A truly gifted author will transport you to another realm without you even noticing. You can smell the stench wafting from the gutters, hear the clicking of your boots on the marble floors, feel the droplets of rain pattering against your hood, dripping onto your nose. You will nod your head in agreement, faintly believing in the back of your mind that you have been to this world before, you have run your fingers over the mortar of it’s brickwork, you have listened to the locals bicker about politics by the flickering flames of a campfire or stared in deep concentration at a map trying to figure out how to get back to the main road. A talented writer will gently lie to you, lulling you into the dream of a world that never existed. When you wake from it, you will ache for that place, long for a world you desperately wish you could hop in your car and drive to.
So how do you build castles from thin air? I know I will probably never join the ranks of J.R.R Tolkien, J.K Rowling, or Patrick Rothfuss when it comes to their detailed worlds, but I would like to think I have learned a few things over the years. I love creating an entire society out of nothing but my words. I am an over-planner, I thrive on details. The vast majority of what I plan doesn’t actually make it into my novel, but it does influence the way that I write and helps me give my world a certain feel, painting it in the appropriate shades. It creates authenticity out of something that is essentially a lie.
You will be tempted to color your world from the moment the reader opens the first page; this in itself is not necessarily bad, you want your reader to be able to visualize your creation. However, a twenty thousand word explanation of the culture and socio-economic strengths and weaknesses will not draw your reader in, enticing them to turn the page. If you want to teach them about dragons, don’t have a character regurgitate a text book; perhaps create an argument between two of them, maybe one does not believe and the other swears he has seen them. The scene may be longer, but your reader will walk away with more than just a bulleted list of information. They will learn about the culture through the argument, the beliefs of the characters that will fill your pages, and perhaps they’ll start to get a feel for how your characters view one another. Their is an art to the way you present your world; usually less can be so much more. Don’t tell them, show them with subtle hints and clues. Describe your world for them through actions, not through flourishing paragraphs that, though beautiful, do not actually add to your plot.
As I said before, I over-create. I like to make the background of my story as rich as I can, though only a small percentage of it might make it into the final product. I want to understand my world. Over the years I have created a general worksheet to help me plan. It gives me a roadmap, a template that I can base the rest of my work on. With this new map, I can find the foundation that I need for a consistent story; at the end of the day, it is the consistency that will make your novel feel genuine. It’s only a general outline, every story will have different areas that might need more vetting out before I start my actual writing.
If you decide that you might be interested in trying it out yourself, you can find a Word and PDF version, along with other little goodies I like to use, on my resources page right here:
That page is continuously updated, so feel free to check back again for new content.
Without further ado, I present to you:
The World Building Worksheet
Physical Traits:
- World Name:
- Type:
- Planetary: Earth? If not, what is the planet like? Mostly rock? Three moons? A purple sun?
- Style: Is it more medieval, modern or futuristic? Steampunk? Magical?
- Style: Is it more medieval, modern or futuristic? Steampunk? Magical?
- Geography:
- Make a map (surprisingly fun, no artistic talents required)
- Where are your major resources and settlements: Such as rivers, forests, lakes, agricultural , etc. (keep in mind the people you will have living there and how they will survive, along with any social issues that might cause- for example, fighting over resources)
- Climate: Keep in mind your general geography, as well as the people living in each area
Settlements and Societies:
- Settlements: I usually do a separate sheet for each major settlement
- Type: City, Town, Village
- Population:
- Layout/Geography: are the houses close together, far apart? Is it clean, dirty?
- Security: Gates surrounding, soldiers, form of law enforcement (if any)
- Allies and enemies:
- Building types: wood, brick, etc.
- Technology Level:
- Transportation:
- What are the inhabitants: certain type of creatures, magical, race
- Education system:
- Type of medicine: doctor, priest, wizard
- Major professions of the people: Mining community, predominantly agricultural
- Economy:
- Rich area/poor area:
- Monetary system:
- Type of currency:
- Trade:
- What resources do they use:
- What resources do they need:
- Political system/Government:
- Type of government:
- Local leaders:
- cities/people that may rule over them:
- Religion:
- Language:
- Creatures/Types of People: (for this subject, it is good to create a separate page for each creature/type of people)
- What creatures populate your realm:
- Where do they live:
- Clothing styles:
- Their allies and enemies:
- Interesting facts/histories:
Magical Elements
- Magic: (if any)
- What type of system (ex: arcane, dark, etc.)
- How does it work:
- The magic laws:
- What can be done with the magic and how:
- What cannot be done:
- How do people feel about it:
- Who can use it and who can’t:
World Background
- History:
- Major wars or conflicts:
- Key players:
- How it started:
- Major battles/events:
- Who won and how:
- The aftermath: (how were the people treated, how did they rebuild themselves, any remaining grudges)
- Key figures:
- Why they are important:
- Current conflicts:
- How they began:
- Current status:
- The ‘sides’:
- Prejudices between groups:
- Reasons:
- Ways to fix them:
- Important myths/lore:
- Major wars or conflicts:
Tipsy Typer 
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