LTUE Presentation: 7 Steps to World Building

World Building Worksheet

Step 1: What are the shadows of reality?

• Is it based on a historical/current civilization?

• How does it differ from that one, if so?

• What role does language play?

Step 2: What are their values?

• What the most important things to the people in your world?

• What are the scarcities?

• What makes life worth living?

• What conflicts can arise from these values/scarcities?

Step 3: What is the physical geography?

• What are the major geographical features? (rivers, mountains, lakes, oceans, canyons, caves, etc.)

• What are the major climates/biomes in your world?

• How do natural boundaries/barriers affect the people who live there?

Step 4: What is the political geography?

• What nations/kingdoms/tribes inhabit your world?

• What are their general relationships with each other? How has this changed over time?

• What are the potential conflicts caused by opposing interests between these groups?

• What do these conflicts mean for your characters?

Step 5: What would daily life be like for the protagonist(s)?

• What aspects of their life should you focus on?

• What conflicts will your characters have with society/each other? What don’t your characters have that they want and what is opposing them?

• What does the protagonist want to change?

Step 6: What are the most interesting/vibrant details of the world?

• What would a person from our society dropped into this world notice right away?

• What things could you mention that will cause a positive emotional response in your readers?

Step 7: What is the secret sauce?

• What is the magic/technology/other system that defines power in your society?

• Do you want this to be well-defined or mysterious?

• If it is well-defined, what rules does it have?

• How will this factor affect the plot and the lives of your characters?