#i wanna talk to more fic writers too and bounce ideas around! i miss brainstorming w ppl :)

[catguangcorner]

i wanna be more active in fandom discords and stuff but i never know what to say 🥲

[myulalie]

So you wanna build something

Worldbuilding is nice, but bringing it to light every so often in your story is even nicer. I’m not talking about info-dumping though, it’s more like… info-sneaking.

If you’re stealthy enough, you might be able to weave your worldbuilding into the fic without the reader really noticing what you’re doing and they’ll appreciate things because it’s fun, or sweet, or logical.

Make it feel natural

I like to worldbuild around the characters themselves and the plot, which enables me to bring it up when it’s relevant. That way it feels natural (to me, at least).

I think it’s easier to go all out in the draft or outline process, then narrow it down to what you actually need in the story.

Yes, it breaks my heart every time I have to dismiss a piece of worldbuilding but what can I say? I’d rather gush about it in the comments than lose a reader midway because I’ve been burying them under my worldbuilding.

Consent is essential ;)

Ask (the right) questions

I write fanfiction, so worldbuilding often starts with questions for me.

What do I know? What do I want to know? What do I need for my story? What do I need for my character? How does it impact the plot, the cast, the world? Who benefits from this, and who might suffer the consequences? Why do I want this (and is it necessary)?

I also find that logic helps a lot.

Let’s say the sacred animal in your world is the snake, what does it mean in your character’s daily life? Will they get punished if they step on a snake? What are the rules? What happens when you get bitten, is it symbolic? Is it a good omen or a punishment? Are the streets covered in shed skin? Does someone clean after the snake? Is a good position or a sanction? Is there some venom drinking ritual? How do outsiders react upon meeting the snakes?

I love to try and go as far as I can in every direction to be sure I’m not missing out on anything!

Reverse engineering

This is another trick I rely heavily on when my idea is already half-formed. Sometimes, I need to go back to the basics in order to build something up again.

It’s like starting from the end and unraveling the various connections I made to get there.

I take the big picture, and I dismantle it piece by piece until I have all the individual elements. It’s easier to study them like this and find out what I need to work into the fic in order for the final picture to make sense.

I sometimes get a plot and an outline out of this as well because I need to define key moments in the narrative.

Giving up… for now

You can’t always use what you came up with straight away. Sometimes, you can’t even come up with much anyway.

I like to save things for later when this happens, I can always come back to a concept when I’m ready to work with it.

I’m pretty organized so I’ll catalog everything I have in a document and save it in an ideas folder for easy access, all the while avoiding temptation since it’s not right in front of me.

I also find that sometimes it’s better to split one big idea into smaller concepts. Not all ideas work together, but that doesn’t mean they can’t stand on their own.

The truth is, while your world makes sense in your head, it might be too complex to put it into words. Sometimes you need time for your ideas to ferment and take shape as well.

About encyclopedias

Your readers have their own “encyclopedia”, made up of their experiences, knowledge, culture and imagination.

When I mentioned the snake earlier, you’ve probably come up with questions of your own that I haven’t thought of. It’s something you have to be aware of, but also something you can rely on.

I love a complex system, but I’ll understand it better if it’s not a jumbled mess. Your thought process needs to be logical enough that people can hop on and follow along.

Also, do you have writers (or readers) friends? Chances are they know a lot about something, and if you ask them they’ll be happy to talk to you about it.

I love brainstorming and bouncing ideas off my friends because they always have something to add that is both relevant and interesting.

How to worldbuild

Honestly, there are many ways to worldbuild and whatever suits you is what matters the most.

I mentioned earlier that I am quite organized, and it translates to my worldbuilding.

First of all, if I can reuse some chart from a previous story, I will. It saves time, and I’m already familiar with the material. I might copy and paste it to customize it according to the on-going project, and I’ll either color-code my subsections, or make an Excel spread-sheet depending on the need.

If I need to do research, I’ll take notes as I go, then make a synthesis of it all in order to have a nice document to look at. I’ll often get ideas for the story in itself while doing this so I highlight it for future reference.

I’m flexible and I’ll always do my best to adapt to each project because this part of the writing process sets the tone for the rest of the story.

The purpose of these documents if to find whatever I need quickly when I’m writing and I need to check something. I tend to use keywords when searching for something, so I’ll spend some time editing the words I use in order to always have the same terms, to navigate the document efficiently.

I’ll make character charts and descriptions of the various locations.

I set up a template with the information I need and use it for everything so that it always looks the same. Sometimes I’ll write entire paragraphs as a warm up before writing the story itself, and I’ll reuse sentences within the story.

It’s also the time to make moodboards if you’re into it, and if I have a playlist, I’m probably listening to it as I work. ... Yes, I get sick of it by the time I’m done with the project.

So yeah, that's how I do it. If anything in there can help, then I'm happy. Else, thanks for reading!