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carriewilde · 1 year

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Worldbuilding: Pàro

Since I've officially made my latest story available for pre-order on Amazon Kindle, I thought I'd take the opportunity to talk a little bit about my world-building in the setting where it takes place.

In "Taken by the Pirate Captain," Talyn visits a busy harbor which is part of a larger island nation called Pàro. As an elven aristocrat, she is still dependent on her parents long after reaching adulthood, so she's very sheltered. The mainly orcish residents of Pàro are an exotic mystery to her, but they don't have to be unknown to you!

The nation of Pàro is made up of three large islands surrounded by a little more than a dozen smaller islands, and most of these are inhabited by fishers and sailors, as well as some merchants and even pirates. Everyone who lives in Pàro makes a living off the sea in some way or another. While it was originally settled by orcs, a fair number of humans and even some elves have since come to live on the islands, too. Other races like dwarves and halflings are less common but not unheard-of. The island is mountainous, with rocky coastlines, high cliffs, and treacherous passages where inexperienced crews can easily run aground or crash into underwater rocks and reefs. Fortunately for those who know the region well, lots of caves and small lagoons around the islands are perfect places to set up a home port far from prying eyes.

As a tropical island, Pàro sees plenty of warm, sunny days, but it receives its fair share of storms and typhoons, too. Some of the larger islands do a brisk trade in popular exports like sugar cane, sweet potatoes, pineapple, and other tropical fruits. Spices and textiles are found in markets throughout the islands, too, and fishing is always a bustling industry, especially on some of the smaller islands. Every island has a marketplace of some kind, from small village squares where the locals trade amongst themselves to sprawling bazaars where merchants and ship captains haggle over whole shiploads of cargo, trading with locals or from ship to ship.

Of course, piracy is a lucrative trade, as well. It is not officially endorsed by Pàroin government, but it still remains common enough in the waters on this side of the world - and many of the local authorities are easily persuaded to look the other way. Lots of pirates have their hideouts on the smaller islands, but the boldest crews are not afraid to dock their ships and even set up homes on the larger islands, as well.

While those main ports on the larger islands are usually safe, they are also more expensive with heftier docking fees and taxes. Honest captains looking to save coin on those fees can certainly take a gamble at the smaller ports, but they run a much higher risk of encountering outlaws whenever they do so. It is usually recommended to stick to the larger, more expensive ports - as they're generally much safer overall. At least, as long as you don't do anything too foolish while you're there.

Overall, Pàro is a bustling island nation with ample opportunities for merchants and captains to make their fortunes - as long as they don't mind risking the pirates. Fortunately, the locals will tell you that for every pirate crew to pass through their harbors, dozens more honest merchants have taken the same passage, so your odds of running into trouble are fairly low - but never zero.

Moodboards were made using Adobe Express, with stock photos from pexels and pixabay. For links to the photo listings or questions, please feel free to message me and I'll happily provide the information you're looking for!

#worldbuilding #pirates #orcs and elves #fantasy #queer fantasy stories #fantasy fiction #fantasy romance #writing #writers on tumblr #Pàro #Paro

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