Writing of a fiction novel titled “The Black Letter of the Lich”

Project Lead and Team Information:

Project Lead & Author: Olaf Kleyn (cyberwafflehouse / Lich Despot Lamia)
Background: Active in the FRWC community, writing experience, crypto-native, awareness of FRWC lore and meta-lore, IP lawyer with connections in the publishing world.

Summary of Project

"The 300+ page novel follows the story of how Witch Lamia of the Hills was brought to the Sacred Flame by her kobold friend to be transmuted into Lich Lamia of the Nightmare Paradise. The story also serves as the foundation for the founding of an entity in the Runiverse called The Supreme Court of the Lich while providing more meaning to the mysterious Rune of Souls introduced in the Forgotten Souls collection.

Summary of the Story:

Witch Lamia of the Hill was transmuted by the Sacred Flame, becoming Lich Despot Lamia of Nightmare Paradise. The story tells how Lamia was brought to the flame by a kobold, Arch-Magician Poppy of the Technochrome. The result of her transmutation produces the mysterious Rune of Souls and the founding of the Supreme Court of the Lich, an entity in the Runiverse bent on enforcing their sense of legality on rune magic. Along the journey to finding the Lich Court, Lamia meets various other wizards and explores more of the lore that has been established within the FRWC community.

Lamia is a young academic researcher at Hill College of Wizardry, headed by Archmagus Uvlius of the Lake. The small town academics of Hill College are always working to impress the blue wizards of Alfheim University and as a result have been especially hard on Lamia for being runeless. Since she is runeless, the faculty regards Lamia as a wizard that can never reach her full potential. This is a commentary on the discrimination that takes place at universities and explores how academics are hired not based on merit, but on other politicized criteria.

Lamia’s research has caught the interest of Larissa of Alfheim, a runeless wizard interested in Lamia’s theories around a concept known as “the magic circle.” Larissa, however, is only out to conduct academic espionage on behalf of Alfheim University, an institution closely tied to the foundational teachings of rune magic. After Lamia’s life’s work is stolen and misappropriated by her colleagues, she is fired from the Hill College for leaking privileged information. After a series of unfortunate events, Lamia reaches a point where she is totally hopeless. She is rescued by her kobold friend who leads her to the Secret Tower where they are both sacrificed to the Sacred Flame.

The transmutation gives the runeless Lamia a rune, the Soul Rune, and an opportunity to prove her ex-colleagues wrong. Lamia uses the power of the Soul Rune to perfect her “magic circle” she developed during her research. This leads to her finding the Black Letter of the Lich, a code of ethics that Lich Despot Lamia aims to impose on all that use magic in the Runiverse.

Project Goal

The main goal is to write a good novel based on the FRWC IP - a palatable read written in earnest. The novel will canonize some of the community lore that has “risen to the top” and flesh out the stories of multiple characters. I intend on reaching out to members of the community for permission to use their wizards in the book and for guidance on how they should be depicted therein. I understand that we are all trying to make our characters legendary so will be sensitive to the unique meta-lore that exists in the Cult.

I think it's important to grow the Cult organically through exploiting the IP attached to the FRWC NFTs, whether that be through novels, poetry, art, merchandise, software, music, etc. From an IP perspective, I'd like to explore the parameters of an NFT holder's commercial rights, a narrative from the NFT world that is still very foreign to traditional IP laws. As a community built on decentralized IP creation we should strive to be leaders in this field, clear-up any grey areas, understand the details around IP and NFTs, and how they apply to characters that may form part of creative works. I also hope that the book can create a good precedent for future proposals, and inspire others to create more cult content through proposals to the House of Wizards DAO.

I also intend on creating a Discord for the project (The Supreme Court of the Lich) for those interested in the process. The main story arcs and the characters around them are already established, i.e. I already have the characters in mind that will be in the book, but I intend on adding more so that those who want to make cameos in the book can do so.

