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cathedral of sorrow and stone
What do you mean that Forgotten Realms is a romantic fantasy setting masquerading as high fantasy?
(With reference to this post there.)
Exactly what it says on the tin – the Forgotten Realms is clearly principally inspired by romantic fantasy, not high fantasy.
In this context, when I say "romantic fantasy", I'm referring to a specific, relatively short-lived genre of fantasy literature that was wildly popular in the 1980s and 1990s, but abruptly fell almost entirely off the map after about 1998, due to a variety of economic and cultural factors which are way too complicated to go into in a Tumblr post. This is distinct from the more contemporary usage of "romance novels with fantasy settings", though there's definitely a lot of overlap.
If you're looking for a romantic fantasy reading list, Mercedes Lackey's Valdemar series – especially the early stuff – is probably the easiest to get your hands on these days; it's practically the only example that still has any real name recognition in 2025, for all that Lackey was a latecomer to the genre. Other names worth checking out include Margaret Ball, Carole Nelson Douglas, Tanya Huff, Holly Lisle, Jennifer Roberson, and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough, off the top of my head, though not all of them worked exclusively within the genre.
(Elizabeth Moon is an interesting edge case, in that her stuff is principally military science fiction, but very much adheres to the forms of romantic fantasy. Her Deed of Paksenarrion trilogy, one of her few pure fantasy works, is a fun snapshot of an era because it was written explicitly in response to what Moon perceived as the shortcomings of the fantasy worldbuilding on display in then-contemporary Dungeons & Dragons settings, and hit the shelves at just about exactly the same time as the earliest Forgotten Realms material.)
vintage covers from La Vie Parisienne
Books With Female Knights to Read for Women's History Month
Good morning, book lovers and bookish bats! Last week, I read GIdeon the Ninth, The Second Death of Locke, and The Isle of the Silver Sea back-to-back-to-back. I guess I was in the mood for a badass lady knight to sweep me off my feet! Fun fact: bae and I are going to the Georgia Renaissance Festival this year, and I am VERY eager to dress her up in a Jedi Knight / Medieval Knight / Badass Bae outfit. As for me, I'm dressing up as the evil witch she's been sworn to slay, which brings me to these books!
In honor of Women's History Month, I want to celebrate the badass women featured in our favorite books. There are many different types of strength, from these lady knights wielding their swords to women brimming with wisdom and resilience. These protagonists aren't simply strong because they fight back--they keep fighting, as a reminder that oftentimes, strength starts within. Here's my list of Books With Female Knights for Women's History Month!
What's your favorite book featuring a female knight? What does strength mean to you?
I feel like some otome-isekai authors should write the original "story" their main character of whatever isekai/transmigration light novel they're writing gets transported into first and then they write the story of that character being isekai'd.
Like it doesn't even have to be super long, just make it about 100 pages like a novella or something
I'm tired of them writing things like "I was in a story where I'm a side character that dies off because she was sold into slavery by the demon lord MC" like HUH? back UP A FEEWW STEPS?? because I really feel like they just be saying shit to jumpstart the story. Pretty similar to how it's barely isekai because the main character already knows everything lore-wise from the jump and blends in effortlessly or was simply raised into being the exact character, they just happened to remember they were Korean before they were born
It's like an inverse of "lost the plot", you're making plot up along as you go because there was never a plot, just an aesthetic ready to receive its reader
Loving Starless Skies
Click to Play LSS on Itch.io Click to Play LSS on Neocities
Written by an Indigenous Filipino, Loving Starless Skies is a romantic fantasy Interactive Fiction inspired by precolonial Igorot settings.
Release Date: July 1, 2025 Last Updated: August 2025 Demo Contains: Prologue and Chapter 1 Word Count: ~30,000 Socials: This game and my related spaces for it are 18+ Tumblr, Neocities, Discord Game Guides: Tumblr FAQ, Tumblr MC Design Guide Support the Game: Ko-Fi
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The Story
Every person takes charge of their own destinies—except for the ones who seal it by peering into their possible demise. This earns the ire of many deities who are untouched by death and beholden to eternity.
All humans are destined to die, but all are afforded the ability to change the journey that leads to that destination. Yet, you've done the unthinkable. Now you know you were destined for a most painful death and this knowledge sealed what was an otherwise malleable future. Moreover, defying this predicted death is only the first hurdle, as your continued existence would deliver a kind of disarray many deities are keen to eliminate.
To go against the divine and forge your own destiny, how will you survive both?
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The Sentinel
As one of the newly appointed Sentinels to the recently established sanctuaries, your main tasks are to clean the sanctums and be an intercessor between the Overseers and your people. Sealing your fate before you can even uphold the title makes you race against time.
You don't want to become a self-fulfilling prophecy, so you fight to kill the one supposed to kill you. As you've feared, succeeding is only a small part of your story. There is more to overturning fate than simply escaping death. Many deities are angered and vacillating, as history has shown that altered fates have consequences that ripple throughout the realms.
The one who should help you is the one who troubled you in the first place—the Overseer of Chaos. But true to their nature, they are entertained by the havoc. If it were to be anyone else, then it must also be a deity.
