Transcript
Speaker: Welcome to the Script Mistress Podcast, where we dive into storytelling's heart and bring screenwriting's magic to life.
Speaker: I am your host, Amber Bosworth, and today we're embarking on an extraordinary journey.
Speaker: To keep yourself informed about podcasts, events, and challenges, please join my mailing list at thescriptmistress.com.
Speaker: Additionally, you can find this entire episode...
Speaker: on my page at the scriptmistress.com forward slash scene 55.
Speaker: Yes, we're scene 55, where you'll also discover a free download that I've created for you.
Speaker: Oh, I'm waiting for you on that page.
Speaker: I run a monthly short screenwriting challenge.
Speaker: February is in full swing right now, but March is totally open for registration.
Speaker: Writers have five days to write a brand new five page screenplay based on a prompt given on the first day of the challenge.
Speaker: The winner will receive $150.
Speaker: Every writer that submits a completed script will receive detailed feedback.
Speaker: It can be more than five pages.
Speaker: We have some people sometimes that turn in a 10-page script.
Speaker: I still provide feedback for you.
Speaker: That is all included in the $15 entry fee.
Speaker: Discover more at thescriptmistress.com forward slash ink to screen.
Speaker: Don't miss out.
Speaker: Sign up now.
Speaker: Now, welcome to week four of our exploration into the world of screenwriting.
Speaker: Last time we talked about creating characters that leap off the page.
Speaker: This week we're diving into one of the most exhilarating parts of script writing, building your story's world.
Speaker: Yes.
Speaker: Whether you're conjuring up a bustling metropolis, a distant galaxy, or the cozy confines of a small town, the setting of your story is much more than just a backdrop.
Speaker: It's the world your characters call home and vital to making your story compelling and believable.
Speaker: Now the art of world building.
Speaker: World building is an art form.
Speaker: I mean, it really is.
Speaker: Whether you're creating the world, the magical world of a Harry Potter, or you're just kind of taking us next door to meet your neighbor, you're still creating a world as you see it.
Speaker: And it's very important that you really work on this art form.
Speaker: It's about creating a universe that feels alive with its own rules, cultures, and histories.
Speaker: Think of it as setting the stage where your characters' dramas, comedies, and adventures will unfold.
Speaker: But where do you start?
Speaker: How do you ensure your world serves the story you want to tell?
Speaker: Now, number one,
Speaker: Start with the basics.
Speaker: Begin with the fundamental aspects of your world.
Speaker: Is it modern?
Speaker: Is it historical or futuristic?
Speaker: Is it our world with a twist or something entirely different?
Speaker: Consider how these choices will affect your characters' lives and the story you're telling.
Speaker: When embarking on the journey of building your story's world, starting with the basics kind of lays the foundational stones of your creative creative edifice.
Speaker: This initial step is crucial as it frames the environment in which your characters will live, struggle and thrive.
Speaker: Here's how to delve a little bit deeper into the basics of your world building process.
Speaker: Now, you really want to identify your world's time and place.
Speaker: Is your story set in the past, the present, or the far off future?
Speaker: Is it rooted in reality or nestled in fantasy or science fiction?
Speaker: The era and location of your story world are not just settings.
Speaker: They influence the lifestyle, technology, and possibilities available to your characters.
Speaker: A story set in a medieval kingdom will differ vastly from one set in a futuristic metropolis regarding available resources, societal structure, and even the conflicts that arise.
Speaker: I mean, just think about trying to put somebody
Speaker: I think why it's so fun to watch those movies where people go back in time and or they go into the future and they're not aware somebody from the past comes to the present.
Speaker: It really goes to show that you want to establish those rules and those guidelines and really let us know.
Speaker: You kind of want to do this as you're building your characters as well to kind of really think where they are and what world they are rooted into.
Speaker: Establish the rules.
Speaker: Every world has its rules, whether they govern magic, technology, or the laws of nature.
Speaker: Early on, decide what is possible and impossible in your story's universe.
Speaker: If you're writing a fantasy, what are the limits of magic?
Speaker: How does technology impact daily life and social order if it's science fiction?
Speaker: These rules will prevent inconsistencies and create boundaries that can drive your plot and character development.
Speaker: Consider the scale of your world.
Speaker: Is your story contained within a single village, sprawling across continents or spanning galaxies?
Speaker: The scale of your world will influence its complexity and the variety of cultures, landscapes, and societies your characters may encounter.
Speaker: A larger world offers more opportunities for exploration and diversity, but requires careful planning to keep it cohesive and believable.
Speaker: Now think about accessibility and transportation.
Speaker: How do characters move within your world?
