Kit Tunstall - Building Your World: A Guide For Writers

Building Your World: A Guide for Writers

Kit Tunstall

Kit Tunstall reserves all rights to the content in this world builder. The world builder may be used by anyone to create their own worlds, to which they retain all rights. Please do not copy or share this work without permission and/or using the usual methods of attributing the source and linking to where this free ebook may be downloaded.

2019, First Edition, 2020, Second Edition

Introduction

If youre reading this, youre an author or an aspiring one, and you want to make sure you have a solid world for your story. The world builder can be used with just about any type of fiction you write, from historical to fantasy to modern-day.

What makes me qualified to tell you how to world-build? Im a USA Today bestselling author who has written more than three hundred novels and novellas in my career under various pen names, and as a ghostwriter for some big names. I also co-own a successful outlining business that has plotted a number of Top 100 titles in the years weve been in business. I know plot, structure, and world-building.

Keep reading to discover the twenty key areas to ponder when building your unique world.

World Builder

This reusable tool is designed to help you build a solid world when plotting. It can be used for fantasy and science fiction novels, but it can also be used for contemporary or other genres and niches to ensure the world you createwhether its a far-off alien planet or a small townis richly detailed and makes sense.

There are twenty common aspects to consider when world-building. You might not end up using most of the details you create, but if you know your world, you will have an easier time plotting what happens within it.

1. Consistency

T his is the most important part of any world-building. Whatever you establish needs to make sense and remain unchanged. If someone is an exception to your worlds rules, you need to have a solid explanation for why they can fly when everyone else is walking, for example. One way to ensure consistency is to lay out the details of your world before you start writing. Create a story bible, or something similar, to keep track of details.

2. The World

W hat kind of world are you building? Is this an alien planet, a historical period with magic, a dystopian future, or a small town, for example? Having a clear idea of what youre trying to build will help with the planning. Know the overview of what youre building so you can focus on the smaller details with the builder.

Also make sure it makes sense with what youre planning to write. It would be strange to build an alien world when youre going to write small-town westernsunless youre writing about humans colonizing the universe and having an Old West planet, where that kind of story would fit. If youre going that route, ask yourself if theres a good reason to create a new world for this? Are you trying to get into a new niche, so youre finding a way to integrate the stories you want to tell with a marketable genre? If so, bravo. If youre doing it just to experiment and do something different, is it wise to be the one who tries to break the mold?

3. Inspiration

I s your world inspired by something else? Are you building a fantasy world with steam technology and borrowing elements of actual steam machinery and development from the past? If you are using elements of real historical periods or events, it might make your plotting easier, but it certainly isnt required, and it might not make sense. Your steampunk dirigible racing adventure story probably wouldnt work with a backdrop of an ancient Roman-style society.

If you are using a real event or period, you will need to research it extensively. You might find basing it too closely on existing history will constrain your creativity, and it will lead to a lot more research. Thats one of the fun reasons to build your own worldanything you want can happen, and you dont have to research to the nth degree, as long as everything is consistent.

4. Geography

W hat are the physical characteristics of your world? Is it the third planet from a brown dwarf star, or is it a small mountain community full of gay cowboys? Know where its located, and also know what resources are available to your characters. Is there a body of water? Are there mountains? Do you have deserts and arctic tundras? Is it covered with fertile farmland, or do crops have trouble growing? What makes sense with your plot? Its cool to have a volcano in the heart of a small town, but does it make sense, and will you be utilizing that feature in one of your stories? Dont make your world unnecessarily complicated, or youll create more work for yourself and your readers as they try to keep track.

5. Government

H ow is your world ruled ? Do you have multiple types of government? If you have colonies or countries, how are they ruled, and do they report to a central governing body? Its important to decide what kind of rulers your world has. If you are basing them off a real time period or people, do you intend to keep the same terms, or will you create new ones for your peoples roles? Is the system efficient, or is it rife with corruption? How will it impact your characters and events in your story/stories?