Introducing a New World

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startraveller

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So, I've been binging on anime lately, had the spark of an idea visit, and now all I can think about is the mythos of my new fantasy land. Even though I really love this world, I have no clue on how to introduce it to readers and wanted to get AW's opinion on introduction to fictional worlds (fantasy or otherwise). Portals, hidden worlds, futuristic worlds, parallel universes, etc. Narnia, Hogwarts, Panem? Any preference; why, why not? What, as a reader, makes a seamless introduction into a new and/or unfamiliar setting?
 

Bufty

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Let the characters take me there via there actions/interactions in and with the relative setting.

Last thing to do is rabbit on for pages and pages about the world and the scenery and the politics and ....
 

Osulagh

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So, I've been binging on anime lately, had the spark of an idea visit, and now all I can think about is the mythos of my new fantasy land. Even though I really love this world, I have no clue on how to introduce it to readers and wanted to get AW's opinion on introduction to fictional worlds (fantasy or otherwise). Portals, hidden worlds, futuristic worlds, parallel universes, etc. Narnia, Hogwarts, Panem? Any preference; why, why not? What, as a reader, makes a seamless introduction into a new and/or unfamiliar setting?

You're asking, "How do I do [insert massive subject]?"

If we're talking techniques, I agree with Bufty; represent the world through the characters, possibly with some exposition to fill in the deeper spots (represented from the POV), and allow the reader to formulate their own image. Use whatever means helps the story. But doing this is WAYYYYYY harder than saying it.

You kind of sound like you've been worldbuilding a bit too much, and might not have a story to take place in that world. While I work in the opposite direction, a world without a story is still just a rough idea that has no practical use in fiction. So, find a way to bring out your world using a story--and bring out the story, by using your world.
 

startraveller

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I'm not exactly asking for myself, just interested in opinions on entering new realms. What others see as cliche, overused, underused, or just plain boring. There is an inkling of plot for my world, but plotting out the specific story isn't priority at the moment.
 

Bufty

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This is an unanswerable question.

Any world or realm only comes alive because of the characters and what takes place in it.

Get working on interesting characters in a story and then see how their world develops.

I'm not exactly asking for myself, just interested in opinions on entering new realms. What others see as cliche, overused, underused, or just plain boring. There is an inkling of plot for my world, but plotting out the specific story isn't priority at the moment.
 
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rwm4768

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It depends entirely on the type of story you're telling. In a secondary world fantasy, your characters are already familiar with their world, so it makes no sense to infodump about the world, whether through narration or dialogue.

In a portal fantasy or a fantasy containing a magical world within our own, the introduction is a bit different. Take Harry Potter, for example. Parts of the first book do trend into infodump territory. But you'll also notice that things are usually happening while people are introducing Harry to the world. A lot of it is so cool that you don't notice that it's an infodump.

However, if Rowling had stopped and had Hagrid explain everything about the world to Harry, it would have gotten really boring. Instead, Hagrid explained as they went about business in Diagon Alley.
 

Latina Bunny

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I tend to enjoy fantasy elements and/or scifi tech/magitek that is integrated into a contemporary or futuristic setting.

I also like a secondary world of some kind.

Still, the story is key, so the setting should affect the story in some sense. Otherwise, I would be reading contemporary stories. (Which I also greatly enjoy, but they wouldn't be SFF. :) )

I don't like portal fantasies that much. The kind where you go from non-magic, contemporary setting through some kind of "portal" into a secondary magical other-realm. It feels like two stories for me. I usually end up preferring one world over the other, or the other world's badly written or pointless, etc.

I also don't mind if a "cyberspace"/virtual world is used, as long as there is a connection to the "real" world, and the "cyberspace" has an actual affect on the characters and story in the "real" world.
 

BethS

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What, as a reader, makes a seamless introduction into a new and/or unfamiliar setting?

Let the reader see the world through the eyes of its characters. Tell the story, and the world will unfold along with it.
 
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SamCoulson

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Let the reader see the world through the eyes of its characters. Tell the story, and the world will unfold along with it.

