A Guide to Worldbuilding

Whenever you are writing a novel, it is very important for you to worldbuild first so that you don't get the facts of your world mixed up later on. Contrary to popular belief, worldbuilding is necessary for all genres, not just for fantasy and science fiction. It is not always necessary to learn every single detail about the world you are creating; however, the questions below may be helpful in rounding out your world and making it seem more real, especially if you write fantasy.

World Specifications: What does your world look like? How many continents does it have? How big is it? Is it mostly water or some other element? Does water exist at all? What are the major terrain features, such as mountains and deserts, and what is the climate like?

Flora/Fauna: What sorts of animals and plants are in your world: domesticated, wild, mythological, newly created by you, or a mix? Are some used for food or clothing? Are some dangerous?

Races/Peoples: What do they look like as individuals and as groups? Include things like skin coloring, eye color, height, and any unusual aspects they may have, such as wings or the ability to do magic. Is one race/character particularly sensitive to spicy foods? Can another race haggle so well that everybody else refuses to trade with them? Are the people of one country exorbitantly fond of wearing bright-colored clothing, while the people of a neighboring country prefer to dress all in black?

Cultures: Goes hand-in-hand with Races/Peoples. What languages are spoken? Are the people modest or scandalous? Are they honest or tricky? What are their family groups like; how many children do they usually have? What sort of beliefs do they have? What sort of food is the staple of their diet? What holidays do they celebrate? Does slavery exist? What do they do for a living? Do people greet each other with a bow or with a handshake?

Measurements: What are the names of the days of the weeks and the months? How many days are in a week, a month, and a year? Do your days come once an hour or once every five hundred years? Do you measure length using feet, paces, or your own measurements? How about weight?

Government: What sorts of governments do you have: democracy, monarchy, or something different? If you have a king, is he well liked or despised? Did you queen come to the throne through succession or through vote? Does a government-appointed official rule in every town, or do villages elect their own mayor? How do the governments of each country feel about each other? Do the head of religion and the head of politics vie for power.

Laws/Rules: What sort of rules do your cultures have? Do these conflict or coincide with the laws of the government they live under? Are the laws heavily enforced, or not? Are they good laws, or are they harmful to the sort of people who live under them? What are the punishments (if there are any) for murder, thievery, and being out after curfew?

Economics: How does the economy work? Do people pay for things with money, or is the barter system used? Is the money in coins or in paper? How are people paid for their work?

Religion: Is there more than one religion in the world? Does the religion have just one god, or a pantheon? Is the god good, evil, or in between? How dedicated are the people to their god? Are there a lot of rules to the religion, or none at all? Do wars occur between people of different religions? Are some followers so zealous that they kill non-believers? Or is everyone happy to let everyone else believe in whatever they want?

Social classes: Is everyone equal, or is there a great difference between the poor and the rich? Do the poor hate the rich, or revere them? Do the nobles attain their status by birth or by working hard and getting rich? Is there a formal distinction between the classes, or is it more wishy-washy?

Technology: Are there guns, or just bows and arrows? Do people travel using helicopters, cars, boats, carriages, camelback, or their own two feet? Are there doctors, or do people try to heal themselves? Can they genetically engineer crops? Do phones exist, or are doves used to carry messages? Are buildings made out of wood, stone, brick, or something else? Do many people know how to read and write? How are books made-are they written out by hand, or copied with a printing press or copier? What sort of education do people get?

History: What's the history of your world like? What do people of various religions believe is the truth about its origins? What wars have occurred? Have there been any recent famines? Have any ancient prophecies been made? How many years ago was the grandest city still standing built?

Power: If you're writing fantasy, you probably have magic. How does it work? Does everyone have it, or just a few select people? Are those people called wizards, mages, or something else? Are they feared or loved by the common people? How do they get their magic? Is there a drawback to using it? Don't forget that having magic is likely to set back your technology; if magic can make someone fly or heal people, they aren't going to put a lot of effort into creating airplanes or medicines.

If you don't need to answer all of these questions, don't bother-go write! However, answering just a few of these questions will get your mind working and make your world better and more real.