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Young Writers Society


The Universe Hub



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The Index



Welcome to the YWS Universe, affectionately called The Universe or YWU. This is a collaborative universe, where the world evolves as you, and others, write. Think of it as a fanfiction, but with the ability to form the universe around you. The stories you write affects the world, and the world in turn affects your stories.

The world of Runeheim is a world constantly changing and evolving to the whims of the writers. In Aether's Heart, the country of Synilas is highlighted as a prophecy drags a group of nobodies together. In On Stolen Wings, the country of Asturia is highlighted as dragon riders fight to stop a magical plague from spreading too far. However, there are many countries, both known and unknown, in Runeheim, all waiting for stories to happen and legends to be discovered. If you enjoy high fantasy or want to be a part of an ever-evolving universe, please, come say hi in the YWU Club. There, we can help you get started writing in YWU.

Below, you will find links that has more in-depth information with the story, the lore, the world, and more.

The YWU Club
The link to the YWU, a place for communication and collaboration.
Introduction to the Universe
This is a basic guide to what you can do in YWU and what YWU is.
FAQs
This goes more in depth to some questions you may have.
The Story of the Universe
This is the hub for all stories that are happening in YWU. This includes links, summaries, and all writers.
Events, Challenges, and Trophies
This shows all Events, Challenges, and Trophies that have happened in YWU or are currently available
The Lore Hub
This is the Hub for all Lore that has been written in YWU. Take care! You can lose yourself in there!
The Lore Upkeep Thread
This is where all new lore is posted, for those who want to keep up to date on things.
Guide to Lorekeeping
This is a guide to those who don't want to write, but just want to worldbuild.
The Character Portal - Profiles and Templates
This is where all characters in YWU reside.
The Story Update Thread
This is where you can stay on top of all YWU stories, no matter if you're a part of them or not.
The Universe Collab Thread
If you want to collaborate, here's the place!
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Introduction to The Universe



Welcome to the YWS Universe, affectionately called YWU. Think of this as YWS' universe where you get to write almost any kind of story you'd like, all the while it would be interconnected with all of the other lore within the Universe.

This guide will help you on your way to starting a story in YWU.

Genres: While we don't want to limit your imagination and creativity, there are some certain restrictions before you jump in. YWU will be a primarily Medieval/Fantasy, but there's always wiggle room. However, some people might raise some eyebrows if you plant a spaceship in the middle of the Middle Ages. So! Here's a list of some genres just to give you an idea to get started:

Spoiler! :
  • Medieval
  • Fantasy
  • Steampunk
  • High Fantasy
  • Dark Fantasy
  • Western
  • Romance
  • Thriller
  • Mystery
  • Horror
  • Fairy Tale
  • Folktale
  • Magical Realism
  • Science Fiction*
  • Dystopian*

Some of these would be hard to fit in YWU, but if you contact any of the Lorekeepers, they can collaborate with you to find a way to fit it in the Universe.


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Character Creation: After you have a genre in mind, it's time to start setting up any potential main characters in your story. Lucky for you, we have Character Templates for you to use, located Here. You can use one of your own, too, if you'd like. There's also a handy dandy character list of other major characters, minor characters, and NPCs (Non-Playable Characters: Someone who isn't being written by a writer) in case you want to write them into your story. Your character will be added to that list once you've finished your template.

Starting the Story: Now that you have your genre and your characters, it's time to start writing! Some writers plan their stories before writing, some writers outline their stories before writing, and some write based on inspiration. No matter how you write, there are some guidelines that we ask of you for YWU.

  1. Adding YWU to Your Story
    • When posting your story, either as a Literary Work, as a club post, or as a forum post, put YWU before your title
      Image
    • Or as a subtitle.
      Image
  2. Once a week or once a chapter, give a one sentence-one paragraph summary of your story to a Lorekeeper, or when a Lorekeeper asks you. This is to help update YWU's mass storyline.

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Joining the Community: Being a part of YWU isn't just about writing within it, but about writing collaboratively within a larger group and community. YWU has a Club that hosts regular Write-ins, while also hosting a place for your story that doesn't require points. Lorekeepers of the highest Tiers will be running the club. There will also be semi-regular Events and Challenges, with trophies to hand out. There will also be some Storybooks running within the universe that you can join, or even make one yourself!

