Way With Worlds

Way With Worlds: Origins. In The Beginning – Once Again

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Origin Flare

[Way With Worlds appears at Seventh Sanctum at at MuseHack]

For the next few columns I’ll be looking at specific things that you need to do and define when building your setting. This should not be taken as the only things that you have to do, but instead a list of basics, with advice and ideas on how you can develop them best. I’m sure you’ll have your own ways to do things, that I may miss things, or that your writing may have some unique needs.

But it’s a place to start.  In fact, on the subject of “starting,”  the first thing we’re going to look at is literally the First Thing: The Origin of your setting.

Where It All Begins

Worldbuilding starts with the beginning – sort of. We may not always spend time on the beginning when we start, we may be following a rush of creativity as inspirations form, but in the end good world building always comes back to the question “where did it all come from?” Everything has some cause, and just as people have asked “where did I come from” and sought meaning in their lives, your world has to be able to answer that question to have meaning as well.

The answer may not be particularly deep, but the answer is important.

Your setting may be created by gods, and have a complex pantheon. Your setting may be in our universe and thus be familiar as the daily news. Your setting may be “our world plus something odd,” playing on the sense of the familiar and the unfamiliar with new rules. But either way we readers have to know “why” – and you do too many times over.  You need to know the origins of all of this.

So, yes, you want to know how it all started. Why do I harp on this? Well, I’m glad you asked . . .

Why Know Origins?

Here’s why you need to focus on your origins, in no particular order.

Know Your Research Materials: Working on your world may mean some research, especially if it’s based on science, historical knowledge, classical mythology, and so forth. Knowing your setting’s origin, be it Big Bang or Ymir’s death, or whatever, means you know what you have to do for research in order to flesh it out. In cases where you’re going for “whole cloth” then you know possible useful references – or know it’s time to create from scratch.

Know Your Big Issues: When you know the origin of your world, then you know any “big issues” – or lack of the same – and then can ensure they influence your world building properly. Maybe your setting is the result of a battle of two great alien forces . . . or is just everyday Chicago with our normal human concerns. Either way you know what Big Issues are appropriate to your world – and what are not. Of course your reader or player doesn’t always know these issues, but that’s part of the fun . . .

Know What To Go Back To: Thinking over your world’s origin also gives you something to “go back to” when you loose inspiration, aren’t sure of what’s going on, or when you need to fill in some blanks in the world.  By thinking about it and recording it, you’ve got a valuable resource both in documentation and in getting ideas.

Know What’s Important: When you understand how your world came to be, you also have an idea of how much the reader needs to know to understand it – if of course your goal is for them to understand it (otherwise you know what to distract them from). Just remember as mentioned that writing characters as “viewpoints” is a great way to have people experience your wide world, so I’d only “spill the beans” in some kind of guidebook or notes.

Get A Sense of “What’s Up:” Perhaps the most visceral reason to contemplate the origin of your world is that having that sense of “where it all comes from” gives you a general idea of what’s going on in your world. Knowing you know “enough” about how your setting, planet, what have you came into being and what it means provides comfort, inspires you, and lets you have that gut feeling of knowing what’s going on. It’s hard to explain it – but my guess is you’ve felt it. I know I have.

So you’re ready to go back to the beginning and ask how your world came to be, and flesh it out. But before you fire up your word processor, get out that pencil, or gather some notecards, the question also arises – how far do you go? How much is enough?

Let’s face it, you’ve only got so much time and you don’t want to waste it overdoing it, or underdog it and have to keep revising your work to patch gaping plot holes.

Origins: How Far To Go?

So how much of the origin of your setting do you need to devise in the first place? Some people can write volumes on their settings (and have).  Others . . . not so much.

It’s important to know this because you can over or underdo creating your world. Too much detail means you’re really writing a guidebook and aren’t actually writing your story. Too little and the story falls apart because there’s no foundation.  You could use some quick rules.

Fortunately, I have some.  Here they are.

