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Good day/evening/afternoon/morning to all you nice and, hopefully, friendly looking forum goers. I've recently decided to sit down and start a fresh, new novel idea of mine and was wondering if anyone had any helpful tips for world creation based on their own writing or reading experience?

I'm not exactly having difficulties per say, but I was hoping to find out what sort of thinks should be carefully established and what sort of things should be avoided.

Thanks in advance!

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I guess a lot of it depends on the type of story you want to write. If you just want to write a stereotypical fantasy world, then it helps to have an understanding of Medieval history, Culture and Folklore. Other cultures can be used to add variety but usually Medieval England or Japan is all people ever do. If you want to make something more exotic, then I'd recommend studying the histories of Mesopotamia, Africa, Mesoamerica. Not many people use them so it can help your work stand out a bit more.

If you're trying to make a Science Fiction planet, then I usually like to read up about world's we've got floating around in the Solar System. Studying prehistorical Earth is also a good idea, as well as understanding how specific biomes work and function.

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As Falcon said, it depends. You can start with where the people came from, their religions, government, trade relations, education systems, threats to their security or livelihoods, job opportunities, food and other resources, etc. Possibly the most important question is who wields what powers in the society, and how that affects everyone else. If you're going into depth about the world itself, then obviously you've got various hazzards and important species and their interactions with other species... how any unusual aspects to the world have affected the people's lifestyles, or if they are not originally from this world, how they've had to adapt to the new one.
Note that "unimportant" details can make a fictional world feel real in a way that generalized statements do not. The trick is choosing only the details that are most interesting or relevant to what is going on in the scene, or waiting to include them in moments where they become relevant.
We could probably be of more help if you give us a general idea of what you're thinking.

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There are a lot of in-depth guides written on this.

Like the above posters have said, it depends on where you want to go and what you want to do. I personally have found that the story should come first and then the world can be built to accommodate the needs of the story. For example, if you find that your story needs a character who comes from a distant, exotic culture, you know that your world has a distant, exotic culture somewhere, and you can invent its details based on what kind of character you want to have.

There is no single correct way, though. A lot of fantasy enthusiasts start by drawing a map. I've done that a lot and its fun! But (like has been said by posters above) it is important to have some knowledge of the sort of culture and geography you're describing. You can't just start from scratch, you need to study the real world and draw from your existing knowledge to create a believable world. If you want high fantasy that's fine, but it should still be rooted in reality. If you want to write medieval fantasy, you should know something about Medieval Europe. If you want to write space opera, you should know something about astronomy.

Here's one way to go building a world:

1. decide what kind of cultures / nations you want to have
2. draw a map of those nations
3. invent appropriate names for their cities, settlements and areas
4. figure out what the relationships of those nations are (enemies, allies, former colonies)
5. invent history of those nations
6. invent kings, rulers, clerics, other important people and organizations

Order of the Stick's Rich Burlew has written a pretty good (though unfinished) report on creating a world from scratch. It's for roleplaying purposes but the process is basically the same. Read here: The World parts 1-9

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What kind of terrain would your fantasy world have? And what would this mean for the inhabitants?
For example, a very cold kingdom might be heavily dependent on magical methods of crop growing and harvesting, so education could be an important part of that culture. It would also shape the attitudes and mentalities of the inhabitants. In sub-zero weather, in harsh environments, every citizen would have to be good at survival, men and women and children alike. They would eat more meat than crops, and their survive-or-die attitude may make them a more serious culture with less art and entertainment. Also think of the architecture, with squat, low houses built to the ground, and how they might build cities on hot springs for warmth.

Very different from a desert or arid environment, for example, where civilisation would flock to rivers and water would be a commodity too precious to leave out in the sun in recreational ponds or pretty fountains. Crops would grow freely, given proper irrigation, and there would probably be less of a mandatory need for magics or other fantasy arts, so they would be taught those who wanted to learn, rather than being a necessary part of life even for basic farmers.

Also think of the trade between fantasy lands. Is a country rich or poor? How is the wealth distributed? A land covered in forests is more likely to be known for high quality carvings and woodwork than a tundra land which trades on fur pelts. A land with a lot of rivers and coastlines is likely to have a powerful navy, unlike a landlocked state.

Such terrain could also dictate cultural practices like how they dispose of their dead. In cold weather, a body would freeze, making funeral pyres a necessity. Similarly, in a desert, a corpse would just dessicate, so they might use sky burials as opposed to just burying them like in temperate climates.

All of this, as well as systems of government and whatnot that have already been mentioned, are important in world-building.

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I found that when I did my worldbuilding, it was near impossible to make any coherent progress until I had my plot in place. Then I had characters to think about - where was this person born, what's it like there, why? How did growing up in that place shape them as a person? What are the other people like there? What would they have eaten? Did they go to school? What was school like?

