MagiStream

1. Do you now/ did you ever have a paracosm?
I have had one over the years. It seems to be constantly changing to meet my needs though.
2. If you no longer maintain your paracosm, why did you stop?
There was a time I stopped and it was mainly because I was so exhausted I couldn't focus enough and the world kind of fell apart.
3. About what age were you when you began worldplay? About what age were you when you stopped, if you have?
I honestly think I was always doing it. I don't really remember a time when I wasn't creating these worlds in my head. When I temporarily stopped I was 19 and it wad only for half a year.
4. Was there a triggering event that caused you to start a paracosm, or was it just something you always sort of did?
I always did it, but I think my paracosm changed a lot when my parents separated. After that there was a focus on paternal figures in my world instead of adventure and exploration like in the past.
5. What is/was your paracosm like? Did it have a name? What was the setting like, and who were the characters? Was there a storyline? Please share whatever you feel comfortable sharing.
It varied over the years but the setting was similar to Hyrule field in LOZ OOT. There's a big sprawling field with minimal trees. There was more lakes and ponds though and many small villages to stay in. Every time I visited this world in my head there would be different people I'd interact with based on my interests at the time and new stories. Most of the time I was in a medeival time period but recently my world slowly transitioned into a more early 2000s place as school got too much. I feel like it's because of a longing for the past?
6. Were you an active player in your paracosm, or were you a passive observer on what the characters there did? If you were active, what were you like there?
I was a very active character most of the time. I liked being thrust into the story and working towards a goal. It's actually helped me figure out I was genderfluid as on any day I'd have the other characters call me by pronouns that felt more right to me when I was there.
7. Did you ever tell anyone about your paracosm? How do you feel about having one? i.e., was it a big secret that you were guilty about, or were you open about sharing it with others?
I told one person but I always kind of kept it to myself as it was basically my only happy place during the divorce and my younger self kind of kept to themself. I didnt think it was normal to have these worlds and was greedy with them as a lot of the time it was all I had to keep going.
8. Did you create your paracosm alone, or with siblings/ close friends?
I created it alone.
9. How did you play in your world, (by writing, by daydreaming, at night before you fell asleep, etc.)
I did all three. When I was little I played during car rides and it's still the only way I fall asleep. I haven't written about my world in over three years but I do have a project I'd look to do using some of my past adventures.
10. Were you ever deluded as to the reality of your paracosm, (believed it was a real place you traveled, delusions of godhood, etc.)
No, I always knew it wasn't real.
11. Has your paracosm played an important role in your creative life? How?
All of my writing started through my world. I loved using it as a starting point because I felt like I already lived through the story.
12. Did you know about paracosms before now? How did you learn about them?
I didn't know anyone else experienced this until now. I just thought I was really weird
13. Did you/do you know anyone else who has/had a paracosm? How did you meet? How did you end up sharing information about your paracosms?
I didn't know anybody.

1. Do you now/ did you ever have a paracosm?
Yes, not so much now though.

2. If you no longer maintain your paracosm, why did you stop?
It was a part of my past of beliefs I no longer have.

3. About what age were you when you began worldplay? About what age were you when you stopped, if you have?
I think 12 or so, and I stopped maaaaybe around 16.

4. Was there a triggering event that caused you to start a paracosm, or was it just something you always sort of did?
I actually had a really good dream! I took it from there. In the dream I created all different kinds of people and brought them to life, as well as different continents.

5. What is/was your paracosm like? Did it have a name? What was the setting like, and who were the characters? Was there a storyline? Please share whatever you feel comfortable sharing.
It was a world with many different continents, all following like an elemental theme (fire, sun, light, earth, air, water, moon, dark, and life). There were also corresponding moons where the goddesses lived on. Don't quite remember it having a name. I never delved to much into the story actually, but one of my friends did. I did most of the world building and she did characters and story.

6. Were you an active player in your paracosm, or were you a passive observer on what the characters there did? If you were active, what were you like there?
I think I was active? Like I said my friend did the character builds mostly, and I think they were all based off of me and our friends. I was the earth goddess, or at least connected to the element earth. I was more of the leader as well, since I created the idea.

