Story Building Blocks: Game On!: March 2018

Worldbuilding: News and Information

Once you choose a place and time, you can determine where people obtained information.

We can thank the Science Fiction community for inspiring the inventions of today from the cell phone, to the television, to the iPad.

What type of written communication did they have: stone or clay tablets, scrolls, papyrus, handwritten or printed books, newspapers, or magazines?

How was information transmitted locally: carvings, cave paintings, town criers, public proclamations, town meetings, or houses of worship?

Did the people rely on word of mouth, messengers, community gatherings, town halls, mail, pony express, postal system, telephone, telegraph, teletype, fax machine, email, internet, television, or radio?

Did they have libraries, schools, training facilities of some kind, or colleges and universities?

How much knowledge of, or access to, the wider world did they have: none, local, regional, national, international, intergalactic? Did they have in-depth knowledge of the past or information about the future?

How accurate or reliable were the sources of information?

Did they have ways of disguising communication: Morse code, codex, enigma machines, ciphers, secret codes, spy technology, bugs, or other listening devices?

In Fantasy and Science Fiction, inventing unique communication methods adds richness to the story world.

In Historical settings, it helps to know how people communicated, what they knew, how they found out about it, and how accurate their sources were.

Suggested references:

1. A History of Bookbinding by Various
2. Japanese Bookbinding: Instructions From A Master Craftsman by Kojiro Ikegami
3. A Short History of Bookbinding by Joseph William Zaehnsdorf
4. Johann Gutenberg and the Printing Press by Kay Melchisedech Olson & Tod G Smith
5. The Printing Revolution in Early Modern Europe by Elizabeth L. Eisenstein
6. A History of Reading and Writing: In the Western World by Martyn Lyons
7. The Coming of the Book: The Impact of Printing, 1450-1800 by Lucien Febvre & Henri-Jean Martin
8. The Library: A World History by James W. P. Campbell & Will Pryce
9. The Library of Alexandria: Centre of Learning in the Ancient World by Roy MacLeod
10. The Book in the Renaissance by Andrew Pettegree

Next week, we tackle education.

For advanced world-building, the SBB Build A World Workbook is available in print and e-book.

Other titles in the series:

Story Building Blocks: The Four Layers of Conflict available in print and e-book takes you from story seed to conflict outline. The fourteen companion Build A Plot Workbooks, in print and e-book, offer step by step development prompts: Comedy, Con, Heist & Prison Break, Fantasy, Gothic, Historical, Horror, Literary
(Drama), Mystery, Road Trip, Romance, Science Fiction, Team Victory, Thriller & Suspense, Western.

SBB II Crafting Believable Conflict in print and e-book and the Build A Cast Workbook in print and e-book help you build a believable cast and add conflict based on the sixteen personality types.

SBB III The Revision Layers in print and e-book helps you self-edit your manuscript.

Free story building tools are available at www.dianahurwitz.com.

Worldbuilding: Communication

I have always been fascinated by language. Its origins. The way it spread and changed. That we have the capacity to not only make our thoughts known but to use language as a pallet and canvas to create masterpieces.

Whether targeting a specific decade or creating a new world, how do people communicate in your story world?

Sign language/hand gestures probably came first, then spoken language.

This developed into written symbols and hieroglyphs. I found it humorous that some researchers have decided the earliest languages revolved around counting and claiming things. What does every toddler learn early? Mine!

There are thousands of written languages. What languages existed in the time and place of your setting? Language gets tricky when writing fiction because you have to write it in a way your audience understands. In the USA, that means you write the story in English and have to creatively indicate how people from other locales communicated without dipping too far into foreign languages or abusive phonetic spelling tangents.

There is a greater push in American television shows and movies to incorporate foreign languages, especially Spanish. Unfortunately most people are not fluent in more than one language here. So I advise you to still stick with English, which tends to be the "universal" language at the moment, or whatever your native tongue may be.

Programs such as Google Translate cannot be relied upon for accuracy. If you wish to utilize a foreign language you are not fluent in, especially if you want a foreign translation of your work, hire a professional.

Thanks to the world wide web, you should be able to connect with someone who can help you with a specific language. You can also research books, magazine, and articles written in foreign languages. You can watch movies and You Tube videos to get a feel for how the language sounds and perhaps their slang, exclamations, and expletives. You can incorporate the rhythm of the way others speak English without resorting to stereotypes.

Did they have different dialects, accents, or pidgin versions? You can convey different speaking patterns without resorting to phonetic spelling abuse by altering sentence construction and rhythm.

