Writer’s Notebook

When trying to cram an octopus into a mayonnaise jar, it’s best to take notes.

Some useful maps for Fifth World

I fully plan on making pretty versions of the cottage, Wash, and Fifth World. For now, enjoy my sketches.

4th World nuclear silo locations and patterns of radiation in the case of full-scale thermonuclear war. I wonder how many government watch lists I’m on for these searches…

Fifth World. The Rea Tenuri are the nuclear badlands, still radioactive two thousand years later. Note how their location corresponds with the silo map.

Discovering Adisha – character sketches and inspiration

Early inspiration for Adisha’s looks came from Bollywood actress Amy Jackson. Imagine her with super pale skin and purple eyes, and she’s pretty close – especially in the blue dress in the bottom right!
I used tarot to help me figure out Adisha, and the rough outlines of the plot began to emerge. Before you complain about spoilers, this stuff evolved and changed as it wished. This was literally only my starting point, when I didn’t even know who she was besides cursed, lonely, and beautiful, with purple eyes. Page 1.
Page 2
Page 3

Discovering Esmund – character sketches and inspiration

Fasbender inspo with Esmund’s personal timeline sketched out.
Page 1, using tarot. I am a witch, after all. What do you expect?
Page 2. Note I later struck it out.
Fasbender is gorgeous but Tom Mison in Sleepy Hollow is perfect.
More character inspo from Mison.

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Nuclear Winter Timeline

I definitely need to make a graphic out of this. For the record, I was as accurate as possible with the nuclear devastation, using Department of Defense simulations, government maps, survivor accounts from Trinity, Hiroshima, and Nagasaki, evidence from major volcanic eruptions. as well as what predictions exist about nuclear winter following a full scale thermonuclear war . I simply took license to extend the period of darkness to suit the plot – – – and also, because the truth is we just don’t know (and will hopefully never find out).