World Building for Pantsers
Your goal as a writer: build a world so real it seems as if it could exist beyond the pages of your book.
I’ve already written about the journey of self-discovery that led to my realization that I am a pantser (check out that post here).
While figuring out my pantser identity was great, it was only the first step in figuring out how I work best.
One big challenge I faced when figuring out my process: world building.
Deep, sustained world building is what sets the fantasy & science fiction apart from other genres. Creating a new world that feels real to readers requires a lot of detailed work. World builders also need to hold on to all of that world building information—keeping track of decisions they’ve made and the implications those choices have for other part sof hte world.
Wondering how a pantser can create a detailed world without getting lost along the way?
Here’s how I handle it:
Step #1: The Zero Draft
I write the “zero” draft of my story first. The “zero” draft is a draft so rough it doesn’t even count as a real draft. It’s almost like a narrative outline. I sketch out the characters and plot events, trying to get a general sense of what happens and to who. The zero draft is a chance to exploration and discover. I don’t hold tightly to the ideas created in this stage. Settings, character names, character motivations, and plot details are all fair game for midway changes. Instead of going back to revise material that has come before, I constantly write forward in the zero draft. That means I make changes and write as if the rest of the draft has been changed already. Then, I can go back and make the necessary changes in revision.
Creating the zero draft is my way of creating the raw material that will later become the finished novel.
Step #2: Intensive World Building
After writing the first draft of a novel, I go back and made a list of all the unanswered questions and inconsistencies. Then, I do all of the character and world building exercises that people usually think you should do before writing. Since I already have a draft at this point, I can eliminate the exercises that aren’t relevant and simply focus on what I need to know for my particular story. I focus on the world building elements that will amplify the themes and conflict of the story, while leaving behind the world building aspects that aren’t relevant to the story I want to tell.
The character & world-building work that I do at this stage helps me create a plan for re-writing the story and creating my solid first draft. I linger here for a while, making sure that I have a solid understanding of the characters and the world before I move on to the next stage in my process.
Step #3: Revise and Implement Changes
This last step is the most important, and the one that can take the longest. Once I know what I need to change, I to go back into the manuscript and actually write the new content. Before you dive in, it’s important to know that a rewrite of this magnitude requires making changes at every level of the manuscript. For me, the best way to implement revisions is to print out a copy of my draft and then re-type the story. It’s a massive undertaking. Why do I bother? Because it forces me to reevaluate whether every single word of the manuscript and determine whether it serves the newest iteration of my novel or not.
Step #4: Repeat steps #3 & #4 until the manuscript is finished!
Yup, one round of world building & revising might not be enough to flesh out a complex world. And that’s totally fine! You can go back and forth between world building & drafting as often as you like. If you find yourself getting stuck during the rewrite, there’s no harm in pausing to map out some details of the world & story. Once you have enough information to move forward, you can dive back into the draft.
World building is about more than drawing a map and calling it a day. Focusing on the cultures of your world will help you create the world building elements that are most important to developing the characters & conflicts of your story.
Still struggling with world building as a pantser? Here are some extra tips for world-building the pantser way:
1) Embrace the power of “TK”.
Terry Brooks famously said that the first draft is just you telling yourself the story. The key word there is story. Instead of worrying about the minutiae of your world while you write your first draft, focus on figuring out what happens to your characters and why. Think about who your characters are, what they want, and what they’ll be willing to do to accomplish their goals.
As you go along, throw in setting details as they come to you. Make up cultural or religious details that suit your scenes. But don’t worry about hammering out the fine details.
If your sky is blue in chapter one and green in chapter ten, don’t sweat it, keep writing forward. Not sure what color your protagonist’s wizard robe should be? Ignore it and move on.
Of course, you’ll want to keep track of those inconsistencies and the decisions that you’re saving for later. That’s where “TK” comes in.
“TK” is means “to come”. If you’re scratching your head wondering where the K comes from, it’s because T and K don’t appear next to each other in English. That means you can use ctrl+F to search for it without coming up with extraneous results. For example, if I’m writing a scene and suddenly need a name for a specific religious garment that a character is wearing, I might write something that looks like this:
“She adjusted the skirt of her TK garment. The time had come for her to become one with the order.”
In the draft, I don’t bold or italicize the TK elements of the story. I just wanted to emphasize it for you here. I just throw in a TK and keep the draft moving.
