The Wall: let’s throw stuff at it and see what sticks

I try a lot of unusual (and some very mundane) things in the name of curiosity, fact checking, and properly editing. I figured you might as well get some use out of my research rabbit holes and test runs modeled after character and narrator claims. The Wall is where I’ll show off and share these things.

For example: I am by no means an expert baker, but you might find recipes that mimic what narration described in detail, plus pointers for how to describe certain ingredients or mixing methods. I’m not really a woodworker, but I’ve now had enough stabbed fingers from whittling small wooden statuettes to confidently let you know that the broody character you just wrote could produce at least one statuette a week with how often you’ve said they’re whittling. I have never been in the fallout zone for a dragon’s ashy breath, but I’ve certainly done enough research into volcanic, manmade structure, and forest fire ashfall to make an educated guess about what size particles would fall in different parts of the plume.

A small disclaimer: I am not purporting to be any kind of expert in any of the fields I discuss. In fact, I’m doing the opposite. I’m trying something I am unfamiliar with so that I can begin to understand it and provide more helpful feedback. I’ll do my best to include research tags and possible explanations, but don’t take anything I say on The Wall as 100% factual. This content is meant only to entertain and inform you, dear reader, of my best guesses and opinions—hypotheses and experiments only. This is an especially important distinction when it comes to anything medical, okay? This is important; pay attention: I’ll do my best to explain why I think the fairies in someone’s story should consume extra collagen to produce stronger wings, but I am in no way a medical expert, and that statement probably won’t apply to you, even if you are a fairy. It’s best to assume there is no statement on this site that reflects the opinion of a medical professional unless directly quoted and the source provided (and I am not the source). If you decide to follow advice I’ve given to fictional characters as though what I’ve suggested is factual and applies to you, a real life person, well… That’s on you.

Okay, now that that’s covered, let’s look at some of the topics I have ready to go up soon:

Recipes (baked goods, meals, and sauces, some of which are using real-world versions of imaginary ingredients), working with a wood-burning stove, crocheting, knitting (eastern European method), woodcarving, beading, ashfall patterns and explanations, thoughts on the best way to describe (specific) fictional creatures, notes on painting with different mediums, ideas on how to trick an AI system in a fictional world (this may be dated now), candles as timers, thoughts on alternative explanations behind different fictional races (dwarves, ogres, elves, etc.), notes on developing new fictional races and creatures, how far horses, humans, and fictional creatures could reasonably travel in a day, notes on mapmaking and map repurposing, geology of fictional settings, and more.

I’ll try my best to organize The Wall with tags, but if you are looking for something specific, feel free to reach out. I’d love the chance to chat.