Tag: Worldbuilding

Saturday Setup: Magic – Establishing Rules

Ariel Paiement

Introduction

This week’s discussion is about magic. What good would any discussion of fantasy do if you didn’t go over magic? Since most sub-genres of fantasy include magic to one degree or another, this is an important thing to cover. We’ll begin our discussion with a talk about establishing rules, and next week, we’ll go over different systems of magic.

Why Bother with Rules?

The first obvious reason for this is to avoid chaos. If a spell does one thing today and another tomorrow, you might have material for a hilarious comedy, but nothing would ever work out according to plan. Your characters could never really learn magic because nothing is ever the same on any given day. 

But there’s a larger reason. While it might be amusing to have a magic system that has no rules and where anything could happen at any time, readers expect stability. They expect writers to lay down the rules. Of course, you won’t just say right up front what those rules are, but gradually, as they see more and more use of magic in your story, they will figure out what is and is not possible. 

This, of course, means that you need to know the rules.

Establishing Rules

Now that we’ve covered the reason you need rules, let’s talk about establishing them. It pays to go through a little bit of planning before you start writing. Now, you don’t have to go crazy with it before you start writing. If you really love worldbuilding, then feel free to go through an extensive, in-depth process to create your magic system prior to writing, but if you’re the sort who isn’t keen on spending months or even weeks on this, don’t stress. You don’t have to. Don’t believe the lie that you need to put countless hours into this or any other aspect of world-buillding prior to writing. It simply isn’t the case.

However, you should take some time to think through the basic rules. How does the magic work? Is it a spell-based system? Do people inherently have an ability? Is it a combination of both? For example, on Alcardia where the Pathways series takes place, the system allows for both. Some people are born with magic inherently. These people can use on of a few areas of magic and only a very specific portion of it. Ie: a water mage might be able to manipulate water or he might be able to create it, not both. But there are also those who can’t use magic inherently at all, and these individuals use spells to remain competitive with those who can use magic. So you’re not locked into one way of doing things, but you do need to have a system, and you need to know what can and can’t happen in that system.

For example, if we take Alcardia’s system, I would need to have a very good reason for why someone would have an ability that isn’t related to earth, water, air, fire, mental, or physical magic. (As an aside, I do in fact have those who can wield darkness and light, so I had to have an explanation for it.) If I had a character who could do more than one thing with his element (such as create and manipulate water), I would have to have a really good explanation for it because that isn’t how the system works.

This will help to prevent you from going insane trying to remember all the things you’ve already done and trying to figure out where to go next in an unpredictable system. It gives you clear boundaries, and if you go outside of them, it forces you to have a good reason. As in, a very, very good reason because neither your story nor your reader can accept random breaks in the system rules just to accommodate what you think would be cool. That kind of addition is best saved for other magic systems based around that exception or for fiction pieces you wrote for your enjoyment with no intention of letting them see the light of day.

Consequences

Another point here, when you’re establishing rules, is to avoid creating a system with no give and take. Nothing is free. If your hero could use magic to solve every problem with no fear of consequences, then why wouldn’t he? And when he does, you lose your story or risk making it entirely unbelievable. So, every action should have some sort of consequence to it. That could be that if they try to go beyond a certain amount of energy, they tap into their life force and may die. Or maybe it’s that if they use it, it could take something away from them, something that they’ll never be able to choice for themselves. This could be anything from losing memories to losing something or someone they care about very deeply. But there has to be some consequence or risk that keeps the individuals in the story (at least, the good guys) from using magic to surmount every obstacle with ease.

An Important Note

Please notice that I haven’t told you how you should build your rules or what rules you can and can’t have. This is fantasy. As long as the system remains true to itself, you can do just about anything. The point I want to get across here is that if you’re using magic in your fantasy novel, you absolutely must have established rules to govern it. 

Conclusion

Magic is often an integral part of fantasy, so making sure that you have a system that works and has clear structure is an important part of planning and world-building for any fantasy novel that includes it. Take some time to think about how you might be able to limit and structure your world’s ability to use magic. Make sure you write it down though because you don’t want to lose it or forget what you set out for the system, particularly if the book is the beginning of a series or an entire saga of books that requires the use that system.