Helpful Hints: The YWU is a lore and story universe that you join and write in. This can be intimidating, but don't worry! Think of it as YWS' own fiction, where you write a fanfiction within the universe. The only difference is that you get to shape that universe. Here are some handy, dandy tips to help you on your way.

  1. Research
    • YWU has an ever expanding lore index, but it has a good foundation that's there. Like any fanfiction, you must research the universe you plan on writing. YWU is no different.
  2. Collaborate
    • When feeling stuck, or needing inspiration, or even just feeling bored, it's not a bad things to ask for help. Since you're all writing in the same universe, collaboration is encouraged! I guarantee there will be more plot bunnies running around when you have another mind to bounce ideas off of.
  3. Expand
    • One of my professors in college once said about improv "Yes, And." The basic principle behind this is to agree with what you're given, and expand upon that. That doesn't mean you can't change things that happen within the established universe, but it does mean that you shouldn't directly negate things that already happened in the established universe because you simply want to. Elevate the universe!

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FAQs




What is The Universe?
Spoiler! :
The Universe is a collective writing world for anyone on YWS to come together and add in their own stories, characters, and plots. This is the hub for any major lore within your world to be added, changed, or in rare cases, removed. Here you will come to brainstorm with others to add lore through the tiers.


What kind of stories can I do within The Universe?
Spoiler! :
For right now, we're limiting it to a small number of genres, it order to make it easier on the people who run The Universe. Other than the genre, you can create any kind of story you'd like, whether it'd be your own story, a DTWH, or a Storybook.


Why should I write for The Universe?
Spoiler! :
The short answer is because it's fun! But, in reality there's nothing keeping you from not writing within The Universe. However, this is an experiment for large scale collaborative writing, wherein your story will have impacts on the entire Universe as a whole, and vice versa. There's potential for us to throw in Challenges that will impact dozens of different stories. There's also the excitement to write for something so much bigger than your character, your world, and your story.


Do I have to come to The Universe Hub before I add anything to the lore or do anything with my story?
Spoiler! :
If you want to add something minor within the lore, then nope! If you believe others could use your information, you only need to add a small blurb above your literary work about whatever you added. Those who run The Universe will add it into the lore. For any larger lore, then yes, please consult the [url=*insert Universe Tier Guide link*]Universe Tier Guide[/url] for more information.

For your story, as long as you have someone kept in the loop about what you're doing, there shouldn't be too many problems. We want to inspire creativity and imagination rather than censor it.


What are Challenges?
Spoiler! :
Challenges are Universe-wide events that are meant to inspire change, inspire motivation, or just throw a wrench into what you're writing. These will usually be large happenings that have a mission or endgoal for everyone writing. Maybe it's the start of a new Storybook, or maybe it's the entrance of a big bad that affects almost everyone. There are trophies to be earned from completing these Challenges.


How do I add to the lore?
Spoiler! :
Just post in the YWU club or in the [url=Insert Link]Lore Upkeep Thread[/url]. A lorekeeper will poke you and you two can work together to implement it officially into the lore. If you're a lorekeeper yourself, you'll collaborate with your fellow keepers to implement it in.


Do I have to write a story in order to add lore?
Spoiler! :
Nope! You don't have to write ever! In fact, there might be a few Universe showrunners who don't write at all.


What are the Tiers and why do they exist?
Spoiler! :
There are three Tiers of Lorekeepers. These tiers are to help with handling the immense amount of collaborative worldbuilding. Everyone who wants to starts off on the lowest Tier. If they have a large lore idea, they present it to their Tier members. If everyone agrees with the idea, it goes to the next Tier, who works with them to modify it. This process is repeated until it's ready to go! some lore doesn't need to go through any tiers, and some stops at Tier 1. The highest tier is for huge worldbuilding that would effect the entire Universe.


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The Story of the Universe



Here, you will find a summary of all stories within the Universe, updated weekly. You will also find a list of all stories, with the authors and summaries, and storybooks, with all participants and summaries.

The Story So Far


Image
A zoomed in map of Runeheim, with country borders.

  • Map Key
    • Purple - Asturia
    • Red - Synilas
    • Green - Draconis
    • Gold - Shurima
    • Brown - The Conclave Territory
    • Navy Blue - Unknown
    • Pink - Unknown

Spoiler! :
Last Updated: 8/18/2020



In Yse. . , Railyn Yona, a humble miner, is working in a mineshaft in one of the tiers of the city, when he trips and falls into Runic Dust, and hears bells.

