Writing A Fictional Town | Tips & Tricks
When we talk about world building, we usually think scifi or fantasy where we have to create languages and build magic systems that somehow explain away why gravity is upside down or why the walls chant an ancient language that you can only decipher at the witching hour. But what if you just want to create a bizarre little town to set the scene for your story? I did it for Truth Weekend!
So here are 3 Steps to creating your own town.
Step 1: Nail Down An Appropriate Name!
Are you an author aiming for premium chaos like āRiverdaleā or a deceitfully happy name like āSunnybrookā when really thereās sinister activity below the surface? Maybe that has something to do with the hero or villain that got to name the town.
For example, thereās this neighborhood in sunny sleepy Florida called Champaign Lane that consists of middle middle/ lower middle income young people who just got out of college and are buying their first homes. Though it is in a sketchy part of town, all the little houses are a gorgeous pale pink or turquoise with white roofs and immaculate yards, so while I find the name to be ironic, I also view it as a goal. The residents are hungry and ambitious youth, hustling to make their dreams come true so that they can get to the place in life where theyāre popping champagne. This also poses an allegory for living behind a passible facade of having lots of money and happiness when really we donāt. The hidden juxtaposition adds an extra layer to your setting and you didnāt even have to do that much.
Step two: what are all the secrets and sins of the town?
What are the legends of the lake? What streets are for daylight only? Who is the woman in the window youāre told stay away from?
Recently I was reading an idealistic romance set in a fake town in California with a scene in a grocery store where a character looks at a missing child flyer and says āItās a shame this family canāt catch a break. Her sister literally drowned in Lake Eerie three months ago.ā A small moment like that adds so much texture and validity to the scene and suddenly the thing on the page is alive again.
So if youāre looking for a nifty little writing exercise then Iād say write up three myths or legends about the places and people of your town. Bonus points if thereās story about the crooked family on the tallest hill.
Step 3: Define the details of what makes your town so special.
What are the oddities and marvels of this place that are so distinct that you couldnāt set it in a real town or a real neighborhood? I like to separate this stage of planning into three parts: color, aesthetic, & monuments.
For me, a fun way to get the wheels turning when world building is to create a color pallet. In the opening of Truth Weekend, the colors in Skyeās world are quite muted and grungy, but when we meet Rosie thereās a lot of plums, burgundies, wine red, and amber.
As they enter this new world together, the colors change again and thereās a vibrancy to it. Itās not just blue, its cobalt and if its red, its neon. Itās like the saturation is cranked all the way to 100 to reflect the emotional intensity and how uncomfortable, but cathartic this situation is and as their relationship changes the we then get into the lavenders, the magentas, and the concept of yellow which poses a fitting dichotomy in its meaning of rebirth and cowardice. Use color theory to you advantage! The symbolism writes itself.
This lets you hone in on your unique style, your voice, your vision while having a touch stone to come back to.
Are we going for a Florida gothic, where we have an orange field on one side of the road and on the other side we have a marble cherub in front of a waffle house? I once saw a motel sign where the tagline read: stay for a whileā¦ stay forever. This creep-fest feeds into that well-meaning but unhinged Midwestern gothic of cornfields, dirt roads, and rumors of three eyed blood deer.
Look up some photos and make a list. Hereās an example of if I wanted to write a fun quirktastic town: sunny side up wall paper, the Oasis motel, conspiracy theory diner, rainbow slushies, cannabis cookie shop, a yellow house shaped like a boot, an iguana eating hydrangeas in sunflower fields, crop circle picnics, and a bookstore built for an acid trip.
Donāt be afraid to include wild life, nature, and peculiar architecture within this list, but if your creative genius mind doesnāt jive with aesthetics we still have monuments, which is the best part of this whole thing.
Monuments: What are the key locations that are only in this town?
What are the hot spots of the town? Where do the old people hang out? Is the town covered in graffiti or is it very buttoned up? Maybe it is abnormally homogenous. Is there a mansion next to a trailer park or a prison next to a school?
To get you mind cooking, create 10 unique locations. Why ten? Because itās a good number, but you can always expand it. Create 10 locations and watch your dream town that is so full of character and foreshadowing unfold in front of you.
Alright guys thatās all that I have for you today. I hope it this got the creative juices rolling. Comment down below and let me know any more hyper-specific topics you want me to hit on. Happy writing!
jacobvanloon
areudirty
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snowghoul
stormborns