Flash Fiction Fridays – Unseelie

Ariel Paiement

This one is a bit of a one off from a world-building exercise I did. I’ll probably be writing a post about the method I used in a Thursday Technicalities, but that might be a bit in coming. I’m undecided on whether or not I’ll make a short story or novel out of this flash fiction, but we’ll see. Here you are!

~~~

I touch the flaking paint and peeling gold gilding of the doors, almost afraid of what might be behind them. But I also know it could be the only way out of here. I can’t go back down the dimly lit corridor I followed here, after all. So, I swallow the fear and press the door open just a crack, just enough to peek through.

The first thing I see is the man at the center of the room. The room itself is in shambles and looks to be empty aside from him. No noise is made, and I am certain I gave no indication of my presence. The door hinges didn’t make any noise earlier. But he knows I am here. He watches me from beneath long lashes, his irises a startling citrine. His clothing is immaculate, unlike the rest of the ballroom. A tailored suit and waistcoat with nice shoes. But his hair is unruly, giving him a wild look. And then he smiles at me, and I shiver. Out of fear or anticipation, I can’t say. Something about him both terrifies and warms me. 

The floor around him is dusty, and the light coming through the dingy window just behind him casts the edge of some kind of platform into sharp relief against the floor. Yet, somehow, he doesn’t cast a shadow. In that room of decay and despair, he fits in but also stands apart. His wild hair indicates a carelessness that the room’s occupants reflected in letting the curtains be eaten by moths and time unheeded, but his clothes are immaculate. An enigma in every way, even if he did appear to be somewhat at home in the otherwise empty room.

I crack the door a little more and peer past him at the strange crack in the wall that’s emitting an unearthly glow. What could it be? Some sort of portal, maybe? It doesn’t look safe, whatever it is. I can’t see past the light no matter how hard I strain, but I catch some chords of an ethereal, haunted melody drifting through the room to where I’m standing.

“Will you hide there all day, daughter of the shadows?” His voice is silky and sultry, meant entirely to charm.

I shiver and shake my head, backing away from the door. Something about this feels wrong. I never get the chance to run. He has me in his grasp the second I turn away from the doors, determined to find another way. His musk and pine scent envelops me, both soothing and frightening at the same time. How is that even possible?

I struggle against his grip, but he easily pins me to the wall just outside the dimly-lit ballroom.

“You want out of here, yes?”

I nod, go limp and hope he’ll loosen his grip. He doesn’t.

“What if I’m the only way?”

My gaze drops to his belt, searching for any way I might fend him off. His belt holds a single blade, unsheathed and tucked through a loop. But one look tells me all I need to know. I won’t touch it. It whispers to me of arcane things and darkness, of the Seelie and the Unseelie, and worst of all, of war and disaster. Shuddering, I look away. It gives no sign that it might harm its owner or even me, but something about it is simply unsettling.

The man gives me a feral grin. “I asked a question. What if I am your only escape?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“That if you want to escape this cursed mansion, you will have to come to me.” He leans closer until his lips brush the shell of my ear. “It’s a simple choice. Die here or take just a single sip from my cup.”

“Your cup?” I peer at the wall across from us as if it might contain answers and try not to notice how closely his body presses against mine. 

“I left it in the ballroom when I came to fetch you.” He pulls away and grabs my wrist, tugging me through the doors. “You can either drink from it or starve to death in this place.”

“Why isn’t there an escape?”

His grip tightens. “Because of fate. Or because of whatever it is that will make you feel better about what is going to happen.”

My gut clenches. I stare at the object that is resting under the unfiltered brilliance of the strange crack in the wall. An odd liquid that looks silver in nature swirls about in the cup. “You want me to drink that? It looks like it might kill me.”

He forces me to my knees before kneeling beside me. “It won’t. Just one sip. One tiny sip, and you’ll be freed.”

I reach out and pick up the cool metal cup. “Just one?”

“Just one.”

Sucking in a deep breath, I lift the cup to my lips and take a tiny sip of the liquid. At first, a sweet and spicy tang fills my mouth. Then the bitterness hits, and I gag, choking on what I swallowed. It burns all the way down my throat and sets a fire in my belly. The warmth isn’t unpleasant, but I don’t like it all the same. “What is this stuff?”

He gives me a mysterious smile, and the liquid in the cup begins to change to gas, billowing out of the cup and flowing over me. It seeps into my pores and invades my nose, drying my throat and leaving the same cloying taste of sweet, spicy, and bitter on my tongue. “W-what have you done?”

He laughed and laced his fingers through mine as every nerve in my body burned and ached. “Made you mine.”

