus and -umnos were frequent components, as in names Togodumnos and Dumnorix.  Of course, these were also latinised; the only way we know these names today is through Roman …

Continue reading

Worldbuilding Wednesday 6/9/21: Let’s Hear it for the As

Aslan, the lion deity of The Chronicles of Narnia, shows his importance by having A as the first letter of his name. In the English language, it’s the first letter of the alphabet. One language theory posits that modern humans, when they read written characters, use the same parts of the brain once used for …

Continue reading

Another Summer of Narnia

x Yes, it’s going to be another Summer of Narnia here on my blog! I’ll be tying up some loose ends from last year’s Summer of Narnia, as well as introducing new topics and insights I’ve found since then. Keep visiting!

Worldbuilding Wednesday 6/2/21: The Best of Twittersnips (Mythical Beings)

One of the subjects I love randomgenning most are mythical creatures – demons, monsters, legendary beings, animals. These names are culled from my Twitter feed, from the years 2017 – 2020.   Mythical Beings Satatareth, the Angel of Good Hygiene Gembilath, the Angel of Decay Hestothy, the Demon Queen of Depravity Levibed: A demon that …

Continue reading