Comic Genesis Forums

Alright, I'm having problems developing a plot and situations for Antics, and I THINK I've narrowed down the problem. So here is it is, I'm torn between two things:

1) To just start writing outright, with no limitations or restrictions on the world and just focus in on character development. Basically letting the characters evolve outright with very little restrictions on what they can do just yet, and kinda give myself an outline as to what vaguely will happen.

OR

2) To try and come up with a set of Rules for Dona (the world that Lys and Ami have been transported to) that dictate basic concepts such as how the Elementals actually work. Figure out the basic landscape, which I've already done a bit of, figuring out the currency system, their culture in depth, children and how they fit into this system, natural habitat. So setting up the world, and how the girls can function within it as 'Outsiders' as well as their basic abilities with the elements they are aligned with.

Here are the problems I cannot seem to get aside though: If I do use option two and restrict the world, then the characters will be in a box, and I'll have very little flexiblity with development and probably loose interest within the storyline. The problem with the first option though, is if I have absolutely NO guide then I'm afraid I will not be able to explain how the girls do what they do or why they do it as well. Or worse, there will be technical plot holes with the worlds, which also suck.

Help, I'm having such a hard time figuring this out that its starting to affect Antics and my love for it T__T:

Thanks <3

Given the choice between world building and not, you should go with the world building. A world needs rules, even magic ones and even if you never explain to the readers what all those rules are. You don't have to go overboard with things, but very basic guidelines would work out. You don't want to say in one place you say that magic is connected to the soul and can't be learned, and then later on show people learning magic.

So off the top of my head, these are some things that would be good to think about.

-How do people gain the ability to use magic and how do they access it? Is it everyone or some people? Do they do it themselves or do they have to pray to a deity or spirit to gain power? Do they have to pray before every spell or can they cut back to once a week or month like a Green Lantern? Does this spirit/deity have its own set of rules the user must follow? Will this spirit/deity allow you to use its magic however you want or is it only for selfless things or life threatening events?

-How does the society view magic? Is it a super special thing to be used sparingly or is it used for everyday situations like plowing fields? Can you rent a magician for a day to do something for you? Is magic the most important thing and what everyone focuses on, or is it so rare that they get by without it?

-How do everyday people make their living? Is this a small agricultural town or a larger and wealthier town with shops? Are most of the peasants uneducated and illiterate? Is literacy even such an important thing in this society--it's important for us since it's how we can transport knowledge over distance and time, but is this so for people with magic? Can they just make magic books that talk to you with the right incantation?

-Will people be visiting other towns/regions/countries? Will they bring along an interpreter or just rely on magic to translate for them? How do THEY view magic? Are they a society which branched off from or used to be part of the native one?

-How's the government? Royalty with a serfdom class? Do they jealously guard magic or is it something above and beyond their control? Currency is also important, do they use gold for important things and bartering for others?

-Is there need for an army? Are they all warriors or are there magicians/mages that go out and do the king's bidding?

-How's the surrounding area? Is the town in a valley? Is it a small town on the outside of a large one? Close or far away from the kingdom since proximity can affect royal presence and how quickly the royalty can respond to problems or threats?

I'd suggest reading the rants listed here under the world-building tags: http://limyaael.livejournal.com/559559.html#cutid1

Mon Ami wrote:Alright, I'm having problems developing a plot and situations for Antics, and I THINK I've narrowed down the problem. So here is it is, I'm torn between two things:

1) To just start writing outright, with no limitations or restrictions on the world and just focus in on character development. Basically letting the characters evolve outright with very little restrictions on what they can do just yet, and kinda give myself an outline as to what vaguely will happen.

OR

2) To try and come up with a set of Rules for Dona (the world that Lys and Ami have been transported to) that dictate basic concepts such as how the Elementals actually work. Figure out the basic landscape, which I've already done a bit of, figuring out the currency system, their culture in depth, children and how they fit into this system, natural habitat. So setting up the world, and how the girls can function within it as 'Outsiders' as well as their basic abilities with the elements they are aligned with.

Here are the problems I cannot seem to get aside though: If I do use option two and restrict the world, then the characters will be in a box, and I'll have very little flexiblity with development and probably loose interest within the storyline. The problem with the first option though, is if I have absolutely NO guide then I'm afraid I will not be able to explain how the girls do what they do or why they do it as well. Or worse, there will be technical plot holes with the worlds, which also suck.

Help, I'm having such a hard time figuring this out that its starting to affect Antics and my love for it T__T:

Thanks <3

I think you're overanalyzing this; but I think you should do a little of both.

Go ahead and write the basic plot the way it should go, from a character-driven standpoint, and then try to look at in the other way, and what restrictions and sort of world would natrually arise from it, and THEN figure out what the rules ARE.

Because nine times out of ten, the restrictions and rules, rather than being confining, will suggest further ideas. Some writers---Hal Clement of MISSION OF GRAVITY for instance---design the world FIRST and then write the story, because the setting suggests the story.

Certainly Tolkien who I would consider a master of fantasy, made extremely developed worlds---and the more complex the background is, the more detailed it is, the more real it might seem to the reader. DUNE is another example, a highly developed world with more backstory than it needs.

