So you've had ideas brewing inside your mind about the next great fantasy story you'd like to write. The next thing you must consider then is... World-Building!

In the fantasy genre, world building is very crucial. The very fabric of your story relies on how believable the world you've built is. Here are ten things that you should consider: 

TEN THINGS ABOUT WORLD BUILDING THAT EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW

1. World building is a tool. A tool, I tell you! A TOOL!

(Please consult your trusty dictionaries on this one) Definitions may vary.

2. World building, since it's a tool, is also a means to an end. It'll help you convey your story. It'll make your story seem real to the audience. It'll give your story the authenticity it needs to lure unsuspecting readers...

3. Word Building is a deep dark hole (think like the Pit and the Pendulum only with lots and lots of interesting things instead of torture) where aspiring writers fall.

The thing that crawls out of it is sometimes a whole new creature! (with mangled limbs and an insatiable hunger for human flesh and who probably wants to write a boatload of details about a fictional world!). It's like a mutagenic chemical, it'll change you in to some thing you won't recognize. It's not all good and it's not all bad. But since we're nice folks here we'll call them WORLD BUILDERS!

4. World building is just a part of writing. Don't let it hijack your whole Zen thing. Use it and use it sparingly. If you only want to world build then be a world builder, no one's stopping you. But if you chose to be a writer. Please be a damn good writer that actually writes.

5. World building is like crack cocaine! I haven't use any of it (yet) and I've no plans of using any kind of illegal drugs (at the moment) but you know where I'm getting at, right?

It's ADDICTING! (scratches nose and sniffs...like cray cray). Be wary about this fact because we have a story to write and a story to finish crackheads!

6. World building is so much more! Which means there's a lot of things you'll have to do if you ever start this venture. Some things will make you cuckoo crazy other things will make you proud. All of it will waste your time if you over indulge in them instead of writing your story.

7. World building is important but spending too much time on it is not a requirement. Time is always best spent writing THE STORY itself - and what I mean by this is it's mainly about the character: her goals, the conflict she'll face, the motive that drives her, and the choices she'll make and not the extraneous detail about the fictional world she's in.

Of course this is only true if you see yourself as a writer first, world builder second! And yes, It may not be a requirement but it's one of the few parts of a story that hooks some readers. So, don't over do it but also never ignore it .

8. World building can also be procrastination hiding in plain sight. It makes you think your going somewhere. But that's just the problem right there. It just makes you THINK, there's no actual progress on WRITING. No actual words written about the story itself. No sentences made. No pages to edit.

But it's (once again) not all bad because concept-wise if you world build you'd have a stronger story and if you do things right you'd have an immersive tale. So, there's something to it in there...somewhere...somehow.

9. World building is both laborious and enjoyable! And this is only a problem if a big chunk of material you just made don't make the final cut.

Ain't it sad when you write ten generations worth of history but none of it actually has any relevance? Or no one will read about it because it's basically way... way... way "back story". But, yeah... did I told you it was "enjoyable".

10. World building is a commitment. Be sure you're ready when you start it. Be sure you study and research about it. Be sure help is ready when you need it. When you do start it...try giving your best. 

These are just the things to get you started on your world-building and how important and helpful it is to that fantasy masterpiece you are writing. More on world-building on the FWFC Book dedicated solely on the topic courtesy of our admins ArchAngel_MikeKhael so stay tuned!