Worldbuilding

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World-building
)
Not to be confused with Terraforming, manipulating a planet to make it habitable to Earth lifeforms.
For other uses, see World Building.

Worldbuilding is the process of constructing an imaginary world or setting, sometimes associated with a

invented languages for the world.[3][4][5][6]
: PT103 

The world could encompass different planets spanning vast distances of

Star Wars Expanded Universe.[13]

Etymology

The term "world-building" was first used in the Edinburgh Review in December 1820[14] and appeared in Arthur Eddington's Space Time and Gravitation: An Outline of the General Relativity Theory (1920) to describe the thinking out of hypothetical worlds with different physical laws.[15]: 160  The term has been used in science fiction and fantasy criticism since appearing in R.A. Lupoff's Edgar Rice Burroughs: Master of Adventure (1965).[13]: 270 

History

One of the earliest examples of a fictional world is Dante's Divine Comedy, with the BBC's Dante 2021 series describing it as "the first virtual reality".[16] The creation of literary fictional worlds was first examined by fantasy authors such as George MacDonald, J. R. R. Tolkien, Lord Dunsany, Dorothy L. Sayers, and C. S. Lewis.[8] William Morris would be the first person to create the entire world of his story.[17]

Tolkien addressed the issue in his essay "

like a real mythology.[19]

Later analysis of fantasy worlds in the 1960s contextualized them in the medium or the narrative of the works, offering an analysis of the stories in the world, but not the world itself. In the 2000s, worldbuilding in film has increased in popularity. When before, writers sought to create a character that could sustain multiple stories, now they create a world that can sustain multiple characters and stories.

example needed
]

Methods

A rendered constructed world as seen from outer space

Worldbuilding can be designed from

cities, and towns
. A world constructed from the top down tends to be well-integrated, with individual components fitting together appropriately. It can, however, require considerable work before enough detail is completed for the setting to be useful, such as in the setting of a story.

With the bottom-up approach, the designer focuses on a small part of the world needed for their purposes. This location is given considerable detail, such as local geography, culture, social structure, government, politics, commerce, and history. Prominent local individuals may be described, including their relationships to each other. The surrounding areas are then described in a lower level of detail, with description growing more general with increasing distance from the initial location. The designer can subsequently enhance the description of other areas in the world. For example, an author may create fictional currencies and refer to fictional books to add detail to their world. Terry Pratchett says "You had to start wondering how the fresh water got in and the sewage got out... World building from the bottom up, to use a happy phrase, is more fruitful than world building from top-down."[21]

This approach provides for almost immediate applicability of the setting, with details pertinent to a certain story or situation. The approach can yield a world plagued with inconsistencies, however. By combining the top-down and bottom-up approaches, a designer can enjoy the benefits of both. This is very hard to accomplish, however, because the need to start from both sides creates twice as much work, which may delay the desired product.

Despite requiring considerable work to develop enough detail for a setting to be useful, not every aspect of a setting can be explored, and instead an approach called inferred worldbuilding is often used. Inferred worldbuilding is when the author provides enough detail about the various parts of a setting that readers can extrapolate on what is written to come to their own conclusions regarding specific details that were not provided. This is especially useful for roleplaying game settings, as individual games may require certain details to be created on a case-by-case basis for the RPG's story to function.

Elements

From a game-design perspective, the goal of worldbuilding is to create the context for a story. Consistency is an important element, since the world provides a foundation for the action of a story.

plot devices such as what equipment, nourishment, and modes of transportation characters use.[6]
: PT110 

An uninhabited world can be useful for certain purposes, especially in science fiction, but the majority of constructed worlds have one or more

constructed cultures and constructed languages. Designers in hard science fiction may design flora and fauna
towards the end of the worldbuilding process, thus creating lifeforms with environmental adaptations to scientifically novel situations.

Physics

Perhaps the most basic consideration of worldbuilding is to what degree a fictional world will be based on real-world

magic.[23] While magic is a more common element of fantasy settings, science fiction worlds can contain magic or technological equivalents of it. For example, the Biotics in the science fiction video game series Mass Effect have abilities, described scientifically in-game, which mirror those of mages in fantasy games. In the science fiction novel Midnight at the Well of Souls
, magic exists, but is explained scientifically.

Some fictional worlds modify the real-world

laws of physics; faster-than-light travel is a common factor in much science fiction. Worldbuilding may combine physics and magic, such as in the Dark Tower series and the Star Wars franchise. One subgenre of science fiction, mundane science fiction
, calls for writers to depict only scientifically plausible technology; as such, fictional faster-than-light travel is not depicted in these works.

Cosmology

Diagram of the fictional "Starbase 11 Star System" in the original Star Trek TV series
See also:
Planets in science fiction

Constructed worlds often have cosmologies, both in the

spacefaring societies, usually entails creation of a star system and planets. If the designer wishes to apply real-life principles of astronomy, they may develop detailed astronomical measures for the orbit of the world, and to define the physical characteristics of the other bodies in the same system; this establishes chronological parameters, such as the length of a day and the durations of seasons.[24] Some systems are intentionally bizarre. For Larry Niven's novels The Integral Trees and The Smoke Ring, Niven designed a "freefall" environment, a gas torus ring of habitable pressure, temperature, and composition, around a neutron star
.