What were some of their slang words or jargon? Readers find it hard to wade through paragraphs of unfamiliar names and words, but a few carefully chosen slang words, terms for objects, place names, etc. enrich any story world. Scatter them like delicate spices.

What were some of their curse words? One of the biggest challenges for me writing Mythikas Island was to avoid any modern words. That included expletives and exclamations. I had to develop a list of things characters would say when angry, surprised, etc. When you create a Fantasy or Science Fiction world, this is a fun exercise.

When writing about a specific historical era, you'll have to research what people were saying to each other. Using modern words in that setting rings false. Writers throw in the F-bomb into any setting these days. It's frankly annoying. Caesar did not say F-U Brute!

What were their terms of endearment or expressions of love?

Were there cyborgs, mind readers, or telepaths?

Did they have runes or hieroglyphs?

Dialogue is such a large part of writing fiction. Making it effective deserves time and attention. No dull dialogue!

Suggested references:

1. Empires of the Word: A Language History of the World by Nicholas Ostler
2. The Power of Babel: A Natural History of Language by John McWhorter
3. The Unfolding of Language: An Evolutionary Tour of Mankind's Greatest Invention by Guy Deutscher
4. Linear B and Related Scripts by John Chadwick
5. A Companion to Linear B: Mycenaean Greek Texts and their World by Y. Duhoux & Anna Murpurgo Davies
6. The Rosetta Stone and the Rebirth of Ancient Egypt by John Ray
7. The Rosetta Stone by E.A. Wallis Budge
8. Egyptian Hieroglyphs for Complete Beginners by Bill Manley

9. Hieroglyphic Dictionary: A Vocabulary of the Middle Egyptian Language by Bill Petty PhD
10. Learn American Sign Language All-in-One Beginners Course by James W. Guido

Next week, we will consider how your cast transmits information.

For advanced world-building, the SBB Build A World Workbook is available in print and e-book.

Other titles in the series:

SBB II Crafting Believable Conflict in print and e-book and the Build A Cast Workbook in print and e-book help you build a believable cast and add conflict based on the sixteen personality types.

SBB III The Revision Layers in print and e-book helps you self-edit your manuscript.

Free story building tools are available at www.dianahurwitz.com.

Worldbuilding: Hygiene

From bathing in streams and hot springs, to lavish Roman baths, to modern tiled showers the size of a log cabin, humans at some point started caring about cleanliness.

Historical time periods had different rituals associated with the resources they had available. In space, these mundane matters still matter. In a magical realm, they too must at some point evacuate waste and bathe.

We don't need an endless replay of mundane personal hygiene activities, but the realities of your story world will intrude at some point. In invented worlds, these details can add interest. You won't spend paragraphs talking about them. A passing mention will do.

When and how often did they bathe?

Did they associate bathing with health? Were they aware of germs and bacteria?

Where did they bathe: mineral springs, bodies of water, public baths, bathrooms, wooden tubs, sinks, bowls and ewers, showers, claw foot or porcelain tubs, or saunas?

Did they have a form of plumbing for water carrying: viaducts, cisterns, rain barrels, catchments, wells, or bodies of water?

How did they get rid of bodily waste: chamber pots, outhouses, flushing toilets, or trenches?

At another point in time, humans started removing and sculpting body hair.

How did they feel about body hair for men and did they have a method for removal? Where on the body and how?

How did they feel about facial hair for men? Did they prefer clean-shaven, bearded, mustaches, goatees, sideburns? Did they have a method of removal?

How did they feel about facial hair for women? Did they have a method of removal?

How did they feel about body hair for women and did they have a method for removal? Where on the body and how?

Did they have a form of odor control or perfumes?

How did women handle feminine hygiene? What did they use? Were there special routines or rituals associated with it?

Next week, we tackle forms of communication.

For advanced world-building, the SBB Build A World Workbook is available in print and e-book.

Other titles in the series:

SBB II Crafting Believable Conflict in print and e-book and the Build A Cast Workbook in print and e-book help you build a believable cast and add conflict based on the sixteen personality types.

SBB III The Revision Layers in print and e-book helps you self-edit your manuscript.

Free story building tools are available at www.dianahurwitz.com.

Worldbuilding: Physical Appearance

From dwarfs to giants, babies to crones, human forms are brilliantly diverse. People from different areas have certain traits that are passed down. From the frosty Nordic races to the darkest African tribes, we are all glorious shades of beige.