Speaker: Do they travel by foot, horseback, car, spaceship, or magical means?
Speaker: The modes of transportation available will affect the pace of your story
Speaker: and how easily characters can traverse your world.
Speaker: It can also play a significant role in the plot, becoming a challenge to overcome or a tool to exploit.
Speaker: Flesh out the environment.
Speaker: The environment shapes the daily lives and survival strategies of your character.
Speaker: A desert world will have different challenges and resources than a water world or a dense urban environment.
Speaker: Think about climate, weather patterns and natural resources.
Speaker: How do these environmental factors influence food production, housing and conflict?
Speaker: By starting with these basics, you're not just creating a backdrop for your story, but building a living, breathing world that can inspire and drive your narrative forward.
Speaker: This foundation will support the layers of detail, culture, and character you'll add as your world takes shape, making your screenplay a rich and immersive experience for your audience.
Speaker: Now, I know if you're creating a modern day, like I'm in New York, it's modern day.
Speaker: Why do I need to do this?
Speaker: Because you still need to get a really good handle on specific timelines, where you're at, how you're introducing your characters,
Speaker: And even New York is different from where I live, South Dakota.
Speaker: You want to be very clear about where your characters are and where they're going as it pertains to their location, the scene, the world that we are in.
Speaker: So even if you're doing something very simple, I think it's very important that you work on this.
Speaker: Think of your world as another character.
Speaker: You want to get the background.
Speaker: You want to know everything about it.
Speaker: That just makes you a better writer.
Speaker: All right, now details make the difference.
Speaker: It's the little things that make a world feel real.
Speaker: How do people in your world communicate?
Speaker: How do they eat?
Speaker: How do they dress?
Speaker: Even if these details don't play a significant role in your plot, knowing them can add depth to your script and help you write more authentically.
Speaker: I know a lot of writers that just love doing character analysis and it's stuff that nobody is ever going to see.
Speaker: We're not going to know that your main character had a cat when they were growing up.
Speaker: We might not know that.
Speaker: But the fact that you know that makes you feel closer to your character.
Speaker: This is the same thing.
Speaker: Writing these things down, even if you don't ever use them within the confines of your actual script, can really help enhance the experience that you are creating for your audience.
Speaker: It's really important.
Speaker: Diving into the minutiae of your story's world can transform a broad sketch into a vivid painting, bringing the environment to life with strokes of authenticity and depth.
Speaker: Here's how focusing on the small details enriches your narrative and engrosses your audience.
Speaker: Sensory descriptions.
Speaker: A world becomes more tangible when you engage all the senses.
Speaker: Describe not just what the world looks like, but also the sounds that fill the air, the scents that linger, the textures underfoot, and even the tastes that define its cuisine.
Speaker: The clang of hammers in a busy market, the smell of rain on cobblestones, the roughness of hard woven fabrics, and the sharp tang of a local delicacy can all contribute to a rich, immersive experience.
Speaker: Daily life and livelihoods.
Speaker: What does a typical day look like for your characters?
Speaker: Detailing aspects of daily life from the jobs people hold to the foods they eat, the clothes they wear, and how they spend their leisure time add realism to your world.
Speaker: These elements reveal a lot about your created society's economic systems, social hierarchies, and cultural values.
Speaker: Language and communication.
Speaker: How people talk and communicate in your world offers a window into their relationships, history, and values.
Speaker: Incorporating regional dialects, slang, gestures, and even nonverbal communication methods, such as signals or telepathy in sci-fi worlds, can deepen character development and highlight cultural differences within your world.
Speaker: Traditions and customs.
Speaker: Every culture has its traditions, holidays and rituals, whether it's a celebration of the harvest, a rite of passage, or a solemn religious ceremony.
Speaker: These customs can serve as a backdrop for key scenes, adding emotional weight and providing insight into the collective psyche of your world's inhabitants.
Speaker: Objects and Technology
Speaker: The objects people use every day and the technology at their disposal are telling details.
Speaker: From the design of a character's weapon to the intricacy of a piece of jewelry or the functionality of a futuristic gadget, these items can signify a character's status, profession, or personality.
Speaker: They also reflect the technological or magical capabilities of your world.
Speaker: Architecture and urban planning,
Speaker: The design of buildings and the layout of silly cities and villages communicate much about a world's history, climate, and social structures.
Speaker: The contrast between opulent palaces and cramped living quarters, the defensive walls of a fortress city, or the sprawling interconnected domes of an underwater colony all tell a story beyond their physical presence.
Speaker: By weaving these details into your script, you not only paint a fuller picture of your world, but also create opportunities for your characters to interact more deeply with their environment.