~~~

That’s it for this post, everyone! If you have something you’d like to see for future Flash Fiction Fridays, feel free to leave the suggestion in the comments below!

Saturday Setups: Resources

Ariel Paiement

Introduction

Resources are an important part of worldbuilding. Most cities are built near commonly needed resources like large bodies of water or places with rich fields for farming. Civilization doesn’t get far if there isn’t enough resource-rich land to support a growing metropolis. This has held true in history, and it still holds true in fantasy or any other type of world-building. So, let’s take a look at some of the resources your civilization might build up around.

Water

This one is a bit of an obvious one, but most cities don’t build where there isn’t an accessible water source. This might be a river, a major oasis, or a place with rich places to build wells. But a city must have water to survive, so no city will grow up to be a major metropolis without water to support its people.

Precious Metals

This one isn’t as obvious, but cities may build up around places where mining for precious metals and ore can be done. This gives them a good trading resource, and it also gives them the ability to make their own currency. As a result, this is a resource that civilizations founding new cities may look for. Even if they started out as just a settlement in an area with a vein of precious metal ore, the presence of that resource often results in growth later on. 

Precious Stones

Similarly, precious stones can be another reason a place becomes home to a city. People are willing to pay a great deal to gain precious stones for any purpose from jewelry to currency for big ticket items. They can be used to trade, and in fantasy worlds, they may even be able to hold some sort of special magical ability. As this is the case, depending on what uses the world as a whole has for this resource, cities can grow up around it quite easily.

Salt

This one is another less-than-intuitive option, but some cities can grow up around salt flats because salt is a commodity and also essential for preserving food in societies with no way of refrigerating. And if you have a world where witchcraft is a thing, then maybe salt is a special ingredient for them too. It all depends. The possibilities open to you with this resource are endless, and the more uses this resource has, the more likely it is someone will want to build a city near a location with salt flats.

Wood

Another important resource is wood. Building in an area that has lots of forest offers the opportunity to build structures that might be impossible to build without it. It also allows for carving and craftsmanship that couldn’t be accomplished with other materials. It allows for the creation of paper as well, if the people living there are advanced enough to know the process for creating it with trees. Regardless, at any stage, building a city in or near a forest can provide the city with valuable resources they might not be able to access otherwise.

Wild Game

If your civilization is a hunting community, this one is especially important. The presence of various types of animals provides them with both food and furs and pelts to trade. As can be seen in American history, the fur trade can be quite lucrative, so even if your civilization isn’t mainly hunter-gatherer-based, it may still grow around the fur trading capacities the location offers.

Farmable Land

This is a big one for civilizations that are settling down and trying to stay in one place. Often, the need for land that’s arid and good for crops leads to destruction of the forests in those areas so that farmers can plant their crops. This also offers a huge area of trade because farmable land allows people to grow so many different things. If that city or small kingdom owns most of the farmable land, they may become quite wealthy by trading their crops for other things neighboring cities and kingdoms have that they can’t produce for themselves. The other good thing about farmable land, of course, is that it provides a way to keep various herd animals, which can go a long way toward sustaining the civilization.

Conclusion

These are just a few of the many resources available, of course. However, they’re some of the common ones that cities and kingdoms may grow up around, so they’re worth mentioning. Have one you’d like to add? Feel free to leave it in the comments below!  

Saturday Setups: Government

Ariel Paiement

Introduction

Next up in our discussion on world building is government. Governmental systems impact daily life in so many ways it would be impossible to cover everything, but here I’ll go over some of the major considerations and how different choices will impact your story. Depending on your choice, the differences in how life goes for your characters in your novel and how life could’ve been for them will be great.

Types of Governmental Systems

Before we talk about how governmental systems impact daily life, let’s discuss what kinds of systems are available to you. There are quite a few options, and each has different features, though in some cases, certain structures may share some features.

