Nalini Singh - World-Building: Laying the Foundations

If you’ve ever been in a live workshop with me, you’ll know that I’m not one for standing and lecturing. For me, a good workshop is all about interaction. So, here’s what I’m going to do. First, a short bit of cyber-lecturing to set the framework of the discussion, then I’ll open the floor up for questions/discussion. But before I begin, I want to say that nothing I say is gospel. Each writer is different, so if you disagree with me, that’s absolutely fine. Take what works for you and run with it.

Now, some quick notes.

What is world-building?

The term “world-building” tends to scare people. Often, folks will run screaming for the hills, saying that it’s too hard, too complicated. Guess what? It’s not. It simply requires a degree of organization and logic.

Of course, the level of interest, in your world will depend on the world itself. But today we’re not talking about how to create an interesting world. Instead, I’m going to focus on laying the foundations of your world, whatever that might be.

World-Building: A Rough and Ready Definition

First, a definition. Roughly speaking, world-building encompasses the vivid and realistic creation of the environment where your story takes place. It doesn’t necessarily have to be an alternate reality or a futuristic world—a regency romance involves world-building. So does a story set in the environs of Formula One racing. The critical factor is this: your reader must believe in the reality of the book, whether that reality is manufactured, present day, or in the past.

So, how do you achieve this reality?

Logic. And if you think you’re not logical, learn. I’m a very organic writer – I do complete first drafts before I know what’s going on. You don’t have to do flowcharts and spreadsheets, either. Some people do collages, others make brainstorming diagrams—find a method of keeping track of your world that works for you.

What do I mean by logic in relation to world-building?

Let’s use an example. Say in my world, all the dogs are blue. If you suddenly have a yellow dog, you have to explain why. Is the yellow dog a spectacular new breed? An unfortunate genetic experiment? Dipped in paint?
Everything must have a reason.

The example above is a silly one, but it serves to make another small but very important point—it’s not world-building if you simply rename things. I.e. If it walks like a duck, talks like a duck, it’s a duck. Every time you rename something, consider this question: What’s the point of difference? What makes this duck unique enough to no longer be considered a duck?

My next point is honesty.

Keep the faith with your readers. If you were writing a contemporary and your hero was in a wheelchair, you wouldn’t have him be miraculously healed just because the heroine needed rescuing—instead, you’d have your hero find another way to achieve his goal. The same reasoning should apply to your world.

If, for example, in your world, men can’t be soldiers, then you can’t suddenly have a male soldier because you need one to get out of a story corner. If you write yourself into a corner, find an honest way to get out of it. Don’t ever cheat a reader. They’ll remember. And they’ll come get you. ;)

But having said that, it’s okay to keep some stuff secret and expose it later. So long as the logic fits, so long as—once they know the secret—the reader is able to see how it slots into the plot. Also, a related point: maintain internal continuity in the book, and in following books if writing a series. It’s all part of keeping the faith.

What is internal continuity?

Quite simply, it’s formed by the parameters of your particular world. A very simple example: if in book 1, there’s an earthquake in the city where you set your story, you can’t have a pristine, unbroken city in book 2. The earthquake has become part of your world and must be carried through.

Romances & World-Building

And last, but definitely not least, a point that applies specifically to romances, paranormal romances in particular. While the love story is the central core of a paranormal romance, the world/paranormal element should be integral to your story.

For example, in Slave to Sensation, the fact that Sascha is Psy and Lucas is changeling is the source of the initial conflict. If we removed those aspects of their character profiles, the book would unravel.

Ask yourself if the same applies to your story. If you can delete the paranormal element and still have basically the same story, then it’s not a paranormal. It might be something else equally good, but if you want it to be a paranormal, the world has to be woven into the very fabric of the story.

That’s the lecture over. Hope you found it of some help. Any questions/comments?

For excerpts, more writing articles and other good stuff, check out my website at www.nalinisingh.com. Also if you’d like to go into a draw to win a $50 Amazon voucher, check out the fun quiz competition I’m running over at my blog www.nalinisingh.blogspot.com (look for the quiz link in the right hand column). It closes Sunday, so be quick!