7. Did you ever tell anyone about your paracosm? How do you feel about having one? i.e., was it a big secret that you were guilty about, or were you open about sharing it with others?
I was very open to telling my friends, though I only went into detail with one or two of them. It would feel weird to tell other people though since they might've not been interested or thought it was strange.

8. Did you create your paracosm alone, or with siblings/ close friends?
Mostly alone. Again, I had a friend who helped expand it.

9. How did you play in your world, (by writing, by daydreaming, at night before you fell asleep, etc.)
Mostly by writing, though occasionally before sleeping since I tried to have more dreams about it.

10. Were you ever deluded as to the reality of your paracosm, (believed it was a real place you traveled, delusions of godhood, etc.)
I knew it wasn't real, though I hoped it to be if that makes sense.

11. Has your paracosm played an important role in your creative life? How?
Hmm it used to when I was a kid, I was big on the elemental themes. Again, different beliefs now and I don't like thinking about my past.

12. Did you know about paracosms before now? How did you learn about them?
Think I have heard of the word, and I figured it was a thing, since learning of the complex world that writers such as J.R. Tolkien have built.

13. Did you/do you know anyone else who has/had a paracosm? How did you meet? How did you end up sharing information about your paracosms?
I knew a couple of my friends had their own stories and worlds they spoke about. Also we are childhood friends, so y'know, elementary school stuff.

1. Do you now/ did you ever have a paracosm?
yes i have had quite a few as a child but still somewhat have one i go to when things are stressful, almost like a daydream
2. If you no longer maintain your paracosm, why did you stop?
the one i no longer have was about pokemon when i was like, seven so i think i just grew out of it
3. About what age were you when you began worldplay? About what age were you when you stopped, if you have?
six or seven i think.
4. Was there a triggering event that caused you to start a paracosm, or was it just something you always sort of did?
yes, the one i've had since i was nine stemmed from a specific trauma.
5. What is/was your paracosm like? Did it have a name? What was the setting like, and who were the characters? Was there a storyline? Please share whatever you feel comfortable sharing.
mine is like:
a small, dingy trailer. similar to one i stayed in on the beach a lot as a child. it has a lot of childish items like toys and soft clothing and pillows. while very realistic, i remember vaguely as a child having varous anime characters i liked stay in that realm as well.
6. Were you an active player in your paracosm, or were you a passive observer on what the characters there did? If you were active, what were you like there?
i was sorta the center of it, i suppose.
7. Did you ever tell anyone about your paracosm? How do you feel about having one? i.e., was it a big secret that you were guilty about, or were you open about sharing it with others?
the only time i opened up to it was around 2016 to my sibling and she had shunned me for it soooo uhhhhhhh nope not again i may bring it up to my significant other if the topic of mental illness gets dwelved into again.
8. Did you create your paracosm alone, or with siblings/ close friends?
alone, i think the best part of it for me was as a child i never had any alone time and i assume that was making up for it.
9. How did you play in your world, (by writing, by daydreaming, at night before you fell asleep, etc.)
daydreaming, imagining what it would like to be there with my current partner etc. i also based a setting in my comic i have barely worked on in this little yucky trailer.
10. Were you ever deluded as to the reality of your paracosm, (believed it was a real place you traveled, delusions of godhood, etc.)
no, i always knew it wasn't real but sometimes it would severely depress me that it was not a real thing.
11. Has your paracosm played an important role in your creative life? How?
yes, i have developed an alomst obsession with shabby chic and stuffed animal-like stuff. very soft things, despite Literally being a goth man.
12. Did you know about paracosms before now? How did you learn about them?
i knew of them but did not know the word for it!
13. Did you/do you know anyone else who has/had a paracosm? How did you meet? How did you end up sharing information about your paracosms?
i know another friend with trauma has one and hers is like, a similar odd place. it came up on the topic of how we coped with family issues as children.

1. Do you now/ did you ever have a paracosm?
Yes I have. Not a singular world, though. They changed in nature and in numbers as time went on.

