A shared sword & sorcery setting: City of Scum

[StillStunned]

@ShelbyDawn57 I'll read your snippets during my lunch break. Maybe be a bit careful about posting too much of your story here, in case the mods decide you're pushing the limit of the "three paragraphs max" rule, even if it's spread over multiple posts.

 

[StillStunned]

The OP has been updated to include a link to the tag page and the stories published so far.

 

[DraegonDaddy]

I still think something like a shared Google doc would help.

 

[Nynah]

I still think something like a shared Google doc would help.

I use Notion for work and I think it would fit this type of collaborative effort quite well! There's even an option to create a wiki which would serve to centralize a lot of the shared settings/world concepts.

I've been reading the stories in this shared world on and off and found them fascinating. If I manage to find spare time at some point in the near future I might try my hand at a story but for now I'm enjoying the world you all have created.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Probably not enough traction to be worth their(laurel and Manu) effort, but I wonder what it wold take to add a Collaborations option similar to Series that can link between authors.

 

[Areala-chan]

Not a bad idea at all, Shelby.

 

[ShelbyDawn57]

Not a bad idea at all, Shelby.

Request/suggestion has been sent to Laurel and Manu. I made sure to throw @StillStunned under the bus(tongue in cheek, of course) while I was at it.

 

[StillStunned]

Request/suggestion has been sent to Laurel and Manu. I made sure to throw @StillStunned under the bus(tongue in cheek, of course) while I was at it.

I wondered what that thing was that ran over me in the night.

 

[PennyThompson]

Probably not enough traction to be worth their(laurel and Manu) effort, but I wonder what it wold take to add a Collaborations option similar to Series that can link between authors.

You could include a direct link to the City of Scum tag in your author note, and it would show all stories by all authors using the tag?

 

[Belegon]

A while ago I wrote a story called Rulk the Rat and the Demon Dagger (9.7k words, rated 4.76). A nasty story about nasty people, none nastier than the main character. To me, it encapsulates some of the key elements of S&S: a grim setting, earthy characters, magic that's unpredictable and mysterious rather than utilitarian, people whose motives are selfish, shades of grey, a distinct lack of Good v Evil conflict.

Several readers commented that it would make a good chapter in an anthology:

"You could have some fun expanding this world in future stories for sure."
"It felt like a story from a horror anthology series with a grim narrator introducing each story."
"I feel like this would be a fun episode of something like the Twilight Zone[.]"

In The Sword & Sorcery appreciation thread, the possibility came up of a S&S challenge. I doubt that would happen this year - I won't be organising it, at least - but perhaps people would be interested in using the setting from "Rulk the Rat" as a shared universe. An anthology of standalone stories with a common tone and some common landmarks, but different characters.

Who's interested? I'm not setting any deadlines or saying who's allowed to join, or impose any sequence for people to write their stories. Just an open setting to use as background and inspiration.

UPDATE: Now that the setting is up and running, here's the tag page with all stories tagged "city of scum".

The stories so far:

Rulk the Rat and the Demon Dagger, by StillStunned: A thief finds a dagger that gives him power.
The Only Flower On Rose Street, by StillStunned: A burglar is caught and mistaken for a whore.
The Angel of the Alleys, by Areala-chan: The hero the City deserves, not the one it needs.
What Scabby Saw In The Bathhouse, by StillStunned: A beggar spies on a clandestine meeting in the City of Scum.

Sounds interesting... I may give it a go. we'll see...

 

[StillStunned]

You could include a direct link to the City of Scum tag in your author note, and it would show all stories by all authors using the tag?

That's what I've done in my two most recent stories.

Sounds interesting... I may give it a go. we'll see...

Welcome to the City! Watch out for the ghouls.

 

[Vammatar]

So my effort is titled Axes Aren't A Ghoul's Best Friend.

I'm up to 2000 words, I'm halfway through the fight scene, I've written an ending, and still haven't got to the main thrust (ooh err!) of the story yet.
My MC is just passing through, so it's more of an outsider's impression of the place.

 

[StillStunned]

So my effort is titled Axes Aren't A Ghoul's Best Friend.

I'm up to 2000 words, I'm halfway through the fight scene, I've written an ending, and still haven't got to the main thrust (ooh err!) of the story yet.
My MC is just passing through, so it's more of an outsider's impression of the place.

Looking forward to it!

