Writing How do you write worlds?

[SourDaiDai]

Do you flesh out the world, then placed a character in it and see their journey through said world?
Or do you have a Plot in mind and build the world around the Plot?
Perhaps you simply uses a popular world type and build off there?

( Tell me! )>ヾ(≧∀≦☆)

 

[Blackout]

for me, i would build the world slowly by making my mc to go on a journey or quest or something, rather than writing a prologue to introduce the readers to the world.

 

[BenJepheneT]

Here's a quick rule of thumb to put you on track: you must decide whether you're writing the story to introduce the world, or writing a world that provides to the story. Is your fantasy story a Lord of the Rings, or a Berserk? Is the theme of your story centered around the world, or is it the other way around? It's better for your fantasy world to have a point in its creation, like the theme of destiny and breaking thereof in Berserk, or the classic fate in Tolkien's lore. Otherwise, it'll just be a pointless world with padded things that won't matter anyway besides the plot.

Sometimes, having a default template of a fantasy world is enough. If you keep adding more lore without any meaningful storytelling it'll just feel bloated and overimportant, making the story itself feel underdeveloped and poor.

You shouldn't put too much focus in creating the world your characters inhibit. A little bit of lore can be fun but it's mostly better to just treat it like a detailed background to further indulge your readers in. Unless your fantasy world IS the protagonist your story, then by all means, go for it.

 

[gaylolis]

i just base it on the usual stories, but sometimes i just add my own twist, like when the character travel into a really weird and surreal area.

i don't really put much emphasis on world building, so i just go with whatever is fun.

 

[DDTStudios]

When I write worlds, I slowly incorporate parts of it as the plot progresses so the readers don’t get overwhelmed by an onslaught of information in the beginning.

 

[AliceShiki]

I make the world as I make the story, I don't give any real thought to the world until I actually feel like I need some lore to be set.

 

[JayDirex]

And therein lies the problem with world building. the world you build is a separate character that must remain consistent through out the story. But if you set your story on GOOD OLD MOTHER EARTH, then you won't have to explain what a BUS is or a lawnmower, or how your characters heat water.
meh~ (just teasing you, and yeah, i've written plenty of off world my best one is up here : Its on hiatus tho because I wrote myself into a corner, but you know~

 

[Yorth]

I have quite a lot of notes for worldbuilding, but honestly, most of the stuff I write come to me on the spot. I just try to have enough of a base already written out so that things stay consistent.

 

[Assurbanipal_II]

I copypaste most of my stuff from history. No need to be creative if Earth provides you already with a rich culture and diversity.

 

[Mihou]

How I write worlds?

"W-O-R-L-D-S!", okay just kidding.

Well, I just write as the MCs slowly progress since focusing on how you actually build your world beforehand would leave you in an endless loop where ideas just keep popping on your mind with you not having a single chapter written yet.

 

[Yairy]

This is my process...

One of my projects with the largest world I've ever created circled around the characters within. You can make really fascinating worlds if you understand how your characters interact with them. That's how I do my world-building. I start out with the character and work my way outwards.
I also find it easier when I refer to different things if I remind the reader that x character is a part of it. Like (Name) is the leader of a group of assassins. So, any assassin with their insignia my readers will be reminded of (Name).

Another way I go about it is...

Say my character is a merchant who owns an establishment. From there I can branch out to see where he gets his product from, what type of social system he lives in, and how profitable his business is, so on so forth. Now I can add other characters he may know or meet that are a part of different pieces of this world. An alchemist from a neighboring nation who gives him insight on politics. Or maybe an adventurer who always tries to get stuff for free but is knowledgeable on the types of monsters. I also find it easier to explain the world through characters than having an overarching backlog of history that you'll have to eventually tell your readers about. Which leads to information dumps in a lot of cases.

All in all, I think world-building is very fun especially in fantasy. My best advice is to never restrict yourself when you first start. Keep your mind free of clutter and create a fantastic world, one that you love.

 

[Falconurgando]

I normally write characters and then build the world around them. An example of one is that I have a character who is desperately trying to save her species as they are slowly going extinct due to the constant warfare her kind has suffered from the human race. From that I crafted a series of major and minor kingdoms that are the aggressors, the history of the character's species and the kingdom/ god that she sought aid from to help the issue. From there the world built itself as the two kingdoms fought, dredging up histories and god stories about the world that was relevant.

TDLR the way I write is that my characters build my world.

 

[DubstheDuke]

Well, for my story my world started out being built off a general plot, that is- there was a monster realm and a human realm which are supposedly opposing forces, but from there I made a large map of the world, and have been using that as a guide as my characters explore around it.

 

[JayDirex]

Say my character is a merchant who owns an establishment. From there I can branch out to see where he gets his product from, what type of social system he lives in, and how profitable his business is, so on so forth.

Yairy uses "description in motion." As the character interacts with his/her environment the environment gets described a little at a time. Honestly this is the best technique in my opinion. kudos!

 

[Deleted member 2533]

I write a character first doing sh*t in a make-shift world then watch (write) them f*ck-up. I sometimes (always) just let them go their own way despite having written outline. You know, they just go on their own. They have their own story to tell and I would slowly realize I was becoming their slave writer.

 

[Alienix]

I build world first, then the law, then the magic system, culture, then creatures, and finally character. I have my world map in my mind. If I have time I will build a map of my world with a free fantasy map maker, Inkarnate (i finally remembered this site)

 

[K5Rakitan]

I write fanfiction, so the world is already built for me. Actually, I kinda blend that world with my personal reality, so it's more like AU.

 

[Goswick]

I mainly just have a vague plot in mind and build around that with my worlds. I use a lot of urban settings, which makes things a little easier, but even still - a lot of the details of the world are about as fleshed out as wherever I've gotten up to in my story.

 

[iamchangingthissoon]

I just build it based on interesting ideas I come across, then mash them together like a baby. The main reason why I don't post any stories

 

[weakwithwords]

Eh, what world? The characters are all floating in the void.


... I'm writing a book. I've got the page numbers done.