Skylark Island

These things about the island give us a structure: they are the only things that are set and can't be changed. Everything else is open for imagining, as long as it doesn't conflict with these things. See the links for individual host islands to find out more about what they are imagining.

The details here are always present in the story, for every version of the story world. This isn't a comprehensive list, merely the things that give us a structure for this story world. They are already set and cannot be changed. If you don't see what you need here, use the links for your host island to see if someone has made a contribution that gives you what you're looking for. You can also pop into the Discord server and chat to us about what you need to know, and get involved in any way to make your own contributions and expand on those of others. We're working this way so we can be responsive to the specific information that concerns individual participants, community groups, and our host islands. Click on the OOC bar beneath each section for Out-Of-Character notes. For more information related to character creation, click here to see the character section.

Skylark Island

Somewhere in a cold sea is an archipelago of small islands, lit by the Midnight Sun in summer and the Northern Lights in winter. They say the oldest of these is Skylark Island - or Himmellærke Øy, if you're using the old language. The community of Skylark Island are shepherding and fishing folk, but everything revolves around their main industry: the traditional manufacture of a woollen textile called broadcloth. Click here for an OOC note on the island

Our aim is to gather details about the fictional island which mirror, or are inspired by, or from from the imaginations of, our host islands. Every version of Skylark will differ. Use the sidebar links to learn more about the different versions.

The Aesthetic

Click here for a YouTube playlist of videos that will give you a flavour of life on the island, including work like shepherding, or see the videos in the sidebar of this page. Skylark Island is a Northern European island, and life there resembles something between the 1940s and the 1970s. Perhaps this story is set way back when, or perhaps the community has stayed the same for so long because they are far from the influence of the mainland. There's no need to define that: this is simply the aesthetic for life on Skylark. They do have technology, because the characters will knowingly use video conferencing to connect with each other at some point in this project. It is likely to be unusual for them to do so, and not all islanders will have access to it. Besides, internet access is very unreliable in the few places you can even get it to work at all, to the extent that the community's way of life doesn't rely on it at all. Emergency communication, on the island and to the mainland, is done by shortwave radio. Click here for an OOC note on aesthetics

Our aim is for this storytelling to exist within a less complicated world, to enable us to focus on what matters to the community, within the realms of their available resources, and their traditional ways.

Population

A time ago, there were about 300 people living on Skylark. The resident population has now dwindled to almost half that, though visitors and seasonal workers bring up the numbers in summer. Click here for an OOC note on population

This population count will be true no matter the population of our host community. Currently, our smallest host (Ingøy) has a population of just 15 permanent residents, and our largest (the Isle of Wight) around 140,000.

Community Locations

Click here for a glossary of all articles on this site tagged 'locations' In addition to housing and places to buy things, there are some important community gathering places:

Skylark Inn: serves food and has some lodgings.
The Festive House: a community hall with a large, long table with chairs round it. The Seat is the chair at one end where the Chief sits.
The Storehouse: a place where supplies can be stockpiled for the community.
The Sanctuary: a place very closely connected to nature, where some believe they can connect more easily with The Ancients.

The Sanctuary is thought to be the place where the old ones slipped beyond the veil, the place where the veil is most thin and the magic most strong. It is considered an auspicious place for ceremonies, especially festivities that acknowledge seasonal change. Click here for an OOC note on locations

Eventually, we plan to host in-person events where participants can engage in character if they choose, and story-based events will be played out. These will happen at locations representing one or more of the above. Obviously, our choices will depend on things like accessibility, and health and safety. We're open to suggestions for real places that might spark the imagination, whether they would ultimately be appropriate or not. Bear in mind that the actual locations we use might differ in appearance from anything shared here.

Beliefs

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'beliefs' on this site.

The Ancients

The community believes that the original residents were strongly connected to the land, to nature and the seasons, which afforded them certain magics. When the world became unable to hold that magic, they slipped behind a veil. Now they inhabit the same space, in a separate reality. Not all Skylarks believe in them, but 'the old ones' or 'the ones who came before' (they have many informal names) are nonetheless tied into traditions and rituals. Between seasonal festivals, believers reach out to them day to day through their own individual practice, for the most part. Superstitiously, most islanders are careful with their words when they speak of the old ones, or make wishes, or utter curses. Although the Ancients are considered to be mostly fair and neutral, they seem to have an annoying tendency to take things literally. Click here for an OOC note on the Ancients

This is a traditional folklore belief on the island. Although it can be a spiritual practice for some characters, the lore around the Ancients doesn't preclude characters having their own religious beliefs. However, our story will focus on this folklore.

