Hello, sci-fi fans (few that I must have through the long and recent hiatus)! This one's for you (well, and fantasy readers, but mostly you). Ah, how I've missed you all from my podunk corner of the world!
Anyway. To business. And by business, I mean a post beginning on a tangent.
How many of you like Star Wars? Or Star Trek (no, I'm not equating the two, nor am I disclosing my own preference)? Now, what do you like about it?
Let's make a list.
1. The action.
2. The plot.
3. The music.
4. the characterisations.
5. The worlds.
None of that is in order of importance to the over-all effect, by the way. If it was, it'd look like this:
5. The Music.
4. The Action.
3. The Characterisations.
2. The Plot.
1. The Worlds.
And do you know why, precisely, world construction comes first in that lengthy list? Let me give you an example. Suppose you visit Istanbul. You peer through all the little side streets, explore the ruins, perhaps visit a mosque or two. Nothing fancy, really -- you're just experiencing a city, albeit one of the most beautiful cities in the world (in this humble author's opinion).
Now suppose you've been hired to write a film set in Istanbul. You do so, and they offer to have you direct, and you try to commission the most realistic set of Istanbul they can get, short of filming there in the first place. You go in, and realise that it's just a bunch of cardboard cut-outs. So, like any other director not trying to skimp out on your movie, you just film in Istanbul in the first place. Get my drift?
No? Here, let me spell it out for you. The set was just cardboard cutouts. It was every stereotypical thing you could imagine about Istanbul, but it wasn't Istanbul. It had no life, no depth, no nothing. (Ignore my double negative there). How would you make it breath?
Well, you'd start with people. No matter how shitty the construction of your city, it still houses thousands of people. Indigenous folk are a good place to start -- what does the average denizen of your city act like? Are they snobbish, or constantly angry? Dazed with euphoria, pissy as hell, gentle but cautious? Are the poor, middle-class, filthy rich?
Is it a tourist spot? Would there be people from other cities, other worlds, other galaxies? What attracts them -- the atmosphere, the food, the gambling? Are they desperate for tourism?
Is it a specialised planet, or is it more like Earth -- many cultures, many languages? Or all one language, one culture? (Cracked.com makes a good point about this.And by 'good point', I mean drills home the fact that it's a stupid thing to do.)
But, Victory! You whine like the nonexistent readers you are. You're talking about cities! You're talking about planets! What about the title? What about societies?
True, societies are more (much, much more) than just a city, just a planet. But I'm not done with you yet. Because so far, all we've done is talk about the backdrop. Remember my Istanbul analogy above? So far, all we've done is construct the basic city and littered it with extras. We're not done yet.
So... to the people. What kind of people are they? Assuming (for the sake of simplicity) that they are all one race, are there any dominant traits among them? Not just physical ones, mind you, but psychological ones -- are they stubborn as a people? Violent? Kind? Meek? Defiant, supportive -- any of a thousand different traits can be applied here.
And then, as a painter varies hues, you'll vary the intensity. Some people will be kinder than others, or more hostile. Are there sub-cultures in your society? Are there warriors, artists, entertainers, caretakers, social workers? OR are all of them specialised (see Star Trek/Wars, where they've never bothered to populate a planet with more than one kind of people) in one field, like cooks, or architects?
Now, consider their values. What do they prize in an ideal individual? Remember: these people may be very different from you. Sometimes, it's hard to distance yourself from a character or a city, but you have to remember that they aren't you. There are going to be parts of them that you don't like -- maybe they prize truth above all else, but punish lying (any lying) with death, regardless of the need for a lie. That they do that just makes them more plausible. Remember, though! Don't go to extremes just to impress your reader -- sometimes the most believable character is the understated one.
A cute little segue I just gave myself, straight to the main and supporting characters. Are you going to play up certain aspects of their cultural heritage? Do they wrestle with certain ideals/values of their society, or embrace them? Perhaps they're uncomfortable with people who act differently, or trust them to keep their own values away from the main character's. They might work well with one kind of person, and terribly with another.
However, it's important to remember: all the work you just put in above may never be seen by the reader. But your knowledge of the society as a whole will flavour your work and make it more real, make it tip the scales in the favour of belief. And when writing sci-fi, that barrier -- the transition from disbelief to belief -- is what separates good books from great books.
That's all for today, but the next post will be something that applies to all genres, not just sci-fi. Yep, we're looking at the Hero archetype and how to spice it up.
See you next time!
