With the seventh season of HBO’s Game of Thrones fast approaching, it’s once again time to reconnect with a world other than our own, this time in a new, behind-the-scenes way. Fans of A Song of Fire and Ice, Harry Potter, Avatar, and other fantasy stories have often wondered how writers like George R. R. Martin, J. K. Rowling, and James Cameron conceive rich fantasy worlds. A new book published by Evermore Press reveals the thought process behind such creative work.
Creating Life is the first volume in The Art of World Building series. It discusses how to invent gods, species/races, monsters, plants, animals, and even undead like White Walkers or Death Eaters. The book shows the secrets that authors, screenwriters, game designers, and hobbyists use to do world building, the term for creating imaginary places.
World building is necessary but time consuming work for speculative fiction and can make or break a story. And yet every minute spent on it means less time for writing. Creating Life promises to make this easier, faster, and more skilfully done for inventors, elevating their results above the competition. For the fan of speculative fiction, an unusual look into the process is gained and could change how they enjoy their favourite stories.
“Audiences love feeling smart about the media they consume,” says Randy Ellefson, author of Creating Life. “Why not watch the next season of Game of Thrones with insider knowledge of just how good Martin’s Westeros really is? And if he makes a mistake, like breaking the Rule of Three, now you’ll catch it.”
Fantasy and science fiction author Ellefson has been world building for three decades and uses his own experience to guide readers through how such enormous projects are undertaken. Examples are also drawn from famous works. Techniques to be emulated or avoided are discussed and reveal how careful storytellers must be.
Creating Life includes seven templates to aid world builders in being thorough, quick, and inspired to invent; the templates can be downloaded by anyone who joins The Art of World Building newsletter from the official site, whether they’ve purchased Creating Life or not. Volumes 2 and 3, Creating Places and Cultures & Beyond, will soon follow.
To order books individually or in bulk:
Creating Life is available May 2, 2017 via all major book retailers, including Amazon, iTunes, Barnes and Nobles, Smashwords, CreateSpace, and Kobo.
For bulk orders or to request a review copy, contact [email protected].