I just finished reading and reviewing two books by Tobias S. Buckell, Crystal Rain and Ragamuffin. These are incredibly well-written books, and one of the things that impressed me the most about them is the very vivid, unusual, and natural-feeling world they take place in. Creating a whole new fictional world is tough, particularly a futuristic one with all sorts of funky technology; making it feel wholly real and natural takes talent and skill. Today, practice moving from concept to fictional reality by doing the following:

First, write down five adjectives or abstract concepts that describe your universe, or major parts of it. This can range from something as simple and vague as “frightening” to something like “humans are always on the run and scared.”

Now, for each of those abstract notions, write out five very specific examples of things in your universe that convey and prove that concept. Concepts are things that will help you to organize your thoughts when building a universe; specifics turn the universe into a coherent fictional reality.

I seem to be on a roll with the world-building exercises, so I see no reason to stop now! Perhaps I’m feeling inspired by the various world-building articles I’ve read recently, even though they were both aimed at roleplayers: Case Study in Stealing from History (by my husband) and An Interesting Nexus (by our business partner).

One thing that I think gets left out of many fictional societies is the presence of societal obsessions. Let’s face it—we’ve got ‘em in spades. Ask what the modern society of the USA is obsessed with and you’ll get some pretty quick answers from almost anyone: weight (or physical attractiveness); celebrity; wealth. A society might be obsessed with honor, aging, respect, a particular religion, social class, its ruling body, hard work, societal advancement, noble titles, a guild system connected with artisan crafting, particular artisan crafts, physical well-being or fitness, self-defense, etc.

Look at the movie “300″ for a good example—the society depicted was obsessed with martial prowess, to the point that calling someone a politician was a sneer, displaying any kind of weakness was practically forbidden, and physical deformity was reason enough to kill babies. This obsession shaped their entire society. Note that this was not a baseless obsession, either. These men were descended from slaves, accustomed to having to be tougher than everyone around them in order to survive and deeply proud of their ability to keep themselves and their families free. There were strong historical reasons for how their society took shape in the manner it did.

When next you work on a fictional society, ask yourself what its obsessions are. How deep do those obsessions run, and how do they shape the lives of ordinary members of that society? What historical developments created these obsessions, and where do you see them potentially going?

My recent review of The Vermont Cheese Book got me thinking about world-building, oddly enough. My husband, who recently wrote Case Study in Stealing from History, an article on campaign world-building for roleplaying games (but that applies quite well to writing fiction, too) has in fact created a game world that I find fascinating and very immersive. One of the things that stands out is that the major city I’m familiar with in it has a distinctive trade, commerce and production profile.

Let’s go back to that book review for a moment. It’s a celebration of all the artisan and farmstead cheese-makers that have taken up residence in Vermont and who make its cheeses unique and special. Some of them use sheep’s milk, goat’s milk, or any of a variety of types of cow’s milk. Some raise their own herds while others buy from neighboring farmers. Some make blue cheese while others make washed-rind cheese, soft cheese, semi-soft, or perhaps a good sharp cheddar. They all have a couple of things in common, however. They all share a passion for what they do, and they all strive to make and market the very best product they can.

Let’s look at another book I reviewed recently—The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Coffee and Tea. This book included a great deal of detail about the various locations in which people are dedicated to growing and producing the best coffees and teas, and how they go about creating the specialty drinks that we come to know and love.

Now back to that game world of my husband’s that I mentioned. One thing a particular major city, Pagament, is known for is its unusual glass-blowing techniques. The glass-blowers’ guild produces a special type of glass that no one else has been able to duplicate. Because of this they wield a fair amount of economic influence, and it also makes them a tempting target for anyone trying to attack the major trade and port city’s economic standing. The guild’s trade secrets are closely guarded, which also sets the stage for intrigue. Even if you never directly make use of these possibilities, just having such a backdrop makes your world seem far more “real” and immersive, whether we’re talking about a roleplaying game campaign world or a writer’s world of fiction.

So today, spend a little time thinking about the artisans in your game world. What do they produce? What are their specialties? How do they take pride in their work? What secrets do they guard, and how? What role do they play in their local economies? How do they differ by locale, and why? What makes one region better for, say, cheese-makers, while another appeals to coffee-growers?

Needs More Coffee

When creating and building a fictional world, two things you’ll need to think about are law enforcement and military. I bring these up together because in some forms of governance—military dictatorship, for example—these can amount to the same or related things. There are quite a few items you might consider when detailing the law enforcement and military on your world. For example:

What is the general public perception of these institutions? While there’ll be no one-size-fits-all attitude, there’s likely to be one or two prevailing sentiments among the populace. Are these people seen as honorable, honest, hard-working, respected? Are they seen as corrupt, dishonest, dangerous? Are they viewed with fear, indifference, or love?

What is the route to service in these institutions? Is there a period of compulsory military service for all able-bodied citizens? Do these organizations have difficulty recruiting enough people or do they get to pick the cream of the crop from an eager (or obligated) populace?

What is the general public perception toward service in these institutions? Is it seen as an honor? A route to greater things, such as political achievement? Or is it viewed with disdain, or simple expedience?

How much action do the members of these institutions see? Do members of law enforcement risk their lives every day, or do they have a relatively calm job? Does the military go to war often, or is it used largely for defense?

Come up with a tag-line, catchphrase, or slogan for your institutions.

The military and law enforcement of a society are integral to its structure, society, and operation. Whether they’re front-and-center or operating just beneath the surface, they impact everything. In order to truly explore your world you must explore its soldiers.

It’s been a while since I posted any world-building questions, so it’s time for a handful. This time we’re going to look at your fictional world through the eyes of the animal kingdom.

What is the rarest animal of your world? Why is it so rare? Do people realize how rare it is? If so, do they try to preserve it, or hunt it for some purpose?

Which animal would you consider the “king” or “queen” of your world’s animal population, or of some particular subset of it? Why? How does it interact with the other animals around it?

Which animals in your world seem insignificant, yet have a disproportionate effect on the ecosystem, agriculture, the larger animal population, or other issue?

Which animals multiply in such abundance that they’re considered pests? How do people deal with them? What effects do they have on the environment, the ecosystem, agriculture, etc.?

What is the largest animal in your world? The smallest?

Which animal of your world lives in the most complex social structure? How do people perceive this social structure?

What is the most intelligent animal of your world? How does it compare to the main intelligent creature(s) of your world?

“I’m almost as stubborn as my cat”
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