Conan the Barbarian
It isn’t easy ruling a kingdom, especially if your people are hard to control like vampires or professional sports fans. There might be times when you have to rule with violence, but going too far can bring its own problems. Really makes you think about how thin the line is between brutal warlord and kind monarch. So, what are some dos and don’ts?
- Do create a group of trusted friends that you can count on. This takes some of the pressure off you. They can give advice or handle some of the workload, which can prevent you from going full warlord.
- Do not use executions to solve every problem. You may find yourself running out of citizens. Not saying they shouldn’t be done at all because there are some heinous crimes that require the most brutal of punishments. This is where those friends can help you figure out the proper decision.
- Do try to maintain a personal haven. Ruling can be stressful and it pays to have a private area to retreat to. You can share it with one or two people in case they need you for an emergency. Just make sure it’s where you feel at peace.
- Do not rule by fear alone. It might work at first, but you have to maintain that level for a while. Eventually, your people may become numb and this is where a revolt can occur. This requires that you get meaner and more sadistic, which reduces your own humanity to the lowest point possible.
- Do create some festivals for your people to enjoy. This can forge unity throughout the kingdom. More importantly, it’s an easy way to set up trade and friendly relationships with neighbors. Have enough of these events and you can get a more power in the region than if you were hurting others.
- Do not attack your neighbors if you’re bored. This goes for people in general, but it’s extra true when it comes to rulers. There needs to be a reason for aggression or you end up being the bad guys. Although, that might be what you want in the first place, but you don’t want to make everyone know you’re the bad guys. That makes it harder to get new recruits.
- Do keep the kingdom looking nice and hospitable. I don’t really understand why so many warlords let their places fall into ruin. Old-world vampires are guilty of this more than mortals, but you still see a lot of darkness. Never underestimate the power of gardens.
- Do not over tax your citizens and horde it all. Aside from being mean, this is is what creates dissent. That means enemies can turn citizens against you and weaken your kingdom’s foundation without you knowing it. Not to mention, you won’t have a strong army because they’ll be hungry. You could pay the soldiers more, but you will run out because those who aren’t in the military will be too weak to prove they can fight.
All writers harbor the desire to get published, but even the best one’s may be frustrated in their attempt to do so. Publishers are evaluating manuscripts from the viewpoint of their selling capacity and only a handful, in their opinion, make the grade. The fortunate part is that opinions differ. Hence, we have instances like J K Rowling’s, whose first book, Harry Potter and the philosopher’s stone, was published after having been rejected twelve times. The amazing part is that Rowling is not alone in the list of prominent authors who ran up against repeated rejections before shooting to fame. This goes on to prove that publishers are also human beings, after all, and their judgement might be wrong. While a few authors do get a lucky break, there are several others whose work of merit never gets published because they…
