[Ajax12]

Before i start my novel i want my world to be laid out at my feet. I want it to be as perfect as possible. But the problem is ,i am getting nowhere.
I tried going at it in a random fashion ,planned and structured , but still at square 1.
So ill be direct.
How do you build a world?
I know my setting, medieval but no so medieval. I know what i want in it. But i feel overwhelmed whenever i start.
Help please...:o

[kater]

Two recent threads on worldbuilding :) :

http://www.sffworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=16845&highlight=Worldbuilding

http://www.sffworld.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17383&highlight=Worldbuilding

[ArdusKane]

http://www.web-writer.net/fantasy/30days.html

:)

[Bethelamon]

Personally I like to REALLY flesh out my world. Most people will tell you it's just not worth it. But as long as you know that most of the history of the world you create will NEVER SEE THE LIGHT OF DAY and will never be read by the readers, and you are still OK with doing it, then go for it! Its great fun!

Im making a really detailed world for my narrative to take place in. Currently Im writing a big timeline. I want every nation to have a history, and I want to understand how the world went from how it was to how it is now. It just feels better to be writing about events in a world which has a real history rather than a skin-deep one.

Of course, most of this stuff will never be used. But I don't care, its fun.

Here are some extracts from my timeline to give you an example of what I'm talking about...

485 - Calanior conquers northern Ferrimair; Ferrimians driven back to the River Anean. Nebriegna declared independant of Darenarc; Caldurn beseiged.

592 - State of Amagen pays tribute to Calanior; Comes under influence of Calanian Princes.

606 - People of eastern Vennimair cross the Barren Lands and enter ancient Hiranmair; Alliance of small kingdoms set up.

816 - A constitution is written up by the northern Ferrimian people. The southern Ferrimian army is sent to restore authority but is defeated after a brief but hard conflict.

849 - The Duke of Marindorf appoints a Garnesian refugee as his chief minister, despite Vennimian protests; Garnesian influence in East Vennimair grows.

1180 - A caravan travelling from Vienheim to Beradheim is completely destroyed by Gharadian bandits. Melthin son of Eredaith declares a hopeless war on the bandits.

1213 - Heradheim taken by Cimmuran. Sulgharad becomes a province of Cimmuran.

I have now finished this timeline, and I can tell you exactly how each nation in my world (at the time of my story) has come to be how it is.

It took a long time. But it was worth it!

So shall I tell you about the state of Dartec? It was originally part of Ferrimair, but in 491 was conquered by Calanior, and it was ruled by the League of Calanian Princes. However in the 8th century, after a brief civil war, it gained independence and the new state of Dartec was established, ruled by the House of Savalon. But by 892 the royal line had died out, and Dartec was declared a republic. In 1162 the northern territory of Ciranion fought for its indepence, and was eventually declared a seperate state. And thats how the nation of Dartec came to be how it is.

You get the point...

[dArkNESS rISiNG]

Be creative! Building a world is fun, just know that everything doesn't have to be perfect. Just use your worldbuilding to explain the why's in your story. :)

I have built the same world up for about three years now and it's come loooong ways since the begining. At first, I started researching creation myths and merged a few of them into my story. Then I let my imagination run from there. I created human races; elder, evolved and technological. I divided my story into eras, each drastically different from one another (swords only lasted for one age). You might not have to do what I'm doing because some of my characters are very old. Worldbuilding should create depth to your story, enhance it. If you feel it won't do that, then I advise you to focus on making some incredible characters! However, IMO, worldbuilding is always a plus. :)

[Dazzlinkat]

Ajax, start with the basics. The shape of the land including geological features and ecology, including the cultured species. Form some sort of basic world history. The Rise and Fall of Empires, dynasties and perhaps even races. Maybe there's a Pompeii and its destruction plays a key role in local religion. Decide if there is a world religion and each race (if you have more than one race) worships different gods of a world pantheon. Or, is there one god? Or, does each race worship its own pantheaon? A mixture of these? Decide if there is magic, how prevelant is its use and how it works. There is ALWAYS technology. Be it Stone Age, Iron Age, Industrial, etc. How does whatever level of technology coexist with your magic?

After all that, then you can focus to a point on your world map (if you made one) where your novel is going to take place. Pick a time along your world history timeline for your story to take place in. This is where you need to make a decision. Do you want to work out a very detailed history, lineages, etc or, do you want to make it up as you need to in your story, making a detailed history as you go. Either way works, depending on what feels right to you.

[Ajax12]

Wow...really really helpful..will have to go thorugh it all one more time...thanks a lot...will start and let you know how it works out
cheers!

[World Builder]

As you could probably guess, I'm a big proponent of World Building. I don't think there's any 'right' way to build a world, but Dazzlinkat certainly offered some good suggestions for laying down the basics. As for myself, I've gone about it a couple different ways.

For my main sequence fantasy stories, I started with a rough idea of the plot: Long ago Nation 1 invades Nation 2 and sends the native people into exile, Nation 1 then conquers the rest of the known world, and now Nation 2 has had time to regroup and attempt to reconquer. I worked out the races (all of which have changed drastically since their original conception), and drew a rough map (which also changed radically over time). I knew I wanted magic, so I worked out a magic system that would be flexible enough to allow diversity. Originally, I didn't want gods or spirits to have any tangible existence, but with the way the universal magic system worked, gods became a necessary invention. I wrote a rough timeline, much like Bethelamon, then scrapped it and wrote another once I realized how much things had changed since I started this project. All the initial work I did was just setting up a crude scaffolding for a much richer and more original story that I had first envisioned. So despite all your hard work, don't be afraid to trash it when something better comes to mind.

For another story, I had a bunch of bits, discarded from other stories. A map going to waste, a world populated by humans only living alongside animals modern and prehistoric, a more monotheistic approached to the divine, and a mistaken messiah as trying to figure out his place in the world. I stumbled across an ancient writer from the Roman Empire, and with a little inspiration from him, the various elements congealed into a strange mythological space-fantasy. Again, the magic system was the last thing I really worked out. Unlike my main sequence stories, I didn't want magic to be an immanent force in the world, so while it hypothetically exists, its extremely rare on 'Earth'.

As yet another example, a story I'm working on with some friends began with the question "Do we want this setting to have magic?" We soon decided on an answer, hammered out the backstory for the setting (which is usually something I do very late in the world-building process. I like to deal with the Present first), and were off and running.

WB

[Lady Envy]

IMHO worldbuilding is important to me because any fictional realm needs substance to make it seem believable to the reader

However, i really don't enjoy reading a series where all the worldbuilding stuff is pretty much revealed by the end of the first book. Too much description at once is boring for me and tends to gets in the way of the story.......I believe that the plot should come first.

[Bethelamon]

However, i really don't enjoy reading a series where all the worldbuilding stuff is pretty much revealed by the end of the first book. Too much description at once is boring for me and tends to gets in the way of the story.......I believe that the plot should come first.

Yes, not just because too much description is boring, but you also want lots of mystery. You want the reader to hear rumours and catch glimpses of something and think "Wow that sounds really interesting" and want to know more.... Say they might hear about this far-off country and every now and again, with a real sense of mystery to it... Then if they see it on the map it loses the mystery.

So you want to keep a certain ammount of information unknown to the reader, to add mystery.