Within this chapter, we'll be focusing on all the more cultural components of your fantasy world. These most often are byproducts of your physical components and magic system, though they don't always have to be.

Once again, you shouldn't spend too much time on every single one of these. Pick a few to really develop so you can have them shine within your novel, and think of ways they can weave into your story.

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Religion: Religious beliefs, for better or for worse, can reach into almost every aspect of society. Because of this, it may be worth considering what your characters, or at least the general public, believes in (or doesn't). Ask yourself how these beliefs might dictate the politics, what they believe is right and wrong, if they have places of worship, etc.

Government: What kind of leadership and structure does your world have? Is there a democracy, monarchy, oligarchy? I recommend brushing up on the different types of governments so that you have a basis to structure yours. If your plot will involve a lot of politics, perhaps a revolution against the system, then you want to do your research.

Economics: What is the main currency in your world? Which resources are expensive and hard to come by, and which are cheap and common? What is the trading like between territories? The status of the economy greatly impacts the people, so consider what state it should be in to best serve your story.

Gender roles: This can be a lot of fun to play with! Challenge yourself to come up with different roles for the genders of the society, and consider how these roles affect the perception of that gender. What stereotypes or prejudices might these create? Are they well-balanced or completely unequal in nature?

Borders: We'll cover this more in the 'mapping' chapter under worldbuilding, but for now, think about how important borders might be to your story. If there are warring factions, you want to have a strict idea of where the borders are between different territories. You can also consider whether the borders of the land are strictly protected, open, or somewhere in between, and how this may impact the society.

Fashion: Clothing is more important than you might guess. They can reflect a lot about the setting and the characters. Robes of expensive materials might indicate wealth, shaggy drapes might indicate poverty. Colors of cloth might be associated with certain groups in your world. Badges could be a symbol of status or occupation. There is so much that can be shown through fashion, so don't underestimate its relevance!

Food: Yes, food. Food is a part of daily life and, if you so choose, could play an insightful role in your world. Think about how the people in your world view food. Is it to be had in social settings, or is it an unimportant task to cross off the to-do list each day? Which foods are considered delicacies and which are considered unappealing? How do people get most of their food—from the market or from their own hunting? Is it easily accessible or are people going hungry?

History: A fantasy world's history can be as vague and short or as detailed and long as you want to make it. However, there's not much point in writing out a diagram of the past three thousand years if those events will never make an appearance in the story. But for whatever parts of the world's history will affect the storyline in some way, feel free to go as in depth as you'd like. What kind of conflicts did the different areas of your world face in the past? How might past wars have impacted relations between different territories? Maybe you want to show one version of history to your characters and the readers, but then as the plot progresses, it's revealed that the leaders covered something up and lied about what truly took place.

Rites of Passage: Rites of passage are ceremonies or rituals that take place to indicate a person's change in status, but they can also be less official, like a milestone. For example, a 21st birthday in the United States is a rite of passage because it indicates adulthood and the ability to legally drink alcohol. A more ceremonial example is baptism or the cutting of hair upon entry of the military. For your world, you might want to consider what some milestones or important ceremonies would be for. Maybe anyone who wins a yearly battle is knighted to protect the royal Court. Maybe at 16, everyone is tested and placed into a certain role in society. I'm betting if you push yourself, you can think of much more creative ones for your world!

Social Hierarchy: What separations are there in society? What is the highest status that can be achieved? The lowest? How are the different classes treated and viewed? How easy or difficult is it to rise in rank? What are the roles and responsibilities/burdens of each status? This can help you better grasp how each person in society relates to one another.

Language: While it's assumed in most fantasy novels that the text is just "translated" for the reader to understand the native tongue, some authors still choose to add details of the fantasy language. Some authors go as far as creating entire new languages, but I would suggest only doing a few details. The idea is to do less work because it's unlikely that you'll fit all your work into the story, and it is even less likely that your readers will take the time to study and understand the language. Naming a few things, dropping some words with context so the reader can guess what they mean, and using a few phrases unique to that world are all great options. If you derive them from an existing language, try to keep things consistent by using the same structure in each phrase, or using the same foundational language for each word.

Taboos: Taboos are what a culture or religion tries to prohibit as a practice or topic of discussion. It can also be a person, place, or thing that the people are prohibited to associate with. Consider the land's beliefs and history if you want to create some taboos. Remember that there should be reason behind why they're meant to avoid something, even if your characters or the readers disagree with that reason.

Military: If your story is going to deal with battles or wars of any kind, you want to build up the military system. Ask yourself things like: who fights in the war and how do they come to be a soldier in the first place? How does the technology in your world impact the weapons and tactics they use? I recommend researching the different types of military systems there are (citizen army, tribal army, and automation army are a few examples).

Traditions: This is where I suggest you add an extra traditions, most of which will derive from the above components, as well as physical components and the magic system. Think of different festivals and events they might have based on their environment, their beliefs. What kind of holidays might they have to celebrate something important to them? It's usually a good idea to take a familiar tradition that you know and flip it on its head—like instead of asking for marriage with a ring, maybe a token of victory in battle must be offered. Remember to base things off of the culture. Don't just make up something random, or it will feel nonsensical and out of place.

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And there you have it! It's possible there are still other things you can build for your world's culture, but I tried to hit as many as I could think of. The most important thing here is to prioritize which aspects will be the most central to your story, and spend the most time on those. Remember that just about all of them should relate to each other in some way.

Hopefully, this section on worldbuilding has given some of you a greater appreciation for fantasy authors who really dedicate time and effort into their settings. I've yet to publish a higher fantasy book in regard to worldbuilding, but as I begin to work on future projects, my understanding for how much work this requires has grown immensely. It certainly takes commitment to come up with a detailed backdrop that weaves into the story seamlessly. And that's exactly what I'll be trying to cover soon!

Questions? Leave them here!

What are you guys thinking of this guide so far? Are you finding it helpful? Or am I just repeating everything you already know?