2. If you no longer maintain your paracosm, why did you stop?
I stopped many of my paracosms as I lost interest in them, or the need they fulfilled was answered by something else.

3. About what age were you when you began worldplay? About what age were you when you stopped, if you have?
I always had a wild imagination, but a full world I started when I was around 8 or 9. Never quite stopped.

4. Was there a triggering event that caused you to start a paracosm, or was it just something you always sort of did?
Yes. What started me imagining entire worlds was me being unable to fall asleep and my dad advising me to imagine a place where I felt safe and comfortable.

5. What is/was your paracosm like? Did it have a name? What was the setting like, and who were the characters? Was there a storyline? Please share whatever you feel comfortable sharing.
At first, it was just me under the shade of a big tree in a garden, with all kinds of animals snuggling with me, to help me sleep. Then it changed as my interests changed. I needed someplace without bullies, I would imagine a school were everyone was friendly, then everyone had a spirit animal, etc. Then when irl I gained a stable group of friends and middle school got better, I dropped that fantasy and latched on other worlds, such as the pokemon one.

6. Were you an active player in your paracosm, or were you a passive observer on what the characters there did? If you were active, what were you like there?
Sometimes I imagined myself in that world as a self insert, other times I took the role of the main lead and did things differently. Sometimes I just took what I liked most in other stories and applied it to the real world. For two years, I had a black horse running alongside our car when we were on long road trips.
Those past few years, my worlds are completely original and I build their background as I go along. They end up pretty complex, with a rich history. In those stories, I'm never involved, I create characters that I control (and I go from the point of view of one in particular), but none of them are me.

7. Did you ever tell anyone about your paracosm? How do you feel about having one? i.e., was it a big secret that you were guilty about, or were you open about sharing it with others?
I only shared my horse, snowflake (bcs he had a white spot on his forehead) with a childhood friend of mine. She then imagined her own and we would play together by describing what our horses were doing. I was never ashamed of that. It was two children's imagination running wild in form of stallions.
Nowadays, no one knows of my imaginary worlds, but I'm not ashamed of them. They gave me comfort when the real world couldn't (still do); they gave me friends when I had none; they gave me a purpose when I was simply going through the motions. They've never been a hindrance to my real life, quite the opposite, they helped me when I needed it the most.

8. Did you create your paracosm alone, or with siblings/ close friends?
All of them on my own, though as I mentioned earlier, I shared one with a childhood friend.

9. How did you play in your world, (by writing, by daydreaming, at night before you fell asleep, etc.)
Daydreaming when I had nothing better to do, and always before falling asleep. I cannot fall asleep without doing something in one of my worlds.

10. Were you ever deluded as to the reality of your paracosm, (believed it was a real place you traveled, delusions of godhood, etc.)
No, I always knew what was my imagination and what wasn't.

11. Has your paracosm played an important role in your creative life? How?
Hmm, well I think so, since in every RP I join, I use my most fleshed out characters from my imaginary worlds.

12. Did you know about paracosms before now? How did you learn about them?
I didn't know it had an actual medical term. I learned it from you ;)

13. Did you/do you know anyone else who has/had a paracosm? How did you meet? How did you end up sharing information about your paracosms?
As I mentioned earlier: my childhood friend with our horses.
And a friend said to me last year that she had always imagined our group of friends as a music band, and every time she listened to music, she would imagine us on scene. I was very happy and told her that that was normal and a very good thing to imagine.

1. Do you now/ did you ever have a paracosm?

I have had Many,

2. If you no longer maintain your paracosm, why did you stop?

I tried to stop when I was 13 but I couldn't, I never "grew out of" it

3. About what age were you when you began worldplay? About what age were you when you stopped, if you have?

around 5, due to a coping mechanism

4. Was there a triggering event that caused you to start a paracosm, or was it just something you always sort of did?

Child abuse that I prefer not to specify

5. What is/was your paracosm like? Did it have a name? What was the setting like, and who were the characters? Was there a storyline? Please share whatever you feel comfortable sharing.

my main was in a modern world where there are multiple universes, I am the king of the dragon realm which was transported into the human realm as a baby and adopted by some humans

6. Were you an active player in your paracosm, or were you a passive observer on what the characters there did? If you were active, what were you like there?

