I am right now writing a story about a world full of twisty puzzles where it starts out like a city with 3 friendship networks and becomes 3 empires with 1 being the cubes, 1 being the cuboids, and 1 being the other shapes which include dodecahedra and pentahedra and tetrahedra and lots of others. In my story for both the cubes and cuboids the maximum dimension for any side is 17 and minimum is 1. For the other shapes it is similar but with their equivalents. For the dodecahedra they follow the metric prefixes. 3x3: megaminx 5x5: gigaminx 7x7: teraminx 9x9: petaminx 11x11: examinx 13x13: zettaminx 15x15: Yottaminx 17x17: Kiloyottaminx(following the double prefix rules of smaller before larger kiloyotta- means 1000 * yotta) If something new is cooked or discovered there is a rotation of jobs in the empire of cubes. It started like this: Gardener: 17x17 Animal care: 16x16 Meteorologist: 1x1 Scientist: 6x6 Teacher: 5x5 Cook: 7x7 Accountant: 2x2 Angler: 8x8 Doctor: 9x9 Guard (1st degree): 10x10 Guard (2nd degree): 11x11 Guard (3rd degree): 12x12 Guard (4th degree): 13x13 Guard (5th degree): 14x14 Guard (6th degree): 15x15 The 3x3 is always the emperor As for determining the cube that will take the job after a rotation here is the math: If N > 17 then N+1 If N = 17 then 1x1 Here is how it was after the first batch of cheddar cheese was made: Gardener: 1x1 Animal care: 17x17 Meteorologist: 2x2 Scientist: 6x6 Teacher: 5x5 Cook: 7x7 Accountant: 4x4 Angler: 9x9 Doctor: 10x10 Guard (1st degree): 11x11 Guard (2nd degree): 12x12 Guard (3rd degree): 13x13 Guard (4th degree): 14x14 Guard (5th degree): 15x15 Guard (6th degree): 16x16 And here is how it is now after the pizza was made: Gardener: 2x2 Animal care: 1x1 Meteorologist: 4x4 Scientist: 7x7 Teacher: 6x6 Cook: 8x8 Accountant: 5x5 Angler: 10x10 Doctor: 11x11 Guard (1st degree): 12x12 Guard (2nd degree): 13x13 Guard (3rd degree): 14x14 Guard (4th degree): 15x15 Guard (5th degree): 16x16 Guard (6th degree): 17x17 The cubes have genes that determine what cubes they will get given a cube they are mating with and external factors like temperature and sterility as in no viruses and no bacteria or other infectious agents. The determination of what it should be is larger cube - smaller cube so that 3x3 - 2x2 = 1x1 etc. If they are in the cold it is the larger of the middle values between the larger cube and the smaller cube and high water gives lower of the middle values. High food gives the sum meaning that a 17x17 mating with a 16x16 and eating a lot of food will give birth to a 33x33 cube. In any case where there was a high food condition surgery needs to be done. If they are in a sterile environment they stay as little 1x1s proving that immunity, not sterility is needed. In a hot environment the baby dies during the pregnancy and is never born. These cubes are special in that if 1 or more pieces come off the cube that area of the cube is automatically cauterized so that there is little or no bleeding. This is nice.
My question is... do you have a question? This is a lot of specific information that is really little use to any of us, imo.
This all looks very complicated. Is there any way to simplify it (make it more accessible to the reader)? Does the reader have to know all this?
They will come across all this in certain chapters of my story so yes they will know all this after they are finished with the story. I don't think there is a way to simplify it without loosing meaning to it so no it has to stay as is.
And I put this under general writing because it is not a question about the setting or plot or anything else but someone moved it to setting development. Whoever moved it to setting development must have made a mistake as to what it was about.
Plot Development perhaps? Anyway, there's no real question here. Are you just trying to get feedback on your idea?
Setting is a broad concept; it's likely the best fit for something like this, if not, then maybe Plot Development. Either way, I'm still wondering, honestly, what the point of this thread is. Like, I didn't see a/the question in there, just all the information that you plan to give to your readers. If you're looking for feedback it seems pretty complicated and I don't expect readers to care about/remember all these minute details unless they play constant significant roles. I would like to help, if you need help with something, but I'm not following. Sorry...
Just to be clear, General Writing is for questions about writing, i.e., the process, different methods and techniques, advice--things that don't fit into other categories. Although you aren't asking a specific question, what you're describing is a world building element, as they're qualities about the world and how something in it works. Like I said, "Setting" is a broad concept that encompasses a lot. I've no doubt this thread is where it should be. More importantly, thanks for the clarification. Just so you know it would be more than helpful if you were to have said something like "hey, just looking for feedback, thanks" or some indicator of what you wanted. It's good posting etiquette.
If you want my opinion, this all seems overly complicated. It may seem straightforward to you, but it probably won't be for a lot of readers. Admittedly, it's kind of hard to tell at this point because it all boils down to your writing skills. So after you've finished your story, I highly recommend finding beta readers to see what they think.
Maybe you could "flatten" the characters somehow, like restrict them to 2D space. Everything would be flat... A Flatland.
I already have a story where numbers are the characters and that is like 2D in a way so I figured I would give 3D a try and all the videos I have watched related to twisty puzzles and all the research I have done of twisty puzzles inspired me to add twisty puzzle things to the 3D that was already there and like my story with numbers there is determination of what it will be but with the numbers it is this: mother * father mother + father mother - father mother/father mother^father -mother * father -mother + father -mother - father and -mother/father -mother^father and in some cases later in the book those same 4 operations where both mother and father are negative and also the possibility of the reverse order. This is already complicated but much less complicated than my Rubik's world story and I call this one where there is a world of numbers Math World. In my Rubik's world story things are complicated but they are like spread through the chapters of the story and so overall it isn't so complicated that the reader won't want it.
