https://aabennette.com/Worldbuilding, short scenes and notes from The Bard and the Blade Saga, a dark fantasy series.en-ca https://aabennette.com/blog/start-here-whispers-of-the-wyrm/https://aabennette.com/blog/start-here-whispers-of-the-wyrm/Fri, 23 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300New here? Meet The Bard and the Blade Saga, a road story of bards, swords and slow-built company. Book One arrives Tuesday, October 27. https://aabennette.com/blog/tired-feet-before-big-feelings/https://aabennette.com/blog/tired-feet-before-big-feelings/Thu, 22 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300A behind-the-writing note on why my characters get blisters and cold tea before they ever get a speech about their feelings. https://aabennette.com/blog/two-blades-by-the-fire/https://aabennette.com/blog/two-blades-by-the-fire/Wed, 21 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300A short scene from the road, where a swordsman tends two very different blades and a bard pretends not to watch. https://aabennette.com/blog/boots-drying-by-the-hearth/https://aabennette.com/blog/boots-drying-by-the-hearth/Tue, 20 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300The boots go by the fire first, before the stew or the coat. A short road scene from The Bard and the Blade Saga about small comforts and tired travellers. https://aabennette.com/blog/harvest-gold-on-the-tharavos-road/https://aabennette.com/blog/harvest-gold-on-the-tharavos-road/Mon, 19 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300Tharavos is the citrine crown, a province of harvest gold and busy roads. A worldbuilding tour of the lowlands in The Bard and the Blade Saga. https://aabennette.com/blog/for-readers-who-love-a-wandering-bard/https://aabennette.com/blog/for-readers-who-love-a-wandering-bard/Sat, 17 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300If you love a travelling bard and a road story with slow-built company, this dark fantasy series is for you. Meet Hadna and Dhaelen. https://aabennette.com/blog/keeping-the-road-honest/https://aabennette.com/blog/keeping-the-road-honest/Thu, 08 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300How a coffee-ringed ten-month calendar taped above my desk keeps the timeline, seasons and travel distances of my fantasy series honest. https://aabennette.com/blog/one-word-in-the-inn-register/https://aabennette.com/blog/one-word-in-the-inn-register/Wed, 07 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300A short scene from The Bard and the Blade Saga: Hadna, tired boots and a lute, and the single name she writes in an inn register. https://aabennette.com/blog/honey-the-lute/https://aabennette.com/blog/honey-the-lute/Mon, 05 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300Meet Honey, the lute at the heart of The Bard and the Blade Saga, and why a bard's instrument is part music, part passport. https://aabennette.com/blog/two-blades-one-swordsman/https://aabennette.com/blog/two-blades-one-swordsman/Mon, 05 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300Dhaelen carries two swords that couldn't be less alike. A look at the blades, and the swordsman, in my dark fantasy series. https://aabennette.com/blog/five-crowns-five-gemstones/https://aabennette.com/blog/five-crowns-five-gemstones/Mon, 05 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300The realm of Aurelthyr is split into five provinces, each with a crown and a gemstone. A guide to the Five Crowns of my dark fantasy world. https://aabennette.com/blog/two-moons-over-the-five-crowns/https://aabennette.com/blog/two-moons-over-the-five-crowns/Mon, 05 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300Vael, the Flame Moon, and Lunareth, the Memory Moon, share the sky over Aurelthyr's five provinces. Worldbuilding from The Bard and the Blade Saga. https://aabennette.com/blog/a-year-of-ten-months-how-the-five-crowns-keep-time/https://aabennette.com/blog/a-year-of-ten-months-how-the-five-crowns-keep-time/Mon, 05 Oct 2026 08:00:00 -0300The five provinces of Aurelthyr don't count to twelve. How a ten-month year shapes seasons, festivals and travel in my fantasy world.