Worldbuilding with humility

At the top of my reading page as of this writing is a very nice post about worldbuilding blunders in Harry Potter. By pure coincidence, these days I'm writing my first substantial piece of fiction in two years, which is way too long. And the story takes place in a brand new setting, because I couldn't make it easy on myself. Where's the fun in that?

Moreover, my modus operandi is to make it up on the go, according to the needs of the story (for reasons I explained repeatedly in the past, but briefly: Tolkien was a goddamn genius, and his insistence on building the world first still almost doomed LOTR; you're not nearly as smart, or a tenured college professor). Lacking both the skills and the inclination to do the math on everything, it would be easy for me to mess up just as badly.

The trick? Be humble! As a writer, anyway. Don't pretend you know everything about the world you're building. Who died and made you an all-knowing deity? Your characters are people, so look through their eyes. There's always going to be more of everything, just past the horizon. Leave room for it. Where else will they find mystery and adventure? ( Read more... )