on headers, Wales, populations, and castles

when you can't write (because your brain is still fried from the idea of moving in the near future) play with your blog headers.

obviously, you've seen the new one for this blog. here's the one for the Eldala blog. i was able to purchase the image on Shutterstock so i could use it with a clear conscience. i still think it's cool that the castle i chose for my fantasy world is Conwy Castle in Wales, especially since i partially based Teleria on Wales.

now, i didn't actually know i was basing it on Wales until i went looking for a country that was approximately the same size so i could calculate Teleria's size. i had to calculate the size so i could determine the population so i could determine how large an army Teleria could support because there was going to be a war.

(when you start writing fantasy, you have no idea it's going to turn you into an expert on your make-believe country, or that you're going to have to calculate populations, distances, weather, etc.)

so, here's my map of Teleria. (my then seven-year-old son drew the outline and i filled in everything else. both boys helped me come up with some of the names.)
















and here's a map of Wales. not exactly the same, but close enough to help with populations and distances.

and if, after all this rambling, you were curious about the story, you can always go to my Eldala blog and read the first 6 chapters for free.

now, where can i find images of Steven Waddington and Adrian Paul that i can purchase and use here? hmmmmmm