#fwq

[ahb-writes]

Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions (News and Media)

News and Media Worldbuilding Questions:

What spreads information – newspapers, websites, pamphlets, word-of-mouth, a technologically advanced communications system?

What is considered newsworthy in this world?

Who owns each news platform (are they public or private, impartial or propagandistic/biased)?

Who are the public figures most often scrutinized in news networks (and why)?

Where do the most significant or newsworthy events happen in this world (and to where does their news reach)?

Where does the typical person go to find out what’s happening in their immediate community, or the wider world? Can they find this out?

When have investigative reports or rumor mills changed history, public sentiments or policies?

When do major news announcements or public addresses typically take place?

Why is the media either free, silenced or captured/biased?

Why might people in this world trust or distrust news media?

❯ ❯ ❯ Read other writing masterposts in this series: Worldbuilding Questions for Deeper Settings

[ahb-writes]

Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions (Society)

Society Worldbuilding Questions:

What is each society’s crowning achievement or proudest "claim to fame"?

What are each society’s greatest ills or challenges? (Do these differ depending on who you ask?)

Who garners the most respect in this society, and why?

Who is shown the least respect in this society, and why (what does it value)?

Where are hierarchies and power differences starkest between people in this world, and why?

Where are social norms and influences (such as laws) most stringently upheld in this world, and why (e.g., what roles do politics, ideology, religion, or competition for resources play)?

When did this society’s power structures emerge or change significantly, and why?

When did major societal beliefs or practices become entrenched? Are there any that have recently fallen away or started to disappear?

Why is living within this society challenging for your main characters?

Why does each character enjoy or appreciate this society, if anything?

❯ ❯ ❯ Read other writing masterposts in this series: Worldbuilding Questions for Deeper Settings

[ahb-writes]

Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions (Health, Healthcare, and Medicine)

Health, Healthcare, and Medicine Worldbuilding Questions:

What is a common illness or blight afflicting this world? How is it treated (or is it incurable)? Does it evolve or change over the story's course?

What does healthcare consist of in this world? Is there advanced medicine, or are folk and herbal remedies predominate?

Who has access to healthcare? Is there a rich/poor divide or is it universal?

Who would want to become a medical professional in this world, and why?

Where are the best places to receive medical treatment in this world, and why?

Where do medical practitioners train (and what is their curriculum like)?

When someone falls ill, what are typical ceremonial or other practices?

When was the last major public healthcare crisis (such as a pandemic), or when will the next one be?

Why is healthcare in this world scarce or in adequate supply?

Why might someone struggle to get the care they need when sick or injured in this world?

❯ ❯ ❯ Read other writing masterposts in this series: Worldbuilding Questions for Deeper Settings

[ahb-writes]

Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions (Clothing and Fashion)

Clothing and Fashion Worldbuilding Questions:

What is considered typical or everyday dress for each region?

What values or status does society confer to clothing (or is it entirely functional, or even non-existent)?

Who is permitted to wear what? Are there taboos, superstitions, or laws governing dress? Why?

Who has access to clothing? Which fabrics are cheaper and which more expensive (and why)?

Where are fabrics and other materials used in clothing sourced, and is their production ethical or problematic in some way?

Where are specific dress codes or uniforms enforced, and what are they?

When do styles or what people typically wear change, are there seasonal, spiritual, customary or other aspects to this?

When have (or will) clothing styles change in the world, and what are the economic, environmental, or other contributing factors?

Why is clothing in this world the way it is, what are the aesthetic beliefs, meanings or symbolism ascribed to colors, and other contributing factors?

Why does gender, class or race impact what people wear (for example, a group may have spiritual or familial meaning attached to the type of jewelry or body modification members embrace).

❯ ❯ ❯ Read other writing masterposts in this series: Worldbuilding Questions for Deeper Settings

[ahb-writes]

Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions (Natural Resources)

Natural Resources Worldbuilding Questions:

What is the most precious or in demand natural resource, and why?