 

[Areala-chan]

So my effort is titled Axes Aren't A Ghoul's Best Friend.

I'm up to 2000 words, I'm halfway through the fight scene, I've written an ending, and still haven't got to the main thrust (ooh err!) of the story yet.
My MC is just passing through, so it's more of an outsider's impression of the place.

Yes, do it!! It'll be fun!

 

[StillStunned]

The City's population is growing.

 

[Devinter]

I stayed up all night working on Syllvasster's Sewer Sect - and it's coming along nicely thus far. Any chance one of you lovely fellows would be willing to Beta read it once it's closer to completion? If the creative juices keep flowing, it would be done in just a day or three.

 

[StillStunned]

Oooo, pick me, pick me!

 

[DraegonDaddy]

Chapter of "The Blade, The Spear, & The Demon Crown" is out: https://www.literotica.com/s/the-blade-the-spear-the-demon-crown-ch-02

 

[Devinter]

Oooo, pick me, pick me!

I think it's done. Not only that, I think it's one of the better tales I've written! I was really inspired for this one. The words just flowed, demanding the story to be heard. Sleep and duties had to wait, because my mind was too distracted. It's a short tale at about 6000 words, but I am incredibly pleased with a lot of the paragraphs. Maybe a break from the erotic writing was exactly what I needed, because I feel like I returned with an intense fire that glows through the entire story. It's not perfect - of course not! - but it's passionate. And that feeling was something I had really been searching for.

There's a few things that might need to be changed. I don't know if the characters are as "obviously evil" as they ought to be. Also, I mention steam vents and the like a few times, but not sure if that fits the shared universe. Do they have steam technology? But the story is creepy-yet-erotic, the characters interesting, and it still feels like a Devinter tale. I'll mail it to you in an hour or two. Just going to listen through it.

 

[StillStunned]

I think it's done. Not only that, I think it's one of the better tales I've written! I was really inspired for this one. The words just flowed, demanding the story to be heard. Sleep and duties had to wait, because my mind was too distracted. It's a short tale at about 6000 words, but I am incredibly pleased with a lot of the paragraphs. Maybe a break from the erotic writing was exactly what I needed, because I feel like I returned with an intense fire that glows through the entire story. It's not perfect - of course not! - but it's passionate. And that feeling was something I had really been searching for.

There's a few things that might need to be changed. I don't know if the characters are as "obviously evil" as they ought to be. Also, I mention steam vents and the like a few times, but not sure if that fits the shared universe. Do they have steam technology? But the story is creepy-yet-erotic, the characters interesting, and it still feels like a Devinter tale. I'll mail it to you in an hour or two. Just going to listen through it.

I'm so glad to hear it! Sometimes an external prompt is just what you need, particularly if you've been wrapped up in one project for a long time.

I'll keep an eye on the letterbox for when the postman comes to deliver your story.

 

[StillStunned]

Also, I mention steam vents and the like a few times, but not sure if that fits the shared universe. Do they have steam technology?

Sure, why not?

I'm beginning to think that it's impossible for everyone's stories to align 100% with the same version of the City. I think it was @ShelbyDawn57 who mentioned a king, and @DraegonDaddy has platinum coins, whereas my version is more mud farmers and copper coins. But that's alright: all the different versions are like a Venn diagram with 90% overlap, or something. Writing is about being creative, not restrictive. And anyway, consistency in the feel of the place is more important for the setting than consistency in the details.

 

[DraegonDaddy]

The character who finds the platinum coins, explicitly mentions she's only ever heard of them, never seen them.

 

[DraegonDaddy]

I'm also about to drop a shit ton (US Imperial shit ton) of drug varieties in another chapter or two.

 

[Devinter]

I'm also about to drop a shit ton (US Imperial shit ton) of drug varieties in another chapter or two.

I mentioned a couple in my (not yet published) chapter as well. All fictional. Snippet below:

For just a few copper coins, you could purchase just enough Dreamer's Drought to ensure a good night's sleep, if you were not too concerned with waking up again the next morning. Add a silver noble or two, and you might score just enough crushed Paprunika to speak to imaginary friends conjured from your fevered mind, though a heavy nosebleed would inevitably follow. It was said those who took too much began to see things that were not quite imaginary at all.

Just in case you want to use them in your story.

 

[Devinter]

Syllvasster's Sewer Sect is now published. I hope that it will be appreciated, despite being a little dark and creepy.