It shouldn’t surprise anyone that I love creating “speculative fiction.”1 Whether I’m working on a new graphic novel, re-writing a screenplay or playing an RPG, I find myself drawn to the creative possibilities of speculative fiction.
For me, speculative fiction means stories that take place in worlds other than the real world. Think steampunk worlds filled with golems fighting clockwork machines driven by aether. Or, post-apocalyptic worlds populated by zombies chasing a few scrappy survivors. Or, fantasy worlds where elves, dwarves, and celestials wield wondrous magics to keep demons at bay. Or, contemporary worlds where eldritch horrors push stalwart investigators to the brink of madness. Or, space operas where plucky heroes face the mysteries of the universe.
Speculative fiction includes sci-fi2, supernatural, horror, fantasy, alternate history, and superhero genres. These can be mashed up together or with other literary genres such as: romance (Twilight anyone?), mystery (Altered Carbon?), noir (Blade Runner?), western (Cowboys & Aliens?3), historical fiction (Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell?), thriller (Gideon the Ninth?) and young adult (Harry Potter? Hunger Games?”).
There are literally no limits to the speculative stories that can be told. Except for the limits imposed by the creator. That’s where world-building comes in. Although these stories don’t take place in the “real” world, to engage the audience, the worlds in which they take place must feel real.
Fictional world-building a craft in and of itself. This is the part of the creative process that I can get lost in. There is an alchemical balancing of imagination, reality, suspension of disbelief and plausibility. Even a world brimming with nonsense (I’m looking at you Discworld), must make sense.
There are so many questions to answer. How like or unlike is it to the world we know? Think about the flora, fauna, geography, geology, climate, atmosphere, and physics. The sights, the scents, the sounds and feel of the fictional world bring it to life.
Who lives in this world? People? Peoples? What kinds? Do you stick with classic tropes (green Martians) or strike out to create something new (sentient mega-photons inhabiting silica-based husks)? Imagine building a fantasy society. Do you go alt-history medieval with Merlin and Arthur (The Once and Future King) or Tolkienesque with humans, elves, dwarves, orcs, and hobbits? Or, do you create something new-ish with classic dragons, rare magic, white walkers, and lots of swords (Game of Thrones)? Or, get rid of humans (and humanoids) altogether and tell a story of gallant medieval mice (Mouse Guard).
How does magic work? Or, technology? Or, the supernatural? Without internal rules to guide their use, these elements can spin a narrative out of control. There must be some limits to what is possible. There must be some credible (even if not factual) explanation for how things work.
What about societal structures? Politics? Religion? Family? Authority? Hierarchies? Classes? Education? Guilds? Factions? Are we talking villages, towns, cities, kingdoms, nation-states, empires or massive colony ships?
Don’t let’s forget about personal characteristics and the identities associated with them. Gender? Sex? Sexuality? Race? Faith? Abilities? Physical, intellectual, spiritual, metaphysical.
What’s wrong in this world? Indifferent gods warring with each other? Mega-corporations draining resources? Malevolent spirits bent on revenge? Ancient mages or weird scientists seeking to reshape reality to their grand designs? Or, maybe the wrongs in this world are very real - racism, sexism, homophobia, greed, genocide, transphobia, classism, prejudice, totalitarianism, or nationalism. The challenges we face can be explored in a different context: climate change, natural disasters, societal polarization, pandemics, the wealth gap, or the health gap. Speculative fiction is a powerful way to explore real problems (Kindred? The Handmaid’s Tale? Animal Farm? A Brave New World? 1984? Fahrenheit 451?4).
We writers create from all of the good and bad that comes with each of these choices. That’s where the story comes from.
Perhaps you’re curious about why I am thinking about world-building. Well, I do write graphic novels and screenplays. But, I also play tabletop RPGs. World-building is a huge and fun part of playing RPGs.
Lately, I’ve been playing a solo RPG using the Ironsworn system created by Shawn Tomkin. It has been really fun. The book sets forth some very helpful setting elements and tools to flesh out the world. It is a dark, low fantasy world set in a physically and socially rugged terrain. Not really my forte, but I’ve been feeling challenged (in a good way) to create a world of my own to play in.
My hero is Tamsin Stonebreaker. She’s a tough, serious miner who sets off on a journey to restore her family’s honor. I’m calling it Red Iron. And, I’m planning to serialize it right here on my Substack. Stay tuned.
This, of course, is a term that has many definitions solely for the purpose of being yet another thing nerds like me can debate for hours and hours.
This is a point of some debate. Science fiction fans try to distinguish between “hard” science fiction (where the science is grounded on known scientific facts - the rules of physics, chemistry, biology, computers, etc.) and “soft” science fiction (in which technology deviates freely from accepted science and focuses more on sociology, politics, anthropology, etc.). I think good sci-fi blends both.
Who doesn’t wish Cowboys & Aliens had actually been good?
I once got into an argument with a roommate who was constantly pooh-poohing “genre books” saying they weren’t real “literature.” She was lumping all genres together - sci-fi, romance, mystery, fantasy dimissing them as meaningless drivel. I responded by listing all of those “good” books (like these) that she considered “worthy” literature that were, in fact, speculative fiction.
This is a great post. I have only tried world building once (outside of the, you know, "reality-based" worlds in plain ole fiction) - and it is HARD. You don't realize how much physics, philosophy, biology, myth, and every other rule-based system goes into making something that makes sense for what a character would do at any given moment! And when you do it well, you're reader doesn't notice a thing. Jemisin is great at it. And Watership Down is a beloved fave. As is Beneville.
Susan, this is fascinating. Even though I had no idea what RPGs are, so looked it up. You really do live in a different world and I look forward to your educating me about your different worlds and your creative process. O Brave New World that has Susan creating it. :-)