To kick off world building month, I thought it would be best to introduce you to the planet itself.

Should planets really be named? An interesting debate. There’s one main reason I decided to name mine:
If you don’t name your planet, your fans will. For example, Robert Jordan didn’t name his world for Wheel of Time, so readers dubbed it Randland (‘Rand’ is the name of the main character). That way, fans could more easily communicate when discussing the ins and outs of Jordan’s creation.
…I don’t think I want the Five Rings world to be referred to as ‘Cirellioland’, so I decided to name my world ‘Lura’.

Lura has a solar system and single, central, normal-sized star much like Earth’s called Sol. No one is sure how many planets there are within the solar system, but astrologists actively study the nearby celestial bodies and stars. (Of course, it’s hard to know much about the universe when even the lands within the surrounding oceans are unexplored.)

If I’m following my five rings system (which I am, of course :P), any planets that can sustain life should be between the second and third ring. Lura is just such a planet, so its elemental makeup is much like Earth’s. 
But there are a few key differences: Read the rest of this entry »