Will their world survive? World-building for a series

This guest post is by one of my fellow authors over at Turquoise Morning Press, Bobbye Terry. A veteran at writing in created worlds, she’s talking to us today about world-building.

Enter, stage right, head-strong heroine with kick-assitude. Enter, stage left, brooding hero with something to prove. He has a mission. He needs help. She willfully resists helping him. That is, until he woos her through his dry wit and unerringly strong character, winning her heart and enabling him to steal an embrace. But wait! They are fraught with the slings and arrows of outrageous villainy, keeping them from declaring their undying love and destined mating.

You do agree every good book deserves some outrageous villainy—ahem, villains—don’t you? Did I mention your book is set in the future world of Frostos and all those who survive must protect against the ancient followers, known as Ice-ciples, of the Abominable Snow Android, also known as an AS Andro, while staying warm with their revolving bubble-heating spheres? So, where do you begin and how will your idea spawn not one but many books around the central theme of defeating the ice-ciples and the AS Andro, then opening the mechanical clouds to the warmth of the eternal sun?

Before you sit down and busily start to get the first chapter down, stop. Be smart and consider the following list. Know where you want to go so you don’t have to come back and backtrack, and yes, pantsers, this will work for you (so said the queen of all pantsers, me).

Series world-building: things to consider

1.   Fantasy in current world or other world? Will your world co-exist with our current world or will it be different, play by new rules? If so, what are those rules?

2.   Future, present day, past or time travel?

Is this in the future on our planet Earth? If so, how did we get where we are? Background here…is it a dystopian world, ravaged by war and devastation of a flourishing paradise, or a world now controlled by one sect? How will you best illustrate the change in conditions? Is it in the past? If so, have you done your research about dialect, clothing, customs, conditions, activities and occupations for daily living? Is it a time travel? If so, how will you best contrast the dichotomy?

3.   Fantasy beings—in human form with special powers, category beings (vampires, witches, angels, zombies, demons, etc?), or totally new category?

If your characters look like humans but have powers, what are those powers? Is there a limit or an Achilles heel? If they fall into a category of beings, do they act like the stereotype of those in other novels, or do your beings look or act differently? If they do, bring that out early. Are they in a new category? If so, how do you describe them and how do you suspend belief?

4.   Items, terrain, locations, special features that remain in all books?

What is the glue that holds this series together, the constants? Think of one or a small number. In my series The Cash Chronicles—which was just released in print this month with The Rise and Fall of Millicent—the story centers around a dystopian word where the U.S. no longer has part of its land mass and has come under the tyrannical rule of the Primera, a woman who was cryogenically frozen and then cloned at a later date in the future. If you use the same locations each time, make sure these locations, their places, etc., stay the same in each book.

5.   Do the hero and heroine stay the same in every book or do they change?

If the hero and heroine are the same, how will you ensure that they can hold your readers from book to book? What is suspenseful that continues to propel readers forward? If hero and heroine change, what continuity do you bring over from earlier books?

6.   Tone of the books—needs to stay similar.

You can’t have one dark and one light, one funny and one somber, one sweet and one ultra hot. The transition between books need to be smooth like a nice glass of wine or a great piece of jazz music.

7.   Keeping all the characters straight—do you have them written down somewhere, including physical and personality details?

This is very hard after you write 80—100,000 words times three or four or five. Write down all your characters, their idiosyncrasies, their traits so you can reference to make sure they stay the same. Even if they’re short-term in the book or the series, you need to keep track of the names and using the same letters, etc. Consider doing some back-story, other things about what make them who they are. You may want to do a companion book like Sherrilyn Kenyon did for the Dark Hunter series.

8.   Website—does your world have its own distinct website?

This may be a good idea if the series is long. Always be ready to greet your readers and fans with information to whet their reading appetites.

