Week 1: Change
May you live in interesting times.
—Apocryphal Chinese proverb
Assignment 1
Consider what kind of changes would fit in with your world'sthemes, genre, and other foundational points.
complete
There are so many things I'm supposed to be working on right now...most of which are addressed in my 2024 Outline. There are a lot of changes going on in the world, and since I don't really write in a linear fashion, there is a lot of jumping around. For example, I really want to get Shipley and Harbor done this year (which covers Constance and her former partner Sarah) and finally publish the last installment of Troubled Beginnings (whcih covers Someone Elsewood's early life at W.I.L.L.O.W.I.S.P.). Both of these project show a lot of change. In addition, I have recently worked on Stewart Princely's graduating saga which marks big change in his life as he's growing up from that 14-year-old intern and trying to figure out what he wants to do at the organization.
Assignment 2
Based on this, decide how many prompts you'll go for during Summer Camp.Then, download the pledge document and fill it accordingly!
complete
As I mentioned earlier, I am not going to actually make any kind of exact pledge again this year. This process has always conflicted with me, as I never like to promise things when the future is uncertain, but I did it anyway for years. I never lost until last World Ember, and I will take that as a sign not to set a certain bar for myself. I am still planning on going for Diamond, but if I am unable to achieve it, I will still try my best not to beat myself up as I know that whatever I end with will be considered the "Highest Possible" badge, as indicated in my pledge document below.
Assignment 3
Get your categories and tags organized!complete
I have successfully tagged every single article in my world with the year it was created in. I have also updated my world content page and even created a category for this Summer Camp. I realized that some of my previous challenge articles were scattered about, so I fixed that. Now, I believe everything is organized (at least enough for now).
Assignment 4
Take a look at your meta, primer, and any other high-level documentand update it according to the current state of your world.
complete
I have gone back through the meta and I have added things to make it 100%. At first, it was probably about 60% but I clicked to "mark complete". Now, it's actually complete. One of the reasons I did not feel right filling out some of that stuff was because my world is called "Secret Agent Someone" and then the little headers that pop up are inaccurate. The setting is actually probably better to be describing aspects of the W.I.L.L.O.W.I.S.P. organization as a whole now, but I don't want to change the name of my site and break all the links! So I just didn't care and decided to fill it all out anyways. I'm sure there's a way to hide stuff like headers with CSS or something but I really couldn't care less right now. I think it's good now and I am glad that I completed my homework in time for the next reveal!
Week 2: Refuge
There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats.
—Albert Schweitzer, philosopher and polymath
Assignment 1
Consider what kinds of refuge would fit in withyour world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.
complete
The funny thing about this question is, refuge can be looked at in two different ways here. A lot of people may think W.I.L.L.O.W.I.S.P. is some big, bad, shady shadow organization that one may seek refuge from. However, the truth is that many people in-world find W.I.L.L.O.W.I.S.P. to be their own twisted sort of refuge from the perils, troubles, and trauma of their real lives. Many seek acceptance, belonging, or just overall purpose through their missions at the agency. Some don't have family or friends outside of those they meet at the company. Believe it or not, W.I.L.L.O.W.I.S.P. might just be considered a safehouse to many, as dangerous as it is.
Assignment 2
Find a community...complete
Speaking of refuge, where will I seek refuge during Summer Camp? My Infinite Imaginations discord server, of course! I will be hosting another virtual writer's retreat all event long. There are so many creative beans in this space and we would love to have you there as well if you aren't already present! I will also be checking comments and notifications here on WorldAnvil. That bell is over 2,000 and I don't know if I will be able to clear them all before the influx, but I will try to check new updates as they are published. I started a while back to join another chapter...I was removed from the one I did join in the past due to inactivity and inability to participate as much as they wanted me to, so that made me think all chapters were like that. I since found out that was not true. I also found out that I could create my own chapter. I had a couple of ideas but I am not sure they are allowed, so I might wait until after Summer Camp to explore that, If I'm going to.
Assignment 3
Find ways to improve styling and layout in your world!complete
I have a format of how I want the articles laid out. People quite like Commander McCox's little blurbs in the sidebar. I also enjoy finding good icons for each article to appear before its name and show up in lists. In addition, I have created a new placeholder image to display when an article is not yet done that I'm quite pleased with. I feel it gives a more in-world vibe, informing that the article is incomplete without taking readers out of the environment by saying that WordiGirl didn't manage to complete it yet lol.There is a lot of overhaul I wanted to do with the design, but I feel like that task is wayy too daunting to start BEFORE Summer Camp...
Assignment 4
If you’re a CSS wizard, maybe take the time now to give it a polish!complete
I ended up going through my CSS and labeling things so that I can know where to find it when scrolling through. I also deleted the Authoring Panel CSS I had in there which made no sense because at first I didn't know what it was for so it kinda had a copy of some old CSS for the whole world just pasted in there and it does absolutely nothing for me because I use the bbcode editor and nothing's customized for me.
Week 3: Belief
Frisbeetarianism is the belief that when you die, your soul goes up on the roof and gets stuck.