You must find an Overseer and convince them to help you.
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The Young Deities
Abayéndayasen: The Overseer of Wrath, Quests, and Cacophonies A companion from beginning to end, they jump from one adventure to another, gladly helping mortals accomplish their goals while desperately trying to achieve their own. After a trail of fools' errands, they still continue looking, seeking, chasing. Enduringly optimistic, they are yet to understand why it is they were given the domain of wrath.
Asitikaíso: The Overseer of Life and the Lost The gentlest of hearts with the deepest of wounds, they try their damnedest to ensure life is worth living for every being. Every failure is a grasping for a new beginning even though they understand that success only means more for Death to harvest. Still, they turn away and persist, convincing themselves that they are doing the right thing.
Yegyegénsaád: The Overseer of Plants and Calamity Trapped in a job no one else wants to account for, they trudge along their responsibilities, and yet despite their grumbling, they leave no stone unturned. Persisting through with the help of others, they are grateful for every small assistance. Naturally wearing their heart on their sleeve, the moments they struggle to maintain composure are the moments their other power threatens to destroy everything they worked hard for.
Amináybālin: The Overseer of Sacrifices, Food, and Entertainment Living most of their existence in the mortal realm, they know all about the spectacles of human life, and they absolutely revel in it. Valuing the weight of promises, they even requested to be stripped of their titles should they fail to keep theirs. Exacting and intense, they expect the same dedication from others and thus, not one forsaking oath breaker was able to escape their clutches, not even a deity.
Sēēdnanìdaw: The Overseer of Ambition, Reflections, and the Undesired Perhaps the Overseer least interested in their own domains, they have no big aspirations, no deeper reflections, and no willingness to invite the already unwanted. Like a leaf floating on water, they move without purpose, starkly different from the previous, overambitious deity who came before. After witnessing what ambitions do to mortals and immortals alike, one could even say they fear to know what it's like to yearn.
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Character Customization
Established: The sentinel is 25 years old, and is a nonambiguous person of color.
Customizable: The player can determine the sentinel's name, gender, sexuality, pronouns, communication style, weapon, gift, and deity/deities worshipped. Below are other things about the Sentinel that's determined by the player. - Appearance: Eye color, hair type, hair color, hairstyle, facial hair, complexion, height, scars, tattoos, clothing, and adornments. You may use enchanted potions to temporarily change your appearance, even add extra limbs and maybe get wings. - Character Traits: Empathetic/Apathetic, Considerate/Ruthless, Withdrawn/Sociable, Flirtatious/Reserved, Perceptive/Intuitive - Skills: Magical ability, combat ability, and Diwa mastery - Faith: Faith in humanity and faith in deities - Reputation: Respect from humans and favor from the deities
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Notes
Status: This standalone interactive fiction is a work in progress. It will be released by chapter and is subject to change until the final version. The game is free and will remain free after it is finished.
Age Restriction: 18+ for themes like violence but there is no explicit sexual content.
CWs Include but are Not Limited to: Violence, sexually suggestive content, different types of abuse like physical abuse and psychological abuse, gore, and death. Specific content warnings can be viewed at the beginning of each chapter.
Fates Determined: Survival is determined not by the raised level of your skills, but by other choices you make. Of course, different capabilities at different levels will still affect the storytelling, but death will not come from a failed skill check.
Single Sentinel: You can see through the end without romancing anyone. You can even be in a romantic relationship and later break up, but the love interests will remain to have significant roles.
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, entities, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
"LSS is my first game and my first attempt at writing an interactive fiction. Thank you for reading!" — Paragrasya
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Our Other Game:
Letters for the Letter Carrier
Click to Play LftLC on Itch.io
Click to Play LftLC on Neocities
Click to Read the Full LftLC Intro Post
Letters for the Letter Carrier is a short, interactive fiction for the Single Choice Jam (2025) hosted by Neo-Interactives. The jam ran from July 15, 2025 to August 16, 2025.
Written by an Indigenous Filipino, Letters for the Letter Carrier is a mundane, fantasy, interactive fiction inspired by Igorot settings. It's about community building, and being a stressed, bat-winged, letter carrier in an era of texts and emails.
Release Date: August 15, 2025 Status: Completed Word Count: ~6,000 Game Jam: This is an entry for the Single Choice Jam (2025) Mini-game: This is a standalone mini-game. Age Restriction: PG-13 CWs Include but are Not Limited to: Blood and mentions of discrimination based on wing structure and if someone has wings or not. Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, entities, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.
"LftLC is my first mini-game and the Single Choice Jam (2025) is my first game jam! Thank you for reading!" - Paragrasya
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Credits on All Our Games:
Writer, Character Artist, Logo Maker, and Map Maker: @paragrasya Developer: @sofiart-puddinheaddraws Alpha Build Playtester: @perringwrites Assets: All assets used are credited in-game
Tagging: @interact-if
How it literally feels every time I come up with a new plot point for my book and force my partner to listen to me explain it in excruciating detail except every idea is half baked and I'm not even sure I know what it was anymore (and then repeat at least five times a day)