Speaker: These interactions can catalyze plot developments, conflicts, and character growth.
Speaker: Remember, the devil is in the details, and these nuances will make your world unforgettable and your story resonate with authenticity and life.
Speaker: And some people create storyboards.
Speaker: That's something that I did for one of my feature length scripts that I did.
Speaker: I created, it was in an urban setting.
Speaker: I found some things online, some images, I cut things out.
Speaker: It was a vision board, but it was of the world that we were in, of characters that I thought
Speaker: that I could inhabit to kind of get into that world and create the details so that you can.
Speaker: That's why in my short screenwriting challenge, I love giving a prompt because it's so important, even as screenwriters, that we're able to create vivid images of what we are seeing and what we want our audience to see, what we want the director to put on the screen when they read our story.
Speaker: It's so important.
Speaker: So number three, culture and society.
Speaker: Every world has its norms, values, and taboos.
Speaker: These cultural elements can be a rich source of conflict and character development.
Speaker: Think about the social structure, laws, and traditions of your world.
Speaker: How do they impact your protagonist and the obstacles they face?
Speaker: Exploring the culture and society of your story's world provides a rich tapestry upon which to draw your narrative threads.
Speaker: These elements are the heartbeat of your world, influencing every interaction, every conflict, and the essence of your characters.
Speaker: Now here's how to delve deeper into crafting a compelling culture and society.
Speaker: Get into the norms and values.
Speaker: Start by defining what is considered normal behavior in your society.
Speaker: What are the core values that most people live by?
Speaker: These could range from respect for family and elders in a community-driven society to pursuing knowledge in a scientifically advanced civilization.
Speaker: Values shape goals, dreams, and conflicts from your characters and on a broader societal level.
Speaker: Taboos and laws.
Speaker: Just as important as what is valued is what is forbidden.
Speaker: Identifying your society's taboos can create tension and plot points in your story.
Speaker: Written and unwritten laws dictate the consequences of breaking these taboos.
Speaker: Consider how these restrictions impact your character's lives and choices, potentially setting the stage for rebellion, secrecy, or moral dilemmas.
Speaker: Your social hierarchy in class
Speaker: Every society has some form of social stratification, whether it's based on wealth, occupation, birthright, or even magical ability.
Speaker: How does this hierarchy impact the daily life of your characters?
Speaker: Can they move between classes or are they fixed?
Speaker: Power, privilege, and inequality dynamics can drive your character's motivations and the story's conflicts.
Speaker: Cultural Rituals and Celebrations Rituals and celebrations are the expressions of a culture's identity.
Speaker: They can range from solemn ceremonies to vibrant festivals, each with customs, symbols, and meanings.
Speaker: These events can serve as a backdrop for key moments in your story, revealing character backgrounds and fostering interactions that might not occur in more mundane settings.
Speaker: Education and knowledge.
Speaker: How is knowledge passed down through generations?
Speaker: Is education a privilege of the elite or is it accessible to all?
Speaker: The level of education available to your characters can affect their worldview, opportunities, and how they interact with the world around them.
Speaker: It can also influence the technology and magic in your world, shaping societal advancements and power structures.
Speaker: Religion and mythology.
Speaker: Religion and mythology provide a window into a culture's hopes, fears, and mysteries.
Speaker: They can explain natural phenomena, justify social orders, or offer moral guidance.
Speaker: Whether your characters are devout followers, skeptics, or somewhere in between, religious beliefs and myths will add depth and complexity to your world.
Speaker: You create a living, breathing world rich in conflict, character development, and narrative potential by weaving these cultural and societal elements into your story.
Speaker: Your world's culture and society are not just a backdrop for your story, they are integral to the very fabric of your narrative, driving your character's actions, beliefs, and interactions.
Speaker: I find the most amazing scripts that I read that haven't yet been produced are the ones that you can tell that they did some research.
Speaker: Again, even if you're not building a whole fantasy world, a whole galaxy far, far away, if you're just talking about a small town in the middle of nowhere, but you do your research, you find something close to that, you're able to describe kind of like what they have going on, the events that they do, the religion that's around there, that really shows through your writing, even if you're writing a short script.
Speaker: Alright, then we move down to geography and environment.
Speaker: The physical environment can influence everything from the story's mood to the character's lifestyles.
Speaker: A story set in a harsh desert will differ significantly from one set in a rain-soaked metropolis.
Speaker: Consider how the geography of your world can play into the plot or symbolize themes within your story.
Speaker: Your world's physical geography and environment play crucial roles in shaping the story you tell.
Speaker: These elements are not mere settings, but active forces influencing your characters' moods, themes, and lives.
