For the past couple of years, I’ve been immersed in the Otherworld, which is the world where the Bar story takes place. In my head however, is this similar but alternate world that I call the Darkworld. My Pixie Prince story takes place in the Darkworld as do its two sequels.

World building is different for everyone. Some people like to have the parameters all set up before they ever start to write. Others like to let the world evolve as they write. For me, it’s a little of both. I always did have an idea in my head about what I wanted the Darkworld to be, but there are things that have just naturally occurred as I wrote.

There are also writers who never read fan fiction because they don’t want the vision of their world and characters muddied by what others might envision. There are some who never read their own genre for the same reason. I don’t happen to have those issues. In my head, the Darkworld remains firm regardless of what I read, perhaps because it’s been there so long. I’m sure some people would tell you that it’s because I am so strong minded and strong willed. (A polite way to say I’m a stubborn bully. LOL) I actually like being open to new ideas and getting ideas for things from unusual places. One of the places I get a lot of ideas is Twitter and Yahoo Instant Messenger.

Now, you might think that’s rather odd, but perhaps you don’t know the people I talk to. The friends on my Twitter and YIM are mostly uber intelligent folks. Thinkers. Believers in logic and the inescapability of the impact of emotions on our lives. I don’t think a one of them is afraid to feel or to consider new ideas or voice an opinion. Mostly, these friends are bloggers. Some are message board whores. Others are strictly IMers. Their personalities are wide ranging. Their sexual orientations and politics the same. The one key thing I find to hold true about all of them though… their spirit. It’s their beauty of spirit that is just indescribable. It’s those quirks of personality and spirit that are inspiring to me.

So as I build the Darkworld and the characters who inhabit it, it sometimes just seems wholly appropriate that bits of my friends end up in this world, in these characters. In the Wiz and the Chair, I asked a blogger friend on Twitter if I could use his name. He agreed but what happened as I wrote the Justin Scott character is that I found myself imbuing him with little things I knew about the real Justin. The real Justin is creative and fun, with a deep appreciation for his friends. He likes to spend time with them often and has deep seated emotions that he freely communicates to them. I envisioned my Justin character to have that same deep appreciation for the people in his life.

When I wrote the Pixie Prince, the character of Marty began to take on the characteristics of another of my blogging pals, Marty Mankins. Marty was thoughtful, and helpful, willing to go out of his way to help Max just as the real Marty does with his friends. I decided that the Marty character HAD to be in the sequel even though the sequel to the Pixie Prince is a darker, not as happy story. Then I started thinking about the third book. So far, all I had was my hero. I had no clue who the heroine would be or what conflict they would have.

As I was discussing the Twilight books with people (which BTW, I don’t like – the books, not the discussing) it dawned on me that in the first book of the Darkworld series, I had stated Alexa’s intense dislike for books that portray vampires as the undead. The conflict became apparent to me then… the heroine of the third book would be the author of the books Alexa so hated. I wasn’t completely sold on this until I started talking to Marty about the Darkworld on YIM, and Gooster on Twitter started tossing characters from fairytales at me. BAM! My heroine for the third book, was my feisty, snarky pal Hilly of Snackie’s World. Her sidekick would be her pal Karl of Secondhand Tryptophan.

Hilly and Karl are friends IRL, so this helps to envision the whole thing. Hillary, the snarky undead vampire novellist and her friend Karl, the cynical newspaper gossip columnist. Two writers from different parts of the journalistic world, with a biting (pun intended hee hee) commentary on the Darkworld. This whole thing led to a number of really great ideas for the third book, along with ideas for expanding Marty’s character and other realms of the Darkworld.

So, I guess you could say I’ve been world building on Twitter. My friends are feeding my creativity which in turn helps build the Darkworld. Take a gander at my blog Sunlight Sucks on Saturday and you might find some excerpts about the Darkworld and the characters based in part on my pals. They’re wonderful people so you won’t regret the read!

7 Responses to “World Building”

1. maryO says:

   October 5, 2008 at 7:58 am

   Like I ever regret reading you. I am even about to go upstairs, take my medicine, and read your story. Than we will take more medicine and see what it up in the Bar. I love medicine that helps make you feel better.

   maryOs last blog post..Leader in training
2. Lex says:

   October 5, 2008 at 8:38 am

   Mary – The bit about Marty that’s posted on Sunlight Sucks is a piece I added to the end of the Prince story, just in front of the Epilogue. At the Bar, I posted Rhiannon, and today I’m gonna kill off Macaire. I’m sooo sad.
3. Rhonda Lee says:

   October 7, 2008 at 10:14 am

   Oooh we ARE a lot alike LOL I couldn’t stand Twilight either…so much that I didn’t even bother buying the others in the series

   Rhonda Lees last blog post..Live Chat
4. Lex says:

   October 7, 2008 at 10:57 am

   Rhonda – Someone shared the books with me, but I discovered they weren’t my thing through my daughter. Nikki and I never disagree on paranormal books, so if she tells me it’s boringly over the top and angsty like a teen version of Ann Rice, I believe her. Her descriptions of the story told me right off the bat that none of them would be my thing. Besides, I rarely like the popular thing.
5. martymankins says:

   October 12, 2008 at 12:52 pm

   Sorry I’ve not responded sooner. I wanted to take more time to read the last 5 blog posts out here.

   I’m still in awe that you used me as a template for one of your characters… a main character at that. Flattered is the only word I can think of at the moment.

   When you talk about character building, the first major novel I started writing over 8 years ago comes to mind. It’s called “Heaven Forrest” and just about every character was thought up and created before I started writing. Then one day, a friend and I were IMing back and forth and the subject turned to “What do you like to do?” So I told her I wanted to be a writer and had been published many times before, just not in a fiction sense. So she asked me to tell her a story, and the first part of the first chapter flowed out of me for the next few days.

   I took that and started finishing the story. But as I started writing, most of the story stayed intact, but some minor things changed. It was something that I really enjoyed and allowing my creative ways to flow.

   It’s been over 2 years since I’ve last worked on that novel (I have 4 chapters done, with a 5th chapter started). I want to and need to get the story out before I let more bullshit distract me and take more time away from my greatest love.

   I really have to pay you a thank you for your efforts in writing, which has stimulated my writing again. I’ve got another 8 stories I’m working on (short story, screenplay, novels, etc) and while “Heaven Forrest” stays dormant, the other stories have been started and worked on, with minimal distractions. So thank you, Winter, for your continued writing that keeps me writing, in a sort of natural way.

   martymankinss last blog post..Scooter Sunday #26
6. Lex says:

   October 13, 2008 at 7:05 am

   Marty – I’m glad that my efforts have spurred you on! It’s a great feeling when what you do has an impact on others. When you lead a busy life, trying to find time to write becomes a serious challenge. I have certain days of the week where I have time set aside for certain things. Maybe scheduling yourself a regular weekly timeslot for writing could help!
7. martymankins says:

   October 13, 2008 at 7:38 pm

   Thanks, Lex. I think in order to actually get something done sooner than later, setting aside time may have to be the plan.

   martymankinss last blog post..Scooter Sunday #26

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