Urbis Arcana Master Post
Ladies and gentlemen - welcome to Urbis Arcana.
What is Urbis Arcana? It's an urban fantasy series I've been working on and off since 2008. A lot of times, the genre focuses on the magical side of things, the secret world that lurks beneath the surface. And that's all well and good. But what I wanted to do was something a little different. I wanted to look at the interactions between the supernatural and the mundane, and the way they effect each other. Because even powerful wizards have mortal loved ones. And when magical forces fight, it leaves a mark. Just because the mundane world doesn't know what's going on doesn't mean they don't notice it at all.
Some of the Urbis Arcana stories deal with the supernatural. Others are perfectly mundane. I've tried to make the stories stand on their own, which worked better in some cases then others. But ultimately, they are all connected, even if connections are not immediately obvious.
Here, you will find a list of all the Urbis Arcana material I publicly posted online so far. The series is a constant work in progress, so the list includes a few "rough drafts," stories I plan to revise in the next few months.And, since i see this journal as a reflection of my writing process, I may go back and re-edit some of the "finished" ones, too.
But no worries - the index is an organic thing, and I will try my best to keep everything updated.
"Finished" Short stories
All in the Days Work - when your jobs is doing autopsies on corpses of paranormal humans, you have to make peace with the fact that the universe itself may hate you.
He Moves in Mysterious Ways - a recovering party girl confronts her past and finds something unexpected.
Still My Ward - when an old menace threatens to cause havoc and death in his community, a second-in-command of a local politician must take steps he would rather avoid.
Anatomy of a One-Night Stand - waking up from a drunken hook-up doesn't have to lead to disappointment
Into the Fire - a former god of war makes his last stand.
Stranger Things Happened - reconnecting with a family is hard, especially when you have all the time in the world.
Demon Child - a former harbinger of apocalypse faces his greatest challenge - fitting in with normal teenagers
How Vasilisa the Wise found Vasilisa the Fairest - the bearer of the essence of a legendary Russian sorceress travels to Chicago. But what she finds isn't at all what she expected.
How to Get a Boy Without Really Trying - a girl who is used to the kind of attention she doesn't want tries to get attention of the one boy that she likes.
"Raw" Short Stories
Hacker Magic - hacking doesn't work the way it does in Hollywood. Good thing magic is all about perception. (The fundamentals are sound, but the story could use some sprucing up. No, A LOT of sprucing up. And I think I know how.)
Blood Bargain - when a theater troupe decides to put on a play in a violent neighborhood that hasn't had theaters in decades, two members set out to make a risky deal (This is going to be revised and eventually expanded into a novel. Emphasis on "eventually")
Memories in Amber - Dan Masterson faces feelings he thought were long since buried (This one is... complicated. There are parts of it I really like, and parts of it that make me cringe. I'm definitely going to revise it extensively, but I'm not quite sure how yet)
"Guest" Stories
I had to create this category when for-now-anonymous writer asked me if she could write a story set in the world of Urbis Arcana. The result was pretty good (if I do say so myself.
Beauty;Skin Deep - caught in a desperate situation, one girl reaches out to something deep within
Innocents Lost - an Urbis Arcana novel
Jefferson Park is shaken to the core when a brazen murder is committed in the middle a popular neighborhood fast food joint and three teens find themselves in the middle of a supernatural cospiracy that goes back decades.
Prologue - when three teenagers went for a night out, it was all fun and games until an older woman decided to butt in.
Behind the Scenes
Arcana in Progress: Location Scouting - how I narrowed down a location for the prologue to Innocents Lost.
Slut-Shaming and Creating Jas Morikawa - in which I talk about the inspiration behind the character.
Art
Hillary Rahimi concept sketch by ~Strannik on deviantART
Jas Morikawa concept sketch by ~Strannik on deviantART
Urbis Arcana character - April by ~Strannik on deviantART
Urbis Arcana Profiles - April by ~Strannik on deviantART
Jas Morikawa and Hilly Rahimi Commission by EmpresssFunk
Urbis Arcana profiles - Ketevan Ahviediani by Strannik on deviantART
External Links
Urbis Arcana Facebook Page
Urbis Arcana wiki (very much a work in progress)