—George Carlin, comedian
Assignment 1
Consider what kind of beliefs would fit inwith your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.
complete
There are a lot of beliefs circling around the world of W.I.L.L.O.W.I.S.P.. Even within the company, some people believe that the organization is good while some believe the agency is bad. To outside people, many believe that W.I.L.L.O.W.I.S.P. is a business that has less power than it really does. Its multitude of public-facing fronts conceal its true prevelence in the world.
On a personal level, there are a lot of beliefs in the minds of the characters. There are people like Someone Elsewood who lie to themselves, people like Constance Harbor who belive in the power of second chances, and people like Stewart Princely who have a difficult time believing in themselves.
There is an overarching theme of faith peppered throughout all of my works.
Assignment 2
Create a bank of inspirations!Quotes, music, description of experiences and shower thoughts, etc.
complete
I feel like this is already in the meta, which I worked on back in Week 1. Very strange to see this again, but I have actually added some playlists to the meta now because though I mentioned doing it last time, I actually didn't end up doing it at all. XD
Assignment 3
Find art and pictures that inspire you,and grab a map if you don't have one (and need one).
complete
I have various maps already, but I am uncertain what maps I will need for Summer Camp. I can't really think of one at the moment. I did want to get more images set up for the worlds and swap out some of the placeholders. I've actually been planning on doing that for quite a long time and never got around to it. I did a few Stewart shots but we need to do another shoot for him. We also need to do the Constance shoot and get some Someone pics with the outfit I actually imagine him wearing instead of this placeholder I've been using, but I don't think any of that is going to happen before camp. Though I have cleaned up the image section of the Meta, now. I suppose that's good enough or it's gonna have to be.
Assignment 4
Check your inspirations again. Are they still relevant?Can you find any that better represent the current state of your project?
complete
I once again feel like this is the meta we already worked on at the beginning of the month. Still, I didn't put too many inspirations into it. I feel like the main source of inspiration that can give people the vibes of the project best is, simply, our real world. I was talking to a person the other day about how there are so many walls and gates in media, but my world is more like the real world. It isn't really limited by genre or ingredients on a label. It is a real, living, breathing world with things that happen to characters just like things that happen in real life. Characters have lives. It's up to me to decide who to zoom in on and what part of their life to focus on. I primarily use genres as a guideline for how to present a story. I don't change things to fit a genre, rather showcase or withhold details or fixate on certain themes because of what mood the current piece I'm working on is supposed to have. It's very much like a documentary.
Week 4: Decay
All things are subject to decay and when fate summons, monarchs must obey.
—John Dryden, poet
Assignment 1
Consider what kind of decay would fit inwith your world's themes, genre, and other foundational points.
complete
To be honest, there is a lot of decay in my world. Decay can be physical, but it can also be mental and even emotional. It's not a secret that many W.I.L.L.O.W.I.S.P. operatives are dealing with a lot of psychological issues. Someone himself is suspected of spiraling into madness. Yet, there are other forms of decay as well. Some even dealing with the relationships that individuals have with those they know--including each other, the company, and, at times, themselves...
Assignment 2
...stock up...tidy up...think about last-minute strategiesto optimize your writing space and time!
complete
Right now, I am not in the best financial situation to stock up on things, but I did recently create an Amazon list and sent it out to my supporters. I still feel weird about asking for help from people but I am trying to do better in this area. One of the things that help while I'm working is chewing Doublemint gum lol. It's weird and I like it a little too much but, after a lot of internal debate, I put it on the list. XD I might also put some other snacks on there. I like stuff like banana chips, sunflower seeds, and all kinds of handy little stuff like that. I like trailmix, but I am allergic to nuts, so I have alternatives. These might just make appearances on the list.
One of the other things I love to do is listen to music. My current pair of headphones that I have at my computer are broken, though. I have to tilt my head and lean it against my shoulder so that the earpiece can hear properly. This gives me a horrible crick. I have the studio headphones in my Amazon list as well that would be an exact duplciate replacement for them. I might just bring out some of my Bluetooth ones and listen to music on my phone or something which will be annoying but it may have to do. If you would like to support me in other ways, feel free to visit my Content & Subscriptions page for things you can do and receive perks, or just tip my Ko-Fi page if you wouldn't like anything in return. All help is appreciated. I really seem to have fallen on tough times this year but I am just trying to keep praying and keep going as always. <3 As for strategies, I already planned to end the Epic Character Challenge in time for Summer Camp so that I would not be overwhelmed. Being laid off, I don't currently have a stable 9 to 5 during the week, but I have still been trying to hustle and grind to scramble and make as much money as I can with freelance work and all that. Hopefully I can have enough time for Summer Camp. I have crafted my July Twitch schedule! I set to go live an hour later than I've been aiming for in June because I have been late to literally every stream due to hectic life shenanigans.
Assignment 3
Review your world homepage to hook potential readers!complete
I recently redid this...accidentally during the World Anvil WorldBuilding Awards 2023 and was subsequently disqualified for "Best World" even though I'm pretty sure I wouldn't have won anyways, but still. Nevertheless, I have taken another look at it since then as well. I manually update the featured articles every time they change. I also recently added the Merch Portal and the Full Story Timeline. I am not totally happy with the design, but I feel like it's better than it used to be. The rest is mainly CSS formatting that I am uncertain I will reorganize in time for camp.
