Worldbuilding- Part 2
Creating Locations and Society
Now you have your map, and you know what your world looks like. It is time to build in some society.
Here's where your research and your imagination come together.
The easiest place to start is with the main location of your book. It could be a town, a forest, an ivory tower, but it will need a political structure, people, habits, traditions, etc.
I'll use a town as an example of how to construct your location.
First you'll need a general layout of your town, and a of course a name.
We'll call our town Zathnir, and we'll assume that the layout is based on a medieval township (and we'll assume the layout of a medieval township has been researched). It is a walled town, with two gates, one in the east and one opposite in the west. The layout is quite haphazard, as sections have been added to town growth willy-nilly. Also, know where the roads are, any town wells, etc.
Second, you must decide the main buildings and places within the town. You can, of course, add places if you find you need them later.
OK, for purposes of the example our main character in this world is a soldier. So, in Zathnir we will need a tavern, called Greb's, for our character to hang out in. Also we will need barracks where he will live. And you will have to decide where else he goes in the town: For instance, does he have guard duty at one of the Gates? Does he buy protective charms at a shop? Does he have a horse at the stables? He may need new weapons, and will have to use a blacksmith. And list will go on. And the more characters you have, the more places you may need.
Now that you have an idea of your buildings, you can fit them into your town layout.
You will have to be careful where you put shops, stables, etc, and this is where you again apply your research of a medieval township.
So we employ the research and the first thing we decide on is a marketplace and shop area in or near the center of town. Here we put the shop where our character buys his protective charms, the stall where he gets his fresh fruit, buys his clothes, or whatever. Now we can place the tavern close to the marketplace, or near the barracks, which we will put near the East Gate. The stables and blacksmith shop will be near each other, and will also be close to the East Gate.
Any other shops or buildings will be placed according to research.
Okay, we have built a basic town. Now what?
Now you have to decide what kind of people live there, and what kind of lives they have.
Here's where your research and your imagination come together.
The easiest place to start is with the main location of your book. It could be a town, a forest, an ivory tower, but it will need a political structure, people, habits, traditions, etc.
I'll use a town as an example of how to construct your location.
First you'll need a general layout of your town, and a of course a name.
We'll call our town Zathnir, and we'll assume that the layout is based on a medieval township (and we'll assume the layout of a medieval township has been researched). It is a walled town, with two gates, one in the east and one opposite in the west. The layout is quite haphazard, as sections have been added to town growth willy-nilly. Also, know where the roads are, any town wells, etc.
Second, you must decide the main buildings and places within the town. You can, of course, add places if you find you need them later.
OK, for purposes of the example our main character in this world is a soldier. So, in Zathnir we will need a tavern, called Greb's, for our character to hang out in. Also we will need barracks where he will live. And you will have to decide where else he goes in the town: For instance, does he have guard duty at one of the Gates? Does he buy protective charms at a shop? Does he have a horse at the stables? He may need new weapons, and will have to use a blacksmith. And list will go on. And the more characters you have, the more places you may need.
Now that you have an idea of your buildings, you can fit them into your town layout.
You will have to be careful where you put shops, stables, etc, and this is where you again apply your research of a medieval township.
So we employ the research and the first thing we decide on is a marketplace and shop area in or near the center of town. Here we put the shop where our character buys his protective charms, the stall where he gets his fresh fruit, buys his clothes, or whatever. Now we can place the tavern close to the marketplace, or near the barracks, which we will put near the East Gate. The stables and blacksmith shop will be near each other, and will also be close to the East Gate.
Any other shops or buildings will be placed according to research.
Okay, we have built a basic town. Now what?
Now you have to decide what kind of people live there, and what kind of lives they have.
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