Liavek

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Liavek is a shared world brought to life in a series of five fantasy anthologies edited by Emma Bull and Will Shetterly.

1 Contributors
2 Stories
3 Calendar
4 Magic System
5 Politics
6 Recurring Characters

[edit] Contributors

Contributors include Bull, Shetterly, Gene Wolfe, Jane Yolen, John M. Ford, Kara Dalkey, Barry B. Longyear, Megan Lindholm, Nancy Kress, Patricia C. Wrede, Steven Brust, Nathan A. Bucklin, Pamela Dean, Gregory Frost, Charles de Lint, Charles R. Saunders, Walter Jon Williams, Alan Moore and Bradley Denton.

[edit] Stories

The stories are as follows

Liavek edited by Will Shetterly & Emma Bull, published by Ace Books in 1985

Badu's Luck - Emma Bull
The Green Rabbit from S'Rian - Gene Wolfe
Ancient Curses - Patricia C. Wrede
Birth Luck - Nancy Kress
An Act of Contrition - Steven Brust
The Inn of the Demon Camel - Jane Yolen
The Hands of the Artist - Kara Dalkey
The Green Cat - Pamela Dean
A Coincidence of Birth - Megan Lindholm
Bound Things - Will Shetterly
The Fortune Maker - Barry B. Longyear

Liavek: The Players of Luck edited by Will Shetterly & Emma Bull, published by Ace Books in 1986

A Happy Birthday - Will Shetterly
Before the Paint is Dry - Kara Dalkey
The Rat's Alley Shuffle - Charles de Lint
Two Houses in Saltigos - Pamela Dean
Rikiki and the Wizard - Patricia C. Wrede
Dry Well - Nathan A. Bucklin
Choice of the Black Goddess - Gene Wolfe
The Ballad of the Quick Levars (song) - Jane Yolen
Pot Luck - Megan Lindholm
Show of Faith - Gregory Frost
An Act of Trust - Steven Brust
Ishu's Gift - Charles R. Saunders
A Cup of Worrynot Tea - John M. Ford
The Well-Made Plan - Emma Bull

Liavek: Wizard’s Row edited by Will Shetterly & Emma Bull, published by Ace Books in 1987

An Act of Mercy - Megan Lindholm & Steven Brust
Green Is the Color - John M. Ford
Paint the Meadows with Delight - Pamela Dean
The World in the Rock - Kara Dalkey
Baker’s Dozen - Bradley Denton
Cenedwine Brocade - Caroline Stevermer
A Hypothetical Lizard - Alan Moore
Training Ground - Nancy Kress
City of Luck (song) - Jane Yolen
The Ballad of the Quick Levars (song) - Jane Yolen
Eel Island Shoals (song) - John M. Ford
Pot-Boil Blues (song) - John M. Ford
A Handbook for the Apprentice Magician

Liavek: Spells of Binding edited by Will Shetterly & Emma Bull, published by Ace Books in 1988

Riding the Hammer - John M. Ford
Portrait of Vengeance - Kara Dalkey
The Skin and Knife Game - Lee Barwood and Charles de Lint
Strings Attached - Nathan A. Bucklin
The Last Part of the Tragical History of Acrilat - Pamela Dean
Mad God - Patricia C. Wrede
The Tale of the Stuffed Levar - Jane Yolen
An Act of Love - Steven Brust, Gregory Frost and Megan Lindholm
Spells of Binding (poem) - Pamela Dean

Liavek: Festival Week edited by Will Shetterly & Emma Bull, published by Ace Books in 1990

Consequences - Walter Jon Williams
As Bright as New Coppers - Bradley Denton
The Grand Festival: Sestina (poem) - John M. Ford
Divination Day: Invocation (poem) - John M. Ford
A Hot Night at Cheeky's - Steven Brust
Birth Day: Sonnet (poem) - John M. Ford
A Prudent Obedience - Kara Dalkey
Procession Day/Remembrance Night: Processonal/Recessional (poem) - John M. Ford
A Necessary End - Pamela Dean
Bazaar Day: Ballad (poem) - John M. Ford
The True Tale of Count Dashif's Demise - Jane Yolen
Festival Day: Catechism (poem) - John M. Ford
Six Days Outside the Year - Will Shetterly
The Levar's Night Out - Patricia C. Wrede
Restoration Day: Plainsong - John M. Ford

In 1989 Tor Books published Casting Fortune a collection of short stories by John Ford - this brought together his stories from the first two volumes together with a new novella. The stories are:

A Cup of Worrynot Tea
Green Is the Color
The Illusionist

Moore's Liavek story was adapted into comic book format and published as Alan Moore's Hypothetical Lizard in 2005.

Dean has a new Liavek story, Cousins, in the 2006 anthology from Firebird Books, Firebirds Rising, edited by Sharyn November

[edit] Calendar

Liavek uses a calendar which is a simple adaptation of the French Republican calendar. It consists of twelve months of 30 days, called Snow, Rain, Wind, Buds, Flowers, Meadows, Reaping, Heat, Fruit, Wine, Fog and Frost. The year begins at the winter solstice, with five days of festival (Festival Week). Every four years is the Grand Festival, which lasts an extra day. There are six weeks of five days: Sunday, Moonday, Windday, Rainday, and Luckday.

[edit] Magic System

In the world of Liavek, each individual is born with the capacity to do magic by investing his luck. Each year on an individual's birthday, he can invest his luck into a physical object. If he succeeds, then for the next 364 days he is a magician of some greater of lesser degree of power —however, all his strength resides in his luck object and he is in great danger if an enemy locates and destroys that object.

Many Liavekans have invested their luck —the city is called "the city of luck" for this reason— but the powerful professional magicians live on Wizard's Row. Wizard's Row is unique in that it is known to occasionally vanish, often when the street is being sought.

[edit] Politics

Politics in Liavek are complicated, both internally (among the various temples, most notably the Red Temple) and externally, among the different countries. Liavek is a port city of immigrants.