World Building
Okay, so everyone knows that if you're going to tell stories that involve fantasy,
or science-fiction, you need a world in which to set them. Of course, I've dabbled
around with that for quite some time. Some efforts are better than others, but
I thought I'd share some of my attempts and resources here.
General
Patricia
Wrede's World Building Questions
On Thud and Blunder
I find that a historical timeline is helpful in getting a feel for a culture's
history and "progress", so I developed the Historical
Timeline Generator. Hey, why not try it, it's free?!
Or, if you're looking to find out what's in a character's pockets, try our Fantasy Pocket "Litter" Generator, which has been freshly improved.
Or, if you're looking for what a character from a space operat might have in their pockets, try our Space Opera Daily Carry Generator.
And, finally, if you're looking for what a more modern character might have in their pockets, try our Daily Carry Generator!
And, if you're trying to come up with an "interesting" name for your character,
why not try our "Funny" Proper
Name Generator?
If you want your new characters to invent something strange and esoteric, try
the Crazy Pulp Science-Fiction
Invention Generator!
Language
Fantasist.net Conlang Page
LangMaker
Chris Pound's Name
Generator Page
Mark Rosenfelder's Metaverse
Culture
National Geographic
Internet Medieval Sourcebook
Downloads
Time Line Creator
A custom designed science-fiction world: Hoffman's Quartet
Need to name a town? Then download the Subdivision Names Text File and pick one that suits your needs! (Also, if you add "Street", "Lane", "Court", "Avenue" or "Boulevard" to most of these, they make great street names, too!)
Non-Human Biology
Back when I was in college, I convinced my Physiological Psychology professor
to let me indulge in some speculative evolutionary biology for my term paper.
Here is the result.