canon (kan’ uhn), n. The body of rules, principles, or standards accepted as axiomatic and universally binding in a field of study or art. (Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary)

Canon (not to be confused with cannon, a big gun *g*) in Islands of Pern (IoP) terms is that which is consistent with Anne McCaffrey’s world, and which is acceptable to write about in Pern online fandom. The best way to become familiar with Ms. McCaffrey’s world is to read the many books that she has written set in the world of Pern. It is essential that writers in the club be familiar with a majority, if not all, of the following novels:

The Dragonriders of Pern: Dragonflight, Dragonquest, The White Dragon*
The Harper Hall Trilogy: Dragonsong, Dragonsinger, Dragondrums*
On Dragonwings: Dragonsdawn, Dragonseye (Red Star Rising, UK edition), Moreta*

Nerilka’s Story
Renegades of Pern
All the Weyrs of Pern
Dolphins of Pern
Masterharper of Pern
The Skies of Pern
Dragon’s Kin

Additional Resources – Short Story Collections:

Chronicles of Pern: First Fall
A Gift of Dragons

Additional Resources – Reference Works:

The Atlas of Pern**
The People of Pern**
The Dragonlover’s Guide to Pern

* These books may all be purchased separately. The Dragonriders of Pern and On Dragonwings are currently available in one-volume editions, which contain all three books listed.

** These books are currently out of print, but may be purchased on E-bay or in used bookshops.

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This section is intended for those unfamiliar with Pern, as well as for those who would like a brief refresher course. Pern is a planet in the Sagittarian sector of the galaxy. It is suitable for human habitation. It orbits around a star, Rukbat, and has two moons, Belior and Timor. Pern is a little smaller in size than the planet Earth. Every 200 years or so, the Red Star, a rogue planet with an erratic orbit, passes close enough to Pern for a span of fifty years, and drops deadly spores through the planet’s atmosphere. The parasites, which resemble clumps of long silvery threads, devour any organic material they encounter.

The human colonists on Pern who first encountered Thread discovered that the parasite could be neutralized in water or destroyed by fire. In order to create a viable and renewable airforce to combat the menace before it reached the ground, the colonists bio-engineered telepathic, fire-breathing dragons from an indigenous lifeform on the planet. Upon emerging from their shells, the young dragonets telepathically bonded with humans. This process became known as Impression. The humans both nurtured the young dragons and provided them with guidance in the battle against Thread. Since the time of the early colonists, dragonkind and their symbiotically bonded human lifemates have safeguarded the planet from the ravages of the Red Star.

Over time, much of the technology that the original colonists brought with them was lost. The human society on the planet became agrarian and hierarchical, and its culture pre-industrial – similar to that of Western Europe in the sixteenth through eighteenth centuries. Pernese society is stratified in a tripartite manner: Weyrfolk, Holdfolk, and Craftspeople.

Weyrfolk are the dragonriders and their support staff who live in the Weyrs. All the Weyrs on the Northern Continent of Pern are located in the calderas of extinct volcanoes. Dragonriders spend their time not only fighting Thread on the backs of their dragons, but also looking after the health and well-being of their lifemates. This is a full-time occupation, especially during the fifty-year Pass when the Red Star is close enough to drop Threads on Pern. Because of this, the rest of the population must tithe a portion of their agricultural and craft products to keep the dragonmen fed and clothed. Periodically, a queen (gold) dragon will lay a clutch of eggs, and the dragonriders will go on Search throughout the population to find likely candidates to Impress the hatchlings. It is the dream of many young men and women on Pern to be successfully Searched so that they may Impress their very own dragon, and join the elite ranks of the planet’s protectors.

The leaders of the Weyr are the Weyrleader and Weyrwoman. The Weyrwoman is the lifemate of the senior queen dragon. The rider of the bronze dragon who catches the senior queen during a mating flight becomes Weyrleader. Although the Weyrwoman flies and leads a queen’s wing against Thread, it is the Weyrleader who is the military strategist and commander during Threadfall. The Weyrwoman’s chief duty is to ensure the smooth function of the Weyr on a day-to-day basis.

Holdfolk make up the majority of the Pernese population. There are several major Holds, each beholden to a particular Weyr. These Holds and their territories are managed by the ruling dynasty of the Lord Holder. Most Lord Holders have many children and work to arrange suitable matches for them among the most prestigious families on Pern. Lord Holders are very proud of their bloodlines, and strive to maintain their purity in the hopes that their dynasty will continue uninterrupted and produce able successors. Within a Lord Holder’s territory are several minor holds and even individual cotholders. Although these people answer to the Lord Holder’s authority, they are not to be confused with medieval serfs who were bonded to the land and highly restricted in their activities. Pernese holders are free farmers who own their own land, and who have a large degree of autonomy within the confines of their own property.

Craftspeople are those holders who excel at a particular artisan craft. The major crafts on Pern are as follows: Harpercraft (education, entertainment, and adjudication), Healercraft, Vintnercraft, Fishercraft, Dolphincraft, Weavercraft (includes tailorcraft and other clothier occupations), Minecraft, Smithcraft (all the hard sciences outside of medicine), Tannercraft, Beastcraft, Woodcraft, and Farmcraft. Crafts are organized in a guild structure similar to that of pre-industrial Western Europe. Young men and women are apprenticed to a particular Crafthall at a young age. After several years of study under various Masters, apprentices may advance to journeyman status sometime in their late teens. Journeymen are assigned to posts in different Holds where they work under other Masters and expand their craft repertoire. Some journeyman, especially those in the Harpercraft, will ride a circuit throughout a territory, assisting isolated holders. At the top of the hierarchy are the Masters who are the experts in their field. One of these Masters is elected by his/her peers to head their Craft; thus there is always one Masterharper, one Mastervintner, one Mastersmith, etc. who has the authority to speak for all of his/her Craftspeople.

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IoP is a Play by Email (PbEM) online fiction club set in the largely unexplored Western Continent. It is an alternative 9th Pass, non-AIVAS club, which means that the AIVAS computer was never discovered. The Pernese thus never experienced a grand technological or industrial revolution, and the culture remains pre-industrial. The Dolphincraft does exist as set forth in Dolphins of Pern, and telekinesis is an ability that dragons do possess. However, the latter is nowhere near as developed as it is in Skies of Pern, so any member wishing to post about telekinesis must ask the Conclave for permission. Also, be sure to read the section marked Anne McCaffrey’s Rules in the New Member Area of the Islands of Pern home page.

Outside of these specific parameters, Islands of Pern takes an inclusive approach to canon. This means that, outside of material that pertains to AIVAS and its attendant technological innovations, if it is in Ms. McCaffrey’s books, it is canonically correct. Some clubs consider the earlier books, such as those in The Dragonriders of Pern series, to take precedence over the later books because they came first; conversely, some clubs consider the later books to take precedence since they believe the new material should supercede the old. Islands of Pern holds that if Ms. McCaffrey authored, co-authored, authorized, or otherwise sanctioned the material (see The Dragonlover’s Guide to Pern and The Atlas of Pern), it counts as canonically correct. Islands of Pern prefers an inclusive approach to canon as this allows its writers more freedom to write and enjoy all that Pern has to offer.

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