Building a World Readers Want to Live in
When I first started writing the Haven Chronicles, I knew I wanted to create more than just a magical story. I also wanted to set the series in a world that readers would enjoy investigating and be keen to return to. That had to include the physical landscape we find in the series, but also the rules and assumptions of the people who live there.
The story idea itself provided certain elements of Steve Haven’s high tech world and the hidden underbelly of magic we meet in places like Darkacre. This was a brilliant place to start but I knew that with each novel, the geography, the culture, and the cast of characters would grow. That meant I needed a sturdy foundation to support that world.
There are plenty of rules and guides out there about world building, but I’m sure every writer has their own method. This is mine.
Start with the story
The initial inspiration for the Haven Chronicles already included details about the world we find in the series. This was a futuristic culture with just as many robots as people. The cities had been raised up to guard against rising sea levels, which set them apart from what had once been the suburbs and the rural areas. Magic was hidden from this futuristic world, guarded in fact by those in charge of the magical community and their enforcers.
All of these details (and more) provided a place to begin building the world that readers discover in the Haven Chronicles.
Brainstorming this fictional world
I use the term ‘brainstorm’ but it’s actually more of a question-storm. Once I have all the world details that I can gather from the story idea, I throw in any questions that those details raise. That might be:
- There are lots of robots but what do those robots look like?
- When the cities were raised, what happened to the old structures still on ground level?
- What are the repercussions for someone who reveals the existence of magic to the non-magic world?
- How do you create a hidden magical community like Darkacre? And what exactly is it: a physical place with a mystically camouflaged entrance or a pocket universe?
- What is the high tech transport system like in the cities?
I answer as many of these questions as I can and flesh out the world of the Haven Chronicles with the results. With each brainstorm though, there are always some questions I can’t answer without more information. That leads me on to the next step in my world building process: research.
Research, research, research
Research at this stage is generally to answer questions from my brainstorm session. It often doesn’t stop there though. One question and research session may lead to others. For instance, research for Haven Wakes led me to the perfect robot design. But then I started thinking about what restrictions or laws made it perfect for Steve’s world.
Research isn’t simply a starter process either. I’ll often delve into more topics midway through a novel as new questions poke their heads out of the pages. One example is Eleanor Palmer’s apartment. I wanted to make sure it was fitting for such a futuristic, high tech setting. At the time, a real-life fabric that could be programmed to change colour was being developed so I included a version of that. At the swipe of a dial, Eleanor could change the colour of her walls, sofa, and so on.
Of course, one of the problems with research is the fascinating and often useless facts you come across. I can spend hours heading down a rabbit research hole. That’s why I now set a time limit for each research session.
Seeing the world through character eyes
It can be tempting to explain the world of your story through chunks of narration, but I think world building works best when experienced through the eyes of the characters. It might be:
- what they notice, often for the first time,
- what they try to ignore or keep to themselves,
- what annoys them,
- people and things they love,
- or assumptions they make about life and the individuals they encounter.
Revealing the world through the characters in the story, for instance, Steve’s discovery of the existence of magic, tells readers all they need to know without dragging them out of their reading flow.
Keeping track without losing my mind
I keep separate Word documents for different elements of the Haven Chronicles. There’s one for Darkacre, for instance, another for the members of the magical Council, and more still for magic systems, methods of travel (both magical and futuristic), and character backgrounds. It’s not the most sophisticated system, but it works for me.
I also keep a file of cut scenes that don’t make it into the finished novels. These are moments that flesh out the world but are generally kept as just reference material for me. One passage that I desperately wanted to keep but which didn’t serve the story was when Hartley and Steve visit Pearl Meadows in Darkacre. This scene didn’t make it into Magic Bound, but I have shared it with my newsletter subscribers.
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Worldbuilding is a balancing act between research, imagination, and storytelling. I don’t always know when I have enough to start writing, so I just cross my fingers and dive in. But by grounding the world in the story, filtering details through characters’ eyes, and keeping reasonably organised notes, I hope I create a setting that feels real, entertaining, and full of discovery.
