Worldbuilding isn't just essential for stories set in hovering mountain ranges or arid cities on distant planets. Each character needs a home—a place that is familiar to them, even if that place isn't familiar to readers.
Does their world contain flowers and butterflies, or have they gone extinct? Are resources scarce? Do they have to worry about attacks from outsiders, or is war a distant memory? Does your character feel trapped there, or do they want to stay there forever?
Asking these kinds of questions can shape both stories in fantastical worlds and those not so far away.
When I went to browse mission trips this year, I chose a trip only one state over. Just because the city I visited was still located in America, that didn't mean everyone was able to afford basic necessities. Each city has its own struggles: droughts, trouble keeping certain items in stock, more frequent natural disasters like earthquakes, and its own brand of hidden poverty. Some cities have a more unique brand of culture, nuances that set, say, Nashville apart from Manhattan.
I often set my stories in places I know well or have at least visited before. This helps me bring in more tangible details to describe settings, climates, and native situations. I'm still not sure where to set the novel I'm planning to start next month, Pencil Pricks, so I'm hoping the NaNoWriMo week 4 exercise will help.
I'm going to pick several questions (probably altering them along the way) from the NaNo worldbuilding list and see where I end up. Here goes.
How long has your world existed?
This is one of those questions that could even be interesting in a modern day setting. Suppose your character has a different opinion on the world's origins, and that belief filters into their every day conversations. For example:
Character 1: "Did you see that news article? They're going to nuke the world at this rate."
Protagonist: "It is about time for the final extinction event. No planet can hit the billion-year mark."
Character 1: "Right...extinction."
End of conversation.
Just like real people, characters can get so wrapped up in their beliefs and expressing their opinions that they accidentally turn others off from them. Curiosity is the ultimate cure for an insular mindset, but people like this are so obsessed with being heard, they don't think to ask other people why their opinions differ.
For Pencil Pricks, the time is modern day. As much as I adore referencing the 80's and 90's in my stories, I'm not sure I could pull off setting a story back then. My character, however, may be someone who's mentally stuck in the past or longs for things to be the way they were twenty years ago.
What is considered sacred and what is profane?
This is an interesting question. I've lived in the south all my life, and many people here can be super religious. Religious, not spiritual. There's a difference. All kinds of churches exist in the greater Atlanta area, but the farther you go outside the city, more traditional churches exist. Think steeples, bells, and wooden double doors. Even if the attendees don't put the teachings of Jesus or God into practice, they may still feel the need to show up at church. Many people go because they think just being there makes them a better person. Some go because people will gossip if they don't. Small towns create this kind of atmosphere.
For Pencil Pricks, I'm thinking of giving my character, Cia, an ultra-religious mother who hangs certain things over her head. Views of right and wrong become skewed in self-righteous individuals. People who come into contact with the self-righteous rarely have good things to say. If you're related to someone who thinks they're the shining standard of human behavior, strong relationships are difficult. That person expects perfection the way they define it. If you do anything they don't agree with like cuss, drink, live with a significant other before marriage, or work on Sunday, maybe even eat dessert before lunch, they'll tell you the devil's knocking on your door.
That said, Cia is also creative. Free spirited people often have their own world views and don't respond well to someone telling them how to perceive the world around them. Cia's best friend may end up being the other side of spiritual, someone who doesn't judge and accepts Cia as she is. This fact could make it apparent that Cia struggles to separate the two, thinking all religious people are judgmental.
What is the geography/climate?
Since I've decided to set this story in the south, I'm thinking not so far south that there isn't a possibility of snow. Winters are more mild typically, but summers can swelter. Georgia is anything but flat, so the terrain includes hilly neighborhoods and mountains to the north. I may set Cia's home more where my mom lives on the cusp of rural/suburbs.
What are the distances between important places?
Cia may end up living in a guest house on her mother's property and have to commute to civilization. This could help add to her feelings of isolation and being left behind but also provide inspiration she may not get in the city. I'm thinking her main areas of interest (best friend's place, art class, favorite restaurants and hangouts) will be at least thirty minutes from her home.
How does your character feel about the world/culture they grew up in?
I can see Cia being outspoken against social injustice. She has the values of growing up with a strict, church-going mother, but she doesn't want to turn out like her—judging and closed-minded. Cia recycles as much as she can and composts for her garden area.
What does your main character's home look like?
I'm thinking her mother lives in a two-story larger home with a detached garage. Cia could live in what was originally intended as a mother-in-law suite above the garage. It has a small kitchen, hardwoods, and a bathroom, but she sleeps in a corner opposite the four-seater dinette set. It's small, but it's hers. And her mother isn't allowed to barge in. Cia's window could overlook her tiny garden area, a place she goes to relax.
Where does your main character fit into class/social status?
This question can include everything from Cia's clothing style, her speech, to what kind of car she drives. I'm picturing her stuck in the past, still driving her first car, living at home (though she moved to the in-law suite for privacy), doesn't talk much unless a topic interests her, and imagines wild scenarios she only shares with her best friend. She still wears a few pieces of clothing from when she was in high school since they still fit. Nothing with holes or stains. People used to pick on her for being poor, but her parents came back into money when she was in high school.
I will say that some of these details made me think about angles I hadn't yet. Overall, this was a useful exercise. I have much more to ponder and explore, but this is a good base for setting up who Cia is inside and out and how others may perceive her. I plan to add lots of humor and quirks into this story, and this has brought me one step closer.
Keep on smilin'!
Yorumlar