This. For my (Futureistic sci-fi novel) my narrator (first person) begins with no memories, so I use his ignorance to give the reader an introduction to the universe I created. It works.. but it works because him having no memories at the start of the book is a/the driving mystery behind the plot. The introduction to your world has to be handled elegantly, and it needs to be seeded in action and discovery based on your characters and story at large.

To answer your question--using Portals (from stargate, to the Wardrobe) are a pretty heavily trod path, but I wouldn't go as far as to say they are Cliche. Having some means for a character (and the reader combined) to have to delve into the new and mysterious world is key to making the world work. And there is a lot of variety there on how you can do it...

Other methods (such as memory loss) are closer to cliche I think--so you have to make sure it's not just a tool--and have it be part of the story.


Overall, the way to introduce your world will be through a Stranger entering it. The stranger could be someone from our world who fell through the looking glass, or it could be that they themselves are from some other land--but one way or another, you need a logical reason to have to explain all the basic things of the world to a character and thus the reader.

How you do it isn't as important as how seamlessly your method ties in with the plot you're weaving.
 

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The classic way to explain a new world in a fairly seamless way is (as Sam Coulson has already suggested) to see it through the eyes of a stranger, or a newbie if it's a new job (like Ishmael in Moby Dick). Otherwise it's a question of drip-feeding information so that it doesn't crash down on the reader in overwhelming volumes.
 

Ron Juckett

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Write out the world in your head. You know you can't use it in a story raw, but take that infodump and read it carefully.

Something should intrigue you from your notes and a solid storyidea/characters will spring from there.
 

4burner

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The Stranger introduction to me is very transparent; I can tell exactly what the writer is doing and I find I have little patience with it, but it obviously does work. Maybe it's more to do with me as a writer spotting the tricks of the trade, but anyway.

If you have your characters already used to the world they live in, it's a case of folding in the details as needed. Make sure the characters are only noticing what they'd notice, not talking about the political situation for no real reason, not discussing the last 200+ years of Royal Lineage, not pausing mid-fight to ponder the origin of the mountain range visible in the distance...

When I first started writing, I wanted to tell the reader EVERYTHING about my SUPER COOL scifi setting. It doesn't work though; the world is only interesting because of the way the characters move through it. I personally know exactly how and why the floating mega-cities were built, but all the reader needs to know is what they look like when you crash into one from orbit. The rest will come up later if it is indeed even required.
 

BookmarkUnicorn

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Another thing is just because a character knows about their world doesn't mean they wouldn't be talking about it normally. If an issue affects them deeply at the moment it's natural for them to talk about it. Like the things they like or dislike about a place in the world, or a holiday that's coming up. The key is to make it sound realistic to everyday life. To use an example from our world, we might talk about the details of making a Thanksgiving dinner if that is coming up, but when someone is talking about having to drive from another state to be there we're not going to suddenly rattle off all 50 states (and their war histories) out of the blue for no reason.
 

BethS

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The Stranger introduction to me is very transparent; I can tell exactly what the writer is doing and I find I have little patience with it, but it obviously does work. Maybe it's more to do with me as a writer spotting the tricks of the trade, but anyway.

Well, I shouldn't think a writer would toss a stranger into the story just to show the new world through his/her eyes. Ideally, the stranger would be the story, or a significant part of it.
 

4burner

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Well, I shouldn't think a writer would toss a stranger into the story just to show the new world through his/her eyes. Ideally, the stranger would be the story, or a significant part of it.

Of course, of course, The Stranger obviously serves the story need. It's just one of those things that I've seen so many times I'm very sensitive to noticing it. A symptom of genre, I'd say. Too many wide-eyed farm boys striking out into the brave new world... It becomes a distraction for me as soon as I see the trappings. Once I see naive youth stepping out I get the feeling I can predict a hell of a lot of what is going to happen next. Doubly so if he has an older, mysterious companion.

That being said, when it's done well, one doesn't even notice. Just, as always, steer clear of cliches, or own them.
 
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