I am the player yes

7. Did you ever tell anyone about your paracosm? How do you feel about having one? i.e., was it a big secret that you were guilty about, or were you open about sharing it with others?

My therapist knows of it, and has complimented my creativity

8. Did you create your paracosm alone, or with siblings/ close friends?

alone, but the real world influences it

9. How did you play in your world, (by writing, by daydreaming, at night before you fell asleep, etc.)

daydreaming!

10. Were you ever deluded as to the reality of your paracosm, (believed it was a real place you traveled, delusions of godhood, etc.)

I have believed characters from it would one day exist here due to schizophrenia

11. Has your paracosm played an important role in your creative life? How?

I am trying to write a book about one!

12. Did you know about paracosms before now? How did you learn about them?

the internet, mostly through tumblr back in the day

13. Did you/do you know anyone else who has/had a paracosm? How did you meet? How did you end up sharing information about your paracosms?

I know one person!

1. Do you now/ did you ever have a paracosm?

A few, actually. Some more developed than others, of course, but I just like to come up with worlds with different rules than ours

2. If you no longer maintain your paracosm, why did you stop?
-

3. About what age were you when you began worldplay? About what age were you when you stopped, if you have?

I must have started around my teens, let's say around 17 years old. It was pretty rudimentary, looking back.

4. Was there a triggering event that caused you to start a paracosm, or was it just something you always sort of did?

I think I always just did, the same way I came up with characters and stories.

5. What is/was your paracosm like? Did it have a name? What was the setting like, and who were the characters? Was there a storyline? Please share whatever you feel comfortable sharing.

I've got two "story" paracosms that are settings for characters to live in, with their own logic and rules. Then, I've got a few more I use as some sort of "visual metaphors" to sort out my thought processes and other aspects of my mind. I find it easier to understand myself through these.

6. Were you an active player in your paracosm, or were you a passive observer on what the characters there did? If you were active, what were you like there?

While I played with the idea of being a character in there, it never quite came to fruition.

7. Did you ever tell anyone about your paracosm? How do you feel about having one? i.e., was it a big secret that you were guilty about, or were you open about sharing it with others?

I've never been a very communicative person, and thus I found no reason to share these worlds with others. I don't believe they would understand or care.

8. Did you create your paracosm alone, or with siblings/ close friends?

I used to create stories with relatives, but not exactly worldbuilding aspects. However, ideas for my current story paracosms are shared with my partner, and he has attributed very valuable suggestions, ideas and perspectives.

9. How did you play in your world, (by writing, by daydreaming, at night before you fell asleep, etc.)

Lots of daydreaming to the point it keeps me awake sometimes, then I like to write it down and/or draw concepts.

10. Were you ever deluded as to the reality of your paracosm, (believed it was a real place you traveled, delusions of godhood, etc.)

Uhhh no.

11. Has your paracosm played an important role in your creative life? How?

It's the main pillar of my creative life. I've preferred to draw my own ideas rather than fanart until very recently, and just for one thing, and not always.

12. Did you know about paracosms before now? How did you learn about them?

To be honest, this is the first time I heard about the word "paracosm", but it fits well with what's going on with my mind.

13. Did you/do you know anyone else who has/had a paracosm? How did you meet? How did you end up sharing information about your paracosms?

I know a certain artist who goes so in depth and is so creative with her fictional worlds I'm pretty sure those are paracosms.

1. Do you now/ did you ever have a paracosm? Yep and still do and it can suck sometimes because world building isn't my strongest point.

2. If you no longer maintain your paracosm, why did you stop? I still maintain it simply for ARPG aspects.

3. About what age were you when you began worldplay? About what age were you when you stopped, if you have? Around 5?

4. Was there a triggering event that caused you to start a paracosm, or was it just something you always sort of did? Just something I did after watching Lord of the Rings and previously the Last Unicorn.

