Worldbuilding

Worldbuilding is one of the most important aspects of a fantasy novel, marking it as something utterly different from other genres.  Even in a fantasy sub-genre, such as urban fantasy, where the book is set in the modern world, you will still need to do a lot of worldbuilding, for instance in creating a culture for a paranormal species that you feature.  One book could also have several different cultures for a few different intelligent species.

If you’re not sure where to start, think about fantasy worlds you’ve loved and try to work out what made them feel so memorable.  Remember how vividly the Shire is written in “The Lord of the Rings” in terms of showing the culture of the hobbits and the things they value.  Frodo stands out because he isn’t like the other hobbits who are content with a quiet, simple life.  He wants to have an adventure and see other species.

Think about Narnia and Hogwarts and other worlds that feel as real as the one around you.  To make them come to life so well, the authors had to know thousands of details about them.  You can make life a bit easier on yourself if you focus most of your attention on the subjects that will be important in your novel(s).  You will need certain information for a novel set on a homestead and a completely different set of notes for a pirate novel or one set in a palace.

There will be other articles covering such subjects as creating a magic system and creating fantasy creatures, monsters and intelligent races.

Fill in the details below, taking time to come up with certain aspects that are unique so as to give your novel(s) a distinctive world. You may also find it useful to draw a rough map of the area covered in your novel, including important landmarks as well as places and landscapes.

Part 1 – Culture (refer to Section 3 of “Writing Fantasy” for ideas for this part)

1. Where is the novel set? A country?  A kingdom?  A town?  A homestead?
2. What historical events have helped shape the current world?
3. How is time measured?
4. Are the people humanoid? Are there different species, such as elves or ogres?
5. Approximately what size is the population?
6. What kind of language do various types of people use? Are their courtesy titles?  Can everyone read?
7. How is the culture structured? Is there a matriarchy, patriarchy or is everyone equal?  Are there social classes or ranks?  If there is more than one intelligent race, how do the cultures differ?
8. How many genders are there and what are the general attitudes towards sexuality?
9. What type of government does it have? How efficient is it?  Is it benevolent or cruel?  Fair or unfair?
10. Is there a religion(s)? Do beings from the celestial world or underworld appear in your novel?  How does the religion affect people’s behaviour?
11. Who protects civilians? Soldiers?  Law enforcers?  What are they like?  How do they behave?  Do they protect everyone or only the wealthy?  What weapons do they use?
12. What are the laws? If people break them, what are the punishments?
13. Does anyone possess magic? How does it work, what can it do and what are its limits?
14. How do people treat each other and who do they show courtesy or rudeness to? How is this behaviour expressed (for instance, courtesy titles or bowing to higher ranks)?
15. What is the definition of a family unit, if it exists at all? How do the people within it treat each other?  How do people choose partners or is this arranged for them?
16. What education system(s) is there and does it vary according to social status?
17. What do different people wear (this might vary according to rank, gender or occupation)?
18. What jobs do your characters have? How much of their time do they take up?
19. Is money or some other currency used or do people barter for what they want? Are there banks?  If there are taxes, what do they pay for?
20. What type of illnesses are there and who treats them?
21. What do people eat? Is food plentiful or difficult to obtain/grow?  Do people hunt or are they vegetarians/herbivores?  Do a lot of people have farms or is there such an abundance of natural food that little effort is spent getting it?
22. What creature(s) or vehicles do people use to travel about and how often do they do so?

Part 2 – The Planet or Place (refer to Section 4 of “Writing Fantasy” for ideas)

1. How close is the sun to the planet, bearing in mind that this will affect temperature and light? Is there more than one sun?
2. How close is the moon(s), bearing in mind that it will affect tides? What does it look like and does it have any unusual features such as rings?
3. How strong is the planet’s gravity?
4. What is the climate like? Is it measured in seasons? 
5. What is the landscape like? Does it have any magical properties?  How is it different from ours?
6. What types of creatures are there and how are they treated?
7. What types of natural resources are there?
8. What do the buildings look like and what are they made from? Are they on the ground, under the sea or in the air?
9. If clothes are worn, what is used to make them?
10. What food grows naturally?

I hope this article helps you to create an amazing world and culture for your novel.  Do let me know in the comments section if it gave you good ideas or if you want to mention an aspect of worldbuilding I haven’t talked about.

This is the first of a set of articles based on the free templates from my book, “Writing Fantasy (The Ultimate Guide and Complete Reference Book)” (US link).  Each aspect of worldbuilding mentioned in the questions is looked at it in a lot more depth there.  You can get the link to download the entire set of templates from “Writing Fantasy” in the Book Samples section.