Fantasy worlds can also involve unique cosmologies. In Dungeons & Dragons, the physical world is referred to as the Prime Material Plane, but other planes of existence devoted to moral or elemental concepts are available for play, such as the Spelljammer setting, which provides an entirely novel fantasy astrophysical system. Some fantasy worlds feature religions. The Elder Scrolls series, for example, contains a variety of religions practiced by its world's various races. The world of the 2000 video game Summoner has a well-developed cosmology, including a creation myth.

Geography

See also: Fantasy cartography
A map of the fictional kingdom of Aredia, which is used in a Medieval role-playing game

Construction of a

fictional map is often one of the first tasks of worldbuilding. Maps can lay out a world's basic terrain features and significant civilizations present. A clear, concise map that displays the locations of key points in the story can be a helpful tool for developers and audiences alike. Finished creative products, such as books, may contain published versions of development maps; many editions of The Lord of the Rings, for example, include maps of Middle-earth. Cartography of fictional worlds is sometimes called geofiction.[25]

The

wetlands, mountains, and forests. These physical features also affect the growth and interaction of the various societies, such as the establishment of trade routes and locations of important cities.[26] Desire for control of natural resources in a fictional world may lead to war among its people. Geography can also define ecosystems for each biome. Often, Earth-like ecology is assumed, but designers can vary drastically from this trend. For example, Isaac Asimov's short story "The Talking Stone" features a life form based on silicon, rather than carbon.[27]

Some software programs can create random terrain using fractal algorithms. Sophisticated programs can apply geologic effects such as tectonic plate movement and erosion; the resulting world can be rendered in great detail, providing a degree of realism to the result.

Culture

Constructed cultures, or concultures, are a typical element of worldbuilding. Worldbuilders sometimes employ past human civilizations as a model for fictional societies. The 1990 video game Worlds of Ultima: The Savage Empire, for example, takes place in a world full of tribes based on civilizations in early Mesoamerica and Africa. This method can make a fictional world more accessible for an audience. Simon Provencher has stated as a 'Golden Rule' of worldbuilding that "... unless specified otherwise, everything inside your world is assumed to behave exactly as it would in the real world."[28] Another example is Steven S. Long, a representative of the Champions role-playing game, who stated that "Everything that happened in the real world has also unfolded in the exact same way in the Champions Universe." This means any past wars, elections, and technological advancements in our world occurred the same way in the Champions Universe unless explained otherwise.

Creating a cohesive

Belgariad
series.

Types of constructed worlds

Examples of constructed worlds include

Arda, the location of J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, in The Lord of the Rings
.

Constructed worlds are not always limited to one type of story.

Dragaera, respectively, for role-playing games before using them as settings for novels. M. A. R. Barker originally designed Tékumel well before the advent of role-playing games, but many gamers
, including Barker himself, have used it as a setting for such games.

A

Oerth, developed for the Dungeons & Dragons' Greyhawk setting. Forgotten Realms is another such D&D setting, originally a homebrew campaign world by Ed Greenwood
.

See also

Look up worldbuilding in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Wikibooks has a book on the topic of: Conworld
  • Fantasy world – Imaginary world created for fictional media
  • Fictional encyclopaedism – Literary concept
  • List of fictional universes
     – Self-consistent fictional setting with elements that may differ from the real world
  • Mythopoeia – Narrative genre in modern literature and film
  • Paracosm – Detailed imaginary world
  • Planets in science fiction
     – Planet that only appears in works of fiction

References

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  3. OCLC 1009182095.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
    )
  4. OCLC 1151513107.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
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  5. OCLC 883432427.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
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  6. ^
    OCLC 1004848638.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
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  7. OCLC 950613576.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
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  8. ^
    OCLC 851971993
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  9. OCLC 830164533
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  10. OCLC 1153082894.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
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  11. OCLC 1127387835.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
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  12. OCLC 1089274366.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link
    )
  13. ^
    OCLC 608415902
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  14. ^ "World". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  15. OCLC 905652391
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  16. ^ "Inferno". Dante 2021. 11 Jan 2021. BBC.
  17. OCLC 1733365.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link
    )
  18. ^ a b Tolkien, J. R. R. (1983), Tolkien, Christopher (ed.), "On Fairy Stories", The Monsters and the Critics and Other Essays, pp. 109–161
  19. OCLC 8628512
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  20. ISBN 0-7869-2889-1
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  21. OCLC 46649829
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  22. ISBN 1-58450-090-5
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  23. OCLC 1021810749
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  24. ISBN 0-312-06003-3
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  25. OCLC 60860826
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  26. ISBN 1-58366-016-X
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  27. ISBN 0-312-06003-3
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  28. ^ Provencher, Simon. "The Golden Rule of Worldbuilding". Worldbuilder. Simon Provencher. Retrieved 6 November 2013.

External links

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