Monarchy

This one is one of the most common systems for fantasy. With a monarchy, there is only one ruler, though sometimes that ruler may have a spouse who shares that power with them. Either way, the ultimate power is vested in one individual. This individual writes the law, and in many cases, this ruler is the law. Which it is depends on the motto of the person in power. Some monarchies may have some kind of parliament, but how much power they hold is up to the monarch.

Oligarchy

This one is less commonly known or seen in fantasy, but it still bears note. In an oligarchy, multiple people are in charge. This could be a parliamentary system with no monarch or a ruler who is mostly a figurehead. It could also simply be a group of men and women who have all of the power. Perhaps the high-ranking nobility are running the show or members of the military are in charge sharing the power amongst themselves.  Either way, an oligarchy centers the power on a couple of very powerful individuals who stay in power by running everything.

Democracy

A democracy is much different from the previous two systems. With this system, it is the people as a whole who decide. Majority rules, and the interests of society are determined by the popular opinion. This system rarely works well on any large scale because once a lot of people are introduced to the system, voting becomes next to impossible if everyone is to have a say on every decision. Nonetheless, it is a system of government that can be employed in smaller communities.

Constitutional Republic

This system, which is the one the States employ, combines the popular opinion with some sort of structure. It does so by having the people elect officials to represent them. The particulars, of course, on how to make the representation work, when to have elections, and how to ensure everyone has a voice through that representation all depends on the people building the system from the beginning. This system allows the idea of democracy to function on a large scale because the people still have the power, but they aren’t required to vote on everything pertaining to the governance of their society. This, of course, is a good thing when you consider how many decisions have to be made for an entire nation.

Dictatorship

This one is one of the better known structures since we’ve seen plenty of examples. In this governmental structure, one individual is in charge and keeps power by controlling the people through military and state power. While in some cases a dictator may be benevolent, this is usually not the case. Dictators are often overthrown in favor of a democracy or some other form of government as a result of their cruelty and selfishness.

Governmental Structure’s Impact on Society

While there are other governmental structures, I listed the major ones above for your reference. Now that we’ve gone through them, let’s look at how this will impact daily life for your societies under the rulership of these various systems and their authorities.

Monarchy

In a monarchy, life can vary greatly depending on the king or queen in charge. Some may do what is best for the country and love their people dearly while others may rule with selfishness and a heavy hand. How this plays out is also determined by who is on the advisory board or council and who is in their senate/parliament, if they have one. Depending on how much power is given to the parliament or senate in the monarchy, they may have the ability to check the monarch if they see poor decisions being made, but in most cases, the monarch will set the tone for everyone as he is the sole party responsible for the laws. As a writer, your job is to determine what sort of monarch your monarchy has at the point of your story as well as how much power they have. Once this has been decided, you can work from there to determine what life will be like for your people underneath this form of government.

Oligarchy

Again, how life works out for your character depends largely upon who is in charge. This system does offer a bit more in the way of checks and balances because multiple people have to agree with one another. The problem is that most oligarchies are going to be constructed of like-minded individuals, and they aren’t chosen by the people. This leaves the people in a situation where their lives can be made easier or harder based upon who is in power from year to year. Historically, both monarchies and oligarchies have led to a mix of prosperity and extreme poverty. 

Keep in mind that when one or a few people are in charge, this can lead to religious and class persecution depending on how strongly the ruler(s) holds to one opinion or another. (An example of this in history, for instance, would be the Pilgrims leaving England due to intense religious persecution and violation of conscience as England’s king demanded they go to a state church that didn’t fit with Scripture. This, of course, is only one of many examples in our history.) This may leave you with an interesting avenue for conflict as a result of dissonance between the government and a certain set of people who believe differently or are in a hated class of people.

Democracy

Unless your government is only legislating for a very small group of people, democracy is going to make life very difficult for at least some group of people. Essentially, democracy always leads to mob rule. Whoever has the loudest voice and the most backing gets their way, leaving the minorities left out and often facing extreme hardship as a result of what the majority decided without them. Be careful in using this system because, unless you want a society where mob rule is the order of the day, this system may leave your character in one of the groups who is on the fringe and facing extreme difficulties. This could, again, provide an interesting backdrop for a story, but it’s important for you to understand how hard this could make things for your characters.

