world creating

when you are creating a world, what do you do?

do you let your imagination run wild or what?

Usually, yes. It can also be inspired by another's work, or the land around you. I would suggest doing a fanfiction, just as practice. Works like Star Wars and D&D let you work with the material already invented.

i have already done a fanfiction, but thanks for the advice.

thanks, Rosey.

History is vital to world-creating. Wars. Racism. Trade. Imports/exports. Government. Map out the last hundred years before you do anything in the present. It's a lot more fun than it sounds.

Pretend you're making a documentary series about the world and write what you would include.

Alternatively, write an encyclopaedia for your world. Think about history, geography, culture, literature, language, customs, beliefs... etc. etc.

Maps help. Even if they really suck. At least you know where everything is and the basic land scape. Like the others have said, documentary type things help too.

thanks for all of your advice, guys.

Just imagine the world you want to write in and start writing, it'll all flow out eventually and you'll get so into it that you'll want to keep writing just to keep describing the world.

Of course then, in the second draft you'll have to go and cut out all of the cool but unnecessary stuff, but the revising is worth the pure flow that you get when writing.


I'd also really advise you not to get too caught up on it-- there are a lot of great writers who have spent years world building instead of writing about what their characters did in that world.

lyrical_sunshine wrote:History is vital to world-creating. Wars. Racism. Trade. Imports/exports. Government. Map out the last hundred years before you do anything in the present. It's a lot more fun than it sounds.

Exactly. I always scheme and plot out everything that's "ever" happened in my story's history that I would ever have to go back and mention; this includes giving full length biographies in a notebook for every single one of my MC's important ancestors. Maps are drawn, cities are named, species are thrown about. I spend so much time creating the world that by the time I'm ready to write, I have to take a break because I'm so sick of it