Assignment 4
Take a look at your author profile andpillar articles on your world and polish them!
complete
I keep my Author Page up to date. I don't have much on there but a brief bio and links to my socials. I think the minimalist look is less cluttered and more straightforward. Even still, I decided to add a little pizazz! I'm a Sage and I haven't even been using some of my perks which are to have a custom field on the profile page. I have it all nice and linked up now. Also, can't hurt to push myself to ask for more tips. XD
As for 'Pillar Articles', I have added more information and updated the formatting on Someone Elsewood's page, along with the W.I.L.L.O.W.I.S.P. primer. I touched up a few of the articles they link out to as well. Quite proud of doing this. I've also already been working on making the Content & Subscriptions page more understandable and streamlined. I want to sort the perks out better, too, as doing so may encourage more monthly supporters. <3
Welcome to my homework and prep for Summer Camp 2024...
I will primarily work in Secret Agent Someone's universe, but if I need to, I will skip over to Wynsumheord to pay the bros a visit. <3
Progress
Check out My Progress Report Page
Current Badge Achieved: Silver
Total Prompts Completed: 19/40
Change 6/8
A TUMULTUOUS REGION PRONE TO NATURAL DISASTERS
(Location)
AN ENVIRONMENTAL OR OTHER LARGE-SCALE NATURAL DISASTER
(Law)
A CHARACTER WHO GOES THROUGH A GREAT CHANGE OR METAMORPHOSIS
(Person)
A SICKNESS THAT CAUSED SOCIETAL UPHEAVAL
(Condition)
A DOCUMENT THAT CHANGED THE COURSE OF HISTORY
(Document)
A DISPLACED PEOPLE IN YOUR WORLD
(Ethnicity)
A CONFLICT THAT INVOLVED A CHANGING ENVIRONMENT
(Militaryconflict)
A VEHICLE THAT, WHEN INTRODUCED, CAUSED SOCIAL UPHEAVAL
(Vehicle)
Wildcard 2/2
Refuge 4/8
A SETTLEMENT CONSIDERED A REFUGE
(Settlement)
A TECHNOLOGY USED FOR DEFENSE OR PROTECTION
(Technology)
A NATURALLY SHELTERED PLACE
(Location)
A BUILDING CONSIDERED A REFUGE AGAINST THE WORLD
(Building)
A UNIT DEDICATED TO GUARDING SOMEONE OR SOMETHING
(Formation)
A PERSONAL ITEM THAT KEEPS YOU SAFE
(Item)
A TRADITION THAT GIVES COMFORT
(Ritual)
Wildcard 2/2
A CHARITY OR OTHER ORGANIZATION FOCUSED AROUND DOING GOOD
(Organization)
(Organization)
Belief 5/8
A FACTION OF AN ORGANIZATION BUILT AROUND BELIEF
(Organization)
A MYTH, URBAN LEGEND OR CONSPIRACY THEORY BELIEVED BY MANY TO BE TRUE
(Myth)
AN EVIL SPIRIT OR DIVINE ANTAGONIST
(Person)
A DOCUMENT OF SPURIOUS OR CONTROVERSIAL ATTRIBUTION
(Document)
A RELIC OR SYMBOL OF BELIEF
(Item)
SLANG OR A LANGUAGE ASSOCIATED WITH A RELIGION OR BELIEF
(Language)
A LEADER OR HIGH-RANKING PERSON IN AN ORGANIZATION
(Rank)
THE PRACTICES AND CEREMONIES OF WORSHIP
(Ritual)
Wildcard 0/2
A SETTLEMENT THAT'S KNOWN AS A PARTY TOWN OR PLEASURE CITY
(Settlement)
(Settlement)
A HYBRID SPECIES INTENTIONALLY BRED
(Species)
(Species)
Decay 0/8
A MYTH OR PROPHECY ABOUT THE END OF THE WORLD
(Myth)
A MATERIAL THAT IS RESISTANT TO DECAY
(Material)
A PROFESSION THAT IS CONSIDERED DIRTY
(Profession)
AN ORGANIZATION FIGHTING CORRUPTION
(Organization)
A TRADITION THAT REPRESENTS MORAL DECAY
(Ritual)
AN ANIMAL OR PLANT THAT FEEDS ON DECAY
(Species)
A DEGENERATIVE DISEASE
(Condition)
A PIECE OF TECH THAT PREVENTS DECAY
(Technology)
Wildcard 0/2
A STORYTELLER, AUTHOR OR BARD IN YOUR WORLD
(Person)
(Person)
A GEOGRAPHICAL REGION THAT IS EXPANDING
(Location)
(Location)
God bless and much success with your own Summer Camp plans!
Sending prayers, love, and healing hugs always.
Feel free to link your pledge docs below!
Have a nice Summer Camp and do your best. It's always amusing to read all your little hidden messages. Regarding your reference, I believe it's from Family Guy, but I'm not entirely sure.
lol Family Guy is the wrong Peter lol but good guess! I'm glad you enjoy the hidden messages lol XD
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