Worldbuilding is one of those things that aren't essential but can be very helpful if you are a fantasy writer or like me and you struggle to describe places from looking at photos on the internet because you have never been there.
When I created my world, I had no idea what I needed to know or how to even put it together; I looked at templates, blogs, youtube videos and I spent hours on something that was an utter failure; But it doesn't have to be that hard, in fact, it can be quite easy to make your own world if you have the right information and sadly just like everything everyone has their own ways and ideas on how to world build which can make it difficult.
When I was doing my research, I found so many apps to create your world on; I personally never tried any of them, but I have heard many good things about them.
In the end, I took to Pinterest to help, and I am glad I did. I found a pin that was liked to a website that came in handy. http://www.writerswrite.co.za/world-building-for-every-genre-the-ultimate-setting-list/ It had an amazing picture that was very helpful in getting a rough idea of what I needed to know.
Some of the things you will need to know about your world are:
- World name
- Weather conditions
- Era/ time
- Laws, crimes and punishments
- Events
- Mode of transport
- Important buildings and structures
- Accommodation
- Currency
- Wildlife/animals
- Family dynamics
- Careers and education
- Religion and magic
- Politics
- Social structure
- Economics
- Science and technology
- Setting/location
- Culture and society
Questions to ask yourself to make It a bit easier
- Where is the story located?
- Who are the inhabitants?
- What social differences exist between them?
- What historical events happened that shaped this world
- What type of technology does this world have
- What is the standard of living
- Does magic exist?
There is so much that goes into world building and so many different resources out that not only to help but also stating that you need to know different information. Worldbuilding isnt one size fits all, and you can have a world that's as complicated or as simple as you like, and you can always add onto it as you are writing and realize you need more information.
I have One world that covers any book I could ever dream of writing, and it's straightforward. I just added dimensions for the different supernatural species and portals to move from one world to the next.
I hope this was at least a little bit helps to get you started on your world.
Is there anything else that's a must-have in your world-building? Let me know down in the comments.