Constitutional Republic

This system of government is, historically, more likely to raise the living conditions of everyone in the country. While not everyone will get what they want all of the time, it offers a real chance for the public to be involved in their government with a voice that can be heard. Because of this, on the whole, the citizens of countries with this kind of governmental system feel more empowered to get involved and may be more informed on what is going on within legislative bodies. It also results in, typically, a much higher standard of living and higher prosperity within a country. If you want a highly stable form of government that will give your character a background in an affluent part of your world, this is a very good governmental model to consider. (Monarchies can also, in some cases, sustain the kind of wealth needed for this background, but usually only the nobility and royalty had access to that kind of power or wealth.)

Dictatorship

This one almost guarantees that your society will have a low level of affluence, difficulties in even the most basic parts of life, and a poverty level that is astounding. While this isn’t always the case, the pattern in history has been that dictatorships are unstable, lead to rebellions, and result in a great deal of suffering for the people underneath the dictator. This is an important thing to keep in mind about this form of government. If you want a character who has lived in the worst of conditions or been the one to perpetrate those living conditions on others, this is a great form of government to fit those needs.

Conclusion

Obviously, this is just an overview of government and how it affects day-to-day life and living conditions. Do you have other ways that these systems of government can affect life? If so, feel free to share in the comments! Because government is such a big part of how we live our lives, it’s an essential part of planning your world. The more thought you can give to how your world’s governments will work and impact your story, the better this portion of your story will be.

That’s it for this week, everyone! Have a great weekend!

Saturday Setup: Building Societies – Rank and Gender Factors

Ariel Paiement

Introduction

Last week, we discussed how language factors into your society. Now we’re going to talk about how rank and gender can play a role. There are many different ways societies deal with these two things. Just look around at the cultures around the world, and you’ll see that. So let’s take a look at some options you have.

Rank-based Societies

Rank based societies can be set up in a lot of different ways. It could be that the society is similar to Asian societies where elders and family authority figures are to be highly respected and obeyed (as a general rule of thumb). Or, perhaps, it is more a caste system like India has. The options vary and can result in a multitude of arrangements.

Once this is decided, of course, it affects all kinds of things about relationships with people. Since we talked about it last week, languages can be affected by rank. Some languages, like Japanese, use honorifics or have more formal versions of the same word to indicate great respect for those high above you in rank. This also can be done in a variety of ways, such as using prefixes or suffixes on names or using polite tenses. These are just a few options.

In the end, rank-based societies will focus entirely on whatever hierarchy has been set into place, and their rules will tend to center on it too. Many things end up being affected, so you have to consider how rank might affect your society if you choose this option.

Gender-Based Societies

On this one, it isn’t so much rank as it is which gender one is that determines honor, privilege, and part in society. This might manifest in a manner both patriarchal or matriarchal. Or, perhaps there is no organized patriarch or matriarch structure, but perhaps instead women and men have gender-specific roles and don’t step out of them.

This really doesn’t even have to be applied solely to those societies where one of the sexes is suppressed or mistreated, though it certainly could be the case. It may also apply to societies where men and women are equal but simply have different roles to play and things that their counterpart is able to do that they cannot, not because they aren’t capable but because it simply isn’t their place or concern. In this way, gender can be a basis for the society without degrading one gender or another.

Mixed Societies

Some societies may work off a system that mixes gender and rank. These societies may place the two genders into a class of jobs or roles they can play based on gender, give the genders rankings in relation to each other (ie: men outranking women or vice versa), and rank each gender against others of their own gender within the class of jobs and roles they’re filling (ie: one man outranks another within the government or a woman outranks another woman in a midwife practice.

Conclusion

Rank and gender typically do play some role in society. Even in a society that doesn’t focus on gender, rank does usually come into play because some sort of authority structure must be set up, and that necessitates having some people who have higher rank or authority than others. Taking the time to consider this aspect of your growing society will help to round everything out and give you a concrete idea of how the people in your story will interact with others around them.

Arguably, this is one of the most important things to figure out for your society because it affects your characters directly in how they will relate to people of the opposite sex, superiors, colleagues, and subordinates.

Have another way rank or gender can affect a society in world-building? Feel free to share it in the comments! If you have a question, feel free to leave that in the comments too. I hope this helps you and offers a sound place to start in determining these aspects of your society and culture.

