Man you guys have got to be getting sick of this header image by now lol
WHAT IS BROKEN DIMENSIONS?
Welcome back to my queue of posts brought over from the free tier on Patreon! Please consider reading the original post here and giving it some love (engagement has been pretty slow over on the Patreon page). Thank you!
Now, let's get into my favorite thing ever:
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WHAT IS BROKEN DIMENSIONS?
Broken Dimensions is a science-fiction fantasy universe filled with magic, mythology, and futuristic tech. It is made up of hundreds of reality pockets called dimensions, all of which were made from or broken off of the Origin world, Earth, or each other. The project itself is characterized by conniving gods, an epic hard magic system, and all kinds of character-focus hijinks!
In more specific terms, Broken Dimensions is a multi-year worldbuilding and storytelling project. I've been working on it since early 2020, although some of its base concepts were taken from previous original projects of mine that I developed in high school. The project has been a work in progress for the last five years, and I suspect it always will be - which I have no qualms about!
However, what I get to share with you folks is the product of all that work - the stuff that's finished and hammered out! On this Patreon, you'll get to read about all the worldbuilding I've done over the years, engage with fresh comics and illustrations, and watch the rest of the project develop in real time!
I'm truly excited to begin sharing things with you all, and I hope you'll stick around for the ride.
Here's some more info on what you can expect from Broken Dimensions:
Three (?) Focal Projects
Broken Dimensions (BrDim) currently has 2 major focal projects that in development: The Lycanthra Syndicate and Fractal Alliances.
The Lycanthra Syndicate (TLS) is a work-in-progress webcomic I plan to start sharing sometime this year! It started off as a written story, back in 2020 when BrDim was new and recently cobbled together. Since then, it has become a passion project and served as part of my senior thesis when I graduated with my Digital Arts degree!
I've been slowly chipping away at pages and concept art for the series for the last year or so, and I can't wait to start putting it out into the world! It might be a few months yet, though, and there's some fun introductory stuff I plan to start posting in February - for ALL the focal projects, not just TLS. Keep an eye out for that! ;)
Fractal Alliances (FA), the other major project, is my baby. Some of the characters in it are almost a decade old now, and the more I write and revise and build out their lives and world, the more I love them.
That said, FA is a big, BIG project. Fractal Alliances is an anthology-like multi-media series that follows the unlikely friends who rule or come to rule the great interdimensional superpowers of Tartarus and the New Empire of Aetheria. The series is made up of not only written works, but also narrative illustration series, short comics, and storyboards. There's war and espionage, romance and cruel betrayals, family trauma and cultural erasure, and so much more!
Sharing Fractal Alliances with the world will take a long, long time because of its many facets, and because it spans over 100 chronological years in canon! But it has been and will continue to be worth it.
There is also a third, more nebulous focal project called Prophecy Lost, which I haven't quite known what to do with since I started it way back in 2019, right before I began working on Broken Dimensions.
Prophecy Lost (PL) follows one very important character (who starts out as a side character), an unfortunate focal protagonist, and several meddling gods as they race to find the goddess of Prophecy during the Revival of Magic. Out of all three of these major projects, PL is the one you all will likely see the most conceptual art and writing for.
Someday, though, I will nail down how to format it! In the mean time, you guys get to watch me throw things at the wall to see if they stick.
Worldbuilding
The next thing you can expect to find a lot of on this Patreon pertaining to Broken Dimensions is a large amount of worldbuilding! I love storytelling, but what really soothes the itch in my brain is developing the worlds in which my stories take place.
Each focal story takes place in a different dimension, right?
Prophecy Lost, the story that chronologically comes first, takes place in [ x ], the Origin world, and follows to story of three god-favored characters as they embark on a journey to find the lost goddess of prophecy.
Fractal Alliances takes place mostly in two worlds, Tartarus and Aetheria, because the story is about the tentative alliance between those two interdimensional powerhouses (or more specifically: their leadership). There's also a lot of cultural exchange happening in FA, which is my favorite part of it all!
The Lycanthra Syndicate takes place in a small archipelago-type world called the Iron Archipelagos, which formed as an offshoot-world of [ x ].
