Why is worldbuilding is essential in your writing? Today, we answer this question and dive into some working definitions of how we want to talk about it. After the break, we discuss why we chose this book Arkady Martine’s “A Memory Called Empire” and highlight what it does well. We dive into the elements that help make Martine’s worldbuilding so accessible and effective.
Thing of the Week:
“Fast Car” by Tracy Chapman (think about what it teaches you about POV!)
Homework:
Pick your favorite fictional worlds and for each write down three defining attributes that establish culture, legal systems, and physical spaces.
Here’s a link to buy your copy of “A Memory Called Empire” if you haven’t already:
https://bookshop.org/lists/close-readings-season-19
Sign up for our newsletter:
https://writingexcuses.com
Credits: Your hosts for this episode were Mary Robinette Kowal, DongWon Song, Erin Roberts, Dan Wells, and Howard Tayler. It was produced by Emma Reynolds, recorded by Marshall Carr, Jr., and mastered by Alex Jackson.
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17.51: Feel The Burn
17.50: Consistency, Inconsistency, and the Crushing Weight of Expectations
17.49: Bodies Are Magical
17.48: Bodies, Why? (Part III)
17.47: The Linguistics of Disability
17.46: Monstrous Awakening
17.45: Bodies, Tech, and Character
17.44: Bodies, Why? (Part II: Working Through Disability)
17.43: Bodies. Why? (Depicting Disability)
17.42: Eight Embodied Episodes About Disability
17.41: Picture Books are Books Too, with Special Guest Seth Fishman
17.40: Questions & Answers About Structure, with Special Guest Peng Shepherd
17.39: Writing Bodies and Intimacy, with K.M. Szpara
17.38: Oh No I Lost The Thread
17.37: Science and Fiction—It’s Not Just Science Fiction
17.36: Space for Everyone
17.35: Nuances of Dialog
17.34: Developing Subtext
17.33: Building Tension
17.32: Everything is About Conflict
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