What is world-building? It’s the process in which one builds a world for a story to take place. But don’t be fooled– it’s an arduous task, depending on just how serious or explicit you want to be about it, but either way, it can easily turn your mind into shambles.
The things that entail building a world seem endless. Geographically speaking, you have to make sure you don’t do anything logically incorrect like, say, putting a forest right next to a volcano, or a river beside a canyon of some sort. And story-wise? You have to be careful with those little details you might miss that can turn into massive plot-holes later on. There are so many things you have to develop and keep a special watch on. It’s like raising ten kids all on your own! You have to make sure Timmy gets his milk, Janie her medicine, and don’t forget about Jamie’s recital. Plus, Aiden hasn’t been feeling well so you gotta take him to the doct-Oh, watch out! There goes Kim streaking through the neighborhood. But as you chase after her you forget—again—to fill Jade’s bath, and now she’s all dirty and uncared for and you’re a horrible parent! See where I’m going? It can be a huge mess, especially for those who struggle with organization (I’m not calling myself out). All of this brings me to World Anvil.
Whilst on a journey through Pinterest, I found out about this world-building website. Created by a married couple, Dimitri and Janet, World Anvil has been up and running for just a year or so. It was created with the sole purpose of offering the best tools for world builders everywhere, whether they’re authors, game masters, or others. It is, through and through, an amazing place to build your world, and, dare I say, the greatest? It’s astonishingly thorough and offers a diverse and large variety of options, as well as possibilities you probably never even thought of! You can add and build close to just about anything into your world without limitations.
They don’t miss a thing! Each creation and add-on has an impressive range of details for any creative mind out there. For example, if you want to add an OC (Original Character, or as I like to call them: Idea Babies) into your world:
It offers an in-depth construction of your Idea Baby in which you can be as specific (or not) as you want. There are so many options that they’ll have you sit down and contemplate what, exactly, you want for your characters and your world. It will help move ideas into a clearer and sharper view if you’re having trouble picturing things or if you’re missing out on any important details.
You can quite literally do, write, and create absolutely anything you want for your world here. Need to make a map? You got it. Need to keep track of your ideas? Done. Have no idea in what order your world’s historic events are in? No problem! Just create a timeline and throw ‘em in there. Running low on ideas and/or inspiration? World Anvil’s got just the thing for you. Other users write out prompts for everyone to use and they show up right in your workshop. For example:
These few gadgets I’ve showcased are just scratching the surface of what World Anvil has to offer. Seriously. I joined a little over two weeks ago and I still haven’t tried all of its features. The couple who founded it is dedicated to providing every tool they can to help builders everywhere. They make their tutorial videos to help newcomers and reply to emails personally to make sure the builder gets the help they need. I’m telling you, if you’re planning on building your world, World Anvil is the place to go. Go ahead and check it out for yourself. I promise you won’t regret it.
Note: the screenshots were taken from my account, which is in a writer’s setting. Upon creating an account, the website asks whether you are a Game Master, an Author, or an Artist to implement the appropriate format.