The Magic

Those who believe in the magic, and many do, believe it comes from the island itself: magic from the land. It's in the food grown, and the air breathed, and the water drunk. It's in the grass, and the sheep who eat the grass, in their wool and the lichen used for dyeing it. It's in the yarn spun from the wool, and the cloth woven from the yarn, and the clothing cut from the cloth. The magic is in the cloth. That's why they set such store by it: the cloth is the land, and holds some of their strongest traditions. Skylarks believe that their island is the oldest: the centre of that magic for the whole archipelago. The place where it is strongest. The more connected someone is to the land, the stronger the magic within them, they say. Some families claim a trace back to the old ones, but there's talk of those whose roots are far away, being called there by the island and feeling connected to the magic the moment they set foot on the land. Any who have the connection and move away may find themselves called back by the land, too. These days, many things are credited to the magic: both the provider of a bowl of delicious winter stew, and a good listener offering some welcome advice, might be thanked for sharing their magic. Click here for an OOC note on magic

No illusory or 'trick' style of magic happens on the island or in this story. Nothing ever provides definitive proof beyond all doubt of the existence of supernatural magic. (But there is plenty of natural magic.)

History

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'history' on this site. On Skylark Island, history is uniquely preserved through oral traditions rather than written records. The island's past lives on in the stories shared by its inhabitants, weaving a collective memory that includes tales of the Ancients, legends, and folklore. This living history, passed down through generations, evolves with each telling, making every islander a guardian of their heritage. This approach to history, dynamic and communal, deeply influences the island's culture and daily life, making the past a vibrant part of the present. Click here for an OOC note on history

The history created for Skylark on each of our host islands could be said to be a whole, shared one where everything is a memory of the fictional past.

Festivals

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'traditions' on this site. Skylarks celebrate the changing seasons, known by some as the Wheel of the Year:

Yule, also known as midwinter or the winter solstice. This is the peak of winter, from which it flows to...
Imbolc, which marks the rise of spring.
Ostara, also known as the spring equinox. Spring flows from this peak into...
Beltane, also known as May Eve and May Day, marking the rise of summer.
Litha, also known as midsummer or the summer solstice. From this peak, summer flows to...
Lammas or Lughnasadh, which marks the rise of autumn.
Mabon, also known as the autumn equinox, is the peak of autumn. From here, it flows to...
Samhain, also known as All Hallows or Halloween, marking the rise of winter. For the islanders, Samhain is their new year celebration.

Click here for an OOC note on festivals

Alternative names for these festivals are welcome: any character can have their own way of referring to one of these, and of marking the holiday.

Traditions

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'traditions' on this site.
Click here for info about their coming-of-age traditions
Click here for info about how the Chief takes The Seat To give a sense of how the community functions, and some more detailed shared knowledge for the characters, here are two traditions that would be familiar to anyone who is resident on Skylark Island: Click here for an OOC note on traditions

Traditions around other areas of life on Skylark may emerge on any of our host islands, and are adoptable by other islands for their version of Skylark.

Languages

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'languages' on this site and here for the section on specific access needs. Skylarks use both an old and a contemporary language, as well as sign language and other methods of communication. The other islands in the archipelago have their own dialects, which can sound like entirely different languages. Click here for an OOC note on language

In this process, we'll be collaborating with people who use a variety of British and Nordic languages and dialects. These may be vocal, or physical like sign language, or some other method of communication. We embrace the fact that different languages are used. All languages are embraced, and so is the fact that this will complicate communication. In community interaction, many things challenge clear communication. Our understanding of each other is filtered through assumptions, gaps in knowledge, our personal intentions, and so on. There is no expectation (or right) to have full understanding during this experience. Interpreters and translators will be provided, and we can always stop and discuss or clarify. Ultimately, as in life, we aim to support each other and do the best we can.

Flora and fauna

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'flora and fauna' on this site. All of the natural resources on the island are useful to the islanders, and are treated with care and respect. Flora
The island is host to a cornucopia of lichens that provide natural dyes for the wool. Fauna
The island has several main breeds of sheep whose fleeces are best suited for making broadcloth. They have been very careful never to allow cross-breeding with farmers on the mainland, knowing full well that this would compromise their famous textile industry. The Skylark bird is, of course, one of the island's most well-known residents. The island also has ponies who came originally from the mainland, but the breed has grown hardier in the few hundred years it has been picking its way across this rocky terrain. Click here for an OOC note on flora and fauna

One of the most joyful aspects of seeing Skylark Island brought to life by our host islands is the opportunity to learn more about their flora and fauna, about their land and climate, about their crafting and healing traditions. Use the links in the sidebar to enjoy browsing.