First, I’d say the level of detail you want to put in your setting’s origins is “as much as you need plus a bit more.” Always go the extra mile in putting detail in your world building origin (in fact, I’d say this is a good rule on world building period). That little extra detail you put in makes sure you don’t stop yourself too early and thus avoid enough detail. That little extra also pushes you just a bit farther to keep you thinking. Finally, that “little bit farther” gives you something extra to be inspired by. Also, psychologically you may feel some comfort having it “just in case.”

Secondly, look for the “gut feel” that you’re comfortable with the level of detail. If you feel confident you really solidly know what’s going on, then you probably do have enough information. That’s where I find the “little bit extra” above helps – it’s the icing on the cake, and it helps you say “I got this right and then some.”

Third, what I call “traceback” is important to origins and beginnings. If you can look at major plots and themes and “trace them back” to your origins (or close enough to them) that you feel they make sense, that cause-and-effect is there, that’s usually a sign you’ve got your origins figured out.

Fourth, if you can look at major parts of your origin and easily conceive of other plots, stories, etc. you probably have enough. This could be as simple as a glance at the daily news or history in a real-world setting, or asking what happens when your pantheon of gods has an inevitable battle. Think of it as “traceback’s” parallel – can you go forward easily from you origins to new plots?

Fifth, as I’ve noted, if your origin can be explained to other people, then you know you’ve done well with it. That means it makes sense, it’s communicable (even if communicated from points of views in stories), and you’re likely to remember it – or understand it if you have to go back to your notes.

Origins are a tetchy business, and in my experience they’re usually over or under done. This may mean there really is no easily findable perfect balance, but that’s no reason not to try – and the results of trying will bring better work and a bit more sanity to your work. Well, if sanity is part of what you’re aiming for.

Closing

Origins give us foundations to our world, ideas, and assurances. They’re just a bit of a tricky business because of detail, when we start, and knowing how much to do. A good, well-done work getting the origins of our setting straight can mean better writing, and more peace of mind.

Plus if you ever publish that extensive guidebook of your game or story world, it’s just one more thing to show people . . .

Way With Worlds: Origins. In The Beginning – Once Again

by

Origin Flare

[Way With Worlds appears at Seventh Sanctum at at MuseHack]

For the next few columns I’ll be looking at specific things that you need to do and define when building your setting. This should not be taken as the only things that you have to do, but instead a list of basics, with advice and ideas on how you can develop them best. I’m sure you’ll have your own ways to do things, that I may miss things, or that your writing may have some unique needs.

But it’s a place to start.  In fact, on the subject of “starting,”  the first thing we’re going to look at is literally the First Thing: The Origin of your setting.

Read more

Way With Worlds: Why Worldbuild?

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Let's get building that world!

(Previously published at Seventh Sanctum)

Years ago at the end of the 20th century and the start of the 21st I began writing a column on worldbuilding and fiction – Way With Worlds. This was the age when people were suddenly able to get their works on the internet, via websites and journals and email. There was a slow simmer of amateur writers, should-be-pros, would-be-pros, fanficcers, and more. A column on worldbuilding seemed in order.

I’ve always had ambitions to write fiction, had worked on shared-universe newsletters, played RPGs, and more. Worlds were part of what I liked to do, and a good setting, a good living world/universe made things come alive. So I expressed my theories in hope of helping people, to use my knowledge gained over the years, and of course because I’m not overly good at shutting up.

The columns sat online for years when I decided not to continue them, and every now and then someone will read one or mention them to me. Over the years I do less fictional work directly, yet am still involved in worldbuilding when I help friends with games, edit books, and when I run the inspiration site Seventh Sanctum. Of course, I still have plenty of opinions.

Now even more people are writing, and making videos, and self-publishing. So I decided to revisit the columns and rewrite them, expand them, and use what I learned in over a decade.

And the first question is still as burningly relevant as ever? Why Worldbuild?

