Starting out

One thing I always do when I start writing is to make a "to do" list of things that need to be done, in the order they should be finished. I do the same thing when I start building a new world, no matter how in-depth I want it to be at the end.

What I've found that helps with organization is making a list somewhere that you can keep adding to if it becomes necessary. The first things I list are always going to be the broadest or largest, like the location of the galaxy my world is in. If I'm going to choose a specific real galaxy I make sure to do my research- where have they found extra-solar planets so far? What kinds of stars are they around? If, however, I just want to pick a type of galaxy that's what my research is done on. In general you don't have to be this detailed but I like to be because it gives me a place to start. I also try to figure out where this galaxy is located, or where the star that serves as a planet's sun is located in the galaxy and what sorts of things might be in the vicinity.

After that I figure out what the planetary/star system looks like. What does the star look like? What type of star is it? This will affect how far away planets need to be to support life. How many planets are in the system? Take a look to see how planets in our solar system formed to get an idea of why the planets are organized the way they are. Why are there rocky terrestrial planets closer to the sun and big gassy giants further away? This will affect how your planetary system is set up as well. Is your planet a double planet? Does it have more than one moon? More than one moon should affect it differently than one moon.

What kind of properties does your planet have? Take a look at the composition of planets in our solar system again. How do different types of cores (size, thickness of crust, etc.) change the way they are at the surface? How does their location in relationship to the sun change them? Which ones have a magnetic field and why? All of these are important questions to ask if you want to create a realistic or believable world. Especially take a look into plate tectonic theory and know at least the basic mechanics of how and why certain features show up on Earth's surface. There are very good reasons they show up the way they do, and it can help plot such features on your own planet if you create your own plates for it.

Make several small sketches of your planet in a sphere, flat or however you want to create it. Work on it until you're satisfied with the result. I like to make a series where I can see how things came to be on the surface when I'm writing stories. Sometimes I'll go out and buy spherical objects like rubber balls or big round bouncy balls white or blue paint and a permanent marker or acid free pen. If I paint the ball I will use the acid free pen. If I don't, I'll use the permanent marker. What this does is create a mock up of the planet without distorting the features as they will be if laid out flat like you normally see on maps.

This can take awhile, but it's worth it if you want a solid start to your world building. Tomorrow I'll have a post up about making maps of individual continents and/or countries.