The book provides more meaning to the Rune of Souls that was added to the Forgotten Soul collection. Since the book's plot is focused on the transmutation from Wizard to Soul, this would benefit the Cult by showcasing this mysterious part of our lore in a creative way. I feel like Souls are in need of some dedicated representation. I intend on exploring the various hierarchies of Liches in the Forgotten Soul collection as well, i.e. Lich Despot, Lich Marquis, Lich Baron, Lich Duke, Lich Cyborgs, and of course... the Lich Emperor Supreme. I see the Liches as the power hungry, lawful evil "Skeletors" of the Runiverse.

The book also serves as the foundation for the Supreme Court of the Lich, the first courthouse in the Runiverse. I (or "the Liches" I should say) believe that it would be appropriate for there to be a common law in the Runiverse. This is for role-playing, story building purposes but there is academic writing around the concept of legal systems within video games. For example, the “magic circle” is a real legal term in law to define when real laws may or may not apply in virtual game worlds. This could lead to a community-created metaversal common law that the Liches desperately seek to control. It could even be a place in the Runiverse game where players can go enjoy one of the Liches' favorite pastimes, i.e. reading End-user License Agreements. What better virtual world than the Runiverse to give full recognition to the legal concept of a magic circle? Whether you buy into Lamia's theory or not, Liches would surely make for good legal council.

The Black Letter of the Lich is exactly that black letter law that declares "it is so" yet invites our ensorcelled minds to discover its vexing loopholes. Perhaps the warriors will rebel against the Liches' pedantic writings or some venerable wizards will rise against the encroaching threat of the Liches' Court. This is what a novel based on the Forgotten Runes IP should do for its netizens; open the door for more stories.

Proposal Specification

After looking at the comments and doing some research, I've decided to break the process into three phases:

Phase 1: Writing of the manuscript and illustration of key chapters

This proposal is only asking for funding for Phase 1, i.e. the writing and self-editing of the 300+ page novel. The art that accompanies significant chapters is included in this phase. I have an artist that I will commission for the art. -Funds requested: $10 000.00 -Timeline: 12 to 15 months -Steps to implement the proposal: I will be responsible for this phase and will communicate with the Council's scribe about the progress. The goal is to have half the book finished by the end of 2022. The final manuscript must be completed 15 months from the date of the first round of funds being released. See the funding and milestones below.

Phase 2: Editing, book cover

After doing research about the process of getting a book published, I found some local editors who are able to do the editing for $800. This editing will purely be for grammar, punctuation, spelling, and word choice. More expensive editing can be used for structure, flow and improving readers' attention. Publishers may also want to include their own editors, but this is an unknown variable. The book cover I have in mind can also be designed by my artist, but it is possible that I may want to work with a different artist who will ask more. Phase 2 will be a separate proposal for funding that I will be able to keep under 2 ETH. -Funds: $800 to $2000 for editing, and $500 to $1000 for the book cover. Total = $1300 to $3000 -Timeline: Editing will take 3 to 6 weeks. The book cover can start during Phase 1 or Phase 2 and should be completed by the end of Phase 2. -Steps to implement the proposal: I will communicate with my artist and editors.

Phase 3: Publishing, marketing, distribution

There are various ways that books can be published, however, many publishing deals are done through publishing agents. I have access to people who work in the publishing industry and will ask them for assistance, alternatively, I am open to working with people in the Cult who work in the publishing industry. There are also ways to self-publish or we could experiment with NFTs for publishing and distribution. This third phase of the process is also something that I will continue exploring during the abovementioned phases.

Funding Requested

The total funding requested for Phase 1 is $10 000.00. An initial payment of 25% ($2500) will mark the beginning of Phase 1. After half of the book is completed (approximately 60 000 words / 150 pages) then another 25% of the funds can be unlocked. After the final manuscript is completed, the remaining 50% ($5000) will be unlocked. Phase 2 will then begin, followed by Phase 3.

Additional Comments & Notes

This proposal is subject to getting the chance to review some of the documents like agreements that might accompany this book deal.