I hope this has gotten you to start thinking, or maybe a single title sounds real good about now…

Bobbye Terry is the multi-published writer of fantasy, suspense and romantic comedy novels under her own name, her solo pseudonym, Daryn Cross, and her co-authored one, Terry Campbell. She also writes inspirational nonfiction. Her previous works have garnered finalist awards in the Booksellers’ Best and other RWA-sponsored contests. Bobbye’s most recent release is The Rise and Fall of Millicent by Daryn Cross, In the Stillness Publications. Nothing Ever Happens in Briny Bay, a compilation of the novellas in the Briny Bay mystery series by Bobbye Terry, will release this summer through Turquoise Morning Press. Additionally, she has a new inspirational book, The Light Within released in May 2013 and another Joy Glows, which will release mid-July.  

Bobbye Terry

Fiction isn’t just imagination: researching your novel

Today’s guest post is by the amazing Nicole Evelina, whose dedication to research is awe-inspiring. Don’t believe me? Check out her blog!

I’m a historical fiction writer, so I do a lot of research. But you don’t have to be writing in another time period to find research necessary when writing a novel. Sure, you can make up a lot, but chances are good that unless your characters have the exact same life experiences as you, you’re going to need to do a little fact-finding along the way.

Picture via Wikimedia Commons

Why research is important

Research can be as simple as getting the details of your character’s occupation right or accurately depicting a route through a city. Sometimes it’s providing realistic descriptions of places that your readers may have lived or want to visit after reading your books. Things like that may seem trivial when we’ve got plots bursting from our brains but, trust me, someone out there will know when you’re making things up, and they will call you on it, especially in the age of social media. Of course, no one can get everything right, but it’s up to us as professionals to try.

Research can seem daunting, but I look at it this way: you start broad and then narrow in on the details that will make your book ring true to readers. Usually this means doing background research first. This is the broad information that allows you to feel like you understand the world in which your character lives. For me, this means culture, history, politics, religion, law, dress codes, prejudices, etc. But in other genres, it may just be reading about what a private investigator does or how the myth of vampires evolved over time. Only you will know exactly what you need.

With my basic information in mind, I plot my book. Sometimes I do more detailed research before I write a first draft, focusing on those things I know will play a major role in my characters’ lives. Once I’ve got a draft that makes some semblance of sense, I fact check my details – usually even up to the last minute – because it’s those little things that make fiction feel like reality.

More than just going online

So, how do you go about doing your research, especially if you haven’t done any since college? Well, thanks to the internet, it’s easier than ever. Sometimes all you need to is search Google Maps or Google Earth to get what you need. Other times, you can find the information right on the web. But I recommend verifying anything you find online in some sort of established reference material, just to be certain it’s accurate. There’s a lot of misinformation out there, so it’s better to be safe than sorry.

I’m not a doctor, but I play one in my books

Nothing beats in-person research. Sometimes that means visiting a place in person to get a feel for the area and see its nuances for yourself. Or you could interview an expert or two. If you’re a method writer, you could take a class on your subject or even ask if you can shadow someone who does what you’re curious about. People are amazingly willing to help, especially if they know you’re doing research, so don’t be afraid to be honest with them.

Between the pages

But not everything requires you to go this in-depth. Sometimes good old fashioned book research will do just fine. Amazon’s catalogue and Google Books are great ways to see what books exist on your subject. Some you will want to buy, but don’t worry if you can’t afford or don’t desire to amass an entire collection. Your public library will quickly become your best friend. And even if your city doesn’t have the book you want, they can probably get it through the interlibrary loan system. You’d be surprised what obscure titles will come to you from colleges all around the country (or even the world) if you’re just willing to wait a few weeks.

It’s worth it

Research may seem like a pain, but most of us became writers because we love exploring other worlds, other lives. That’s exactly what research is. If it helps, think of yourself as an actor taking on a role—you’ll have to live your characters’ lives even more in depth and for a longer period of time than you would if you were playing them in a movie. Your readers will be inhabiting their lives for the duration of their time with your book, so you owe it to them to get things right. If you go into research with a positive attitude, you’ll not only come out with a better story, you’ll be a little wiser, too.

Nicole Evelina is a historical fiction writer from the Midwestern United States, represented by Jen Karsbaek of Foreword Literary. She’s currently writing an Arthurian legend trilogy. Her first book, Guinevere of Northgallis, is complete and she’s working on the sequel, Camelot’s Queen.