Illian Ling
Head of the Mondial Daily Gazette and Head Writer of it's Opulan division. Illian Ling started out writing plays for the theatre group he started with a few of his friends. He would star in many of these plays as the lead actor. After a disagreement with the other members of "The Writer's Block" the group disbanded and Illian was left alone on the streets of Konaïs. He made most of his money playing music and performing monologues in local taverns and on city plazas, earning him the nickneme of "The Bard" around the city.
It took him a decade of writing and searching for publishers, but one day his work was sponsored by Greggor Halsa of the Adamant Archive and his first official book was published. His first book, titled "Illian Ling's Guide to the Arts," was sold all over Opula to critical acclaim. Halsa himself instantly regretted his choice, as he had envisioned a work filled with research and factual evidence. Ling's book was more of an oppinion piece, filled with exaggerated accounts of his own misadventures which led to him becoming the head of the "World Famous" theatre group: "Illian and the Lings". To Halsa's dismay, the book was an instant success, and Ling's future as a writer was secured.
Ling released two to three books every year for five years straight, before going on a sudden two year hiatus. After this time, he would make the announcement that would change his carreer. He would still be writing books, though most of his focus would now be on informing the general public of the world, those people who had made his carreer a reality. He began construction of the first headquarters of the Mondial Daily gazette. At that point, though, it was a Konaïs-based gazette titled "Ling's Guide to Konaïs".
The gazette's launch was a rough one. Ling found it hard to enter into the market of writing down actual facts, it turned out. It wasn't until after a year of publishing Gazette editions by himself that he would find enough success to fund the employment of several writers. Another year later, Ling decided it was time to change his outlook on his work. From here on, the gazette would begin focussing more and more on entertainment than truth.
This new work ethic showed an instant increase in interest from the public. More and more gazettes were purchased throughout the city and Ling decided to rebrand the gazette as the "Ling Daily". This streak of success continued on for two more years before Ling would start construction of another Ling Daily production house, this time located in the Vechny city of Allistar's Rest. This change prompted another rebranding, as ling would change the gazette's name to now reflect its international influence. This was the birth of the "Mondial Daily" as we know it today.
Illian's influence grew exponentially. Now there are Mondial Daily buildings in most large cities around the world. Illian himself has become the official news crier of Opula, being granted the ability to cast his message across the city by the Vox Cognis. Illian still resides in the city, heading the Opulan division whilst the other Mondial Daily sites are headed by his chosen people. Illian has stated that he will continue to do the work he is doing, though he has also mentioned that he is working on "the biggest book I've ever written" with the working title "Illian Ling's Guide to Asharith".
Illian Ling has been writing this "book" for over a decade now, and fans are beginning to wonder if he'll ever finish it, or if he'll die without it ever being published. Some say Illian has completely given up on writing and is just living out his days with the riches he has earned from his previous publishings. Ling himself has stated multiple times in editions of the Mondial Daily that he is still hard at work, though many are seeing these claims as a way to preserve interest in his previous works.
List of Illian Ling's Works
- Illian Ling's Guide to the Arts; 633PS
- Illian Ling's Guide to the Arcane; 634PS
- Illian Ling's Guide to the Culinary; 634PS
- Illian Ling's Catalogue of Colossal Creatures; 635PS
- Illian Ling's Guide to Konaïs, the City of Progress; 635PS
- Illian and the Lings, Greatest Works; 636PS
- From Streets to Book Stores, The Illian Ling Story; 636PS
- Illian Ling's Guide to Fashion; 636PS
- The Ling Collection; 636PS
- Illian Ling's Tome of Tiny Tyrants; 637PS
- Illian Ling's Guide to the Arts 2; 637PS
- Illian Ling's Tales from the West; 638PS
- Illian Ling's Guide to Opula; 645PS
- Illian Ling's Guide to Somnomancy; 648PS
- A Wizard Through the Ages or Illian Ling's Guide to Merlonn Grimm; 652PS
- Illian Ling's Guide to Illian Ling; 658PS
- Illian Ling's Guide to Asharith; TBD
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