Fantasy Novel Writing: Traveling on a Ship

Five characters in my Merging Worlds series, all children, find themselves on a ship- transported there by the enemy. Now, I need to realistically write their experience.

I’ve been on the water a couple of times. Once, I was on a cruise ship in the middle of a storm. That was awesome until I saw the waves. Many stories I’ve read are set in medieval times and characters often get on ships. I could also pull inspiration for some games and anime.

Even so, It’ll be helpful to do my own research on what it’s like being on a ship. My story’s not set in the Middle Ages but it’s several years after the apocalypse. The world is constantly at war so it’s Middle Ages-like. Advanced technology exists but most people don’t use it.

My first stop is Pinterest, as always. I need to know what my characters are seeing.

After looking at pins, I’m reminded that I don’t have to stay with a traditional boat. Magic, of sorts, exists in my story and everyone knows about. it People pull energy from Darkness. They could use this energy to do some fun things for ships.

And, after looking at this picture:

I realized I have to figure out what kind of ship my characters are on. As I mentioned before, my story isn’t set in the Middle Ages. The world used to be like ours before it ended. Some people could have more modern cargo ships or something similar to a cruise ship.

I might do a combination. Since countries are fighting, I need something that can do battle. I might stick with pirate ships.

Next stop is YouTube for sound effects:

Here’s an interesting presentation I found:



Do you have any resources that help you write about traveling by ship?

More Resources
Quora: What was life like aboard a pirate ship in the golden age of piracy?
The Finer Times: Transportation in the Middle Ages
Encyclopedia Britannica: History Of Ships