In Science Fiction and Fantasy, you can create your own beings. The only limits are your imagination. How rooted in reality you want them to be is up to you. If you go widely astray in Science Fiction, you should be able to back up the choices through a credible rationale based on physics or biology. In Fantasy, magic can, well, work magic.

What body type was preferred (slim versus voluptuous, toned versus soft)? How tall were they?

How did they feel about skin tone? What tone was native to the time and place? How did they feel about differences? Did color indicate status, role, position? Had they eradicated prejudice or had it just shifted to other qualifiers?

How did they feel about exercise and physical fitness? What did they do to stay healthy or in shape?

How did they feel about body modifications (such as cinching in waists, binding feet, fake nails, fangs, adding horns, stretching necks, binding heads, plastic surgery, surgical modification, gender reassignment, castrations, mutilations)? Did they have cultural significance? Did they indicate rank, status, or role?
Did they have colored or unusual contacts?

Do they have any form of physical augmentation or mechanization: prosthetics, glass eyes, hearing aids or cochlear implants, dental implants or fillings, false teeth, other implants, bionics, cyborgs, organ transplants, etc.?

How did they feel about piercings? Where on the body, how, and with what? Did they have cultural significance? Did they indicate rank, status, or role?

How did they feel about tattoos? Did they have cultural significance? Did they indicate rank, status, or role? Men and women? Children?

How did they feel about hair color? What colors were native to the time and place? How did they feel about differences? Did color indicate status, role, or position?

Did they alter hair color? How? What colors were possible or popular?

Were particular hairstyles dictated by role, position, class, religion, etc.?

Do your characters wear their hair to blend in or stand out?

Did they wear wigs?

Did they use hair ribbons, bows, bands, clips, or other embellishments? From towering wigs with birds and fruit, to artful braids, hair has been a source of fascination throughout the ages.

At some point, people began to paint their skin and face.

Did they use cosmetics? What colors and styles were popular?

Eyeliner or Kohl? Mascara? False or enhanced eyelashes?

Eyebrow liner, modification, shaving, or other manipulation?

Eye shadows to alter the shape of eyes or enhance their natural beauty?

Face powder, concealer, foundation, rouge or blush for beauty, to hide skin conditions, stage makeup, or disguises?

Lipstick or gloss to enhance or disguise?

Beauty marks or stickers?

Building a character is part of the fun of creating a story world. While you shouldn't spend pages describing your characters as they enter the story, knowledge of your story world will organically saturate your prose.

Next week, we take a look at hygiene.

For advanced world-building, the SBB Build A World Workbook is available in print and e-book.

Other titles in the series:

SBB II Crafting Believable Conflict in print and e-book and the Build A Cast Workbook in print and e-book help you build a believable cast and add conflict based on the sixteen personality types.

SBB III The Revision Layers in print and e-book helps you self-edit your manuscript.

Free story building tools are available at www.dianahurwitz.com.

Worldbuilding: Gemstones

What gems and semi-precious stones were available? There is no room to list all of the semi-precious gemstones or the places they have been found, but we will hit the highlights. Let's take a brief trek through history.

Agate (green, pale white to tan, gray, gold, red, black, and other color patterns and combinations such as eyes, plumes, lace, swirls, bands, zigzags, and fire flash) was used in Bronze Age Minoan culture as jewelry, in Sicily back to 400 BCE, and in ancient Sumer and Egypt for decoration and religious ceremonies. (Mined in Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, Mexico, Poland, Botswana, India, Australia, Oregon, Arizona, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, and Michigan.)

Amber (golden yellow) is fossilized tree resin and has been used for decoration since Neolithic times. Found everywhere there is tree resin.

Amethyst (pale to deep purple) was worn by ancient Greeks to prevent intoxication. It was used for jewelry and adornment of objects. (Mined in Brazil, Uruguay, South Korea, Austria, India, Greece, Russia, Africa, United States, Canada.)

Aquamarine (pale to dark blue) was used in Ancient Rome to calm waves and keep sailors safe at sea. (Mined in Sri Lanka, Madagascar, Brazil, Colombia, Zambia, Madagascar, Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya.)

Carnelian (orange to red) was used in 4th-5th millennium BCE by Minoans on Crete and by ancient Romans. It was found on Assyrian cylinder seals and Egyptian and Phoenician scarabs. (Mined in Brazil, India, Siberia, Germany.)

Citrine (pale yellow to brown) was believed to bring prosperity. (Mined in Brazil.)

Coral (white, pink, red, black) is a sea animal. Coral beads were popular during the Manchu or Qing Dynasty in China (1644-1911 CE). It was used in Ancient India, Egypt, Polynesian islands, Africa, and other coastal cultures. The beads were introduced in Europe by the East India Company.

