July Behind the Scenes Pt. 1: Worldbuilding, Technology & Language

As many of you in the Discord have heard me scream, I finished reading Invoking the Blood this week. I'll spare you the details, but I didn't enjoy it.

One of the weakest points of the book was the worldbuilding. I thought I would take this opportunity to explain a couple of aspects that needled me, and tips to avoid it in your own writing.

Technology

It doesn't matter if the setting is fantasy, science fiction, another world, or otherwise, it is so important to figure out what kind of time period you're in and at what stage the civilizations have advanced. Including certain inventions will suggest that others are available.

Invoking is set in a "Victorian Fantasy" world made of three tiers: Anaria (top), Chaos (middle), and Hell (bottom).

All of the houses had running water (plumbing), luxurious bathtubs, and modern toilets with lids and the ability to flush.

This is all well and good. However, the main method of healing someone was potions or magic. It mentions multiple times that people in Anaria are dying of diseases.

The modern flush toilets we have today weren't a staple in households until the mid-1900s. The first vaccine was successfully used in 1796. The first antibiotic chemical was used in the early 1900s.

All of the houses and castles also featured electricity. Faye would switch on lights in a walk-in closet (made popular in the 1950s) and the ballrooms had electric-powered chandeliers.

I get it, walking into a room like this would be awesome.

But the first home to be powered by electricity was in 1890, and then it was normalized by 1920.

And yet, we're still relying on potions to heal very basic illnesses.

In one chapter, Faye says she wishes she could order something normal, like "Chicken Fingers" (first created in 1974) from Hell's fancy "Restaurant" (this term was first published in 1853), but she'd have to get them from a "Tavern" (why not just call it a bar?).

In your story, figure out how far technology has advanced. And it's okay to be vague on certain things! As Joe asked me, "What do the toilets in Nyarlea look like?" We've never talked about that on purpose. It's not pertinent to the narrative. If you need to shift your timeline forward into something more modern to make it work, that's fine, too!

I sincerely believe that if the author had let the "ye old Vampire" theme go and brought the world into a modern age, she would have greatly benefited from it. The plot could have remained completely the same; it would only have required changing a lot of the language.

Speaking of...

Language

This is a big one for me. Using the wrong words or terms can have an unintended subtext.

One in Invoking was "Shibari." There were "Shibari" classes available. Shibari is distinctly Japanese, which means that somewhere in their world, Japan exists.

In another story I edited for, the author referred to a car as "baroque" in its artistic design. Except the world wasn't Earth. So Europe shouldn't exist.

Now, like I've said in the past, you don't have to reinvent the wheel with your language. I believe common concepts should always exist (tea, coffee, sugar, chocolate), just try to keep in mind what the denizens of your world are exposed to in their every day.

In my past posts about researching Janusz and Krethik, I mentioned writing down idioms and sayings from their respective cultures. Not only does it add depth to their characters, but it gives the reader an idea of where they come from.

This is just as important in a fantasy world. We have to constantly take this into account for catgirls. It's very, very easy to slip up and forget.

For example: "Oh my God." This phrase is ancient and so embedded in our culture. It makes sense, this term has been around since the 1300s.

When we went back through book one, we caught Keke using the term, and it seems that it's always on the tip of Ravyn's tongue.

But Nyarlea doesn't have a god. It has a goddess.

I took a few notes from Brandon Sanderson, Patrick Rothfuss, and FFXIV on crafting a few curses for our reverent goddess. "Saoirse's tits" is definitely a favorite. But we have to watch exclamations of surprise (Oh my goodness!) and exhaustion (Goddess above).

We've also come up with a few of our own idioms for Nyarlea. "Don't chase my tail" and "I've had it up to my ears with you" are two I really enjoy. Ry came up with Ceres's "I have pawm civets in my feet" for "it's hard to get moving."

Learning the etymology of your favorite words and phrases can help you build your own! There's a cool website called Etymonline that lets you search for words and phrases.

Use your character's traits and surroundings to your advantage. In Ichi, they say "May the sun warm your back and the wind carry your desires." It was based on the idea that the sun being out of your face is a boon, and the wind can kick up the sand in your favor.

If you have a lizard race, think of something scaley. If it's post-apocalyptic, maybe they're using phrases from shortly before the world ended. This will cement your characters inside your world.

Thanks for reading!

I hope you enjoyed this post! If you ever want to share your writing with us or have any questions on these posts, we have a writer's workshop channel in the Discord.

What are your favorite worlds that you've created or read? What aspects really bring you into a story or take you out of one?

See you soon!