The world of The Mongoliad—the Foreworld, as its creators call it—is very much like our own; specifically, in this case, our own as it was in the 13th century, when the Mongols had invaded much of Eastern Europe and were moving steadily westward. Originally, the story had its genesis in Neal Stephenson wanting to know more about swordfighting, which in turn led to modern practitioners of Western martial arts, the traditions of fighting that predated the Renaissance and the rise of firearms. From these roots The Mongoliad took shape in the hands of Stephenson, Greg Bear, Mark Teppo, E.D. DeBirmingham, Erik Bear, Joseph Brassey, and Cooper Mao, and the resulting epic was published in serialized format at mongoliad.com, starting in 2009.
[Read more]