Diamond (white, yellow, blue, pink, black) is derived from the ancient Greek adámas and were first mined in India. (Mined in Central and Southern Africa, Canada, India, Russia, Brazil, and Australia.)

Emeralds (pale to dark green) were used by ancient Greeks and Hebrews and mined by Egyptians, Austrians, and in northern Pakistan. (Mined in Colombia, Zambia, Brazil, Zimbabwe, Madagascar, Pakistan, India, Afghanistan, Russia, North Carolina, and the Yukon)

Garnets (pink to dark red) have been worn since the Bronze Age. (Mined in Asia, Colorado, North Carolina, Czech republic, Madagascar, Russia, Kenya, Tanzania, and Turkey.)

Jade (pale yellow to dark green) was used during prehistoric periods for hardstone carving. It was treasured in Mesoamerican cultures as well as Neolithic China, Japan, and Europe. (Mined in Burma, North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, Canada, New Zealand, and Guatemala.)

Jasper (green, brown, pinks, red, orange, yellow, blue) means "spotted or speckled stone" and was recorded in Anglo-Norman culture, ancient Greece, the Middle East, Azerbaijan, Persia, Assyria, and Ancient Rome. On Minoan Crete (1800 BCE) jasper was carved into seals. There are multiple varieties often named after the mines. Each has a unique color spectrum and pattern. (Mined in the United States, Wales, Spain, Madagascar, Egypt, Africa, and anywhere there is volcanic rock, rivers, lakes, and mountains.)

Jet (black) is derived from decaying wood under extreme pressure and dates back to 10,000 BCE in Germany. It was used in Britain from the Neolithic period through the Bronze Age for necklace beads. It went out of fashion during the Iron age, but made a comeback in early third century CE in Roman Britain. It was again fashionable in the Anglo-Saxon and Viking periods and the later Medieval period. Jet beads became massively popular during the Victorian era. Long jet bead necklaces were also popular during the Roaring Twenties in the United States.

Lapis Lazuli (brilliant blue) was mined in the 7th millennium BCE in northeast Afghanistan. It was used at Neolithic burials in Mehrgarh, the Caucasus, and Mauritania. It was used in the funeral mask of Tutankhamun (1341–1323 BCE). In the Middle Ages it was exported to Europe and was used in paint pigments. (Mined in Afghanistan, Pakistan, Russia, Chile, Italy, Mongolia, the United States, and Canada.)

Obsidian (black) is a naturally occurring volcanic glass. It was mentioned by Pliny the Elder and a Roman explorer found it in Ethiopia. (Found in Argentina, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Australia,[ Canada, Chile, Georgia, Greece, El Salvador, Guatemala, Iceland, Italy, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Peru, Scotland, Turkey, and the USA.)

Onyx (black and white, Sardonyx has red and yellow) was used in ancient Greece and Rome and in Egypt’s Second Dynasty for bowls and pottery items. Sardonyx dates back to Minoan Crete. Both are mentioned in the Bible. Brazilian green onyx was used for art deco sculptures in the 1920s and 1930s. (Mined in Yemen, Uruguay, Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, Czech Republic, Germany, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, Madagascar, Latin America, the UK, and the US.)

Opals (fiery play of colors with a milky white, greenish, or black substrate) occur in the fissures of almost any kind of rock. Pliny the Elder mentioned opals. Opals were first referenced in ancient Rome in 250 BCE and were valued above all other gems. They were supplied by traders from the Bosporus who claimed they were mined in India. Opals were considered good luck in the Middle Ages. They were associated with bad luck after Sir Walter Scott featured them in a novel in 1829, causing sales to drop significantly. Famous opals were presented to Queen Elizabeth II and the Empress Josephine of France. Opals were mined in Central Mexico as early as 1870, but the largest mines are now in Australia. (Mined in Ethiopa, Australia, Nevada, Mexico, Honduras, Guatemala, Czech Republic, Canada, Slovakia, Hungary, Turkey, Indonesia, Brazil.)

Pearls ( white, pink, silver, cream, brown, green, blue, black, yellow, and purple) are formed in the shells of mollusks. Deep sea natural pearls are extremely rare and valuable. Cultured pearls from oyster and freshwater mussel farms make up the majority of those currently sold. Pearls were collected in Southern India in 5 to 6 BCE. Pliny the elder (23 to 79 CE) mentioned Sri Lankan pearls. Seawater pearls were gathered in prehistoric eras in the Indian Ocean, Persian Gulf, Red Sea, and Gulf of Mannar. They were sought during the Chinese Han Dynasty (206 BC–220 CE) in the South China Sea. Spanish explorers discovered pearl divers in the islands off the Venezuelan coast and offered a pearl to the Spanish queen.

