Worldbuilding: From Small Towns to Entire Universes

by Kevin J. Anderson

International bestseller Anderson has created many extensive fictional universes, ranging from sweeping galactic empires to complex steampunk fantasies, to humorous monster-filled cities. He has become known for his skill in worldbuilding.

In Worldbuilding: From Small Towns to Entire Universes he describes his techniques in creating a rich fictional setting, leading writers through the countless questions and topics one must consider. Whether it’s geography, climate, politics, economics, society, religion, science, arts, or history, all of these ingredients form the basis for a believable setting for your story to unfold.

Genres: Writing, Nonfiction, Reference

101 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 19, 2015

About the author

Yes, I have a lot of books, and if this is your first visit to my amazon author page, it can be a little overwhelming. If you are new to my work, let me recommend a few titles as good places to start. I love my Dan Shamble, Zombie P.I. series, humorous horror/mysteries, which begin with DEATH WARMED OVER. My steampunk fantasy adventures, CLOCKWORK ANGELS and CLOCKWORK LIVES, written with Neil Peart, legendary drummer from Rush, are two of my very favorite novels ever. And my magnum opus, the science fiction epic The Saga of Seven Suns, begins with HIDDEN EMPIRE. After you've tried those, I hope you'll check out some of my other series.

I have written spin-off novels for Star Wars, StarCraft, Titan A.E., and The X-Files, and I'm the co-author of the Dune prequels. My original works include the Saga of Seven Suns series and the Nebula Award-nominated Assemblers of Infinity. I have also written several comic books including the Dark Horse Star Wars collection Tales of the Jedi written in collaboration with Tom Veitch, Predator titles (also for Dark Horse), and X-Files titles for Topps.

I serve as a judge in the Writers of the Future contest.

My wife is author Rebecca Moesta. We currently reside near Monument, Colorado.

Reviews

[Chi12]

“Questions often spark more imagination and more ideas than straightforward answers do”

This is a how-to-book that has a different approach than the usual Worldbuilding books: It gives you questions instead of answers, and that’s not bad at all. The book gives you no awnsers at all. Do not expect one. The author himself warns you about it.

However, being the book already very little, the actual useful part is even smaller. There’s too much biography (as WB examples) and “I did this and that” for such a tiny book, in my humble opinion. I know it comes from the idea of “giving an example” but for most people, using a real life person as object of study…does not work. I think it would have worked better if the author had used a widely known fictonal charcter instead of himself, so people would relate more and maybe understand better some of the points he were trying to make (I got the points, but it felt weird because well, it’s a real person in our real world, not a secondary world).

The questions that the book gives you are realy important. They make you think. They also made me realize that some things are lacking in my worlds, some things are very well done and some need adjustments.

Sadly, this useful part of the book is far too short. The first half of the book is basically book covers of previous works of the author and his story around those books. It gives very little insight about worldbuilding itself honestly, it’s basicaly a work biography.

This book could have been so much more, but oh well…

Blog: https://persephonesyndrome.wordpress....

[Owen Norris]

I picked this up as part of a nanowrimo pack and was pleasantly surprised. It sets a great starting point for writers featuring key areas to consider when building worlds. Whilst it's not rocket science, it's good to see a concise list of thought starters put together in one place. Definitely worth a read if, like me, you're just entering the world of creative writing.

[Jery Schober]

This very short book poses a series of most helpful questions, but doesn't give you the answers. It doesn't even tell you where to look for answers.
Might be helpful for authors who've never done any worldbuilding, but I have other, more useful books on that.

[Peter West]

Good but short

This was a good introduction to world building from an author who has a wealth of experience to share. I'm sure there's more he could add to flesh this out further.
I can't help feeling a lot was left out.

[Raven]

Gives a good coverage of the basics details for world-building. It is more prompting on what is needed. Quick read. Interesting in a simple manner and engaging prose. A good start for a newer writer, or some intimidated by what to do and what is world-building.

[Ross A]

A short and simple walk-through that helps to remind a writer of some of the major checklists they should be considering when creating a world. Nothing especially flashy or unique, just the basics taught well.

[Caleb M. Powers]

Great little book with loads of questions for thoughtful worldbuilding. Loved it.

[R.J. Seymour]

This was a great How-To Book by Kevin J. Anderson. Very short and sweet, full of questions that will lead you further into ways of thinking about writing. He doesn't give answers, doesn't give instructions, but instead asks a dozen questions. Thinking of these questions will open a world of new ideas and ways to bring depth to your writing. Using his questioning technique alone made his own life story in-depth enough that you feel like you can write a novel about it. Even if it would be focused on sauerkraut.

[Aaron]

Short, sweet, to the point, not exactly a comprehensive guide to composing a new world from nothing but it's a method I've used in one form or another without being a codified by Anderson. I think it says enough to get you started even if it doesn't redefine how you think about settings. Good stuff.

[Jerry]

Overall a thoughtful overview of the author's world building process. Lots of great questions and examples. I wished the book was a bit longer and that provided a suggestion on how to organize all the material. I suppose that's up to the individual.

[Az Vera]

A quick read but an informative one nonetheless. Definitely enlightening for those who are interested in creating new worlds and places for their tales but not sure where to start. It includes some handy tools and justification without burdening the reader too much with frameworks to use.

[Mia R.]

Worldbuilding is essential to any story. In this book Kevin Anderson gives easy-to-follow examples of the essential components of worldbuilding. A must-have for any writer.

[Terri Pray]

Short but very useful book for writers. Covers things we know, but often forget when it comes to world building.

[Andrew]

Shorter then expected, but still a lot of good points and questions to think about.

[Art]

This was okay. Has a lot of interesting ideas.