That way I killed two birds with one stone - I built the landscape around the characters, while letting the environment shape them.

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It really depends on what kind of story you're writing. A fantasy story, and a sci-fi story will have different things to consider and think about.

For starters... What is the technology level in the world? What type of terrain and climate is the setting in? That's going to affect how the people live, and what kinds of tools they're going to develop, and it's going to affect their culture. The same goes for the flora and fauna in the area. Is it a hunter-gatherer society, or do they grow crops and raise animals? If so, what kinds of crops do they grow, what kinds of animals do they raise and why? Do they have any animals domesticated for non-food purposes? What methods of travel have they developed? A society with teleportation spells, or even just horses or dragons, will be able to travel and expand moreso than one without those things.

If magic exists in your world, that can affect things a LOT depending on how widespread magic usage is. First of all, is magic something innate (like being able to shoot fire from your hands) or does it require physical objects to use, like wands? Can everyone use magic or is it limited to just certain people? What can magic do, and what can't it do? How do people utilize magic and how does it affect their lives and culture and technology? For example, if people can easily use magic to make crops grow instantly, that's going to save them a LOT of time, and they're going to need to invest that time into something else. Maybe developing different forms of entertainment, new developments in technology or weaponry or architecture, or putting more emphasis on education. The kids aren't working on the farm, they gotta be doing something productive.

To add on to the magic thing, magic will affect the way people live, and the way people live will likely affect the types of magic they may decide to use. People at a seaside desert would find a spell that desalinates saltwater to be very useful. If a place is full of dangerous wildlife, any spell that could kill or calm down an animal would probably be used. (in a story of mine I have one continent like this, and the locals use magic to tame local animals)

Do the people in this setting have contact with people in other areas? How do they get along? Do they fight, or trade? Different aspects of your stories could affect both things. For example, if you have a country where dragons are domesticated and the military uses them for combat, the opposing country is going to try and develop technologies (and magic, if it exists in the world) that would help them defend and fight against dragons. A big, strong stone wall like many real-like societies have/had wouldn't protect the castle from massive flying reptiles. And, trade. What does the country have to offer that other countries would want? A place with many mountains would be able to offer stone and perhaps gems. A place full of strange and diverse wildlife could offer pelts and animal skins, as well as meats, or even live animals. (in some societies, exotic pets were/are a status symbol)

Most stories are about human characters, but just in case, if you're writing about non-human characters there would be things to consider. How is this alternate race different from humans, and how does that affect the way they live? Do they have different diets?

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I used to have an Advanced Dungeons and Dragons supplement that had a pretty good guide on building a world.

My stories tend to be more focused in their scope or set in the "real" world so I don't need to consult it much.

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The ReTARDISed Whovian
I found that when I did my worldbuilding, it was near impossible to make any coherent progress until I had my plot in place. Then I had characters to think about - where was this person born, what's it like there, why? How did growing up in that place shape them as a person? What are the other people like there? What would they have eaten? Did they go to school? What was school like?

That way I killed two birds with one stone - I built the landscape around the characters, while letting the environment shape them.


True. It's often best to think about both the world and the story/plot at the same time, as they influence each other. It's hard to build a world without a plot because you don't really know what details you need, and it's hard to build the plot without the world because you don't really know what rules you're playing by. Characters, as for them, they need to be products of their settings. One of my major pet peeves is when a story has a character who acts like a modern-day Westerner even though they came from a completely different culture and environment. (this seems to be most common with teen characters)

While on that subject, that's important to think about. How does the setting affect the way the people turn out? It's going to affect their personalities, as well as the different types of skills they have. A character from a large, wealthy city is going to be a lot different than one from a primitive, low-tech village in an isolated forest. The first one would likely be more educated and would be more likely to know about math and literature and arts. He'd probably have a little more free time, since he wouldn't have to spend time making all the things he needs on his own. The second one would probably be more skilled in hunting, fishing and farming, as well as having the skills needed to make and fix his own tools, shelter, clothing, and other things. They're probably going to have different values, the one from the small village might have a greater sense of community, while the one from the city would probably place lots of importance and status on education. If you switched the two characters, changing nothing except the places they're born and raised, suddenly you stop making sense. It makes zero sense for the character from the village to act just like the character from the city, or vice versa.

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The ReTARDISed Whovian
I found that when I did my worldbuilding, it was near impossible to make any coherent progress until I had my plot in place. Then I had characters to think about - where was this person born, what's it like there, why? How did growing up in that place shape them as a person? What are the other people like there? What would they have eaten? Did they go to school? What was school like?