If a fantasy JUST serves the needs of the story, it's sufficient for the task---but to me it's lacking a little, a paper-thin backdrop for actions.---Al

Go with the second one and don't be afraid: you'll never be able to write down the entire world, you'll always have space to make up some new elements. If you choose one, you'll eventually write yourself into the corner and then you'll lose interest anyway.

I'm also a fan of world-building. It gives you a guide, and makes the world come alive for both you and the readers. I don't like reading a story that feels like the characters are in a huge" unknown".

But keep this in mind: it is your world. If it makes sense to change it, then do. Just make sure it makes sense in the context of the story.

If you want, take a bit of time to brainstorm what you want to happen to your characters. Make a loooong list. Allow for flexibility. THEN, you can create the world that allows for such things.

World-building is very important, imo.
Even if it's a basic outline.

Universes with magic or any other supernatural phenomena especially. Epic stories can't be very convincingly epic if there's no substance.

Going against the flow, I think you should go with the first one. You might have something about the world in your mind, but you shouldn't let this overcome possibilities of plot and character development. You may have great ideas in the future that you'll be capable of exploring without any self-imposed restrictions.

I like world building, I think it's great fun. But I also think it's very restrictive. Every time I spend too much time creating the scenario, the plot doesn't evolve too much.

I've been writing comics and shortstories these days and in both cases I didn't waste too much effort in creating the scenario, with rather great results (for me as a writer).

Just go with the flow and let your world be constructed as you write your story

The world of my comic is loosely defined in my head, it has a very basic social structure and the rules and structure of the more fantastic elements were "borrowed" from Final Fantasy just to give myself a save myself the trouble of having to design on from scratch. That being said That being said I wouldn't define any part of my world so strictly that I couldn't allow exceptions or flexibility if I needed to.

(Also as a final note, though the more fantastic elements are based on Final Fantasy's I do intend to add my own twists too it)

Love worldbuilding, so I'm in favour of that.

I'm more of a SF bloke, but the "damage" that can be done to a story when you're breaking laws of physics is pretty much the same, regardless of whether it's magic or FTL that's doing the breakage. Damage control is important.

What is possible? What isn't? How? What ramifications might this and that have? What's the reason for including this in the story and what effect would not including it have?

This website is dedicated to SF writers as a source of info and inspiration, but a few pointson it might possibly be adapted for a fantasy scenario. Dunno.
It's your universe. The more work you put into it, the better of you'll be.

EDIT:
And don't forget geography, history, politics, economy...

Word building can also be used in relatively simpler writing such as one lines. Or, other complicated stuff like comics. >.>

Worldbuilding is good. You need rules, if only to have something to break.

Thank you for the information ladies and gent :3 I'm going to have to think about it a bit more before any majour plot twists.

1) To just start writing outright, with no limitations or restrictions on the world and just focus in on character development. Basically letting the characters evolve outright with very little restrictions on what they can do just yet, and kinda give myself an outline as to what vaguely will happen.

Huh. Maybe I'm reading this wrong, but I don't see how one can develop a plot without some sort of restrictions on the characters, either imposed from within, or external. Typically a story is driven by the character's (protagonist's) goal(s) and the subsequent obstacles that arise in achieving that goal.

To use a mundane example. A young college girl wants to buy a car (Goal). But she has no money (Obstacle/Restriction.) So she needs a job (Solution). Except, her small town is going through a recession and there are few jobs (Obstacle/Restriction imposed by her environment/world). The story might then follow her in her struggle to get a job in a crappy economy.

The same can certainly be extended to a more fantastical construct, but in such a case, the limitations might be supernatural or magical.

The point is, it isn't enough to know that the protagonist is shy or impulsive or any other character flaw/strength. What will drive the story is how that characteristic hinders or aids the protagonist in his/her progression toward the Goal. And since a character doesn't exist in a vacuum, the restrictions imposed by the world he/she occupies are key to building plot. (And developing character, since it is the character's reactions to his/her world that reveals character.)

Defining the world will place restrictions on what can happen, but it shouldn't restrict your creativity. In fact, it may even force you to increase your creativity. Instead of just having things happen by fiat of the author you'll need to think about how they'll work. A set of rules and logical consequences should also make the world feel more real to your readers.

Note that the rules of a fantasy world don't have to be tightly mechanistic; look at The Sandman by Neil Gaiman or the Harry Potter series of books. In both cases there are rules about magic, but the rules are pretty fast and loose.

world building is very essential I feel. But be careful you might get so carried away one day you end up needing to write a catalog to keep it all in order >_>;;

mvmarcz wrote:world building is very essential I feel. But be careful you might get so carried away one day you end up needing to write a catalog to keep it all in order >_>;;

Don't listen to her. That's how you know you're being thorough!

Heheh, I gotta agree with mv. While world-building, you have to keep in mind that you're buinding the world because of story, and not as something self-sufficient. In the end, most of readers will be interested in story, and world is just a background that can push the credibility of the story forward or hold it back.

Thanks for the input, I tend to overcomplicate things when I think about em too hard and then the ideas get jumbled up in my head. A phonecall to my friend/editor/co-author helped with that though xD And I worked out some of the kinks n__n