Peridot/Olivine (olive green) was first mentioned in the 1700s and has been found in lavas and meteorites. (Mined in Arkansas, Arizona, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico, Australia, Brazil, China, Egypt, Kenya, Mexico, Myanmar (Burma), Norway, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Sri Lanka, and Tanzania.)

Rubies (pink to blood red) were primarily found in Upper Myanmar Burma and are mentioned in the Bible. They were held in high regard in Asian countries and were traded along the Silk Road of China circa 200 BCE. (Mined in Burman, Thailand, Cambodia, Afghanistan, Australia, Brazil, Colombia, India, Namibia, Japan, Scotland, Madagascar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Macedonia, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, and Vietnam, Montana, North Carolina, South Carolina and Wyoming.)

Sapphire (blue, yellow, orange, padparadscha, green, brown, purple, and violet) was valued in Ancient Israel and Greece. They were popular in Europe during the Middle Ages. (Mined in Eastern Australia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Vietnam, China, Madagascar, East Africa, Montana, Afghanistan, Myanmar/Burma, Cambodia, Colombia, India, Kenya, Laos, Madagascar, Malawi, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Tajikistan, Tanzania, and Thailand.)

Shells of all types, colors, and sizes were valued across the globe and were used as currency as well as adornment.

Topaz (Colorless if no impurities, blue, brown, orange, gray, yellow, green, pink and reddish pink) was popular during the Middle Ages. (Mined in Brazil, Russia, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Czech Republic, Germany, Norway, Pakistan, Italy, Sweden, Japan, Brazil, Mexico; Flinders Island, Australia; Nigeria and the United States.)

Tourmaline (black, colorless, brown, violet, yellow, orange, blue, red, green, pink, bi-colored, tri-colored) is a Sri Lankan gem brought to Europe in great quantities by the Dutch East India Company in the 1700s. (Mined in Germany, Italy, Brazil, Sri Lanka, Austria, Slovenia, Africa, Afghanistan.)

Turquoise (blue, green, aqua) dates to the 17th century and was first brought to Europe from Turkey from the mines in Persia. Pliny the Elder referred to the mineral as callais and Aztecs chalchihuitl. It was worn in Ancient Egypt, Persia, Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley, and by Aztecs, Pre-Columbian Mesoamericans, and to some extent in ancient China since at least the Shang Dynasty. (Mined in Iran, Sinai, United States, China, Afghanistan; Australia, north India, northern Chile, Cornwall, Saxony, Silesia, and Turkestan.)

We now have a trove of manufactured gemstones from Swarovski crystals to cubic zirconia that can be just as beautiful and shiny as the real thing.

What gemstones are of value in your story world?

Do gemstones convey status, position, or wealth?

Do gemstones have magical qualities or powers?

Where and how are your invented stones mined or obtained?

Suggested references:
1. Gemstones of the World by Walter Schumann
2. Smithsonian Handbooks: Gemstones by Cally Hall
3. Fabulous Fakes: The History of Fantasy and Fashion Jewellery by Vivienne Becker
4. Jewelry: From Antiquity to the Present (World of Art) by Clare Phillips
5. Tiaras - A History of Splendour by Geoffrey C. Munn
6. 7000 Years of Jewelry by Hugh Tait
7. Jewelry: History & Technique from the Egyptians to the Present by Guido Gregorietti
8. A History of Jewellery 1100-1870 by Joan Evans
9. A History of Jewelry: Five Thousand Years by J. Anderson Black
10. Answers to Questions About Old Jewelry, 1840-1950: Identification and Value Guide by C. Jeanenne Bell

Next week, we explore Appearance.

For advanced world-building, the SBB Build A World Workbook is available in print and e-book.

Other titles in the series:

SBB II Crafting Believable Conflict in print and e-book and the Build A Cast Workbook in print and e-book help you build a believable cast and add conflict based on the sixteen personality types.

SBB III The Revision Layers in print and e-book helps you self-edit your manuscript.

Free story building tools are available at www.dianahurwitz.com.

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Worldbuilding: News and Information

Worldbuilding: Communication

Worldbuilding: Hygiene

Worldbuilding: Physical Appearance

Worldbuilding: Gemstones

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