In addition to marking these TK notes, I also like to keep a separate list of bigger world building questions that need to be answered. These questions address foundational world building elements that can’t be represented by a single TK moment in a scene. This list guides me when I transition to my intensive world building process.
While writing the zero draft, it’s best to focus on the story itself. The finer details of your world can come later.
2) Culture is key.
When we think of world building, most people think of geography first. They might jump straight into drawing a map and naming the fantastical flora & fauna of their new world.
Personally, I think that approach to world-building puts the cart before the horse. Don’t get me wrong, the physical aspects of setting are important and they will influence the culture of each culture you create, but these physical details are only one small facet of world building.
The true meat of world building, especially in speculative genres, occurs at the cultural level. Characterization relies on knowing who your character is and what made them that way. Unlike writers of contemporary fiction, sci-fi & fantasy writers have to create the cultural context before we can apply it to our characterization. Instead of researching what is happening in the real world, we have to create the values and beliefs that shaped our characters. In addition to figuring out how those things work on an individual level, we have to figure out how the culture works on a much larger level.
Once you’ve identified the cultural elements that will shape your world, you can figure out the finer details of the physical settings.
Now, one very important caveat: start with your story inspiration, no matter what it is!
If a map is the first thing that comes to mind for your story, draw it out! If your entire plot hinges on the story taking place in an ice-world or underwater kingdom, then by all means figure out what makes that world work. Just make sure to spend equal time building out the culture(s) of your world so that you can create deep, three-dimensional characters and meaningful, layered conflicts to engage them in. After all, that’s what will drive your story and give readers a reason to explore your world.
#3) World build in layers.
You don’t need to create the whole world at once. Instead, world build throughout each draft & each revision.
I’ve already talked about using the discovery draft to explore. Once you have your collections of TK’s and unanswered questions, you can approach your world building in two ways. The first option is to simply start writing a new draft and tackle those changes scene by scene. The second is to sit down and write out a world bible for your story, deliberately answering all of those questions without rewriting your scenes.
I recommend a combination of the two. Start by writing out answers to the big questions that will have implications for the entire story. Things like cultural norms, beliefs, values, greetings, etc. that need to be consistent throughout the story.
Then, go through scene-by-scene revisions, layering in the big changes and addressing TK’s as they come up.
You don’t need to answer every single question in draft #2. It’s perfectly fine to leave in TK’s and to list other unanswered questions that you can address in the 3rd or 4th draft of your story.
Just remember, at some point, you must make decisions. If you’re wavering between two pathways, sit down and really think through the implications. If you’re facing resistance, unpack it, try to figure out what you’re really worried about and find a way through.
As I said before, there’s no limit to the amount of time you can spend world building. Just make sure you’re approaching world building in a productive way that moves your story forward. In other words, don’t get lost in the weeds of your world. Keep your story’s needs front & center and don’t be afraid to layer on more world building in each draft of your novel.
#4) Change is necessary.
Finally, we get to the #1 thing to keep in mind when revising as a pantser—things must change.
Pantsing is inherently chaotic. It’s pretty much impossible to avoid contradictions, inconsistencies and nonsensical mistakes in your discovery draft. Don’t be ashamed, this is just part of your process.
But here’s the thing, when mistakes and chaos are part of your process, then ruthless revision must be as well.
In the first draft of my current WIP, I struggled to decide whether my setting was going to be tropical or temperate, so I wrote scenes with both variations. I had great descriptions for both. But I knew that when I finally made a decision, I would have to change all of the great descriptions that no longer fit my world.
Was it frustrating to abandon all of that prose? A little. But you know what was even better? Having a fully fleshed out and consistent world.
When it comes to making changes in your manuscript, don’t think about what you’re losing or cutting or sacrificing when you choose one direction over another. Think about what you’re gaining. And always, always, always keep your eye on the prize: a novel that works from page one to the end.
I hope these tips help you embrace your pantser process while still allowing you to create coherent, fantastical worlds. Not a pantser? That’s okay! I’m coming back next week with world building tips just for the plotters amongst us! For my pantser friends, come back anyway, you never know when you’ll encounter a novel that requires you to change up your process!
Need help making world building decisions as you revise your draft?
Not sure if you’re headed in the right direction or simply headed down a world building rabbit hole?
