Lore & LilacKeeping an idea file (and research notes) you'll actually use
An idea file works when capturing is quick, sorting is regular, and every research note says where it came from.
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Related glossary terms
- PremiseThe core situation of a story in a sentence or two: who it's about, what they want, what stands in the way and what's at risk.
- Story bibleA reference collection recording the established facts of a novel, such as characters, places, objects, rules and timeline, so they stay consistent from chapter to chapter.
- WorldbuildingThe work of inventing, and then keeping consistent, the places, histories, rules and customs a story happens in, whether the world is imaginary or a version of our own.
- Continuity errorAn inconsistency within a story, where a detail established in one passage contradicts the same detail somewhere else.
- SettingThe time, place and social circumstances in which a story's events happen, from the broad era and region down to a single room.
- Naming conventionsThe consistent patterns used to name people, places and things, so names fit their cultures and are easy for readers to tell apart.