FatCat
Maester
To what extent does worldbuilding effect your story, and why? It seems like a lot of writers in fantasy try to emulate a certain culture to the extent of near historical fiction, just without the actual work of prescibing to details. Sometimes I wonder if world building is an exercise in imagination beyond the narrative or if it's application forwards the role in a story. Now, I know that the world in which you set a story is imperetive, but when does those elements hinder your writing or creative vision?
Let's say I have a story about a young farmer fulfilling a prophecy (I know), how does the world you build around that narrative effect the overall narrative arch? Beyond the basics of 'when' and 'where', like, with most fantasy, Europe in ages past with knights and what-not, isn't 'how' the most important question? The idea behind the world, the reason why the stage is set in such a way.
I'm not sure if I'm conveying my thought coherently in this post. I can see a flood of posts arguing that a unique world sets the tone for a great fantasy novel, and I would not disagree, however witnessing the stress put on mundane concerns of how a certain society would act within the strict guidelines of historical reference make me believe that the whole of world building is an exercise in over-obsessivness, a willingness to sidetrack the true meaning of what you're attempting to convey into a psuedo-historical look on a fictional society.
To stream-line the idea of world-building, I believe, is the key. To understand what is important in your world that builds within the characters dillemas and obstacles and include only the briefest mention of actual, hard-thought societal creations.
This is the problem I have with world-building, and have struggled with while writing. When does the ball stop, so to speak, and when does too much homework ruin the creative process?
Let's say I have a story about a young farmer fulfilling a prophecy (I know), how does the world you build around that narrative effect the overall narrative arch? Beyond the basics of 'when' and 'where', like, with most fantasy, Europe in ages past with knights and what-not, isn't 'how' the most important question? The idea behind the world, the reason why the stage is set in such a way.
I'm not sure if I'm conveying my thought coherently in this post. I can see a flood of posts arguing that a unique world sets the tone for a great fantasy novel, and I would not disagree, however witnessing the stress put on mundane concerns of how a certain society would act within the strict guidelines of historical reference make me believe that the whole of world building is an exercise in over-obsessivness, a willingness to sidetrack the true meaning of what you're attempting to convey into a psuedo-historical look on a fictional society.
To stream-line the idea of world-building, I believe, is the key. To understand what is important in your world that builds within the characters dillemas and obstacles and include only the briefest mention of actual, hard-thought societal creations.
This is the problem I have with world-building, and have struggled with while writing. When does the ball stop, so to speak, and when does too much homework ruin the creative process?