World building has always been fun. It’s amazing how things come together once you try to type a single page about the world.

What type of weapons are available to the people?
Where do they get their food and clothing? What accessories do they have?
Who’s in charge? How do they determine who will take over if that person is killed?
How is history preserved/passed onto future generations?
Is there magic? Who can use it? What cost will it extract from the user?

These questions have sparked a bout of research. How is rope made? What kind of stone weapons are available? How do they make torches burn for long periods of time?

Once I find out the answers to these, they will probably lead to more questions that I’ll need to research. As I said, it’s fun but it’s also time consuming. It’s taken two hours to type three quarters of a page but the effort will be worth it - even though I won’t use a lot of the information I gather.

My mental image of these people has already changed because I realised their clothing wasn’t right for their location. I had them in soft, slinky fabrics but now they are wearing thicker leather garments which will be much more suitable for their surroundings. Isn’t it better to find this error now, rather than later (meaning after I’ve written half the manuscript)?

Filed under: Cat's Eyes, My Writing: