{"id":11334,"date":"2019-04-03T03:00:54","date_gmt":"2019-04-03T10:00:54","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/?p=11334"},"modified":"2025-09-04T15:59:43","modified_gmt":"2025-09-04T22:59:43","slug":"prepare-your-novel-for-nanowrimo-with-world-building","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2019\/04\/03\/prepare-your-novel-for-nanowrimo-with-world-building\/","title":{"rendered":"Plan Your Novel with World Building"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Today is the fourth<\/strong> in an 8-post series on preparing your novel. In today’s post, we focus on world building, an essential aspect of creating a compelling story. <\/strong>(Updated: Originally written in 2014.)<\/p>\n

If you missed it, the first<\/strong> step in your novel preparation is your elevator pitch<\/a>\u00a0and the second<\/strong> step is crafting your story synopsis<\/a>. The third<\/strong> post on preparing your characters is here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Keep in mind:<\/strong> Take note of your genre. This will give you a general ideal of\u00a0the kind of world your readers expect, so you can give that to them, and also surprise them.<\/p>\n

Time to budget:<\/strong> I recommend you take 60-90 minutes<\/strong>\u00a0to do this exercise for each of your main characters.<\/p>\n

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World Building Brainstorming Topics & Questions<\/h2>\n
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  1. Language — Does your world have different languages? How did they evolve?<\/li>\n
  2. Origin Tales — How did the world came to be?<\/li>\n
  3. Folklore \u2013 What is your favorite childhood folktale or fairytale?<\/li>\n
  4. Family tree \u2013 What do you know about your family tree?<\/li>\n
  5. Jobs\/professions — What kind do people have? Do men and women divide work, share it? What kind of training do your characters receive, if any? How are they trained and by whom?<\/li>\n
  6. Gender roles \u2013 What are people’s attitudes about gender roles?<\/li>\n
  7. Clothing\/Costumes — How do people dress? What do your characters wear and why? Where does fabric come from? Who makes it?<\/li>\n
  8. Weather — Does your place have four seasons?<\/li>\n
  9. Flora & Fauna \u2013 What are some of the important or relevant animals and plants where you are<\/li>\n
  10. Food — How it’s planted\/harvested\/hunted\/gathered? What do people eat and when? How it’s cooked? Who cooks? What’s poisonous?<\/li>\n
  11. Geography \u2013 What are the main geographical regions of your land?<\/li>\n
  12. Annual Rituals — What is important to your world and why? How do you celebrate weddings, funerals, birthdays, puberty, other?<\/li>\n
  13. Technology \u2013 What kind of technology exists? How is it powered? Who creates it? What training do they need?<\/li>\n
  14. Animals \u2013 Are there any special or magical animals in your world<\/li>\n
  15. Religion\/Spirituality \u2013 What are their beliefs and how will they create conflict and why.?<\/li>\n
  16. Magic \u2013 What are the rules and boundaries around magic?<\/li>\n
  17. Politics\/Power \u2013 Who is in power and why? How is power transferred to the next generation? What people do or don’t do to get close to powerful people?<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n
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     <\/p>\n

    Here’s an image to share or pin and use for your world building brainstorming!<\/h2>\n
    \"World<\/a>

    World Development: 17 Topics to Brainstorm by Beth Barany, author of PLAN YOUR NOVEL LIKE A PRO<\/p><\/div>\n

     <\/p>\n

    For Further Reading on World Building<\/h2>\n