The Mark Williamson Creative Universe

Every good mnemonic does fine...   Mnemonics are great ways to learn items in a list.  Treble staff lines.  Taxonomical groups.  Even geological time. Geological time scales can be measured at various levels.  Eons, epochs, ages, etc.  The most familiar is period.  Here we get names like Jurassic, Quaternary, and Cambrian.  The periods (excluding pre-Cambrian) from oldest to youngest are as follows: Cambrian Ordovician Silurian Devonian Carboniferous Permian Triassic Jurassic Cretaceous Paleogene Neogene Quaternary There are a variety of mnemonics already available, such as here or here .  But I thought I'd add my hat to the naming pile.  Let's get down to mnemonics! Mnemonic Phrase #1: Zombie Apocalypse Crawling Over Streets, Devouring Constantly, People Transformed, Jaws Craving Populations, Never Quitting.   Mnemonic Phrase #2: Programming Charles Operated Some Decent Code Programs To Jump Competitor's Predicted Novemb...

How's that for a weapon's slot?   More equipment for the discerning Clayland adventurer.  From projectiles to walls, I've got 'em all. Mystical Shotgun: Fires any number of magically imbued shells.  Good for hunting phoenix pheasants or elven stags. Hidden Shotgun: A trap with serious stopping power.  Requires a stealth bonus of +5. Decoy Gun:  When you can't beat 'em, fake 'em out.  This decoy gun will keep that band of half-orcs on edge long enough for you to cast a teleport spell behind your back. Boot Gun: Three uses in one.  One-legged footwear.  Extra-large drinking vessel.  Emergency blunderbuss.  Just don't get those uses mixed around. Wall of Pain: A summoned line of jagged spikes covered with fire-centipede venom.  Not worth the risk in jumping over them. Wall of Scales:  A summoned wall imbued with dragon scales.  Repels both physical and magical attacks. Dragon Shield: Grants the user added defense, fire p...

Consider problems as puzzles...   Problems aren't fun.  A short timeframe to purchase, assemble, and troubleshoot an experimental chamber.  A complicated statistical design.  A broken washer. Why aren't problems fun?  I like to think of the reasons as the  Four U's .  They are often Unpleasant, Unplanned, Urgent , and have Ugly consequences for failure. Puzzles are fun.  Whether they come in the form of riddles, jigsaws, or apps, they provide challenge and reward on the user's own terms.  While puzzles can certainly be frustrating and even unpleasant, puzzles are, by design, not bound by the other three U's.  Also, unpleasant puzzles can be freely put down. So, what about adopting a puzzle mindset to problems?  Treat every incoming problem like a puzzle to be solved, rather than a difficulty to endure.   How might this change each of the Four U's ? Unpleasant: The problem is now framed as a game, so the unpleasantnes...

Get out your sketchbooks...   Just like I tried with short bursts of writing, here and here , I'm going to take a stab at drawing on a timer. The rules: Pick a random topic Set a five-minute timer Draw that topic until the timer goes of One more minute to touch up Let's get started.  My random topic will be a book cover for a randomly generated sci-fi book, as I've done before using this generator .  Here we go! Metallic Universe

Round and Round... I have for your consideration, a wheel of fantasy characters.  Take a turn and see what you land on. Top Left:  Pixie, Blue Demon, Harocpy, Hellhound Top Right:  Big-headed Imp, Artifact Ogre, Leprechaun, Medusa Bottom Right: Gorgon, Lepogrant, Ivory Dragon, Blade Dancer Bottom Left: Ali-Scorpion, Shrike Assassin, Mob of Imps, Pixie Catcher, Prox

Coming to a coffee shop near you...   Coming up with fictional bands and their associated songs has been a long running pastime for my friend and me.  Excited For Violence.  Low Hanging Fruit.  Red, White, and Denim.  The list goes on. So, for this music-based edition of the Power and Thrill of Naming Things , get ready to become a fan of a band that exists only in the noosphere. Band Names (Genre in parentheses) The Truculent Ornithopods (Alternative) Johnnyboy Slim and the Skinny Skinnies (Big Band) Panini Express (Comedy) Fordham Chaparral (Country) Audiocene (Dubstep) The Overton Window (Experimental) The Guardians of the Sacred Banjo (Folk) The Flailing Monkeys (Grunge) Bremsstrahlung Overdrive (Heavy Metal) A Canticle for Éire (Irish) This Softly Tinted Veil (Lo Fi) Golden Hand (Orchestral) Flashpoint (Pop) Gunfist (Rock) Gubernatorial Cyber Lord (Techno)

No Creatures Allowed.   Time for an equipment check.  Every good band of adventuring clay figurines needs a collection of spell, swords, and other sundry items to summon, swing, and stagger around with. Eye of Night:  Imbues the holder with night vision.  Can also be placed under a pillow to give a sleeping enemy nightmares. Mystic Waystones:  Can be placed on the ground by a wizard to mark an area of interest.  They emit a column of magical energy that can only be sensed on the aethereal plane. Flaming Egg:  A good source of both protein and heat.  What more could you ask for? Egg Bombs:  Projectiles that explode upon contact.  DO NOT MICROWAVE! Rocket Flint:  A magically propelled piece of flint that explodes upon contact.  Good for starting fires from a distance. Portable Cyclone:  Handy when you need a twister on command.  Default direction is clockwise.  Counterclockwise requires an extra magical glyph....

Cut the power cord.   I do most of my writing on the computer.  But I've found great freedom in prioritizing preemptively putting pen to paper for brainstorming, first drafts, problem solving, and other tangled typing terrors. I could go on, but I'll take my own advice and splay out a hand-written note instead.

This maze of boxes is starting to look like a house.   Have a good Friday.  See you next week with fresh, frantic content.

Thirty eight boxes all labeled 'miscellaneous'. Still dealing with moving and the effects therein.   

Boxes for days...   Just moved, so my regularly scheduled posts are on hold for the rest of the week.  Monday should return to normal.

Boosting magical powers.   In a short but sparkling post, here is an eclectic collection of clayland talismans. Wizard Hat:  Used to boost standard magical attacks. Water Snake:  Used to boost elemental and summoning magic. Oblong Vessel of Transport:  Used to boost teleportation spells. Mask of Malice:  Used to boost infernal or necrotic attacks. Sigil of Peace:  Used to boost magical spells with the 'good' alignment. Sigil of Confusion:  Used to boost magical spells with the 'neutral' alignment. Sigil of Rage:  Used to boost magical spells with the 'evil' alignment.

Same base, different flair… Get the creative juices going.   Or at least the creative pen strokes down.   I present Jotting Character Skins , the drawing version of morning pages. Pick a base image and draw it Spend a few minutes making variations of the image Don’t overthink it, just draw whatever pops into your head Repeat as necessary Examples: Elves Spaceship Crossbow

Yo dog, I heard you like {blank} Creating memorable content doesn’t happen effortlessly.   What’s more, there always lurks the twin dangers of lack of time and lack of ideas.   A partial solution.   Emergency Memes. Memes are easy to make because they provide a framework for humor that is already most of the way there.    A quick brainstorm and flurry of text that leads to, boom, a fun, quick piece of content.    Memes for days.   Ready in storage.   You name it.    Let the memes take it home.