Guest Speakers: Troy Carrol Bucher, Roshani Chokshi, Sean Hillman, Jen Lyons, E. J. Stevens, Sheree Renee Thomas – WRITE Program Director: Venessa Giunta
When it comes to world-building, there are macro and micro elements. In other words, some things only need a general description, whereas others will need fine-tuned details. It’s your job as the writer to understand which information is pertinent to include for both categories. For example, if your story takes place in the undersea realm of Atlantis, then your audience will most likely not need to know about the summer solstice or astrological patterns in outer space. Additionally, your audience will not care about every single button on a woman’s dress at a ball.
Remember that every word counts, and that you’ll want to remain concise, practicing economy efficiency. You’ll want to keep the world consistent – if people don’t understand how your world functions, then they won’t remain invested in the story.
Most world-building research is important for you as the writer, to help set things like tone. It is useful to keep a back-up file with all of your research. However, the majority of that information shouldn’t actually go into the novel itself.
Consider brief interviews with people as a source of research. The human perspective is often more valuable than facts alone. They may have access or memories of local history, which may not be featured on wikipedia. Start off by saying something like “I’m a writer, and would like to research this [topic.]” You would be amazed at how many doors will open to you! People love talking about themselves and their world. You may even get a tour of some typically restricted location.
When you decide to base some element of your world-building off real world locations, you want it to be just as realistic to the people who actually live there. This involves a great deal of research, so if you can visit the place in person, that’s even better! You can get an idea of other sensations that you may not be able to pick up from internet pictures or descriptions alone, such as smells, ambient noise, etc. If writing is your full-time career, you may even be able to write this trip off on your taxes due to necessary research for the project.
Planets vs. City Blocks – the world that you create will need to support the story that you’re telling. Don’t worry about developing places not relevant to your story. Even if your story doesn’t stretch across an entire galaxy, you can still find excitement in the mundane! Your readers will appreciate you for it. 😉
External vs. Internal World-Building – external is a reference to the physical details of the world you are focusing on. Internal is a reference to the theme or message of the story. In this case, the world itself can even be considered a character. A great example of this was Thra in “The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance” or Fantasia in “The Neverending Story.”
Don’t be afraid to pull out maps and research culture or history for inspiration. When it comes to the vastness of your world, ask yourself: what is the ease of travel for my characters? Are there boundaries or restrictions?
Settings are often modeled on behalf of the protagonist, or vice versa. Contrasting an environment to a character’s personality can emphasize dramatic and entertaining experiences as well. Ex: Kate and Leopold – a medieval prince thrown into modern day New York.
Conflict is a way to bring the story forward, and you can layer details of the world-building throughout the story. You don’t want to data-dump everything at the beginning or in the prologue.
It’s good to have a general overview of the full world, but then hone in on the details that are important to your novel. Rich, real details are often based originally from the broad picture you’re working with.
You’ll want to avoid excessive research (a trap that I have personally fallen into on several occasions!) This can hinder you from actually writing and completing the story. In some cases, this points to a deeper issue of procrastination or even a subconscious fear of failing. In order to avoid this pitfall, you can use place-holders in the meantime if you’re unsure of what names to use for people or locations. Example in the script: “I went to ask my friend, [name] to see if she could drive me to [place.] There, we were bewildered to find a [creature]!” You can always go back and provide the fillers for the place-holders, after you have decided on the names of choice. This tactic can help tremendously with time management!
Make a writing goal every day (or perhaps a set amount of days per week: 4-5). Of course, the goal should be attainable – some recommend 1,000 to 2,500 words per day. If you’re not meeting this goal and instead researching all the time, then you’re doing too much world-building! You don’t need every detail before you start writing – you can always go back and layer in the details later.
WorldAnvil is a world-building platform that many writers and gamers use for constructing stories and campaigns. This software allows you to draw your own maps, organize files, etc.
You can also use spread-sheets and GoogleDocs, Scribner, etc.
When it comes to world-building, what are your thoughts? I’d love to hear from you in the Comments Section below! Is world-building or developing the story itself more challenging? What worlds from other authors have you found yourself immersed in? Do you think Non-Fiction settings can be just as captivating as Fantasy settings?
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