Saturday Setups: Building Societies – Culture-Unique Factors

Ariel Paiement

Introduction

Last time, we discussed how location impacts the societies you’re building for your world. This week, on Saturday Setup, we’re going to talk about how culture-unique factors can also affect your world and its societies. Culture has a very obvious impact on society, one that most of us probably understand more readily than we do the idea of location playing a role. So, let’s dive in. This one won’t be as long since we probably all have some basic level of understanding of the subject.

Culture’s Role in Developing Society

Each society has different rules and structures. We all intuitively know that the things we’re able to say or do in the US, say, versus the things we can do and say in Japan without being rude vary a great deal. Why is this? Well, it’s largely due to culture. How we were raised and what our culture says is acceptable, whether right or wrong, has a lot to do with what we do and don’t do.

It can affect a lot of things about a society, such as how people dress, what they eat, and what they can or can’t say. It even can result in changes in how different genders or age groups relate to each other. Some cultures in real life have a society where younger children and women don’t get much say or aren’t to question a man’s authority in public (sometimes even in private). Other cultures are much more open and allow for behavior in women and children that would be seen as horrifying and rebellious in a stricter culture. So what your society’s culture is and what it has been built around greatly affects what will and will not pass in your society.

Culture’s Role in the Legal System

Depending on how diverse your sub-cultures are within a culture and depending on the governmental structure, your legal system could be affected by the culture. Think about the US, for example. Here, we have things like southern culture or inner city culture, and we just know the difference when we see a person from one of those sub-cultures. There’s a difference in beliefs, in appearance (sometimes), and in behavior. What one sub-culture finds acceptable may not be okay in the other. This comes out in how those two sub-cultures vote, deal with legal matters, and make judgment calls on law. If those people are in positions of power, they may have even more ability to sway things in favor of their sub-culture than a normal person would. Again, this depends on the governmental system, which we’ll talk about later on. But for now, understand that what you set up for culture and sub-culture within your society matters. It will affect your government and legal system to some extent, and it pays off to consider this if the government or legal system will factor into your story in any important way.

Culture’s Role in the Home

This is the last one we’ll discuss because it should have a bearing no matter what story you’re telling. Everyone has some sort of family or upbringing, and culture definitely plays heavily on this one. Your culture will make all the difference on how your parents dealt with issues of disobedience, training you, and teaching you right from wrong, among other things. The same goes for a fictional world. Who your characters are as children, parents, and just as adults in their society will be shaped largely by how they grew up, and their culture affects this.

Take some time to consider what your society’s beliefs are. How do those beliefs impact what they think about raising children? About marriage? About the home in general? Your fictional society will also have a set of beliefs that dictates these things. People may go outside of them, follow them, or bend them, but they’re there within the culture. There is some sort of norm that people look to when judging whether or not a family is normal or abnormal. That’s just how humans work. We categorize things, and we constantly want to see if those we’re around and we ourselves fit the mold. This isn’t any different. So consider your world’s culture carefully on this matter. It’s going to change a lot about each society you create.

Conclusion

Hopefully, you can see that culture affects much about daily life for societies. It’s important and shouldn’t be ignored. Many things in world-building can be skimped on or ignored entirely if they’re not needed for the story. But if you want a world that feels authentic, don’t ignore this aspect. It gives each society featured in your story its own, unique flavor, and that’s absolutely vital to creating a believable world where the reader’s suspension of belief isn’t destroyed.

As usual, if you have other ways that you’ve used culture in world-building, feel free to share it in the comments below! I’d love to hear about it. Have a question? Leave those in the comments below too. If you have a suggestion for a future topic you’d like to hear about, I’d love to hear that too. You can send it to me at arielpaiement@gmail.com. If it’s something I can cover, you may see it sometime in the future on the blog!

Saturday Setup: Building Societies – Location Factors

Ariel Paiement

Introduction

We’re finished with the mapping section of the world-building discussion, so now we’re going to look at building societies and the factors that go into that! The mapping you did in the previous sections will come into play here, so if you haven’t read those articles yet, you’ll want to do so and come back to this.

This week’s discussion centers on the location factors that shape a society. We touched on this briefly in the global mapping sector, but now we’re going to take a closer look because location plays a big role in what kind of society is built there.

