uh, I probably explained my method badly then. My method would be slightly similar to the one you describe, except that I consider landscape features as part of the sotory in their own right
![](wink.gif)
Basically, I have a bunch of characters that I wrote with their specific ideas, some scenery I wanna have, some types of population. I wrote a map with some of the different ideas, I wrote little bits here and there, legends, customs, dressing habits, activities. But in the end, I want my characters to be consistent with the world, so everything starts from them. Which is why I am rethinkig the magic system (the little text I did in Writing samples is a good example of the new version I am coming up with).
For instance I have a female minotaur Soulsinger pilgrim called Hoom Do, a male minotaur warrior Seeker called Ho Bo Doumbar, and some humans as well, the druids Ainvar Rindenstein, Hornost Hilfewald (not Helpwood, as I wrote in the text), the apprentice Axel UferFluss (axel waterside), the soldier Tarvos Trondheim bodyguard to Ainvar, the two female hunters Ingrid Frost and Maire Dorsen... they all have a nice little background, goals in life, and a fate I am still determining ...
with the cool ideas I get during the creation of their background stories, my world is suddendly populated by original locations, new creatures, etc.
It's a constant feedback process, one idea bouncing to create another, hence the time it takes
![](tongue.gif)
But overall, I am very much pleased with how it's becoming.
the problem with creating something and THEN putting your characters is that you will easily modify your characters so they fit in the mold, while on the other, you should focus on the characters, as they are central. Plus why bother creating a vast realistic consistent world if you only see a part of it. I prefer to start by giving some character to this world, constantly modifying it to keep the addition consistent. And if after all there is an inconsistency, I just invoke the lack of knowledge of the people in this world... after all, for how long did we believe that Earth was flat, that the Sun rotated around Earth, etc.
But anyway, there is no good method, only good results
![](smile.gif)
did I mention how useful dictionaries and books on various topics can be (Botanic, Zoology, Anatomy, History, etc)
youpla :-P
Edited by - ahw on September 5, 2000 4:30:52 PM
-----------------------------Sancte Isidore ora pro nobis !