Over the course of the next however many months, I plan to share all my worldbuilding notes on each of those worlds! My process is a bit enigmatic, so I'll do my best to tell you all about how I got from point A to point B - but the point of sharing these things will not be to teach, but to share for the fun of it. If you're a worldbuilding lore junkie, you'll LOVE this part of the Patreon!
Each focal story also takes place in different places in time. The chronology of Broken Dimensions is perhaps the most complicated part of its worldbuilding foundation, simply because its long—but don’t worry, it will all be summed up in one succinct text post!
Some Disclaimers
I adore Broken Dimensions as a project. I'm sure that's pretty clear. However, large parts of this project deal with heavy topics such as abuse, oppression, and unjust violence on those who have been abused and oppressed. Sharing BrDim on a platform like this, at my own discretion, means I can add content warnings when needed, and a I will.
Please heed them.
As a writer, I get a kick out of putting my characters through hell and giving them peace. There are many wonderful, bright, sappy moments in Broken Dimensions. There are also many dark, horrific moments. While I want as many people to enjoy Broken Dimensions as possible, I also want to avoid people getting hurt.
The way to keep you, the reader, from being harmed or triggered by work I've created is to not read or consume the media that harms or triggers you. Keep an eye on the content warnings tags, folks.
On a much happier note, though, I'm delighted to say Broken Dimensions is a very inclusive project. It is written by a queer nerd for queer nerds!
Almost every story focuses on the trials of a young or powerful queer person, and follows their journey to self-improvement, self-actualization, or personal healing. Some longer stories, like Fractal Alliances, tackle more complicated things like political injustice and imperialism, the morals of weapons manufacturing and distribution, and the effect of large propaganda machines. Even still, the backbone of the story rests upon the relationships between a diverse cast of LGBTQ+ and POC characters.
I can also say we don't bury our gays here... although that does not mean some of the gays don't die. ;) (Prepare yourselves.)
Patreon Content
Before I close this introductory post out, I'd like to give you all a more solid idea of what you can expect to see here on Patreon, and why it will be different (and more exclusive) that my other social media sharing spots.
General
The goal is to share at least 1 short story (or one arc) of at least one major project (FA, PL, or TLS) per month!
Additionally, each of the 3 focal stories will be receiving their own introduction posts, but those will follow the first chunk of worldbuilding that will be uploaded over the next few months. Concept art, official illustrations, and some official comics will also be intermittently released pertaining to each of the main 3 projects! These are expected to be shared much more frequently than polished written or comic pieces for right now (again, full-time retail job).
Worldbuilding Wednesday
Worldbuilding posts are, for the next few months, going to be the bread and butter of this Patreon. This is part of my plan to reorganize the chronological sharing of the Broken Dimensions story and re-collect and re-order everything cohesively in one place. Many of these worldbuilding posts will remain free, as they will be edited and revised versions of what has already been shared publicly on my Instagram and my website.
Timeline Tuesday
There will also be a specific day on which, for several weeks, I will be running a limited series called Timeline Tuesday in which I break down the history and share some my favorite tibits about each of the 10 Eras of the Broken Dimensions timeline. Kind of like a "cool history facts" day, but for a fake world of fiction and magic!
(This will sometimes come with art!)
Interaction Opportunities
Lastly, you can expect a lot of opportunities for engagement and interaction here! I love hearing what people think about my work, and I'm more than ready talk to people about what I do. There will be semi-regular "Ask Me About..." posts, comments will always be open, and of course, you can always reach me on Cara or Instagram either in the comments or my DMs!
I'm also looking into Patreon's Live Chat option and possibly doing live streams on my Instagram - there will be many opportunities to interact, I assure you.
Thank you for tuning into this introduction to the project! I hope you’ll stay tuned as the worldbuilding posts begin to go live, alongside teasers for written content, polished artwork, and the Lycanthra Syndicate comic!
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I'll be seeing you! Take care out there,
-- Ripley
Questions? Thoughts? Drop 'em in the comments, or reach out to me on social media!