Worldbuilding (Patreon)

They say that a world can shape the characters within it. Our environments influence who we are, good or bad, and that can make the world a story takes place in just as important. 

Which means that in order for me to fully understand my characters, I need to understand their surroundings too. Not just the ground they walk on or the buildings they live in, but the hierarchy of society. 

I always imagined the magic in this story to be understated and limited, even if many of the characters have the ability to use it. Ingredients are hard to come by, and when the body is compromised it cannot perform spells. This is why no one is immune to the diseases, as they are too aggressive to stop once infected. Magic does not make a person superior in any way, and it definitely does not make them immortal. It simply makes things...a little different. I want magic to have consequences like anything else.

So how does magic influence the technology used? Right now, I have an alchemist, necromancer and a shapeshifter. I also have a ghost and two vampires. Then you have the normal sort of roles like a doctor, an undertaker and so on. There has to be some sort of conflict between an alchemist and a doctor, no? The undertaker would take issue with a necromancer. I want this story to be a balance between rational and otherworldly, and so this part in particular needs a lot of consideration.

I have two Knights in full armor. How do I combine my love of the 19th century and the Victorian era with the Knights of the middle ages?  It is easy enough to explain away. The King and Queen (along with their Knights, and a lady in waiting) are very traditional and religious, and how they look reflects this. The 'Catacomb Saints', 'Cephalophore' and even the beauty of Gothic churches are a big inspirations for all the religious imagery in the story.

Water also plays a large part, both in design of the characters and in many of the major locations. Water is the breeding ground for diseases like cholera, typhoid fever and scurvy. One of the characters is based off of Ophelia and the lady of Shalott. Another main character is a pirate. 

Color is VERY important as well. It is in the characters, the settings, even in the names. The color palette for much of the story is dark and neutral, which means a lot of black and grey.  Most of the story is told at night, and so the lighting is dim and artificial, another reason to keep the colors darker and rich rather than pale and bright.  Grave colors with pops of white or vivid hues (deep reds, greens and blues) 

Lastly you have the diseases themselves, which become the central focus of the story, and will affect everyone and everything. The sickness bleeds out from the people and into all it touches, and that will change how the world looks and feels. I do want characters to keep their sense of humor through all this melancholy though, because while I want the story to look a certain way, that is not necessarily how I want it to feel.

Right now I am looking for inspiration in film and television to help me with storytelling, composition and learning how to set up a scene. In particular I need things that fit the tone, setting and color palettes I want for the story. This is just a short list of the ones I plan to use as a sort of visual foundation to build the world up from:

Ripper Street

The Terror

Crimson Peak

The Shape of Water

To summarize, the world can be a character all its own. I want it to tell a story, whether that be through lighting, color or location. I think it really helps to bring the people living within it to life.