Missed Part 1? Find it here!
Ok, I’m back for the second section of this project—building a setting for your awesome characters!
So, in the previous part of this series, I gave you some ideas for creating some interesting characters—from your very own neighbors or strangers on the street!
What about a place to put them in?
Well, I did give some ideas in Part 1—but those are only some of the endless options out there.
One way to create a cool setting would be looking up landscapes on your browser. There are some pretty cool things out there—some real and some imagined (make sure to get permission if you decide to use someone else’s world or setting).
Or . . . you can go outside (again) and see what you can see. There is a cool tree out there—maybe that gives you the idea to have a land made of wood—I don’t know. What I do know is that if you let your creativity run, you can come up with some cool things!
· If you are doing a story set in real life, things will be a little simpler (but sometimes also a little more boring). You can find a place that actually exists and use that as a setting.
Example from a story of mine: I set my main character in a town that actually exists, looked up what the scenery and surrounding area was like, and then took it from there. So basically, it started out based off of reality, but I added my own streets and buildings, etc., and made it my own.
· If your saga takes place in a fantasy world, your imagination is the only limit. Magic, new types of animals, elves, dwarves, cool plants, interesting house designs, etc. You can literally go anywhere with this! In my brother’s first fantasy, his main character—oh wait, I shouldn’t ruin it for you! You can read his book here.
But anyways, more to my point—you can invent anything you like to fit into your world. You can look up some fantasy characters to use, or you can make up your own! Same goes with gravity rules or the food your characters eat. 😀
Try thinking of a way a rock could be turned into an animal by pouring a potion onto it. What would the animal look like, and what would it be called? Would it turn back into a rock if you fed it a different liquid?
Just typing all of this is giving me some pretty crazy ideas . . .
If your story is sci-fi, you could place your characters in space, underground in a hidden lab, in a city that flies, etc. Maybe there is a crazy scientist, a computer geek (or a couple), a corrupt genius. Who knows? But you can find out! Try to come up with an interesting twist on technology, or a way to make something even cooler than it already is (like the way they made skateboards into hover boards . . .).
There are also all kinds of gadgets and weapons already out there that you can use—or again—you can make up your own.
To try this theory out, take a look around you. Pick up the nearest thing to you (for me it is a Rubik’s cube) and try to think of a way you could disguise it as a weapon or gizmo. Maybe it comes apart into 26 different trackers, or food packets, or . . . the possibilities are endless. Now you try it. 😀
You can look up some stereotypical settings for each of those genres I mentioned above, (and there are many more out there) to get some ideas as well!
Always remember to ask yourself questions, try to clarify any questions you have—even if you don’t answer all of them in the story itself: it’s helpful if you know what is going on behind the locked door of the lab . . .
I also recommend having a brainstorming session with friends to see what ideas they may have for you!
Well, I hope this helped get your mind on the right track, and happy world-building!
Thanks for reading, and God bless,
~Janet