How do you build your fantasy world?

[cornu aspersum]

I mostly plaster together things that I find interesting (monsters, exploring how cultures and organisms may develop...), and try and think of a way all the aspects that I like can be part of a coherent, satisfying setting.

 

[Gurkhal]

As a matter of potential interest I am at current constructing a fantasy world. Its lots of general ideas and a, fairly, vague outline which are put down along with a ton of notes from brainstorming. The plan is to cook them together later on into a coherent whole once I have sufficient material to work with.

 

[Miles Lacey]

I begin at the micro level. What do the main characters wear when they're just chilling out as opposed to what they wear when they're working or meeting up with friends or an authority figure? What's the weather like? What do people eat and drink in this part of the world? Is the community they live in big or small and is it an important place or an obscure place at the arse end of nowhere? What jobs do people do and what sort of businesses operate? How do they get from place to place? What does the housing look like and what influences how they look? Are the main characters religious and, if so, what gods do they worship and how do they worship? Do they have telephones and electricity powered devices? Do they have steam or diesel powered stuff? And how much does the government, religion and culture influence or intrude upon the day-to-day lives of the main characters and the community they live in? And what role does magic and mythological beasts play in the daily lives of the main characters?

I make notes about such stuff and research anything I'm not sure about so that it feels authentic enough that you can feel the heat of the rain on your bare skin, smell the weed being smoked by the old men playing board games in a porch and see the girls washing themselves underneath the water pouring off the roofs.

The big picture stuff only comes later. That's because the big picture stuff is good to know but not necessarily important enough to include it in the story.