Building Fictional Worlds: a tutorial that outlines how to build fictional worlds in a practical sense. Some of the steps are specific to fantasy, but most are applicable to any fiction.

The process of building a fictional world is not terribly complicated, but it can be opaque to those who have never done it before. The purpose of this tutorial is to provide some basic information about how to go about worldbuilding, and to give the reader some tools and techniques for doing so.

This tutorial is based around the idea that building a fictional world is analogous to building a house. You wouldn’t expect to be able to build a house from start to finish in one day, or even in one year. Similarly, you won’t be able to build a complete and detailed fictional world in one day or even in one year.

The most important thing is to begin somewhere, because it’s hard to know where you’re headed if you don’t have any idea where you are now. It doesn’t matter what you do first or how long it takes; as long as you keep moving forward, eventually you’ll get there.

The purpose of this tutorial is to provide an overview of the process I use to develop fictional worlds, including examples from existing works.

A great deal has been written on the creation of fictional worlds. Unfortunately, much of it is vague and contradictory, with a general tendency to avoid specifics in favor of broad generalities. Many approaches seem based more in philosophy than in practical concerns. I have found that many discussions tend to focus on developing settings without giving much thought to developing characters for that setting.

The process I outline here is based on my experience as a professional writer and developer of games and other interactive media. It includes analysis and development of the elements necessary for successful storytelling, but focuses primarily on the practical aspects of world-building: creating settings which can actually be used by storytellers.

In this tutorial, we’re going to look at how to build a fictional world for a story you want to tell. Why would you do this? Because it’s useful. When you have a world that feels real, it’s easier to write about the characters and events that happen in it. That’s assuming that you plan on writing your own fiction, of course. If you just want to read stories, then having a more detailed setting isn’t all that important.

If you’re going to write about a place, it helps if you’ve been there.

But beyond that common-sense advice, there are certain guidelines and practices to follow when designing a new world. And I’m here to tell you about them!

A fictional world is an environment that you have created in which your characters can exist and interact. Many writers think it is as simple as sitting down and writing about the story unfolding before them. But it’s not that simple. Your story needs to be more than just a bunch of characters doing what they do best. You need to create a setting for them – a place where they live, work, eat, play, and can’t wait to get back home to their families at night.

What makes a good fictional world? Here are some elements you will want to consider when building yours:

Building a fictional world is something all writers need to do. It’s also something they all find at least a little intimidating. If you’re new to creating fictional worlds, the prospect of doing it can seem overwhelming. How do you create a functioning society? Where do you start? How do you keep everything in order?

I’ve been building worlds and writing about them for several years now, and I have found that it’s not that hard to get it done if you break it down into steps. If you have any kind of visual sense, this method will work for you. If you don’t, well, then, I’m sorry.

Mandalorian Concept Art Page 1 Mandalorian Concept Art Page 2

The first thing to consider when building a fictional world is the culture. The culture is the anchor point for your entire world-building experience; everything else will be based on it. So how do you begin deciding what your culture will be like? Well, there are two ways: either decide on an interesting subset of human beings and base your culture off of that, or create a completely new species with its own values and beliefs (this is often easier). Next, once you’ve figured out the basics of your culture—the area in which your people live

1. CONCEPTS:

2. CHARACTERS:

3. PLACES

4. DIALOGUE

5. SITUATIONS

6. EVENTS

7. THEME & PURPOSE

8. IMPLICATIONS & EVALUATION (what lies beneath)

9. SECONDARY CHARACTERS (the supporting cast)

10. PROPS, PROPS, PROPS! (and what they mean to your story)