Writing advice

World creation

   Every story has its own unique world and world order. As the writer of the story you get to decide what kind of world you choose to create. In this instance you get to play God and create the world in your own image, in your fantasy, or even your worst nightmare. How you choose to display the world is entirely up to you. But a word of warning, if you create a world that is all gumdrops and rainbows it isn't going to sync well with a story that is supposed to be tragic and emotional.

   Usually the world order or the destruction thereof is the primary conflict in a story. For instance, The Hunger Games. Everyone who has read the series know that the world that Katniss Everdeen lives in is absolutely awful! It is because of how her world presents itself and affects the people living within it that made her who she is. If I were to change her personality and how she carries herself in this world it would completely change the story and leave the reader confused as to why the protagonist was set on behaving in such a contradictory manner. How would you feel if Katniss became the upbeat and perky heroine of the series instead of the strong, independent, survivor that we know she is? It would completely rewrite the series and how people relate to it. 

   The world in which you base your story should be one of the first things you think about after you have imagined the plot line. Without the world and its parameters it doesn't matter what your characters look like, what they're named, what they're good at. None of that will matter to the reader at first glance. Readers are looking for an experience, that's what makes the creation of the world so important. If an enthralling setting and world order can't be created, especially in a work of fiction, the readers are not going to make it very far in your writing before they lose interest. 

   Not all stories have to be based in a dystopian apocalyptic world nor do they have to be set in a world of complete and utter serenity. The type of world that you choose to use in your story is dependent on you and how you wish to convey your character's journey. Who or what is going to be fighting against your character? Is it going to be the government, foreign nations, extraterrestrial invaders, or something even more fantastic and outlandish? Whatever you choose to make your conflict the world around it ends to correlate and mesh together. Think of the relationships between your characters and their world as a tapestry, every single aspect of the story is a thread that is bound together to create one beautiful piece. A consistent piece of art. 

   With that in mind, I am not saying that there can never be a character that feels out of place or like an outcast in their world. There are going to be plenty of characters like that, but even if that one character feels out of place that doesn't mean that you lose focus on the world that you created around them. As was stated before imagine your writing like a tapestry, it creates one image, instead of different patches of smaller and insignificant patterns like a quilt. Your story should be able to mesh together and form something solid and consistent. 

   A perfect example ,in my mind, would be if you are writing a story about Ancient Egypt and how it is affecting modern day people, there should be no mention of any other form of folklore consistently throughout the story. Because if one moment you are talking about Ra and then the next moment talking about Seelies, your readers are going to be very confused by what your intentions are and what you are trying to say and what point you are trying to prove.

   I want everyone who is reading this to know that the reader doesn't need to know every single minute detail about the surrounding world. The only one who needs to know the extent of the intricacies of that world is yourself. Knowing the values of your world and what would tip it off of its pedestal is going to be one of the more powerful forces keeping you on track with your story. With this element of writing I want you guys to be swept up in the details. Think about what would happen if your character denied the social norms. How would the society around them react? Who are the considerable powers in this world? Where could your character go if they needed to escape from the people around them?

   Every story is going to be different and unique, so the worlds that are going to be used in these stories are going to be exactly the same. Now that you have something to think about the next time you decide to write a story, I would love to hear what kind of worlds you would create. Will there be worlds of fantasy where mountains are floating in the sky, worlds like our own, or will there even be worlds where people are no longer necessary? I am very excited to see what kind of universes you will all create and the beings who will inhabit them.