Liavek is a shared world brought to life in a series of five fantasy

Fantasy

Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...

 anthologies

Anthology

An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...

 edited by Emma Bull

Emma Bull

Emma Bull is a science fiction and fantasy author whose best-known novel is War for the Oaks, one of the pioneering works of urban fantasy. She has participated in Terri Windling's Borderland shared universe, which is the setting of her 1994 novel Finder...

 and Will Shetterly

Will Shetterly

Will Shetterly is an American writer of fantasy and science fiction best known for his novel Dogland . The novel is inspired by his childhood at the tourist attraction Dog Land owned by his parents...

.

Contributors

Contributors include Bull, Shetterly, Gene Wolfe

Gene Wolfe

Gene Wolfe is an American science fiction and fantasy writer. He is noted for his dense, allusive prose as well as the strong influence of his Catholic faith, to which he converted after marrying into the religion. He is a prolific short story writer and a novelist, and has won many awards in the...

, Jane Yolen

Jane Yolen

Jane Hyatt Yolen is an American author and editor of almost 300 books. These include folklore, fantasy, science fiction, and children's books...

, John M. Ford

John M. Ford

John Milo "Mike" Ford was an American science fiction and fantasy writer, game designer, and poet.Ford was regarded as an extraordinarily intelligent, erudite and witty man. He was a popular contributor to several online discussions...

, Kara Dalkey

Kara Dalkey

Kara Mia Dalkey is an American author of young adult fiction and historical fantasy. She was born in Los Angeles and has lived in Minneapolis, Pittsburgh, Colorado, and Seattle. Much of her fiction is set in the Heian period of Japan....

, Barry B. Longyear

Barry B. Longyear

Barry B. Longyear born 1942 is a US writer and novelist who resides in Maine.-Career:He is best known for the Hugo and Nebula Award winning novella Enemy Mine, which was subsequently made into an identically titled movie and a novelization in collaboration with David Gerrold. The story tells of an...

, Megan Lindholm, Nancy Kress

Nancy Kress

Nancy Kress is an American science fiction writer. She began writing in 1976 but has achieved her greatest notice since the publication of her Hugo and Nebula-winning 1991 novella "Beggars in Spain" which was later expanded into a novel with the same title...

, Patricia C. Wrede, Steven Brust

Steven Brust

Steven Karl Zoltán Brust is an American fantasy and science fiction author of Hungarian descent. He was a member of the writers' group The Scribblies, which included Emma Bull, Pamela Dean, Will Shetterly, Nate Bucklin, Kara Dalkey, and Patricia Wrede; he also belongs to the Pre-Joycean...

, Nate Bucklin, Pamela Dean

Pamela Dean

Pamela Dean Dyer-Bennet is an American fantasy author whose most notable book is Tam Lin, based on the Child Ballad of the same name, in which the Scottish fairy story is set on a midwestern college campus loosely based on her alma mater, Carleton College in Minnesota.She was a member of the...

, Gregory Frost

Gregory Frost

Gregory Frost is an American author of science fiction and fantasy, and directs a fiction writing workshop at Swarthmore College in Swarthmore, Pennsylvania. He received his Bachelor's degree from the University of Iowa...

, Charles de Lint

Charles de Lint

Charles de Lint is a Canadian fantasy author and folk musician. He is also the chief book critic for The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction....

, Charles R. Saunders

Charles R. Saunders

Charles R. Saunders also credited as Charles Saunders is an African American author and journalist currently living in Canada. During his long career, he has written everything from novels both fiction and non-fiction, to screenplays and radio plays.- Background :Saunders was born in Elizabeth,...

, Walter Jon Williams

Walter Jon Williams

Walter Jon Williams is an American writer, primarily of science fiction.Several of Williams' novels have a distinct cyberpunk feel to them, notably Hardwired , Voice of the Whirlwind and Angel Stationn...

, Alan Moore

Alan Moore

Alan Oswald Moore is an English writer primarily known for his work in comic books, a medium where he has produced a number of critically acclaimed and popular series, including Watchmen, V for Vendetta, and From Hell...

 and Bradley Denton

Bradley Denton

Bradley Clayton Denton is an American science fiction author. He has also written other types of fiction, such as the black comedy of his novel Blackburn, about a sympathetic serial killer....

.

