This week in my worldbuilding series I want to focus on developing power systems. Every society runs on power, and there are numerous ways to gain it. Money, popularity, or even a certain job title can get you power. In science fiction stories, advanced technology is a source of power. For fantasy plots, it can be magic. Let’s look at both genres and dissect how to establish and use these new forms of power.
Technology
In science fiction, you can have soft or hard science. Soft science is when the world is grounded in science but it’s not rigid. Hard science is when an author better have realistic explanations for their world science. Regardless of which you choose, your technology needs to be grounded in a logical explanation.
You can still be inventive when it comes to your technology and make up new gadgets though. When worldbuilding technology, the first step is to list any extra technology that exists in your fiction world that isn’t available to us in the real world. Is there a new way to communicate long-distance, a new mode of transportation, or new weapons? Let your imagination go wild.
Once you have that list of new technology, you need to think about its effect on society. Who controls it? Who has access to it? How does the new tech impact daily living? How is it used to gain power? For instance, our use of digital money has made it easier for bank robbers. Instead of having to physically go into a vault and take gold bars, a thief can just change a number on a bank account. So, think about how your technology changes society and the economy.
The thing about technology is it’s always shifting. Someone is always making something new or making something better. The result is ever-shifting power unless someone finds a way to regulate it. And technology must be regulated. It must have limitations. If anything can be solved with a nifty device pulled out of a black bag, tension in your story will be lost. So, create cool technology with a specific function and hold it to that function. If you can use that function in a unique way to solve a problem in your story, that will do more to hook your readers than creating a new device for each problem.
Magic
Fantasy stories are similar to science fiction in that there is soft magic and hard magic. Some fantasy stories have magic that is never explained and doesn’t have strict rules. Other stories have hard magic where it follows certain rules and never acts inconsistently. If you want to learn more, Branson Sanderson developed three laws of magic systems, and he explains quite expertly how magic can work. Because of his expertise, I recommend reading his articles about developing magic systems instead of me stumbling though it myself. Take a look at his magic laws, and then decided what kind of magic you want and what that magic will look like in your book.
Once you have an idea what kind of magic you want to use, you will need to ask yourself questions about the magic’s role in your story. How powerful is the magic? What’s the source of the magic? A god, nature, inner strength, elements, etc. Can the magic be controlled? If so, can anyone learn it or are people born with it? Do you need tools to use it? Wands, staffs, spells, etc. Because magic is a mystical thing, does your society embrace or fear it? Or is the magic split into good and bad magic? There are so many effects of magic on society so sit down and brainstorm how your magic system changes, enhances, or even diminishes your world.
One more tidbit on magic systems, it needs to have costs. There has to be a drawback or everyone would use it for everything. The economy would crash. People would take it as liberty to do anything they wanted. The world won’t feel realistic to the reader if there is a “fix all” button. Find ways to limit its use to provide an opening for conflict in your story.
Most authors like to say using magic drains the user’s energy so it limits how often or how much is used. There is nothing wrong with that, but I challenge you to find more unique ways to give magic a cost. Maybe it’s painful. Or it slowly steals the magician’s sanity. You could even say that no one truly understands all the rules of the magic or it’s broken and unpredictable. Be creative. Think outside the box, and you’ll have an engaging magic system that gains the readers’ attention.
Final Thoughts
For me, creating the power system of my fiction world is my favorite part. I love the idea of throwing an unexpected element into a society and seeing how it ripples out and affects the whole world. You can be really creative, and the readers get the thrill of discovering new technology or magic in your book.
Thanks for reading!
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