World Building Questions

• Please note that you may not need all of these questions depending on your story. Please
feel free to add questions to this list and make it your own. This is just a rough outline to
help you feel like you are standing in the heart of this world that you are creating.
Consider yourself like a god. What you say goes. If you want an elf to be an ugly short
creature with warts on their face instead of the majestic creatures that J.R.R. Tolkien has
created them to be, you go ahead and do that! Be confident in what you are creating and
consistent. Also consider the answers for some of these questions for the upper class and
lower class of your society as they answers will be different.

1. What’s the weather?

2. Are there four seasons and what is the weather like for those seasons? How long are

seasons?

3. What’s the geography? Mountainous? Flat? By the ocean? Tropical?

4. What natural resources are available in what region?

5. Which natural resource is hard to come by?

6. What kind of trees/vegetation is there?

7. Do they farm? What are the things that grows best? What is the growing season?

8. What are the animals that people fear? Wolves for eating sheep?

9. What time of year is the majority of the people’s favourite?

10. What are houses built out of?

11. What is the general look and layout of houses?

12. How many kids do people typically have?

13. What does the school system look like? Boarding school or do they still like at home?

What do they learn?

14. Do kids work when not in school?

15. What is the clothing style like for people? How does it vary during the different seasons?

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16. What sort of jobs are needed to make sure the society runs smoothly? Builders? Farmers?

Blacksmiths? Engineers? Bookstore? Barber? Artist? Restaurants? Water and

wastewater? Teachers? Electricians? Police? Firefighters? Nurses? Deliver/transpiration

of good driver?

17. Are police different than military in this society? What names are you giving them?

18. How do people greet each other and say goodbye to each other?

19. Is it a society that is more willing to show emotions amongst all genders?

20. What is the five of the most common names is the area?

21. What is the society’s sense of humor like?

22. What kind of food do they eat?

23. What are the main languages?

24. What are some old origin tales that the elders tell?

25. Do they have any folklore?

26. What are the gender roles?

27. Do they have annual rituals/traditions/celebrations?

28. What is the technology like? Compare it to our society – is it more advanced? Stone Age?

Hi tech?

29. Is their magic and how does that affect the different classes?

30. What is the politics? Is it a dictator? A king and queen? Etc.

31. What are the different races within this society? Elves, people from different places, etc.

32. What is the recent history that the place has evolved from?

33. What is the economy like and is it a barter system/how do they pay for things?

34. Is there a main marketplace?

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35. What do people do on “the weekend”? What do they do to relax or have fun?

36. What is medicine like? Are there hospitals?

37. How do they get places? Horses? Cars?

38. How do they communicate with other places? Computers? Carrier pigeon?

39. What are their arts, entertainment and recreation like?

40. What does their calendar system look like?

41. What does the day in a life of a regular person look like?

42. What does the society value? Success? Family? Fame?

43. What are the different manners? Is it polite to slurp soup? Do they wave or nod when

they see people?

44. Is there a religion or popular spiritual practice? What does that look like?

45. How does what different people believe affect how they view people who don’t believe

the same thing?

46. How is the place protected? Do people need to bribe authorities that keep the rules or are

they honest?

47. Who are their allies? What is their relationship like with other places?

48. How do the groups break down within your society? Think of high school and how there

are cliches. Your society doesn’t all hang out together. There are usually groups within

the larger group.

49. How do they get water?

50. What is the local wildlife?

51. What kind of tools do they have to make life easier?

52. What is a skill that basically everyone has?

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53. What does family structure look like? Do families usually live all together or do you

move out once you are an adult?

54. Are their homeless people?

55. Do the people pay taxes? How are they collected?

56. Do the rulers take more than they give? Do they try to help the people as much as

possible? What kind of heart do the rules have towards the society?

57. What time do people usually get up in the morning and what time do people usually go to

bed? How does that vary from children and teenagers?

58. Is their nightlife? Do people go out at night to party and meet friends?

59. Does this region have natural disasters?

60. What are popular nighttime stories or songs that every child grows up knowing?

61. Is their tension between different races?

62. How do people move up in social rank?

63. Does this society believe in marriage?

64. What is considers a treat? Do they have chocolate?

65. Do people in as a family? In large groups? By themselves?

66. Are their many places to go out and eat or do people mostly cook for themselves?

67. What do people drink?

68. Is the water clean to drink?

69. What is the seating arrangement like for when they eat? Is it a regular table?

70. Do they use utensils?

71. How long has the system of government been in place?

72. What are people’s feelings towards the government of the society?

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73. How do people get punished? Is their jail? Execution? Banished? Warnings?

74. Are crimes common?

75. Is their slavery? Is there a certain group that is put beneath others, whether elves, fairies,

or whatnot?

76. Do people marry for love or other reasons?

77. Are most people able to read?

78. Is education available to everyone or only certain people?

79. At what age do they start and finish school? Do some need to drop out to help families on

the farm?

80. What are weddings like?

81. What are funerals like?

82. What are foods that are cooked for special celebrations?

83. Are there special clothes people wear to special events?

84. Do people have domestic animals?

85. How do you get certain jobs? Through school or passed down through parents?

86. What is the layout of cities like? Grid system, or town square build first and everything

slowly build up around that?

87. What is a considers a low job and what is the best job?

88. What kinds of art are there? Theatre? Galleries? Etc.

89. What is something people don’t talk about? Money? Politics? Etc.

90. How big is the gap between rich and poor?

91. Is generosity considered a high value?

92. Do people live in fear or happiness?

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 93. If there are multiple languages, do people have an easy time understanding each other?

Do people talk to others in their own language and can still listen to the other person as

they speak a different one?

94. Are there any gestures that is rude (middle finger)?

95. What is a common curse phrase?

96. What is a common phrase people say when they are excited?

97. How do people address another person? Mr. or Mrs.? Etc.

98. What is the population of different areas?

99. What do religious temples look like?

100. Do people make sacrifices?

Magic Questions if there is magic in your system:

1. What is magic used for?

2. What is something magic can do?

3. What is something it can’t do?

4. What is the price or toll that using magic has?

5. Are their rules within the society for what is allowed with magic and what isn’t?

6. What does it feel like to do magic?

7. Is magic admired or feared?

8. How is one person with magic stronger than another?

9. Do you need a wand or staff or gem, etc?

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10. Are there any magical creatures?

11. How is it learned?

12. Does magic have a will of its own?

13. Who can use magic?

14. How do others react to magic or people with magic?

15. Do people with magic rule the area? If not, why?