5. What is/was your paracosm like? Did it have a name? What was the setting like, and who were the characters? Was there a storyline? Please share whatever you feel comfortable sharing. Currently, my ongoing world is called Spafold. It's a prehistoric world where massive dire wolves roam the earth and where the Norse Gods are still heavily revered. All modern day technology ceases to work once you enter Spafold and only in very sporadic places would it work for any length of time.

6. Were you an active player in your paracosm, or were you a passive observer on what the characters there did? If you were active, what were you like there? Active. I was the world builder, lore maker, pretty much everything.

7. Did you ever tell anyone about your paracosm? How do you feel about having one? i.e., was it a big secret that you were guilty about, or were you open about sharing it with others? Yep! It's currently an up and coming ARPG on DeviantArt.

8. Did you create your paracosm alone, or with siblings/ close friends? Alone mostly but with feedback from close friends.

9. How did you play in your world, (by writing, by daydreaming, at night before you fell asleep, etc.) Writing and drawing artwork and map building.

10. Were you ever deluded as to the reality of your paracosm, (believed it was a real place you traveled, delusions of godhood, etc.) No.

11. Has your paracosm played an important role in your creative life? How? It's helped me figure out how to make better maps x'D

12. Did you know about paracosms before now? How did you learn about them? No. I knew about them long before now via my family doctor.

13. Did you/do you know anyone else who has/had a paracosm? How did you meet? How did you end up sharing information about your paracosms? Alot of people in my friends group actually have Paracosm because we're all apart of various ARPGs and HARPGs.

1. Do you now/ did you ever have a paracosm?
Yes, I used to have one as a child/young teen! I can still remember the majority of the universe, and sometimes I still think about it just to give myself a giggle when I need it.

2. If you no longer maintain your paracosm, why did you stop?
I no longer needed it in my life, my interests had changed, and I needed to focus on things like exams. Maybe I will one day, but I can't connect with it as I once could.

3. About what age were you when you began worldplay? About what age were you when you stopped, if you have?
I have always had some kind of world in my mind, even as a toddler. I believe I this particular paracosm began in primary school. I had several vivid worlds in my mind, but this was around when my most vivid one began. I stopped at some point when I was 13. There will be records of when it began and ended somewhere, but my old books and drawings take ages to find

4. Was there a triggering event that caused you to start a paracosm, or was it just something you always sort of did?
I was finding life a little stressful at the time, so I created it with my friends and relatives and would retreat into it if I was having an anxious moment. Then some events happened in life that I'd rather not go into details about, including a misdiagnosis I got wrongly treated for, so I stayed in there full time.

5. What is/was your paracosm like? Did it have a name? What was the setting like, and who were the characters? Was there a storyline? Please share whatever you feel comfortable sharing.
The world was a parallel universe to our own. The setting is a mixture of grassy hills, sandy deserts, Japanese inspired rainforests, and towns! Magic existed in the world as a type of energy, allowing the world's laws to be broken. The characters had many different roles, including witches. There was lots of lore, and gods. The universe was very silly, comedic and dark humour-based, poking fun at anything that stressed me.

6. Were you an active player in your paracosm, or were you a passive observer on what the characters there did? If you were active, what were you like there?
I was the main character! Although I was a child, my “alternate” version was a young adult. I also had a brother in there too!

7. Did you ever tell anyone about your paracosm? How do you feel about having one? i.e., was it a big secret that you were guilty about, or were you open about sharing it with others?
I shared it with my family, friends and teachers, but unfortunately a lot of them said I was too into my world, so it ended up being banned. Since I could no longer draw my characters or talk about them, I'd write about it instead.

8. Did you create your paracosm alone, or with siblings/ close friends?
I created it with family and friends! We all had alternate versions of ourselves, but as the creator, I saw the world most vividly of us all.

9. How did you play in your world, (by writing, by daydreaming, at night before you fell asleep, etc.)
Whenever I wasn't in lesson and I was feeling stressed, I would enter my universe.

