Recent content by Michael Terrance

I do it all the time. For example, the 'Taburellian Empire.' According to Google Translate, the Turkish word for "footstool" is "tambure". (Yes, the Turkish for "foot-rest" would have been better, but it is a phrase, not a single word.)

Excellent line. I am not sure if I want to know the context, or if I prefer it on its own. Well done.

I am happy to give you some suggestions. First, my background, so you can judge for yourself whether to take my suggestions. I am 53 years old and have done martial arts most of my life. I have studied both Chinese and Japanese history and cultures (and languages). I did a Bachelor's degree in...

A gentleman (a Lord) speaking with his Solicitor, passing on a limrick about a young Barrister in town. It is something he heard from a judge with whom he socializes at a gentleman's club they both belong to. "Tried a case recently involving the, umm, mis-use of livestock, did young Wendel...

Good point, and thanks for that. I am actually intending to use it as a story element by having my protagonist try to use both systems and being routinely frustrated by the results.

For someone so young, I am impressed that you have come up with ideas like gender delineated language. Japanese has some good examples of this you may want to consider. It will make it easier for you to develop if there are common ways the female language differs from the male language. It...

I am working on an Isekai story presently and am thinking of incorporating both the usual LitRPG-type progression and a Xianxia-type cultivation system. I am wondering if anyone has either written or read other stories that incorporate both of these elements, and, if so, how have they dealt with...

I have always found history, anthropology, philosophy, and languages interesting, and I think basing your world on real historical (or current) cultures is a good way to add texture to it. It is like intertextuality in literature. It also makes it more likely that the elements of your world will...

Is there something specific about these characters you are looking for suggestions about? Would need more details to be helpful. The one who is a "major flirt", is she the kind of woman who interacts in a flirtatious way with any man she sees as 'masculine'? This is not uncommon, and it does not...

I tend to develop rules for how things work (even magic) and then make everything conform to those. This way, the world is internally consistent. I do this even if the rules are ridiculous. (Although I will occasionally fudge a rule if it makes for better comedy.) I once wrote a short story...

Between my ADHD and people-pleasing tendencies, yes, it is very difficult to say "no." Almost every new potential project looks interesting, and I feel compelled to help when I can, but I'm working on that last part. I do find it helps to seriously consider what I will have to say "no" to, in...

If magic is required for travel and not everyone has it, I presume travel is not all that common. Typically, that would mean the development of a wide variety of languages and beliefs, with common threads usually running through them since 1) primitive peoples tend to try to answer the same big...

Agreed. Family symbols were not unique to Western Europe. Look, for example, at Japanese clan symbols.

Sounds like you have a strategy in place to attract readers and keep their interest; that's great. I've only just returned to writing after a very long time, but I am really just doing it for enjoyment, and as a way to engage with my daughter (she is an avid writer, and I'm writing a story with...

Yes, I am very fortunate. This is a great way to connect with my daughter. I try to do things with each of them that resonate with them as an individual.