Reception

Orson Scott Card

Orson Scott Card

Orson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...

 found the initial volume to be "an example of what can be accomplished [in a shared-world project] when almost everything goes right."

Liavek

Edited by Will Shetterly & Emma Bull, published by Ace Books

Ace Books

Ace Books is the oldest active specialty publisher of science fiction and fantasy books. The company was founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn, and began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns...

 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

Ace Books

Ace Books is the oldest active specialty publisher of science fiction and fantasy books. The company was founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn, and began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns...

 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 & Adam Stemple
• 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

Ace Books

Ace Books is the oldest active specialty publisher of science fiction and fantasy books. The company was founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn, and began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns...

 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 & Adam Stemple
• The Ballad of the Quick Levars (song) - Jane Yolen & Adam Stemple
• 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

Ace Books

Ace Books is the oldest active specialty publisher of science fiction and fantasy books. The company was founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn, and began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns...

 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

Ace Books

Ace Books is the oldest active specialty publisher of science fiction and fantasy books. The company was founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn, and began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns...

 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

Casting Fortune

In 1989 Tor Books

Tor Books

Tor Books is one of two imprints of Tom Doherty Associates LLC, based in New York City. It is noted for its science fiction and fantasy titles. Tom Doherty Associates also publishes mainstream fiction, mystery, and occasional military history titles under its Forge imprint. The company was founded...

 published Casting Fortune, a collection of short stories by John M. Ford

John M. Ford

John Milo "Mike" Ford was an American science fiction and fantasy writer, game designer, and poet.Ford was regarded as an extraordinarily intelligent, erudite and witty man. He was a popular contributor to several online discussions...

 - this brought together his stories from the second and third volumes of Liavek together with a new novella in the Liavek shared world. The stories are:

• A Cup of Worrynot Tea
• Green Is the Color
• The Illusionist

Other appearances

Moore's Liavek story was adapted into comic book

Comic book

A comic book or comicbook is a magazine made up of comics, narrative artwork in the form of separate panels that represent individual scenes, often accompanied by dialog as well as including...

 format and published as Alan Moore's Hypothetical Lizard

Alan Moore's Hypothetical Lizard

Alan Moore's Hypothetical Lizard is a comic book adaptation of the World Fantasy Award-winning short story "A Hypothetical Lizard", written in 1988 by Alan Moore for the third volume of the Liavek shared world fantasy series. The story was later reprinted in "Words Without Pictures", a 1990 book of...

in 2005

2005 in comics

- January :* January 3: Will Eisner, creator of The Spirit, dies at age 87.-April:*April 13:**DC Comics announces the discontinuation of its Humanoids and 2000 A.D. titles....

.

Dean has a new Liavek story, Cousins, in the 2006

2006 in literature

The year 2006 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Literature:*Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - Half of a Yellow Sun*Chris Adrian - The Children's Hospital *Martin Amis - House of Meetings...

 anthology from Firebird Books

Firebird Books

Firebird Books is an imprint of Penguin Group Inc., publishing mainly paperback reprint editions of science fiction and fantasy for teenagers and adults....

, Firebirds Rising, edited by Sharyn November

Sharyn November

Sharyn November is an American editor of books for children and teenagers. She is Senior Editor for Viking Children's Books and Editorial Director of Firebird Books, which is a mainly paperback imprint publishing fantasy and science fiction for teenagers and adults...

Calendar

Liavek uses a calendar which is a simple adaptation of the French Republican calendar

French Republican Calendar

The French Republican Calendar or French Revolutionary Calendar was a calendar created and implemented during the French Revolution, and used by the French government for about 12 years from late 1793 to 1805, and for 18 days by the Paris Commune in 1871...

. 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.

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 or 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 in the city —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.

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.
The Liavek series was also unique at the time of its publication for its egalitarianism - instead of absorbing itself with the sexism and gender role strife than characterized most of the contemporary fantasies, the narrative assumed that men and women were already equal. A supporting character description, more often than not, began with the character's profession (in one case, the first mate of a ship) and personality and only later, mentioning their gender.

Recurring characters

• Rikiki, the chipmunk god of the S'Rians
• Count Dashif
• The Magician
• Kaloo
• Granny Carry, who is the Ka'Riatha
• Snake, owner of the Tiger's Eye
• Aritoli ola Silba
• Nerissa Benedicti