Speaker: Here's a deeper look into the impact of geography and environment on your narrative.
Speaker: And just think about climate and weather patterns.
Speaker: Your world's climate will affect its inhabitants' daily lives and survival strategies.
Speaker: Harsh winters, relentless rain, scorching deserts, and temperate climates bring challenges and advantages.
Speaker: Weather can also serve as a powerful metaphor for the emotional landscape of your story.
Speaker: With storms mirroring internal turmoil or sunny days reflecting joy and peace, I think some of the... Just think back to some of your favorite movies and kind of look in the background.
Speaker: What weather is going on?
Speaker: How does the pouring down rain as the lover expresses his...
Speaker: or bears his soul only to be rejected.
Speaker: How does that really play into it?
Speaker: You can't, just like music, when you're adding music to your script or to your movie, like your setting, you have control of that.
Speaker: The music that's added to your movie is at the discretion of the director, but you put them into climate, weather, these places, then you're in control and that's great.
Speaker: Landscapes and natural features.
Speaker: Mountains, rivers, forests, and plains all dictate your world's travel, communication, and settlement patterns.
Speaker: A mountain range might be a natural barrier that isolates communities or a strategic vantage point during war.
Speaker: Rivers can be lifelines for civilizations, providing water, transportation, and trade routes.
Speaker: Each natural feature offers opportunities for conflict, discovery, and adventure.
Speaker: Flora and fauna.
Speaker: The plants and animals in your world add texture and depth to the environment.
Speaker: They can be sources of food, danger or wonder for your characters.
Speaker: Unique flora and fauna can also lend a sense of otherworldliness to fantasy or alien settings, making your world like stand out.
Speaker: Consider how the presence or absence of certain species
Speaker: affects the ecosystem and the lives of those who live there.
Speaker: Resources and sustainability.
Speaker: What natural resources are available and how are they utilized?
Speaker: The distribution of resources like water, minerals, and arable land can lead to conflict, trade, and alliances.
Speaker: Sustainability, or the lack thereof, can be a central theme, especially in stories of exploring environmental issues or the consequences of exploitation.
Speaker: Settlements and Architecture The geography of your world will influence where people choose to build their homes and communities.
Speaker: From cliffside villages and underwater cities to sprawling metropolises, the design and architecture of settlements can reflect the adaptation to and manipulation of the natural environment.
Speaker: The city's layout, the materials used in construction, and the presence of defensive structures all tell a story about the society that built them.
Speaker: Exploration and Discovery Geography can be a driving force for exploration and discovery in your story.
Speaker: Uncharted territories, hidden valleys, and mysterious islands are classic settings for adventure.
Speaker: The environment can be a character full of secrets to uncover and challenges to overcome.
Speaker: How characters interact with and respond to their environment can reveal their values, fears, and ambitions.
Speaker: By thoughtfully incorporating geography and environment into your story, you do more than create a believable setting.
Speaker: You enrich your narrative with complexity and realism.
Speaker: The environment shapes your characters and their journeys, making your world a character in its own right, full of potential for conflict, growth, and exploration.
Speaker: All right, now we move to making it believable.
Speaker: Even the most fantastical worlds need to feel believable.
Speaker: Consistency is key.
Speaker: I feel like I need to get that somewhere on my website to make sure consistency is so key.
Speaker: If magic exists in your world, what are its limits?
Speaker: How have technology and society evolved if you're writing about the future?
Speaker: Your world's rules need to make sense within the story's context.
Speaker: Creating a believable world, especially in genres that venture into the fantastical or futuristic, is a cornerstone of immersive storytelling.
Speaker: This believability hinges on internal consistency and the logical underpinning of the world's elements.
Speaker: Here's how to ensure that your created world maintains the realism that keeps readers engaged.
Speaker: Internal consistency.
Speaker: Your world's rules, systems, and history should be self-consistent.
Speaker: If magic exists, define its limits and costs.
Speaker: If your story is set in the future, establish how technological advancements have shaped society.
Speaker: Consistency in these rules makes your world more tangible and understandable, allowing readers to suspend disbelief and fully engage with the story.
Speaker: Make them want to feel like they want to be in that world, that that world is actually possible.
Speaker: That will be your job as a writer.
Speaker: Logical cultural development.
Speaker: Cultures and societies should evolve logically from the conditions of your world, geography, climate.
Speaker: and available resources influence societal structures, norms, and conflicts.
Speaker: For instance, a society living in a water-scarce environment will likely have cultural practices and technology centered around water conservation.
Speaker: This logical progression from environment to culture adds depth and believability to your world.
Speaker: Economies and trade.
Speaker: Realistic worlds have functioning economies.
