Building A Fantasy World

In my opinion, the biggest difference between a mediocre fantasy novel and a great fantasy novel, is the world-building. Building your world before you write your novel not only will improve your story, but will save you tons of time and energy in the long run, and help prevent you from writing yourself into plot holes and riddling your story with inconsistencies. Plus, understanding the world in which your characters reside goes a long way to truly understanding your characters.

World building is fun! And the more thorough you are, the better. Here, I will share the way that I go about it. I break it into four categories, but each writer has their own process.

1. Society

Many people begin world building with the physical landscape, but my story ideas usually start with characters, so I begin with the inhabitants and the political and social customs of my world. For example, if my main character is a prince, then obviously the political system is some sort of monarchy.

These are the questions I ask:

What races exist? (Are there elves, fairies, etc.)

Who are the rulers?

How long have they been in power, and/or how long has their family been in power?

Are the people happy or unhappy with their rule?

Are there others with claim to the throne/position, etc.

Is there a class system? If so, where do the main characters fall in the class system?

What are the laws of the land? What are the punishments for breaking them?

Do the people feel the laws are just?

Are the laws just?

What is the history of the realm? Have there been any recent wars? Ancient wars?

What races are the people in this world? How did they come to be where they are?

How are people treated? Is there racism? Sexism? Slavery? Do different groups of people have different rights?

What is the population of the country, and if applicable, surrounding countries?

What kind of jobs exist? Do people have days off?

How are people compensated for work? What kind of money system is there?

What kind of transportation do people use? Is it easy to access?

What kind of militaries exist? How big are they? How are they organized?

What kind of weapons exist?

Are there any advanced technologies?

Is there a medical system? What does it look like? Is there an education system?

2. Religion

I personally don’t like dealing with religion that much. In fact, the first novel I wrote was about a completely secular society. But understanding the beliefs of your people is essential to understanding your society. These are the questions I answer: (If there are multiple religions, answer for each one)

Is there a primary religion in the land?

How many different religions exist in the realm?

Does the religion have rules?

Who are the Gods/Goddesses, saints, or other people of interest in each religion?

Are any of the religions true? (For example, are there actually Gods?)

Are there any sacred symbols?

Are there specific places of worship?

Are there religious rules? Do they conflict with or reflect the rules of the realm?

Are there any religious holidays that are celebrated?

What do people believe happens when they die? What do they do with bodies?

Are there any superstitions?

Is there any bigotry that exists because of your peoples’ religion?

Is there any tension between people of different religions, or do they live in peace?

Is there any type of religious persecution in your world?

How does marriage work? Is marriage a religious ceremony?

3. Landscape

After my society is generally laid out, then I think about the physical landscape. I do it in this order because I have found that oftentimes I end up adjusting the land to serve my characters and my plot. For example, if I have an earth-centered village or sub-culture, I think about where those people should live and create the map to make that serve my plot. Or maybe I have people that are sheep farmers, or that grow oranges – what kind of land works best for that?

Additionally, if my characters need to travel around the land, (which is the case in most fantasies), what kind of terrain would make my story more interesting? What would cause problems with my plot?

When planning my fantasy landscape, I answer the following questions:

Is the land modeled after any real-word land? (Example: Russian tundra or South American rainforests.)

What resources do the people have access to? Are these all supplied locally, or do they come from somewhere else? How? (Note: this will affect the food and clothing available to your characters.)

What is the climate like? Warm? Cold? Variable? Are there seasons? What is the average high and average low? (Note: this will also affect the clothing in your land.)

Were there any major geological or weather events that affected the landscape? (Think floods, earthquakes, volcanic explosions.)

Is the landscape diverse or homogenous? Mountainous or flat?

What is the flora like? How old are the trees? Does it vary throughout?

Are there any fantastical plants?

What is the fauna like? What animals live where?

Are there any fantastical beasts?

4. Magic

When I have my society and my land mostly situated, I delve into the part that truly makes a fantasy universe: magic.

Here are some questions to consider when creating your magic system:

What kind of magic exists?

How many types of magic exist?

How does the magic work?

Who has magic? Can anyone wield it?

What are the rules of magic, and what happens when the rules are broken?

Is magic inherently good, inherently evil, or both?

How are those with magic viewed by society? How about those without?

Are there magical objects?

Where does magic come from? Are people born with it? Can anyone wield it?

As you answer these questions, you may find that additional questions come up. When that happens, save them to your master list. The more detailed you can get, the better. Now, write!