Location’s Role in Societal Structure

Yes, location can play a role in the structure of your society or culture. If the place your cultural group is located forces them to be hunters and gatherers, then the society may develop as a male-dominant society because, usually, the men tend to be the ones hunting and providing for the women and children.

If the infrastructure of the location has allowed the society to develop into more of a farming and trading setup, things might be more even because women (unless government or family structure dictates otherwise) are capable of doing various jobs or working alongside the men. They aren’t as reliant upon their guy to provide. It doesn’t mean that they won’t. It just means that things will probably be more even with the two parties acting as partners instead of one dictating everything.

Lots of other things can affect the way your societal structure develops here, but location and what is available to shape the people’s way of life will have some influence on this as well.

Location’s Role in Dress and Daily Life

The way location plays a role in these is probably more obvious. If your environment is a steamy jungle, you’re not going to dress like an Eskimo. The reverse is also true. No one in an arctic environment is going to go out wearing a loincloth or cotton shift. It just doesn’t end well. So where the society is located will dictate how they dress.

It also dictates daily life. As I mentioned above, some societies might be set-up for hunting and gathering while others may be focused on trade and agriculture. These two ways of life are very different and result in very different average days for the people living those lives. Knowing what type of location you have and what impact it makes on lifestyle is extremely important because it’s going to determine a lot about a character coming out of that culture.

Location’s Role in Shaping Characters

This one very directly relates to your story. The skill sets of your characters will depend to a large degree upon where they live. If they’ve never lived anywhere with snow or ice, they’re probably not going to know how to ski or how one might go about tracking in the snow. On the flip side, someone who never lived in a jungle environment wouldn’t know how to gather food, figure out what plants were edible or poisonous, or find clean water.

Not only that, since location shapes the culture they grow up with, the things they’re taught and what they feel is appropriate or inappropriate will vary accordingly.

Characters from temperate or cold zones might look as a character who dresses in nearly see-through cotton dresses as being either crazy or scandalous because they would never wear anything like that, even inside out of the cold. The character from the warmer climates would look at the character from a cold zone and think the same thing about some of their traditions and manners.

This is something that’s important to consider as you’re building the society. Make note of places where cultures will differ and might clash. By taking these notes now as you build the necessary cultures or societies, you’ll lessen your work later when you build characters from those places. You’ll already know what basic things they should think are right and wrong, strange or normal, and crazy or sane just based on the culture they’re from.

Location’s Effect on Infrastructure

This is another place where location has a big impact. Living in a zone prone to tornadoes will necessitate infrastructure that is much different from a society that deals with sandstorms.

The main thing to think about here is what the location’s climate is like and what kind of weather might be endured. From there, determine what kinds of features the buildings and structures of the society might have developed to deal with this.

Places that endure terrible storms might end up building houses that are squat and low with slanted rooftops to help with wind-resistance. But a place that deals with constant flooding might build their houses up on stilts to keep the lower levels from being flooded every time it rains.

These are just a few ways that infrastructure might be adapted for location. Take time to figure out what your societies’ infrastructures need to look like for their locations.

Conclusion

As you can see, location impacts a great deal about the society you end up building there. Considering these factors will help you to avoid inconsistency or lack of believability later on in your story.

Do you have other thoughts on how location can affect the societies built there? If so, feel free to share those in the comments!