A Definition Of Worldbuilding

First of all, let’s define worldbuilding here for the sake of discussion and possibly argument. I consider worldbuilding to be the following:

  1. Creating a stable setting . . .
  2. . . . where stories take place in . . .
  3. . . . that is consistent . . .
  4. . . . and works by its rules.

In short, worldbuilding in a way creates something independent of a story (be that story in a comic, novel, game, etc.). It is the setting the story occurs in and has its own rules, principles, and so forth.  In turn the story abides by these rules and doesn’t violate them.

Now most worldbuilding is a continuity between “Its Own Rules” and Whatever “I Want At The Time” where continuities may be altered by whim, for marketing purpose, to update them, and so forth. Mostly when people talk worldbuilding they skew towards an inviolate “Its Own Rules” setting, but I think this rarely reaches 100%, such is the nature of imagination. However, the aspiration towards a consistent world is important because of the benefits . . .

The Benefits of Worldbuilding

So what are the benefits of world building. The ones I’ve found are . . .

A Relatable Setting: A well-designed world that has rules and locations and such that are stable is one people can identify with and enjoy (unless of course they’re not interested in your subject matter). There is the thrill of familiarity, the recognition that histories and principles and side comments are indeed valid, and a strong sense of place. A world that feels real is one that is enjoyed, explored, and remembered.

Preventing Errors: It is extremely easy to start running with an idea and then forget all sorts of details – and quickly make your writing unrelatable, contrived, or incomprehensible. By thinking about (and recording) your world’s information you write a better tale, avoid plot holes, and make a better story.

Find Inspiration: There’s something about a world design that, past a certain critical point, it seems to inspire you to do more. An obscure city mentioned in passing could be explored as part of a new chapter or an entire new tale. Answering unanswered questions can move your narrative forward or even surprise you with new story directions. Just looking over the world you’ve designed may let you free-associate new and inspiring ideas for your stories.

A Bulwark Against Bad Writing: When you know your world you’re less likely to engage in contrivance or doing half-baked stories – because the world itself drives you on, fills in the blanks, and explain what’s going on. When you know that world, the answers are in its constructions, and you avoid the temptation to just slam on a few plot elements.

Avoiding Favoritism: When you take an active hand in worldbuilding, the world’s continuity becomes a large part of your writing This is another bulwark against bad writing – you’ll be less likely to play favorites with a character (the infamous Mary Sue/Gary stu comes to mine), plotline, etc. because you’ll be thinking about the setting and its consistency, not your own biases (well, as much). If for some reason you decide to consciously include something that might break continuity (say not killing a characters as exploring their backstory would be fascinating) then working out how your chosen path works into the world inspires better writing because you have to work within the framework you created.

A Different Form Of Writing: Writing fiction, or a game setting, etc. is one thing. Writing a world up is quite another; and it can be great practice for a different form of writing – that which is more archival and documentarian. Worldbuilding and recording the information requires makes you think about what to write down, how, and so forth. It’s essentially “non fiction writing” about a fictional universe, and can be a useful skill.

An Additional Piece Of Work: I adore books on fictional settings, dictionaries of characters, maps of imaginary realms, and so forth. If the world you build becomes famous – or if you just want to release some work for free – release the documentation of your world. It may be fun, it may inspire others . . . and there’s the chance it may make you some money if your fictional works become popular.

A Contract With Readers: Worldbuilding is a kind of social contract between writer and reader. The writer, by working on a strong continuity, imbues their work with meaning because they are saying there is an element of reality here. The reader, in turn, can trust the author to make a consistent, involving tale because the setting has that element of being thought through. If you’ve ever seen people upset with a bad bit of writing, illogical plot twist, and so forth, you know how strongly people feel about this social contract.

Its Time To Build

As you can see there’s quite a few benefits to worldbuilding; I’m a big advocate of it. I find a well-build setting makes more satisfying work, inspires me, and increases the depth of enjoyment. I find writing and creating one inspires me, makes me works more believable, and provides many advantages.

Now with that being said, onward into the next column . . .

– Steven Savage