As someone unfamiliar with the Dragon Age series, I have a question: Is it necessary to know any of the lore?
I am quoting this directly from the author's tumblr FAQ:
I haven't played Dragon Age: Origins (or any of the other DA games). Will I understand what's going on?
I think so. Small Fires is set a good 50 years before the events of DAO, so you don't need canon game knowledge to follow the story along.
That said, I would still HIGHLY recommend playing the games if you can for the best experience (and because they're fun), or at least browsing the wiki for general world/lore knowledge. Be aware that there might be game spoilers.