People/Customs: Exercise for Second World

Hello my second world people! I hope you found last week's exercise helpful. This week's is going to be a bit less lengthy, mostly because it's more simple, and also because you've got a lot to decide for this week. We're going to dive in on how you can bring one thing from a holiday or custom you love into your second world setting.

Now, some of these are going to be simple. Say you like going to a bar. Well, in the second world, a bar could be called an inn or tavern and you can go for a beer or drink there. Same can be said for those who love going to a coffee shop or tea shop but you might want to make up something that is similar. Unless your second world is going to actually have coffee beans in it and then you've got to decide where in the world those are. If you are, I recommend a brief Google into the history of tea and coffee.

Others are going to be a bit harder. Going back to the idea of Christmas, you need to break down what you like about the season. For me, I love the giving part of it. As I grow older, I realize that I like giving (and yes, sometimes receiving, even if it's only a small thing) because it makes the other person feel better. For my mom, I know that it's family - everyone being in one spot and catching up with people we only see once a year - and for my aunt, it's the cooking. For my dog, it's the tearing of tissue paper. We could get her tissue paper for Christmas and she'd be happier than having to just end up with the toy inside. She's strange (and a dog) but I'm straying from the point.

The point is that you don't have to make up your new customs completely from scratch. You can take what we have in the real world, twist it just enough or remove things enough to make it seem completely your own, and go from there. It doesn't have to be Christmas or another big holiday, you can take the small little customs of your life and go from there. My suggestion is not to do this on the computer but sit away with a pen and notebook. Write down all the holidays and little customs of your life that you love to do and then break it down into why. Take those whys and create your own holidays and customs.

I hope this helps, second world-ers, and, until next time, keep on plotting (and writing)!