How do you do worldbuilding? Every time I try I can’t think and can only come up with basic stuff
Hmm, now that’s a funky question there Anon because there’s a whole lotta parts to it! Also keep in mind that I’m kind of scatterbrained so I tend to do things rather chaotically regardless, hahaha. ^///^
But first thing’s first! Take it easy! Worldbuilding is kind of an intimidating thing to tackle when looking at it as a whole. Nobody ends up with a big complex societal structure over the course of a week or two, and even if you do, you’re gonna be revising it for a while anyways pffft. >///<
Alrighty, so for me personally (And do remember that this is what I personally do, these are not rules), what I do is figure out a goal first. I find it easier to build upon a foundation, even if it’s kinda vague, since it’s easier to build stuff in one direction rather than have many pieces strung all over the place to tie together later. Do you have a main idea for the world? Genre? Tone? Feeling? How big are you making it? An entire planet? A nation? A town? This will be important for stuff later, because everything in a world affects one another! It’s a key part in building up society too! But we’re not there yet.
Let’s say we’re going with fantasy as a base theme! (Since that’s my favorite haha) But for that there are already a ton of questions you can ask! (And questions are the easiest way to expand upon world building ^///^) Is there magic? What’s the magic like? How does this affect day to day life? Is there a government? A main nation? Political relations? Is magic a normal thing? Country exclusive? Bloodline exclusive? Are there conflicts due to it? Are there tensions between people with and without it? Do people fear it? Understand it? Study it? Use it in daily life? Where does it come from? Spirits? Gods? Nature? All these are already a ton of variables to think about, and each choice leads to a slightly different world!
I’ll take what I’m working on now as an example, Kantibar Keep is a story set in a fantasy world with magic, but it also has a growing technological sector led by people who are in competition with said magic. (I’m leaning too much fantasy at the moment, I’m working on the tech part) The main idea was fantasy but also fighting game, so the plot is a little loose, but since I’m me I’m taking the world building seriously anyways ahfbajfjsjf- The main foundation of the world stems from my desire to create a magic system, so that’s where I branched out from. How does it work? There’s too many mechanics for me to recount but I’m still going into depths with that. Where does it come from? Nature, spirits, and gods! I split the magic into both natural and arcane elements, and essentially made the world magical in nature while also introducing mythical elements. Magic is normal enough to have its own sector of occupations, as well as be a key aspect of how society functions, but not everybody is able to wield it, hence the development of technology despite the presence of magic. Currently I’m working on the nations as well as the people within those nations, but see how there’s a ton of questions yet to be answered? That’s part of worldbuilding! And it’s a lot of work. >///<
After I have a big, and I do mean BIG, picture about the world, I start thinking in smaller more manageable bits. I always start with magic just because I find that most enjoyable to make, but different people probably have different preferences. If I’m trying to tell a story, I usually go to characters next, because I think that’s the most important aspect of a story but this specific step can go both ways. I can either make a character and base the nearby world around how they came to be, or make the area first and make characters based on what this type of society would most likely create.
In Kantibar Keep a neat aspect of the worldbuilding comes from something as small as making a courier service. One of my characters is a courier, but their family, who run the company, is a prestigious mage family. So what can I gleam from that? Well for one, it means the world is dangerous enough that sending packages long distance is somehow something that can make you well known if you’re good at it. And two, proud mages are willing to do the job, which means it’s not really a simple endeavor. And that is indeed the case! Because the world of Kantibar Keep is full of monsters, and going long distance without a plan is incredibly risky. Typical postal workers in this world are known as post knights, and they do most of the delivering between towns, while higher level couriers are typically mages. It’s such a small aspect of the world, but a lot can come from it, y’know? :O
Ah but now I’m rambling. My point is!! There isn’t really a right, wrong, or set method to worldbuilding. What I do is basically smashing ideas together until something sounds cool. The easiest way, to me, to make a world more complex is to ask questions based on your foundation! Remember, societies and people always react to the world around them. A town that always floods would build their society very differently than one in the desert, and magic, or tech, or post apocalyptical radiation is no different! And it can stem from tiny things too, like, oh there’s a national fighting tournament that’s held annually but how did that come to be? Is it a celebratory tradition? Is the prize something really rare? Is the world just into blood sport? Silly things like that y’know? But keep in mind!! Worldbuilding isn’t the end all be all of stories, you don’t need to know every tiny detail for a world or story to work, so be sure to not do unneeded work and waste your energy! The best part of worldbuilding should always be that it’s fun. ^///^
I hope this helps somewhat, I did ramble a bit haha. This is just kind of how I do things! Questions are super fun, I love it when people ask me stuff since it helps me generate new ideas, so maybe asking a friend could help you too! If you have anything specific to ask I’d be happy to try and give my two cents too. While I’m no professional, I can confirm that I am very passionate about the subject. >///<
Take care Anon! And have fun~!
