 Fantasy: September 12, 2007 Issue [#1942] |
  Fantasy
This week: Edited by: Feywriter  
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"The man who goes alone can start today; but he who travels with another must wait 'til the other is ready, and it may be a long time before they get off."
~Henry David Thoreau, Walden, 1854
"The traveler that resolutely follows a rough and winding path will sooner reach the end of his journey than he that is always changing his direction, and wastes the hour of daylight in looking for smoother ground and shorter passages."
~Samuel Johnson
The world needs fantasy. It can be an escape from daily life, a means for finding the hero within, a landscape to inspire the imagination. Enter the world of Fantasy. In my newsletters you can expect thorough looks at different aspects of fantasy writing, and a publisher spotlight.
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This week's newsletter addresses travel.
If you don't take the time to approximate the time and distance your characters take from point A to point B, you risk inconsistencies which your detail-oriented readers will pick up on. You don't want your troupe leaving too late to realistically catch the festival in the next town, or save their friend from his scheduled execution in the next kingdom. If you find they would be arriving too early, you can always throw obstacles in their way to slow them down.
Before you can calculate distance, you need a scaled map. A scale is a measurement showing how many inches/millimeters represent a number of miles. My own map scale: 1 inch = 100 miles. Now that you have your scale, you can begin measuring. Rarely do you want to measure the direct distance however – roads curve, adventurers have to backtrack, or a lake crosses their path. An easy trick is to use a piece of string or floss instead of a straight edged paper or ruler. You can curve the string along the exact path, cut it off, pull it straight and then measure it.
Now that you have the distance, you can begin to figure out time. Even if you don't show the traveling itself, you need to have a sense of how much time has passed. What transportation method are they using? Walking, riding horses, wagon, ship, or some more fantastical method? Or in a modern fantasy: by car, plane, train? Here's a handy reference chart for some of the most common means. All measurements are miles/hour (mph) unless noted otherwise.
Horses
Horse speed varies by breed, stride, and condition, but here's an average.
Walk: 3-5 mph
Trot: roughly 8-10 mph
Canter/Lope: 10-17 mph
Gallop: about 30 mph
thoroughbreds are bred for distance, not speed; can average over 40mph
quarter horses are bred for short distance and speed; can reach 50 mph in short bursts
Human travel (all assuming character is in average condition)
on dirt trails: 10-14 miles/day
on paved trails: 8-12 miles/day (no natural cushioning for feet)
on fair trails (natural, rocky, root covered, etc): 8-12 miles/day
average speed over natural terrain: 3 mph
Wagon
Ox-drawn: 16 miles/day
average wagon travel: 2 mph
exhaustive wagon travel: 6 mph
Ship
This varies greatly on ship type, weather, etc. An excellent forum post on sea travel: "Re: Re: Re: Sea travel"
Transporting Information, not people
Passenger pigeons are able to fly over 60 mph
Keep in mind that the harder, faster speeds are difficult to keep up at long distances and will require more rest periods (non-man-powered vehicles being the exception).
If you use more modern transportation, you'll want to research for the specific region or era. Also be sure to note the speeds of any travel means you've specifically created for your world.
How do I use this information?
If you have a distance and want to know how long it takes to travel, divide the distance by mph. You can figure out how far someone will journey in one day by multiplying the mph by the number of hours they travel. If your characters are on the move a lot, make a string in the length of their average daily travel so you can mark on the map where they end each day.
If you haven't mapped your world, you may want to read my issue on maps here: "Fantasy Newsletter (November 1, 2006)"
This is information that isn't easy to locate through internet searches, though the information is out there. I hope you find it useful.
** Image ID #1092573 Unavailable **
 Publisher Spotlight
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast books
Location: USA
Website: http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/
About: From website, "speculative fiction imprint that publishes novels with science fiction, fantasy and/or horror elements for an adult audience."
Guidelines:
 "What we're most interested in are books that are set in a contemporary or historical setting but with the addition of some SF, fantasy, and/or horror elements."
 Annual open call for submissions is between September 1st and February 1st. Any sent outside those dates won't be read.
 send SASE, one page cover letter, signed legal agreement (found on site), and first three chapters or first 30 pages of novel (whichever is shorter)
 Must be age 18 or older
 For more details, and access to legal agreement, read submission guidelines at http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/default.aspx?doc=main_submissions
this is NOT for writing about their shared worlds. if that's what you're interested in, keep an eye on their webpage for announcements of any open submissions.
other questions? see their FAQ http://ww2.wizards.com/books/Wizards/default.aspx?doc=main_faq
Payscale: advance and royalties
Wizards of the Coast also has a young readers imprint, which I will cover next month.
To see previously featured publishers, go to "Invalid Item" .
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#1302200 by Not Available. |
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#1291555 by Not Available. |
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#1265759 by Not Available. |
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#1265480 by Not Available. |
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#1247014 by Not Available. |
| |  | Blood and Snow (13+)
A vampire attempts to attack a traveller, but it gets more than it bargained for. (GPs)
#1245153 by Oweyn |
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#1229123 by Not Available. |
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Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
Don't forget to support our sponsor!
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Reader Comments
From Strange Wulf :
Okay, after reading this, I'm definitely gonna have to track down that game and buy it, if only to play that quest. XD Awesome tip of the hat to Tolkien and his buddies. Wish I could've met 'em.
Thanks for the publisher spotlight too. They sound like someone who might be interested in publishing some of my future novels. Now, if I can only just get them written!
It would be wonderful to go back in time and meet the Inklings. That would be one of my first destinations if I ever got hold of a time machine. 
From andromeda :
sounds fun. I had a group of friends in my high school creative writing class. we only got together in class, but we had fun. Have you read Here There be Dragons? It has those authors in it as characters.
Andromeda
I haven't read that, but will have to do so now. Thanks for mentioning it. 
From dusktildawn:
Wow, I didn't know this, Emerald. What an amazing and informative Newsletter! Thanks so much for sharing.
From Amarisa :
You put my story in a newsletter! Wow... that was completely unexpected. I didn't think you'd actually accept it, much less consider it. Thanks, I greatly appreciate the advertising.
From SHERRI GIBSON  :
You're so right about fantasy being a release. I've read so many wonderful stories on the site. An excellent newsletter!
From tailennion:
"Invalid Item"
My highschool has a writing club and it's so awesome. I've learned a lot from doing the challenges we are given each week. The item I highlighted came from a challenge from the club (although it took me a lot longer than a week to finish it).
The challenges are optional and fun so it's not even homework at all.
During the meetings we read aloud what we've written and we get and give comments and advice. It's a blast.
Anyway, thanks for telling us about the Inklings. I've read something by Roger Lancelyn Green I think, but I never knew he was a member of that writing group!
Thanks for sharing about your writing group. It's great to be part of a good one.
From emerin-liseli :
Wow! Thanks for the highlight on literary groups. I knew Lewis and Tolkien were friends, but I didn't know they were part of a writing group. It's an encouraging thought and a very interesting one for such a large community of writers like WDC.
Thanks again.
--Emerin
Thank you for all the comments. Remember to leave feedback or ideas for future newsletters.
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