Y - The One Letter that's also my Favourite Question

Why?

I believe that “Why?” is the most important question of worldbuilding. It is, in fact, probably the most important question of any kind of planning. Why.

Everything in your setting should be connected. There’s a reason (if not multiple reasons) behind every action we take, every trend we follow, every dream we have, every political current that emerges. These reasons are often unconscious, but when you build your setting it is important to delve deep into its psyche. You can’t leave it to luck.

“Why” isn’t just about knowing how your setting evolves, however. It’s also a way to research it.

Let’s say your story demands your character is deprived of her belongings upon arriving in a certain society. Why would they do that? Perhaps it’s a society that frowns upon the concept of property. Perhaps they are afraid of strangers and take no chances. Or maybe it’s because she’s a woman.

All of these raise more question, though! Why do they frown upon property? Was there a tyrant in their past who grabbed all the riches? Are they afraid of strangers because they’re isolated? Why are they isolated (do they live on an island? Deep in a network of caves? In floating cities? Do they flee when strangers arrive?)  And last... why do women bother them? Is it simple an ultra-patriarchal society? Do they associate women with an evil of sorts? Or do they on the contrary believe they possess a power that allows survival despite having belongings?

I could go on endlessly. It’s what I do when I worldbuild. Knowing the causes of something informs me about it.

So don’t be shy. Use Why. Connect with your four-year-old self again! Your understanding of your WIP can only grow from it.

Explaining the Technology

I've already discussed how I find it disappointing there aren't more settings that combine magic and technology. It was... right here (yes, I know, not even one month in this blogging thing and I'm already shamelessly linking myself).

Ironic, then, that I am currently working on a setting with a few technological elements... and no magic.

Yes, I know.

It's not what I want to talk about, though. While I worked out the kinks of my world, I came up with a simple problem: explaining why I had different level of technology in the same world. What I mean by that is that I wanted airships next to the old printing press, or large amounts of electricity with communications limited to telegraphs.

My first thought was to explain it through the humans' needs. Why spend time developing technology if it won't serve? That could explain why there was no wire communication along with the airships. But what about the rest? And why on earth would zeppelins still be the main method of travel?

I need reasons. I know I could let some of these things unexplained, since it's unlikely I'll get to say all of this in the novel. But I can't. When I ask myself the Why Question, I need to answer it.

I was stuck, though. Nothing I thought up seemed good enough. What did I do? I called upon a writer friend, of course! Here's what he told me: "Maybe they had a lot of natural gases?"

Maybe I'm the only one who never thought of it that way, but I was amazed. Flabbergasted. Not once did I try to explain it through the resources. It seems simple now, and obvious, but it hadn't crossed my mind. After my friend asked me that question, everything fell into place (you know how fun that is).

I guess the moral in this is simple. When trying to explain the evolution of any society's technology, there are two things to consider: needs and resources. What you want to do, and how you can do it. The formal and material cause. (I know, I know, shameless!)

With that, I return to my worldbuilding. Also... 10 days until NaNoWriMo!

The Four Causes

The other day I saw something interesting during my Logic class (yes, you heard that right, I have logic classes and they are actually fun). My teacher defined four types of cause to any object or event, and explained how these could help us better know said object (or event). Being a bit obsessive, I immediately tried to see if I could apply this to novel planning.

Now, I'm not saying this is how you should do it. I'm not even sure I will. It was a new way to look at things, however, and I think it's always helpful to test out new methods. You never know which will work better.

So here's a quick description of the four causes. I'm translating from French, so these might not be the exact, technical terms.

1) The Ultimate Cause: This is the goal. You can find it by asking 'Why?' Why was this thing built? Why did X event happen? It's also the most important, as it will influence the other causes.

2) The Material Cause: In a way, this is the nitty-gritty cause. It's the physical material you used, the stuff your object is made of. In the case of an event, it can also be the person who acted. So if you plan something and send minions to do it, the minions are part of the material cause.

3) The Formal Cause: This one is the plan behind your object or event, the way it's organised, the structure in it.

4) The Efficient Cause: This is the origine of your object. If it was built, it can be the maker. Sometimes it is also the person who makes the plan (the one who has the idea). The best way to find this cause is to ask "Where does the beginning of this thing start?" (No need to go all the way back to your world's Big Bang, though).

An example of this, from my work. The novel starts with Prince Heike ordering the assassination of his father, King Eckhart.

1. The Ultimate Cause:  Grab Edingher's power. There are other motives for him to want that power, but the reason he orders the assassination is to have it.
2. The Material Cause:The dagger used for the assassination, and the assassin herself.
3. The Formal Cause: The strike's plan. There was a lot of planification involved in this assassination, and that is the formal cause.
4. The Efficient Cause: Prince Heike. This is his idea, and he is the one hiring assassins/planning the entire coup. Others are involved, but all of this starts with him.

Anyway, I hope that helps in one way or another. I try to do it with major plot points, and to be more exhaustive than above, because it helps me know what brought an event about.

Unraveling the plot

My fantasy ideas, when I first get them, are never very well-defined. I will have a scene or a character, but nothing else. There are obvious things about this character, but for every thing I am certain of, there will be a dozen I don't know yet.

It is, in many ways, like coming upon a big knot. You can see certain threads, and you know there's a splendid tapestry behind, but you first have to entangle them. You have to separate each thread from the others and see what it is made of before you can weave it back into a splendid work of art.

I don't think there's a single good way to do this. Each writer goes through his own process. This is only mine.

I start with the characters. It helps that most of the time, a character is the first thing I imagine, but even if I have a scene in mind, I start with the charaters. And I ask questions.

Who is this guy? What does he want? Why? Does he have family and friends? Where does he live? How does that shape his personality? Is there something peculiar about his appearance? If this is a scene, how and why did he get here?

Every answer to these questions should bring out more. Often, the setting will influence this character. No, wait, scratch that. Always, the setting will influence your character. If you know your world already, see where it connects with him. If you don't, see what could've shaped your character this way.

Always, ask questions. Pay close attention to the answers, especially the whys. Every time I do this, it's like pulling on a thread in the knot. Yes, some will tighten it and only make the big picture harder to see, but you will find the right thread, and the knot will fall apart.

There are knots along the way, though. Knots in the bigger knots. You'll find you have a beginning and an ending, and key scenes in-between... and yet, there is still that stretch in the story where you don't know what happens.

What do I do? I start with the characters.

How would he go from point A to point B? Isn't there someone that would be opposed to this? Who is that someone? What does he want, and why? Does he have family and friends? Where does he live? How does that shape his personality? Is there something peculiar about his appearance?

And thus a scene is born. I talked about ambitious characters before. This is why I love them.

Ask questions. Give answers. Explain the answers. Unravel the plot knot into threads, and then weave them back together to create your novel.