Create a consistent world with One-Page Worksheet
Introduction
Good day, and welcome to the first installment of my blog study on worldbuilding. In fiction of all genres, this is quite the fascinating topic. In and of itself, worldbuilding is almost a buzz word in literature and fiction these days, so I thought I’d step into what it means to do a really good job in this area. Facets of this literary topic span as far as your imagination may reach, and over the next several months, I hope to delve into some of the finer aspects and attempt to answer the question: What is worldbuilding?
Beyond my worldbuilding 101 topics, I hope to bring in some author spotlights and provide some worth-while examples to reinforce areas of the study. My aim here is to learn and share information with others who might share similar interests. If you’re not a SF/F writer or reader, I encourage you to explore how this applies to your favored genre. Trust me, it exists in all, and I plan to explore those as well.
In this week’s Worldbuilding 101, I’m broaching the topic of making a world consistent, coherent, and logical.In Wonderbook, Jeff Vandermeer likens worldbuilding to the setting, and he maintain that the setting must display logic in a consistent and coherent manner (220).1 To that end, as a worldbuilder, you must ask yourself what it means to be logical. I’ve also explored some specific examples and done a bit of networking to gather tips from other authors on how to ensure you may maintain consistency throughout.
Definition of coherent and logical
From Meriam-Webster, the definition of coherency states that something must be aesthetically ordered, or it must have a quality of holding together.2
Logic, on the other hand, is an expansive topic that relates to analytic or deductive reasoning. In short, and in relation to fiction, I’d maintain that to ensure logic within your worldbuilding, the reader must be able to draw conclusions in an orderly manner. According to a study on logic and reasoning by Dowden, “Extraordinary statements require extraordinarily good evidence to back them up.”3
To take these definitions one step further within thefictional universe, I’d argue that the more complex one makes his or her world,the more time and thought the author must put into the building of the world.Take the example of J.R.R. Tolkien. The man developed a full history of his world with well-developed languages and full cultures. Commercial authors today will likely not have the time to build out such sociology but take just a moment to consider the expanse of Middle-earth. It’s wowing to say the least.
Networking with other authors
I took the time in one of my social groups to poll other authors about how they ensure consistency within their imaginary worlds. The answers came back with everything from using specific tools such as Scrivner to just make stuff up as you go and to keeping a database of maps, dictionaries, and character sheets. It was quite a fun discussion that I’d encourage you to check out on Facebook. Here’s the link to the conversation.
Questioning yourself and your world
One point that I’d contend you must do as a worldbuilder is to continually ask and answer questions about your world. Here are a few sample questions you might consider as well as a few links you might explore to help you on your journey:
- What does the setting look and feel like?
- What are the landscapes and climates?
- In one of my stories, I had someone bring up the fact that since I have four moons, how does that impact the tides?
- This sent me on a research spree, but it further developed my seasons, the lunar cycles, and the tides in my alternate world.
- Who are your world’s people?
- Beyondwhat they look like…what are their customs, politics, beliefs, etc.?
- What does everyone in my story know?1
- Thisone is quite interesting, and if you think too much about it, you’ll furthersee how this question leads into a future topic: Worldbuilding 101 – Through Character Perception. Stay tuned for that one coming in January 2019!
- Reedsy has a freeguide if you provide your email here: Reedsy Worldbuilding Guide
- Here’sone from Reedsy’s guide:
- Say you’re blending genres, which incidentally is something I love, and writing a cosy fantasy mystery where your protagonist is a trader (traveling merchant maybe). Economy becomes critical to your world building. You wouldn’t want to include anything that would lead the reader to believe that common trading is via a large market … unless the traveling merchant sets up shop at a series of large markets.
- Writer’s Edit has a comprehensive guide here: Writer’s Edit guide. What I liked from the Writer’s Edit site is the questioning along the lines of What If…
- What if historical event never happened? Or what if it happened in a different way?This could be a great prompt to stir a historical fantasy novel. This is a question continually on the mind of alternate history author, Harry Turdledove.
- What if humans evolved differently or there was a plague that changed our evolution?Maybe the idea X-Men was hatched from such a “What if…”
- What if something well-known in today’s world changed suddenly? So asked any naturaldisaster story in the history of man vs. nature…
- What if we invented new technology or there was a new discovery that lead to the ability to do wonderful or terrible things? At one time, a gun or a mobile phone would have been considered such fantasy.
- What if we could communicate with other life forms? Consider the premise of the Dr. Doolittle movies.
You can also download my worksheet here to use while writing and planning your own fiction.
UP NEXT in my Worldbuilding Blog Series…
Thursday this week, I’ll publish my first Story Spotlight: Alice in Wonderland in which I will explore the logic within the seeming illogical world built by Lewis Carroll.
Footnotes/Endnotes
- Jeff Vandermeer, Wonderbook, (New York, Abrams Image, 2018) 211-244.
- https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/coherent
- Bradley H. Dowden, Logical Reasoning, (Sacramento, California State University Sacramento, Philosophy Department) 11.