Agriculture

Click here for a glossary of all articles on this site tagged 'agriculture' Livestock and crops are usually in plentiful supply. In a good year, farmers have produce to take to market on the mainland alongside their famous textiles. The sea has always provided a decent amount of fish, too, even if there are some disagreements about which island gets to fish where. Other supplies come by ferry from the mainland, along with the post, three times a week, weather permitting. Changes in the climate have increasingly impacted both the crop yield, and the ability of the ferries to reach the island with supplies, or return to the mainland with goods for market. Click here for an OOC note on resources

Much of our central plot will revolve around the weather and the availability of supplies. If you are creating characters for the island, this is a good area within which to have some knowledge about how it might impact your character/s.

Education

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'education' on this site. Although there might be a school building, there is no formal school system on the island. Young people start to learn the trades and skills of their families and community as soon as they're old enough to help wind yarn. Basics such as reading, writing, and arithmatic are learnt in the form of practical application: the ability to work out the market value of lamb and understand the council's weekly agenda are more important skills to them than knowing how to analyse Shakespeare. Education is guided by the community in general. Whilst some might spend more time teaching, everyone is able to step in and support in some way. Although it isn't written anywhere, there is a common understanding of the things a person should have studied by the time they come of age. Children learn from their parents, their families, their neighbours, whomever is available, whenever the opportunity presents itself. Some schooling does happen around a table with pencils and books, but that is a very small amount of the time spent on education. A young person is more likely to find themselves learning about weather patterns from a fisherman while they help with the day's catch. Click here for an OOC note on education

Characters who have an affinity for teaching a certain thing, or for teaching in general, are more than welcome.

Healthcare

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'healthcare' on this site. There is no hospital or clinic on Skylark Island or any island within easy reach, though there is one near the port on the mainland. It has a helicopter that can be on the island within minutes, for emergencies. Herbal and other natural healing processes are part of everyone's education on the island. Most also have a basic knowledge of medical first aid, and some are likely to have taken medical first aid courses on the mainland. Social care is typically provided at home. Family homes are traditionally shared by multiple generations, and people of all ages are valued and regarded as making important contributions to the wellbeing of the community. Click here for an OOC note on healthcare

The island may have resident healthcare professionals, who might be played by a participant, or could be referred to as a Non-Played Character (NPC).

Accessibility

Click here for the main section of this website about participant access
Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'access' on this site which will include information about Skylark Island. This island's community cares about and makes provision for access support needs wherever possible. It's a normal part of their daily lives to consider access. For example, there are more ramps than stairs on the island, especially in the communal gathering places. Click here for an OOC note on accessibility

We aim to make our in-person gatherings as accessible as possible, and we've made that be a truth in the fictional world too.

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'social-culture' on this site.

Discrimination

The fictional community are, in general, diverse and accepting of diversity within protected characteristics such as gender roles and identity, sexual orientation, race, and age. There isn't really any class system in this community, as such. If someone loses their ability to provide for themselves and their family, others share and support. For the most part, the only divide is their initial suspicion of anyone who comes from somewhere other than the island. Families on Skylark Island might be biological or intentional. The community acknowledges and honours connections of all kinds: if a Skylark has a strong connection with another person, romantic or otherwise, they can 'cut them into their cloth'. This binds that person to them, to their family, and to the community and island if they were not already a Skylark. Threats to the community and its connectedness are, one might say, not well received. Click here for an OOC note on discrimination

We have made this choice so we don't have to play storylines that perpetuate divisions in these areas. Players who demonstrate intentional discrimination of any kind are not welcome to participate in this project.

Rivalry

Skylarks have an age-old rivalry with another island in the archipelago. It is very close in size and population, as well as geographically. Everyone has forgotten what set off the rivalry. These days, it mostly manifests when some everyday blame needs to be placed somewhere. Click here for an OOC note on the rivalry

This rivalry may well manifest around light-hearted things like an annual cricket match between people from the two islands, and/or around something more serious like areas of fishing rights. Wherever it arises, any antagonism has only ever been verbal. It should not be the kind of rivalry that has accommodated any physical violence in its history.

Governance

Click here for a glossary of all articles tagged 'governance' on this site.
Click here to read about how the Chief is chosen. The community is led by a Chief, who can be anyone of age from the island. They are supported by a standing council consisting of people who are representative of the various community groups. These are chosen by informal agreement within each group, roughly on an annual basis. Beyond that, anyone who is moved to raise or speak to an issue is welcome. Typically, the chairs around the big table in The Festive House are enough space for a council meeting. Sometimes, they need to put chairs out in the hall. Very occasionally, they run out of chairs. If there is something that people cannot agree on, the Chief has the final say. Click here for an OOC note on governance

Essentially, the island uses the same Open Space principles and freedoms that we use for our gatherings.

Jump to...

Island Life

Skylark Island

The Aesthetic

Population

Community Locations