The Simmering Mind

The worldbuilding is one of my favorite parts of any good speculative fiction novel.

I may be unusual in this, but a really great speculation – a unique “what if?” premise – can sometimes sell a book to me all by itself.

And then, if the fictional world feels real and deeper than the page, and shows me amazing things that are different from the real world around me, sometimes that wonder is enough to keep me turning pages, even if the plot is slow or plagued by poor characterization.

Every fiction writer asks, “What if?”  Even if all they do is tweak a real event to write a fictional version, they have to speculate.  But those who write science-fiction and fantasy are asking “What if?” outside the bounds of reality.

And when you write outside the bounds of reality, every “What if?” has to come with consequences.

Even a small adjustment to reality can create massive ripples.

What if people were born with neon colored hair instead of blond, brown, black, red, etc.?  That seems very superficial.  But think of the consequences.  What stereotypes would people associate with various colored hair?  Would people say, “That pink over there,” instead of, “That blonde?”  Would people dye their hair?  How would it work out genetically?  What colors are seen as most attractive?  What (dyed) tones are seen as rebellious?

You get the picture.

Sure, it’s possible to create a world that’s tweaked so minimally that it creates a very small ripple effect.  And it’s possible to ignore the ripple effect and readers may still appreciate your story for other things.

But, I argue, the more ripple you have…the more FUN it is. 😀

The wizarding world of Harry Potter is made that much more fun by the fact that wizards use their magic to do almost everything, even sweep the floors.  If you had magic, wouldn’t you??

An Example of Poor Worldbuilding

In BBC’s Merlin, we are shown a fantasy realm where generally men have more power and control than women, as they did in medieval times.

Yet every once in awhile, randomly, there will be a battle scene and women will don pants and insist on their “right” to fight alongside men…and the men will inexplicably allow this with very little protest.  Huh?

If this is an unprecedented move on the part of the women, the men have a very odd reaction to it.  And if this is something women in their culture do regularly, well…where is the ripple?  If their culture had an advanced concept of women’s rights where it was common and acceptable for women to go to battle alongside men instead of hiding or fleeing, you’d see some women training with the guys, with swords and shields.  You’d see a lot of other, different attitudes toward women, I imagine, that wouldn’t fit with the tidy medieval setting the writers put together.

And although I hate “showing my hand” and revealing that my storyworlds were, in fact, built by me, and do not actually exist… 😛 another example is from older drafts of The Kraesinia Trilogy.

My Kraesinion culture had gotten very fleshed out, but the culture of the villains, the Drivvifundians, left a lot to be desired.  Drivvs are a reptilian race.  But until recently I had never thought about this aspect of them, beyond the fact that they have scaly skin.  I’d never even considered that they were cold-blooded!

Once I finally realized that this was an important aspect to work through, a lot of things had to be taken into consideration.  How do they keep warm?  How do they get energy?  Do they sunbathe like lizards in our world do?

I realized that because they get their energy from the warmth and light of the sun, their culture is partially a sun-worshipping one.  (Religion? – that will create an even bigger ripple effect right there!)  Furthermore, the necessity of soaking up sunlight to live would heavily affect their approach to battle and strategy, and give them an advantage – or a great disadvantage – depending on the locale of the battle, the weather, and the time of day.  It would make a big difference to the Kraesinions and humans fighting against them too.

There was a huge ripple effect needed here, and it took me years to notice it!  Now (I hope) the Drivvs are a much more interesting race, with more strengths, weaknesses, and peculiarities to make them fascinating to readers.

When you pay attention to the ripple, and play through your “What ifs?” down to the smaller details and implications, your worlds will be richer, deeper, and more wondrous for it.

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What are your thoughts?  What are some great examples of worldbuilding where you saw “ripples” of the premise down to the little details?  What are some examples of tiny waves that should have been big splashes in your opinion?