NOTICE: The following guide is NOT required. This is a recommended list to help you organize your notes and guide you through a simple process to achieve your goals. Feel free to ignore any advice provided. Secondly, please remember to keep a minimum of three backups to your original file. For safekeeping, I recommend having a copy on a flash drive, on your computer, and a hard copy. This will ensure that should anything happen, you will likely at least keep one of your four documents if you need a backup. 

            To start off this guide, we are going to list a few facts. These are, according to science, a requirement of any and all LIVING organisms. Please note, this will NOT relate to beasts or creatures that have abilities based on a magical effect. This will be addressed in a different chapter. Now let's begin. 

1) Living things must be made of cells:
            Simply stating that a living organism must have some kind of physical body. What that body looks like and how it functions is fully up to you. I do recommend presew the possibility of either making your own concept sketch or hiring an artist to do one to be sure your description is on point. For this task specifically, I recommend the work of Natalie Parker, a talented artist I have been working with who does a fantastic job with her work. She has done two of my covers thus far and I already have projects in the lineup. You can reach her at the following email address:  [email protected].

2) Living things obtain and use energy:

            Your creature/entity must be able to eat, and in turn, deposits or somehow recycle waste. You will want to determine what your creature/entity eats, if there is a priority to what kinds of food they prefer and possibly the means to which they catch/acquire their food. Keep an open mind in this regard as there are many ways a creature may handle or deal with either.

3) Living things grow and develop:
            This goes hand in hand with reproduction. Most of all entities have a period of life to which their bodies grow and develop. If you have a clear image of a chain of phases the entity experiences while growing, this is a good place to detail such notes. 

4) Living things reproduce:
            Your creation needs a means to reproduce. Below this paragraph, I will include a list of the types of reproduction known to us, and a brief example that will give you an idea of what that entails. There are of course options outside of normal means. They could be like vampires and spread through a disease. They could grow from spores or from a fungus in the proper requirements. These are considered 'unnatural' reproduction methods but still count none the less. Further research into such things may/will be required on your part. 

            Methods of Reproduction:
                       - Sexual: Ex. - Humans: 
                           Definition - The production of new living organisms by combining genetic information from two individuals of different types (sexes). In most higher organisms, one sex (male) produces a small motile gamete that travels to fuse with a larger stationary gamete produced by the other (female).

                        - Asexual: Ex. - Parthenogenesis and Copperheads.
                              Definition - Asexual reproduction is a type of reproduction by which offspring arise from a single organism, and inherit the genes of that parent only; it does not involve the fusion of gametes, and almost never changes the number of chromosomes. 

5) Living things respond to their environment:
            Your entity will need a means to interact with what is around them. What are they afraid of? Where do they prefer to live? How do they make their homes? How do they collect material to make their homes? How can they defend themselves? How their senses work... Ect. 

6) Living things adapt to their environment:
            In short, evolution. According to our known understanding of life, no single entity stays the same from the birth of its very existence. Everything evolves based on what they are exposed to over time. This can be caused by chemicals, challenges, or just an additional means to survive. At the same time, an entity may loos features if they do not need it as often or do not use it at all. This is not much of a requirement, but if you include a list of evolutionary changes, then it goes a long way to enrichen your world. \

            To continue in our efforts, let's take into consideration these following details that may affect how you answer the above bullets. 

1.1) Is your entity sentient?:
            Can it think on its own? Is it capable of complex thought like we humans are?

1.2) If yes, were they always scientist or was this a trait that was developed over time?:
            This goes hand in hand with the question of evolution. If you decide to, this could be the first trait your entity evolves into. 

2) Is there a male and female version of the species?:
            If yes, then this will affect your choice of whether the species has a sexual reproduction method or asexual reproduction method. 

3.1) Is the entity created or did it form naturally?:
           Straightforward I think? Note: if you say they are created by a god/goddess, it still counts as being created, not being formed naturally xP

3.2) If created: Who created them and how?:
           If you don't fully know 'how' you can summarize this with just saying "In or Lab" or "A WIZARD DID IT" xD

A/N:
            The following link will take you directly to my yearly update schedule. Please, go here if you want to keep tabs on when I will be updating chapters. If you are finding this guide to be useful and helpful, please remember to leave a vote and help me out by showing your support! Thank you!

Link: https://www.wattpad.com/story/142522276-my-update-schedule