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The Galactic Foundry
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11d •
Feedback on a drafted synopsis appreciated.
Hey everyone, I’ve been building out the world for my wip the ‘Fractured Inheritance Saga’ and wanted to share the synopsis for Book 1: The Fall of Light. This first book sets up the crash of the Formation Matrix, shows life under the UEA, and introduces the lingering mystery of the Architects. It’s the foundation for the saga, and I’d love to hear what stands out to you. The intended audience is YA/NA Sci-Fantasy readers — so I’m especially curious if the premise feels accessible and compelling at that level, while still carrying the depth world-builders appreciate. 195 years after the crash of the Universal Formation Crystal, humanity survives within domed cities under the stratocratic United Earth Authority and the shadow influence of the Legacy Council — four powerful families who rose from the Rift Wars. Each year, adolescents are conscripted to New Kyoto, where contact with shards of the Formation awakens abilities that dictate their futures. Jake Garmin, however, awakens nothing. Branded a non-manifest in a world where power is status, he faces ridicule from peers and reassignment by the Authority. But Jake refuses to let failure define him. Haunted by visions of his missing mother — once a decorated soldier who vanished on a classified mission — he becomes obsessed with uncovering the truth behind her disappearance, even as his father deflects his questions. Within the Academy, rivalries with Legacy heirs and the constant reminder of class divisions draw Jake into a web of political intrigue, where factions maneuver behind closed doors and every ability is currency. His supposed failure masks a deeper anomaly: a flicker of resonance tied to Phenix, one of the last Architects whose fall seeded the Formation itself. But the dangers of New Kyoto extend far beyond its walls. Beyond the Dome lies the Southern Ridge — a vast scar of fractured land where crystal resonance has warped creatures into deadly forms. When Jake’s squad is deployed into this wilderness, survival becomes as great a test as politics, and the mystery of the Formation proves more dangerous than anyone dares to admit.
1 like • 6d
@Arianna Kelly Think of it as an alternate reality — whilst very similar to our own, its physics are born from something called The Universal Formation Matrix. In the prologue a being known as as Phenix, one of the last remaining ‘Architects’ (demi-omnipotent race created directly by the UFM) crashes to earth with a seed of the UFM, birthing The site of the Formation Crystal, and subsequently shards from it were initially removed. The timeline use’s its own system of BF and AF — before formation, after formation. But you can place the timeline of the crash —195 years ago — sometime around 1880 - 1910. Since this is set so far from the crash, the subsequent ‘Rift War’ and the rise of the Legacy council, the truth of that is kind of left ambiguous, (perhaps there will be a prequel book/series one day) but there is a biased history taught, which also plays into the plot of the story. I am currently about to start working on chapter 8 of this draft. Right now its sitting at just over 23k words for prologue through to Chapter 7
18d •
Magic and Philosophy
I had a conversation about this recently on reddit and thought I'd share. Is there an underlying philosophy to your magic system(s)? If yes, what is it? Does the individual magic user's own philosophy affect their magic?
1 like • 13d
@Ceaseless Watcher Sort of. It hardwires into their biology and manifests in a specific way e.g pyrokinesis, gravity distortion/manipulation, magnetic manipulation, shadow-binding, ecokinesis, telekinesis, to name a few. It’s instinctive, like accessing a conscious reflex, or maybe more like flexing a muscle you never knew you had. It still leans toward ‘magic but is kept grounded by science.
1 like • 13d
@Ceaseless Watcher due to its nature of being almost instinctive, basic control is pretty much there from the get go — in terms of accessibility to using it. Most can use it from Awakening, and in fact usually will do an instinctive ‘display’ in that moment. Within the first week or two of conscription, a classification measurement is taken, and a rating from F, E, D, etc up to S is given. This also provides a projected rating based on previous data on that manifestation, the biometric data of the individual, and gives a target for achievement. It’s not guaranteed, but likely thats the rating you will reach. Most cadets who have been awakened by the ceremony and contact with the formation, will not have prior knowledge of their manifestion (unless a clear family line indication) and will generally class initially anywhere from F-C. Those few who inherit and awaken natural during childhood, are often more practised in their ability, so their initial classifications at the Academy usually start from D - B, and relative predictions go higher. But as I said its not exact, some may never really progress further but start strong, others may start at a D tier but scale up to S etc. It’s history is just less than 200 years from the crash —> the main story, and the wider access through conscription has only been allowed for a few decades. So the data is still a relatively small pool to draw from, which leave me room to not make things too exact and linear as the story progresses. Even allows still for new manifestations and subtypes to be explored too ☺️ Another interesting implication of the UFM, the formation site, and ‘resonance’ is that part of flora and fauna reacting differently via mutation/ evolution , make it so they leave a ‘soul crystal’ behind when they die. These become power sources and something to combine with gear and weapons to make ‘soul gear’, and therefore a valuable but dangerous resource, especially to get from the higher tiered affected creatures.
15d •
Help please
Does anyone have any good suggestions on how I would write something about landscape (details of geography etc) for a planet that has been artificially made?
1 like • 15d
@Will Menner If its kind of modelled off earth then just think of It as an alternative earth. It would have similar biomes but you have the creative freedom to shape them however you want to. It sounds a little silly, but write your initial description’s with simple adjectives, then when you’ve written “the mountains were big and tall..” or “the cavern was deep and dark” you can go back when you edit and/or redraft and get more specific. Sometimes through the story, some of those details almost write themselves. Also getting too caught up in the details can really hinder your progress in just getting the story down in to words, and put you in a bit of a block. Its ok to leave things blank or simplified until inspiration strikes later. If you get really desperate, take a look at some world and terrain descriptions from your personal favourites and look at how those books, shows, and movies paint those terrains to the reader/viewer. Hope something from this was helpful ☺️
Aug 23 •
What mediums are people here using?
I was curious what artistic medium people here were conveying their worlds in? I personally I've been creating worlds and stories in my head since I can remember but I've never really found a way to get them out of my head. At the moment I'm giving writing a go and working on Helm Knights (I may change the name later). How is everyone else sharing their worlds or are other people also struggling to find a medium that works for them?
1 like • 23d
*laughs in ridiculously long word document*
25d •
How much time do you devote to writing?
Is writing something you do in your free time, or do you have a set time in your schedule that you use to write? Lately I've been working up to 70 hours a week. That leaves me with little to no time to actually sit down and write, so I mostly just write where I have a little time.
2 likes • 23d
Being neurodivergent it can be a real mixed bag! I try and do 3-4 hours of solid writing, editing it world-building/expanding 4 times a week, with the occasional hyper focused week skyrocketing that, and the occasional week or two or procrastination. Ive only been creatively writing for less than a year, writing terrified me before that because my handwriting is poor and I was always ridiculed. But now I cant go a week without doing it :).
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@l-white-1865
Hobbyist World-builder and aspiring novice Writer/Author
Currently procrastinating my way through Book 1 of the ‘Fractured Inheritance Saga’ WIP
Active 4d ago
Joined Aug 19, 2025