#imaginary places

[lorenzonuti]

Brightness Anomaly.

[miskiart]

~*sugar, spice, and everything nice*~

[misssclumsy]

When there are 2 plot twists in your imaginative fake scenario and you're stuck between, which one is better for it

[bookshop-phantom]

20.05.2022

World building (a very basic guide)

Recently, I've been really interested in the process of world building. I started creating my first imaginary world years ago and (even though it's not finished yet because I am lazy) found the experience really entertaining.

I thought I should share the process I follow in order to create the bases of a whole imaginary country. I've reduced all the mental process to a 4-step guide. Of course, this is just how I do it and there are tons of other ways, which are equally valid.

Keep in mind that these are just the first steps, and there is so much more about world creation that comes after.

1. First of all, choose a name for your country and a time period.

You can invent its name - come up with a strange word! - or use another name for reference. For example, one of my countries is named Makērnia, which is a non-existent word that I came up with. Another one is named Silvanda and you can see that I used the word "Silver" as reference. Perhaps the most obvious one is a city I named Iboria, clearly influenced by the name Iberia.

Write down that name and pay attention to how it sounds. That will be the first step in creating your country's language - if you plan on doing so.

Note: It is important that you CHECK that the name of your country does not have any bad meanings in other languages. I'm talking from experience here.

Now you want to decide the time period your country is based on.

Is it a medieval country? A futuristic one? 18th centur-ish? Keep in mind that you can also imagine your own way of measuring time. Instead of "before Christ" and "after Christ", try coming up with your own system.

The time period will be very important when creating the customs and traditions of the people and the organisation of the country, as well as many other things. So think carefully about this one.

2. Start imagining the geography.

This is probably my least favourite part, but it is just as necessary as the others. What I do is draw a shape, imitating how frontiers between countries look like.

I would say that the crucial question would be whether your country is next to the sea or not. This will influence economy and you will probably need to pay attention to those regions on the coast, as they will have different traditions, different climate and so on.

Think about how big your country is. Is it a small nation? Is it enormous?

Is it an island, a peninsula?

Note: Smaller countries are always more easy to organise and people from different regions within them are likely to be more similar to each other. The problem with big countries is that you'll have to provide the inhabitants with a series of traditions that might be completely different depending on the region.

You can also include something that is very particular of your country. Again, when I created Makērnia, I thought that it should have an enormous forest around the capital city.

Give your country rivers, lakes, mountains and everything you want to. And always remember that this will affect the territories near them.

3. Organisation and political power

Every country needs and way of organising territory. Here again you can look up references from real life or invent a new system (although I understand that inventing a whole new system is especially difficult in this part).

Personally, I got my inspiration from the Roman empire, but you can use whatever real-life country you want to for reference. You can divide land into provinces, regions, districts, etc.

Same goes for political power. If you have decided to make your country a medieval one, chances are you will implement a monarchy - or not! This is your country, do whatever you feel expresses its essence best. You can experiment if you want (try an anarchic country, for example).

4. General traits, flag, emblems, capital city.

Here, you can ask yourself: "What are the people like in ----?"

Try thinking about a crowded city in your country. Do the people have anything in common? This can range from mere physical traits (most of them may be blonde, have a particular skin colour, etc.) to more abstract concepts or stereotypes (the people are brave, knowledgeable, always serious, etc.)

This will be useful to create a general image of the country and build up its traditions and customs. For example, in a country where the people are more carefree, a crime might be punished less severely than in a country where the people are serious and cold.

Note: This is the time to start considering different races - and not necessarily human races, you can include any fantasy race you feel like. Write down any ideas you have regarding this, as you will need to develop it later.

Give your country some symbols and a flag.

The flag is optional, but I would heavily recommend choosing at least a symbol for the country. Think about what the inhabitants might feel a connection with. In my case, I choose white roses as the symbol of Makērnia. The word "māker" in the local language actually means "rose", so it made perfect sense to build up a whole culture around roses.

Symbols can range from animals, plants and natural elements to colours with meaning. And of course it must be coherent with the time period. You cannot symbolise a medieval country with an emblem of a train - and the same goes for a futuristic country, which will difficultly be represented with swords or castles.

Choosing a capital city is important, as it will probably become the centre of your country.

At this stage, you can just come up with a name and then mark the city in the map. Keep in mind that you will need to develop this and other important cities around the country.

Note: By "capital city" I mean a principal, most important location in your country. Not necessarily where the central power is.

Now you have a very basic and general idea of what your country will be like.

As I said before, this is JUST THE BASICS I USE when I build a new world. These steps help me understand what type of place it is and how I should proceed with the more complex steps.

I hope somebody finds this useful. I'd love to hear about your countries :)

[willstrode]

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[angelnumber27]

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[khelekmir]

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[julianpeterscomics]

Views of an Imaginary City 20: A Street in the Najirèh District

20. A Street in Najirèh The outer district of Najirèh (“Empress”) is so named in honour of the empress Aritokèh, during whose reign the area’s first streets were laid out. It is located on a raised plateau surrounded by rice fields to the north, south, and east, and by the Golu Canal (See n. 38) to the west. The unnamed avenue presented here is typical of streets in this part of the city, with…

[la-lil-alien]

[xanderwithanx]

Literally the best.

[art-by-circuits]

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[jovielikesinks]

[literary-artist]

On the road, a drizzle had just departed,

rendering the air of petrichor.

The leaves are beckoning the birds

as the trees feel their absence.

The space around us doesn’t matter,

doesn’t exist, the grass doesn’t,

the bench doesn’t,

nor is a soul in sight.

The breeze makes her hair reach up her nose.

She sets them back with her hand but,

the wind is constant and blows them back,

hiding half of the most beautiful face in the world.

Through the black strands she looks at me;

the black of her eyes settling on mine.

And I push those strands back,

and keep them there with my hand brushing

her ear, taking it in,

feeling the breathlessness again.

I smile. So does she

Letting the air be filled of two beating hearts...

[enoughofthoughtphilosopher-blog]

Sleeping Lions

  I miss the books and sometimes the way the fairy lights twinkled and how the room felt just as it was beginning to get dark. The way she would light a candle just as afternoon was fading, and its flame would fight off the daylight. Then we would turn on the lights one by one, and leave the curtainsopen to watch darkness falling. I sought answers in the impossible fading blue of the dusk, the…