10. Were you ever deluded as to the reality of your paracosm, (believed it was a real place you traveled, delusions of godhood, etc.)
This happened when a bad event in my life occurred and I lived full-time in my universe, so I was convinced I was in the universe and had stepped through a portal into our own world. I'm not someone who lives in my own universe daily, it was simply a coping mechanism and I do not use it any more for this purpose, as it is dangerous.

11. Has your paracosm played an important role in your creative life? How?
Yes! It has inspired many of my stories. I hope to make it into a series someday, but it would no longer be considered PC even though it is just humour.

12. Did you know about paracosms before now? How did you learn about them?
I learnt about it soon after its creation.

13. Did you/do you know anyone else who has/had a paracosm? How did you meet? How did you end up sharing information about your paracosms?
No, unfortunately I do not know many people in my life.

I do have a few more paracosms but none as vivid as the world above. I would like to get into creating and maintaining paracosms again.

I had no idea there was a word for this... here we go ig!!

1. Do you now/ did you ever have a paracosm?
Yes!!! I have quite a few. There is Edna Village, which takes place in a much larger country itself (Mur) though I haven't developed it much. There's my minecraft inspired fantasy world, of which I've mostly developed the Nether and not so much the Overworld. Specifically demons, had fun with those!!! I've had others over the years and a couple that take place in the warriors universe but I don't think those count as much

2. If you no longer maintain your paracosm, why did you stop?
I still maintain mine! For a while I lost the ability to like... be on touch with it though? It was very upsetting to almost lose the world because my mind had just... changed. Still unsure what triggered thst, but I'm still unable to "enter" into them as easily and vividly as before.

3. About what age were you when you began worldplay? About what age were you when you stopped, if you have?
Gosh, I have no idea. I was young though, fairly young

4. Was there a triggering event that caused you to start a paracosm, or was it just something you always sort of did?
I kinda just always did! It was easily to visualize and "enter" into them when I was going through something traumatic though

5. What is/was your paracosm like? Did it have a name? What was the setting like, and who were the characters? Was there a storyline? Please share whatever you feel comfortable sharing.
Oh man, I don't think I could tell everything... in Edna, there was a vague storyline, but its become more vague over the years. The characters were mine, and the story focused mainly on the Maybringer family. As for my more recent one (which is unnamed) the setting is in a minecraft inspired world. There are aliens (Neptune) demons (Lazarus, Mercury, my self insert) humans, and more. There isn't much of a story line except for some background info

6. Were you an active player in your paracosm, or were you a passive observer on what the characters there did? If you were active, what were you like there?
I am an active player in both, however it can get... weird. In Edna, I was functionally God. The characters were aware of my existence and I could visit when I wanted. However, I mostly was able to view the world through their eyes or in a weird spectator mode. It would be as if i was living through them? Hard to explain. The newer one However I active exist and am a character known as Maple (which is the name I go by online) and I've Been Through It lol. However I'm able to view it through the other characters as well, mostly Lazarus

7. Did you ever tell anyone about your paracosm? How do you feel about having one? i.e., was it a big secret that you were guilty about, or were you open about sharing it with others?
I tell many people that im close with! I'm very proud of them and I don't think it's weird, just my strangely vivid imagination

8. Did you create your paracosm alone, or with siblings/ close friends?
They were created by me and me alone, however music influenced all events

9. How did you play in your world, (by writing, by daydreaming, at night before you fell asleep, etc.)
I have vivid daydreams (my eyes typically remain open as well) and can see the scene playing out in my mind but also in my eyes? Its so hard to explain, it's like I enter the world.

10. Were you ever deluded as to the reality of your paracosm, (believed it was a real place you traveled, delusions of godhood, etc.)
I have not yet!

11. Has your paracosm played an important role in your creative life? How?
Extremely. My most favorite characters I've ever made are in them and it's where I'm most creative

12. Did you know about paracosms before now? How did you learn about them?
Nope! I just now learned there was world. Always thought it was just my imagination

13. Did you/do you know anyone else who has/had a paracosm? How did you meet? How did you end up sharing information about your paracosms?
I don't believe I do