What natural resources are most endangered or at risk, and what could/must be done to avoid disaster?

Who has the monopoly on each natural resource (or are resources more universally shared or hard to find)? Why?

Who uses the most natural resources (individually or as a group such as a nation, city, government). Are some fair or wise in their use while others are selfish or unaware?

Where is each natural resource located? How has this impacted other categories of worldbuilding such as trade, geography, transportation, environment?

Where are the most strategic locations for access to natural resources? Is there (or has there been) conflict over who controls them?

When was each natural resource discovered, have some been used longer than others in different regions?

When will supplies of resources dwindle? Will they be abundant for the span of your characters’ lives?

Why is access to natural resources either constrained/controlled or free?

Why are natural resources important to social justice or politics?

❯ ❯ ❯ Read other writing masterposts in this series: Worldbuilding Questions for Deeper Settings

[ahb-writes]

Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions (Geography)

Geographical Worldbuilding Questions:

What is the terrain like for key setting regions – which regions are coastal, mountainous, arid, or have dense vegetation?

What effect does geography have on other aspects of world, such as transportation, trade and industry, environmental challenges, clothing, food and drink?

Who lives in each geographical region and how have they adapted to it?

Who prefers which regions or biomes, and why?

Where are the world's borders and boundaries? Are there separate nations or kingdoms? What distinguishes the geography of each?

Where are the largest metropolises or wilds? Or is everything undeveloped (e.g., if your story features extra-terrestrial exploration)?

When was this world first mapped? Are there regions people know little about or tell legends about ('There be dragons')?

When has landscape changed, due to natural causes or development? What effects did this change have?

Why is this world's geography interesting or unusual?

Why is any region in this world habitable or uninhabitable? What are its dangers, threats, or quirks?

❯ ❯ ❯ Read other writing masterposts in this series: Worldbuilding Questions for Deeper Settings

[ahb-writes]

Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions (Fauna and Flora)

Fauna and Flora Worldbuilding Questions:

What are the most common animals or plants, the fly, pigeon, grass and weed equivalents in your world?

What are humans or others’ relationship to fauna and flora? (For example, are some groups more respectful, reverent, or caring of their environment? Why?)

Who in your cast of characters cares most about your world’s fauna and flora? Who cares least?

Who nurtures or exploits your world’s plant and animal life?

Where are plants and animals more abundant or scarce, and why?

Where do plants and animals get their names from?

When will plants or animals first appear in the story, and what will their purpose be in regard to character or plot?

When did common species of plants or animals first appear in your world, and how did they evolve or adapt?

Why do certain plants or animals have cultural or religious significance – what is their backstory in myth or legend?

Why do specific plants or animals have economic value, and how does their availability affect this value? Do these aspects change over the story’s course?

❯ ❯ ❯ Read other writing masterposts in this series: Worldbuilding Questions for Deeper Settings

[ahb-writes]

Fantasy Worldbuilding Questions (Ideology and Propaganda)

Ideology and Propaganda Worldbuilding Questions:

What are the dominant or most popular ideologies in this world, and why?

What has led to the most popular ideologies having the hold they do over this world’s inhabitants?

Who is revered or celebrated for the ideology they founded?

Who is most skeptical about reigning ideologies, and why?

Where are there safe spaces or alternative forums for honest, free discussion, free of institutional bias or repercussions?

Where are the regions where specific ideologies or propaganda campaigns are strongest?

When have there been ideological shifts in this world’s history, and what caused them (e.g., a change of leader, a new activist figure)?

When has there been the most ideological conformity, versus the most division and opposition?

Why have ideologies or propaganda been created and disseminated? What is their purpose?

Why do specific ideologies or propaganda techniques resonate with or work for inhabitants of this world? What are their desires/fears?

❯ ❯ ❯ Read other writing masterposts in this series: Worldbuilding Questions for Deeper Settings