[https://mcmcreates.files.wordpress.com/2021/08/mermay-avatar.jpg?w=500&h=&zoom=2]

One of the first ideas. A mermaid who did deep dives to harvest hagfish.

A Tu! -- a Drift- a city that is bound to a current in the ocean [https://mcmcreates.files.wordpress.com/2021/08/mer-city.gif?w=800&h=&zoom=2]

This is a tu! Aka a drift-a city or town that is bound to an ocean current and drifts around the ocean experiencing the seasons as a physical placement.

A word on the placement of ! and ǂ in the story. Jayn, the mer language, carries over sounds from the clicksqueal language used to communicate underwater. As some of you may have already guessed, this means that Jayn is a click language. ! and ǂ are clicks. I am constantly saying the words with the clicks in them when I write them and clicking needlessly when I write, just because it sounds fun. Also, trying to remember the difference between ! and ǂ . ergh.

Stolen novel; please report.

If there is ever an audio book made of this, the voice actor is going to love me. To death.

diving test for little mermaids [https://mcmcreates.files.wordpress.com/2021/10/mer-dive.jpeg?w=680&h=&zoom=2]

First picture of a character that would eventually become Dya. Before I thought through...

[https://mcmcreates.files.wordpress.com/2023/02/baby-mer-2022.jpg?w=1586&h=]

Baby Mermaids!

As you might guess from the detail on that picture, I spent a lot of time thinking through the life cycle of mermaids for this game. ... more than necessary, really. way way waaaaaay the fuck more than necessary.

Anyhow, I promised Nipples. Here are some nipples.

[https://mcmcreates.files.wordpress.com/2021/08/merwork.jpeg?w=4000&h=]

Thinking about food and what it would take to keep a population of mer alive underwater. I know we always just kinda' handwave it away but serious aqua culture is going to be needed to keep our mermaids happy and healthy and singing fresh songs. THat is, if they're in groups of above say, five mer.

Or, you know, magic. magic could work too. or both. I think I'll use both. This is a digital world after all.