#tbh i just wanted to post my tav forgive me

[starry-crossed]

Gale: I once read a book that explained in some detail the effect a brush with danger has on one's desire for...other forms of stimulation…

the spawn im currently romancing: 👁️👁️

[wetcatspellcaster]

This will be long, so forgive me. I plea for help/advice - I am in the middle of writing my first fanfic (and very nervous about it) and even though I'm not new to writing (I have written hundreds of pages for RPG sessions, so I'm familiar with character creation, world building, classic tropes, post-modern tropes, etc.), this is a first. I struggle with English a bit, as it is not my first language, but thankfully my Camden Uni educated bf sometimes gets over the cringe of my slow burn fictional character obsessive romance and proof reads it for me, so that's out of the way. My biggest struggle is world building, which is completely unexpected. The universe is ready, it's there made for me (Arcane animation), but I can't get myself to write any expository bits about it. I write it in little scenes and then glue them together when I figure out the order of events that transpire between the characters. There is a luxury in people knowing the fandom, therefore knowing the lore - so I don't have to introduce the world to the readers. But right now I am at the bit where the slow burn finally burns and I want to give my characters some grief (all is lost moment) and I have come to the realization that I have done absolutely no background build-up that would lead to it. Do you have any advice on how to incorporate such depth into the story, so it wouldn't be build only on two people pushing back and forth? I don't want it to be like - by the way, while you two were figuring out your feelings, there was a huge political plotline in the background that will now endanger your relationship. Save me, Ms. WetCat, save me, I simp over you and your writing oh so greatly. (Btw, it's me, hi, I'm the person you've made bi)

hi, person I made bi through the power of fictional wizards :')

I haven't watched the show but I can try to give some advice for threading plot/worldbuilding through a romance story!

I think the easiest thing to do is... make it personal to the characters lmao. BG3 is a good example of this right - people will often not bother to explain what illithids/tadpoles are or what the dark urge is, but they will often talk about how one or both of those things effect their Tav and their Tav's choices. So tailor the worldbuilding to what is relevant about your character - if it's boring to write exposition, write about feelings instead! How does either character feel about [worldbuilding conceit], and how is that relevant to the romance/character interactions they're having? That's one way to nod to the wider world while also keeping it in the periphery, with the main focus still remaining on the characters themselves.

You can also do this with bigger plots that are happening, just by making nods to them before and after your scene. So I often will be like "the characters were walking back from [major plot event]" - that means that everyone who knows the [major plot event] can now place themselves in a canon timeline and know where we are in events that have happened, without having to read through that same thing again. If there's a political plotline (lol, me coasting on my second/third hand knowledge of arcane) you can be like 'they were at x meeting', or 'they walked past x rally on the way to y' and then you have tension brewing in the background even without the focus being on them. do any of these major plot points endanger your character, because then you also have a good vat of angst to draw from as well!

tbh fanfic is definitely a forgiving space because as you say everyone typically knows the source material! so i've found that having a pretty narcissistic lens on your character(s) while just making brief off-hand gestures to wider events is often enough for the world to feel deep and engaging!