Speaker: Consider what is valuable in your world and why.
Speaker: How do people trade and what systems of currency, if any, do they use?
Speaker: Trade routes, marketplaces, and economic disparities can all serve as rich backdrops for character interactions and plot development, grounding your world in economic realism.
Speaker: Political systems and power dynamics.
Speaker: Your world's governance and power structures should be clearly defined and logically consistent with the world's history and culture.
Speaker: Whether it's a decentralized tribal system, a feudal kingdom, or a dystopian bureaucracy, the political landscape influences every aspect of life in your world.
Speaker: Power struggles, laws, and enforcing those laws are crucial in shaping believable social and political dynamics.
Speaker: Technology and magic systems.
Speaker: Whether your story revolves around advanced technology, magic, or both, the systems and governing these elements must be well thought out.
Speaker: Establish how they work, their limitations, and their impact on society.
Speaker: A magic system with rules and costs adds tension and stakes to the narrative, just as technology that feels like a natural extension of scientific principles lends credibility to sci-fi worlds.
Speaker: Consistent character interactions with the world.
Speaker: Characters should interact with their world in ways that reflect its realities.
Speaker: A character's knowledge, beliefs, and actions should be consistent with your created world.
Speaker: This consistency strengthens character development and makes the story's events and outcomes more natural and believable.
Speaker: Use of real world analogies.
Speaker: Drawing parallels to the real world can help ground fantastical elements.
Speaker: Integrating familiar social, political, or environmental themes allows you to make even the most extraordinary worlds relatable to the reader.
Speaker: This connection to real world issues or concepts can serve as a bridge making the unfamiliar feel familiar.
Speaker: Creating a believable world is an intricate dance between imagination and logic.
Speaker: By ensuring consistency across all aspects of your world and grounding fantastical elements in recognizable truths, you craft a setting where readers can genuinely lose themselves, no matter how far it strays from reality.
Speaker: Building a world with words.
Speaker: Now remember as a screenwriter, your primary tool for world building is dialogue and description.
Speaker: You don't have the luxury of pages and pages and pages of exposition like a novelist.
Speaker: Every word counts.
Speaker: Every space counts.
Speaker: Your description must paint a vivid picture and your dialogue should reflect the world in which your characters live.
Speaker: Now,
Speaker: Here's a fun exercise to flex your world building muscles.
Speaker: Choose a setting for your story.
Speaker: Then write a one page scene that takes place in this world, focusing on weaving in details of the setting through action and dialogue.
Speaker: How do your characters interact with their environment?
Speaker: What does this reveal about the world they inhabit?
Speaker: If you like, share your creations on Facebook or keep them as a tool in your screenwriting kit.
Speaker: This exercise is a great way to practice what we've discussed today.
Speaker: Now let's quickly recap what we've covered in today's episode.
Speaker: In this week's exploration into the fundamentals of screenwriting, we've journeyed through the captivating process of building your story's world, from laying the groundwork with the basics of time and place to the intricate details that breathe life into every corner of your universe.
Speaker: We've seen how culture and society from the heartbeat of your world, while geography and environment shape the stage upon which your characters act.
Speaker: Above all, we've emphasized the importance of making your world believable through consistency and logical development.
Speaker: Each element of this is crucial in creating a rich, immersive world in which readers can fully invest.
Speaker: By considering the sensory experiences, daily routines, economic systems, and political dynamics, you add depth and authenticity to your narrative.
Speaker: And remember, the devil truly is in the details.
Speaker: The more thought you put into structuring your world, the more vibrant and engaging it will be.
Speaker: Now, as we wrap up this week's dive into world building, I hope you're feeling inspired to craft worlds that captivate environments that inspire and settings that are as compelling as the characters and stories they host.
Speaker: Next time, we're going to shift our focus to plotting the story, where we'll unravel the secrets to structuring your narrative in a way that keeps readers on the edge of their seats.
Speaker: Until then, keep imagining, writing, and building those incredible worlds only you can bring to life.
Speaker: Happy world building.
Speaker: Again, try to use some of these techniques.
Speaker: Sign up for the next five-page short screenplay challenge at thescriptmistress.com forward slash ink to screen.
Speaker: Thank you so much for tuning into the Script Mistress podcast.
Speaker: If you enjoyed this episode, remember to subscribe and follow it with fellow writers.
Speaker: I am the Script Mistress and I'll see you next week or the week after as we continue our journey into the art of screenwriting.
Speaker: I truly value any feedback.
Speaker: If you have an idea for a podcast that might help,
Speaker: email me at the amber at the script mistress.com like and follow the show wherever you are listening talk soon and until then happy writing