Work-In-Progress Wednesdays #9

Ariel Paiement

Hey, everybody! We’re on week 9 of Work-In-Progress Wednesday, and today’s excerpt is from Bane of Ashkarith! The book is launching on the 31st of July but is available for preorder on the 14th on Amazon and Kobo!

~~~

Night had fallen. The workers outside were finishing up, and the candles were guttering on the table near his work. Kaidan straightened and twisted to pop his back. He’d finally pieced together all the clues to determine the location where Banach had hidden the scrolls the journal spoke of.  He jotted it down, his heart thumping against his ribcage, and then sat back, staring at it in disbelief. How could it be located there? Did this place even exist anymore?

The voice of his wife and the workers’ headman drew closer, and he listened to her talking to the man. “Respect is important to everyone in this situation, I know. So, since we’ve proven what we came to prove, we’ll be finishing up with the dig tomorrow.”

“Much appreciated, ma’am. I’ll inform the workers.”

“See that they’re careful when they rebury the remains, please.” His wife pulled aside the flap and ducked inside the tent as she spoke.

“Understood, ma’am. They’ll be told to take care.” The headman glanced inside the tent. “Evening, Master Kaidan.”

Kaidan smiled at the man. “Good evening, Leotwo.”

The man’s gaze wandered around the inside of the tent. Then he returned Kaidan’s smile and ducked his head. “Well, I’ll take my leave for the evening, then.”

The two of them bid him farewell, but Kaidan’s attention was only partially on the headman and the current situation. His wife sat down on the mat beside him, tracing her fingers down his spine. “What’s that?” She pointed at the paper he was holding loosely in his fingers.

“The location.” He crumpled the paper in his fist.

“And?”

“You’re right… It is a suicide mission.” His stomach dropped, and he wondered what they were thinking. They couldn’t do this, could they?

“But where do we have to go?” She began massaging the knots out of his shoulders.

He closed his eyes, groaning when she hit a sensitive spot between his shoulder blades. “Ashkarith. We have to go to Ashkarith.”

“Ashkarith?” His wife’s hands stilled against his back. “No one even knows for sure if the city still exists, though.”

Kaidan sucked in a deep breath. “I know…”

“The jungle supposedly reclaimed it, Kaidan. How are we going to find that?”

Kaidan shrugged. He didn’t know that either. Only that it would be one Rith-cursed nightmare to do it. “No one will trek in there, and the captains of those new-fangled flying ships refuse to fly over the spot. They say it’s cursed.”

“That doesn’t answer how we’ll find it. That just means we’re going alone.” She resumed kneading knots from his stiff muscles.

“I know. We’re going to go to the city of Arabhin. It’s the closest to the former city’s location, and if anyone knows whether or not the city survived the jungle and where to find it, it’ll be the natives.” He slumped over the table to give his wife better access to his back and the sore muscles.

“But that’s still deep in the jungle. No one will fly us there.”

“True, but we might be able to find someone to lead us there.” Kaidan sighed as his wife’s nimble fingers removed the aches and tension in his back.

“Kaidan, you know what’s said about the Faelkishians.” Zerua wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his back.

Kaidan snickered. “Come bearing gifts unless you want to be eaten alive?”

She smacked his side lightly. “You know that’s not what they say.”

Kaidan sat up and drew her into his arms, stretching out on the mat with her beside him. Perhaps it was the wrong time to joke around about the dangers of the trip. He sighed. “I know, I know. They’re unpredictable and vicious.”

“That doesn’t concern you?” She traced his cheekbones with her fingertips.

“We’ll find a way, Zer. There’s no other choice.”

“We’re going to get ourselves killed.” She bit her lip.

Kaidan leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to the tip of her nose. “What better way to die than in pursuit of truth?”

She rolled her eyes, but his words drew a smile from her. “Perhaps of old age in your sleep?”

Kaidan brushed his lips over hers with a smile. “Boring.”

Her lips flirted with his own, and her breathy laughter greeted his comment. “I thought the same.”

“So, it’s settled? We’re going to go after this?” His heartbeat thundered in his ears, and his breathing became ragged.

She nodded, her smile fading. “I don’t see another option. Now that we’ve dug up this, we’ve got to find out if it’s true. I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to believe that wrong is right and truth is untruth for the rest of my life.”

His gaze dropped to the small space between them. “Neither do I.”

“Then we’ll set out for Ashkarith as soon as we finish up here.” She tangled her fingers in his hair. “But for now, let’s take an opportunity to rest. I have a feeling we won’t be doing much of that in the near future.”

Kaidan gathered her closer to him. She’s right. Whatever we find in that jungle is going to turn our world upside down, and I don’t think either of us will have a chance to rest easy once we find out the truth. He closed his eyes with a sigh. The journal’s already disturbing enough. His mind drifted as the lack of sleep for the last few months caught up with him. Ashkarith. City of the dead. What would they find there? His breathing slowed, and after a few more minutes, he was out.

~~~

That’s it for today! What are all of you working on? If you’d like to, feel free to drop an excerpt in the comments below. Also, feel free to give feedback on both what I’ve posted and on the things posted in the comments. Just keep all feedback respectful and constructive!