¿What’s Boskeopolis Stories?
A Short Story Series / Web Serial Novel
Boskeopolis is an obscure city-state in the Verdazul archipelago in Orange Ocean ( or, as other countries call it, the Pacific Ocean ). It’s notable for its persistent violation o’ the laws o’ physics, biology, & economics — though, to be fair, real life doesn’t obey that last 1, either. As such, any inconsistencies within these stories should be blamed on glitches, for I’m ’fraid the world o’ Boskeopolis Stories is still just in beta.
Within that city dwelled a perfectionist thief named Autumn Springer, who, with her timid skeletal partner, Edgar Winters, & sometimes with his cheerful chemist friend, Dawn Summers, would go on heists & explore wild lands for treasure. That is, when she wasn’t mired in the various political, environmental, or personal calamities created by Boskeopolis’s other peculiar citizens; or wasn’t dug into domestic concerns o’ work, errands, & her relationship with Edgar; or wasn’t burdened by her own chaotic mental state.
Boskeopolis Stories plays round with a lot o’ genres, moods, & tones, & its chronology isn’t straightforward, or e’en a single, consistent line. Don’t worry too much ’bout reading these stories in the right order — ’cept for maybe those with #’d parts, like the “DISTURBED” stories. Nor should one worry too much ’bout making sense out o’ every story; one shouldn’t have to perfectly understand a story the 1st time it’s read to enjoy it.
As one can see in the archives, stories are divided into yearly “seasons”, like TV series, starting July & ending June the following year — hence why each season lists 2 years. Stories are usually published twice a month starting with season 4. Publication order is determined by many complicated whims, including fitting the tone o’ the month ( wintry, cold stories published in winter )1 & trying to create variety by spreading similar stories ( not always successful ).
I generally aim for 5,000 - 8,000 words per story without creating padding, but I find that some stories require less or mo’. Later stories have gotten shorter, which is 1 reason I rose from 1 to 2 stories per month.
On Story Titles & Codes
Just ’bout all story & bit titles are all-caps. Imagine them being yelled by a belligerent idiot. Don’t be too turned off by them: every story also has a shorter “code name” that can be found @ the end o’ the code string that starts with “#BOSK” & is usually just ’bove the title. These are much mo’ convenient to remember, & I recommend using these when referencing stories.
Every story also has a 6-character code in the middle o’ the “#BOSK” string for li’l logical reason, other than as perhaps a compact way to give misc info ’bout each story or a way to reference The Simpson’s silly episode codes2. This code comprises 4 codes, the 2nd 2 comprising 2 characters each.
For those curious, here’s what each code means:
The 1st code is an alphabetical letter that represents the season in which the story was published. A = 1, B = 2, etc.
The 2nd code is also an alphabetical letter that represents the relative order in which the story was published within that season. For example, the “HURRY” story was the 5th story published in season 3, so its 2nd character is E.
The 3rd code is the most vague. It’s a 2-character hexadecimal # that roughly represents that story’s absolute order in terms o’ when ’twas written, independent o’ publication. For instance, though the “SHIP” story was the 1st published story, ’twas the 9th story written, so its code is 08 ( 1st value is 00, as in most hexidecimal bytes ). Attentive readers will notice holes in the sequence o’ hexidecimal #s, signifying rejected stories. For example, the 1st story I wrote, way back @ the end o’ 2011, was ne’er published ( for good reason — trust me ), so 00 is ne’er used.
I say this code is vague ’cause these stories weren’t written 1 after the other, but written concurrently, starting & stopping @ varying times. The fact that I wasn’t consistent in when I chose to give a code to a story — when I started the 1st draft or when I finished — or how they’re portioned — the “DISTURBED” stories all have the same code, but the “GENIE” stories have different codes — makes this e’en mo’ imprecise.
The 4th code is simply the story’s absolute publication order, also represented by a 2-character hexidecimal value. Read down the codes in the archives page & see that they rise consistently from 00.
Starter’s Guide
Though these stories are published in a specific order, that’s not necessarily the recommended order in which to read them. For 1, season 1 is mediocre, so it’ll give one a bad start. Since the stories play round with chronology so much, one shouldn’t worry too much ’bout reading them in the right order, anyway, with perhaps the exception o’ reading #’d parts in the correct order ( such as the “DISTURBED,” “FELIX,” & “GENIE” stories ). If one found this site through a recommendation with specific story recommendations, feel free to read those recommended stories 1st.
But for those who want advice on where to start:
Straightforward adventure:
- “ERRANDS”
- The “DISTURBED” series ( for those who have the patience to read a novel ).
- “LIGHTNING1” & “LIGHTNING2”
- “GHOSTS1” & “GHOSTS2”
- “QUEST”
- “UNDERGROUND”
- “MALL”