Read Here

At the same time, Tyri Vidal, a blind historian, visits Yse and looks for an inn. A vendor thrusts a runic totem in her hand, and for a brief moment she could see... something. In the distance, bells toll.

Read Here

At the same time in Syna. . , Paimon Fel, an entrepreneur, learns of a bluecough outbreak in the city and decides that she must help.. for a price. She touches a runic material in her bag, and hears a bell bong.

In Yse . . , Railyn Yona decides to go to his old childhood hangout, for a reason unknown to him. Along the way, he notices multiple Baron Guards, and sees that they were waiting for a Grand Rebellion to happen. Railyn outruns the guards, makes it to his hideout when he remembers a valuable item he and Ryun left there, long ago. The bells gong again, and he's transported to a room where he, and four other people, are told they are a part of a prophecy. Railyn wakes up to a dragon.

Read Here

In Syna. . , Elidyr Adonis Var Ardys bickers with his winged cat, Lady, before he hears bells twice. Elidyr finds out about the blue cough outbreak in Syna, and tries to heal someone with it, hurting them in the meantime.

Read Here

Paimon wakes up from the prophecy, thinking it was some good ol' drugs. Paimon finds a cat, and then finds Elidyr. They both want to assist in the blue cough pandemic that's spreading quickly, for various reasons. After a... suspicious transaction, the two find Belxibis, a blue Tiefling, in a tree trying to rescue the same cat from before. The three decide to team up to find a root that will help the bluecough. They find out that the town is hoarding the cure for bluecough.

Read Here

In Yse. . , Railyn freaks out about his new dragon hatchling companion, and tries to find a way past the Baron Guards. It doesn't go well, and he finds himself running through the ramparts of Yse, now a wanted fugitive. He gets cornered by a mage near the edge of Yse, and redirects a magic blast that blasts a hole in Yse, revealing, for the first time, the outside.

Read Here

In Syna. . , Belxibis wakes up from the prophecy, and has a conversation with a little girl before she asks him to help her rescue a cat from a tree. Then it jumps back to the present.

Read Here

In Yse. . , Tyri wakes up from the prophecy and wanders around Yse. She finds a group of prisoners that she is told are Grand Rebels. She wants to help them out, but she feels like she can't. Then, she feels the blast and takes the advantage of the chaos to release the prisoners. At the end, she meets up with Railyn.

Read Here

In Syna. . , Elidyr and the other two realize they are all a part of the prophecy, and Elidyr has an existential crisis that he, once a noble, is now attached to a theft and a drugdealer, and they have to save the world. Reluctantly, the group starts to head to Yse to find the rest of the group.

Read Here

Belxibis and co. find they are lost. With some helpful thinking, they find their way back and stumbled across a group of refugees. Synua guards surround the refugees and also find Belxibis and co. and arrest them, to take them back to Yse. They then meet up with Railyn and Tyri, who help them escape. In an intense fight, Belxibis realizes he has powers he can't fully comprehend, and that scares him. The group is finally together now, and they introduce themselves.

Read Here

Earlier, in Yse. . , Railyn assists Tyri with helping the refugees out, and admires all that he's not used to, including the sun. The two separate from the refugees and head to the top of Yse, where Railyn finds a crown of thorns and vines, basks in the sun, and establishes a mental connection with his hatchling dragon, named Ivern. Railyn and Tyri meet back up with the refugees, and sees Synua guards round them up. With some tricks up their sleeves, Railyn and co. free the refugees and escape. In present time, Railyn and co. pack up and ready to leave to Serion. They reach Serion and it's set ablaze.

Read Here

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List of Stories


  • Story Name
    • Summary
    • Author

Spoiler! :
Last Updated:



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List of Storybooks





Spoiler! :
Last Updated: 8/18/2020
Template:
  • Storybook Name
    • Summary
    • Participants
    • Accepting/Not Accepting


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Events and Challenges



Past Events and Challenges, along with all trophies, will be updated here.

Events


Current Event:

Past Events:

Challenges


Current Challenges:

Past Challenges:

Trophies


Available Trophies:

Unavailable Trophies:

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Nothing is impossible, for the word itself says, 'I'm possible!'
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