That way I killed two birds with one stone - I built the landscape around the characters, while letting the environment shape them.


That's exactly what I've had to do. You have to start with SOMETHING, and for me characters take priority.

I think that's something that's going to vary from person to person, though. Maybe you come up with a single interesting concept that makes your world unique, and want to build your plot and characters around that. That's valid too.

I do think you have to be careful you don't get so lost building your world that you forget to make a story for it, though.

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That's exactly what I've had to do. You have to start with SOMETHING, and for me characters take priority.

I think that's something that's going to vary from person to person, though. Maybe you come up with a single interesting concept that makes your world unique, and want to build your plot and characters around that. That's valid too.

I do think you have to be careful you don't get so lost building your world that you forget to make a story for it, though.


Personally I find that world-building does sometimes help me come up with plot ideas. If I'm bored, I create settings for fun. Sometimes I get to thinking about the implications of different aspects of the setting, and what kinds of unique situations might arise in that setting. Sometimes I end up creating different stories that take place in the same setting because of this.

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There should always be a lot of locations planned and thought out. If they are never used, then so be it.

Also, figure out what kind of government they have. A Monarchy? A Democracy? A Oligarchy? A Dictatorship?

And do some reserch. If you don't you might end up writing something that you're really proud of, and then someone corrects you. Trust me, nothing, at least, not to me, feels worse than that.

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One of my major pet peeves is when a story has a character who acts like a modern-day Westerner even though they came from a completely different culture and environment. (this seems to be most common with teen characters)

While on that subject, that's important to think about. How does the setting affect the way the people turn out? It's going to affect their personalities, as well as the different types of skills they have. A character from a large, wealthy city is going to be a lot different than one from a primitive, low-tech village in an isolated forest. The first one would likely be more educated and would be more likely to know about math and literature and arts. He'd probably have a little more free time, since he wouldn't have to spend time making all the things he needs on his own. The second one would probably be more skilled in hunting, fishing and farming, as well as having the skills needed to make and fix his own tools, shelter, clothing, and other things. They're probably going to have different values, the one from the small village might have a greater sense of community, while the one from the city would probably place lots of importance and status on education. If you switched the two characters, changing nothing except the places they're born and raised, suddenly you stop making sense. It makes zero sense for the character from the village to act just like the character from the city, or vice versa.


That's my biggest pet peeve, too. I'm trying to avoid it as much as I can while still keeping my characters relatable.

Though that said, I have a hard time keeping modern slang out of it. sweatdrop It's second nature to me as a 19 year old surrounded by friends my age. I often have to stop my 15 year old, 16th century protagonist from spouting stuff like "That's epic, dude." I bet when I edit, I'm going to have to rip my dialogue to shreds. There are probably a lot of modern colloquialisms that I've written down mindlessly.

Oh, and thank you for the tip. smile

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Lazarus Larkin
The ReTARDISed Whovian
I found that when I did my worldbuilding, it was near impossible to make any coherent progress until I had my plot in place. Then I had characters to think about - where was this person born, what's it like there, why? How did growing up in that place shape them as a person? What are the other people like there? What would they have eaten? Did they go to school? What was school like?

That way I killed two birds with one stone - I built the landscape around the characters, while letting the environment shape them.


That's exactly what I've had to do. You have to start with SOMETHING, and for me characters take priority.

I think that's something that's going to vary from person to person, though. Maybe you come up with a single interesting concept that makes your world unique, and want to build your plot and characters around that. That's valid too.

I do think you have to be careful you don't get so lost building your world that you forget to make a story for it, though.


Thanks for the tip. smile

One of my friends likes to worldbuild, but does that before she has her characters. I find it easier the other way round.

I wouldn't call my characters my babies, because it'd make me a pretty poor parent, since a lot of them die horribly. But they're my priority, too, above all else. I find that plot comes easier when I know the people who have to play parts in it, figure out what kind of personalities they have, where they stand in the world, and the most painful way to destroy them.

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The ReTARDISed Whovian


That's my biggest pet peeve, too. I'm trying to avoid it as much as I can while still keeping my characters relatable.

Though that said, I have a hard time keeping modern slang out of it. sweatdrop It's second nature to me as a 19 year old surrounded by friends my age. I often have to stop my 15 year old, 16th century protagonist from spouting stuff like "That's epic, dude." I bet when I edit, I'm going to have to rip my dialogue to shreds. There are probably a lot of modern colloquialisms that I've written down mindlessly.

Oh, and thank you for the tip. smile


Personally I tend to be most bothered by characters who have the same values and priorities of someone today despite growing up in a totally different environment. Like a teenage girl character who obsesses over boys despite being in a world where she has to struggle to survive.
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