Creating a Fantasy World

[The Observer]

So I've been working on this fantasy world for a while now. I'm trying to move away from the typical fantasy feel of the genre and move into a bit of a more down to earth thing modeled after a more urban fantasy. No world saving for my characters, just a prima donna, wanna be sorceress and her group of basically conscripted slaves as they march along the countryside, trying to prove she can handle magic and responsibility as well as anyone. That way the human system of government won't execute her for crimes against humanity

See, in my world, humans are the only race that can use magic. It was given to them by their God in an attempt to allow them to compete with the more physically fit species of the world. Only problem is that Sorcerers, being the greedy bastards they are, claimed their "God given" right of superiority over the rest of humanity, and now the rest of the race are second class citizens.

My main character really fucks up her first assignment and kills a whole bunch of people, including her master. The ruling body in the land gets wind of it and gives her two options: Death, or an essentially suicide mission against a small dukedom that's rebelled against the current rule (bloody civil war, you know the drill) So my MC rounds up a few of the survivors of her massacre and forces them to follow her into the mouth of Hell. Fun huh?

I've got most of the races set up in an interesting way, something that kinda-sorta breaks the mold, at least enough to make them interesting. I have a new race in there, which is fun for me. But I'm having trouble with 2 things: Firstly, the Dwarves. And Secondly, human subgroups.

1. Dwarves: I can't think of any way to make them original. They sit in mountains. They drink beer. I guess that's been so ingraned in my mind (and hasn't been warped with my eternal hatred, like what happened to the elves  ) that I can't think of any truly interesting way to make them different. Any suggestions?

2. The humans. I'm really struggling here. I'm thinking of dividing them into 3 major kingdoms, each with Sorcerers at the top. But what I'm really aiming for here is something Dresden-esque; there's all these different factions running around that Harry has to negotiate through, and I can't think of anything.

[Kali]

Re: Dwarves - Why have them?  What purpose is this race serving in your story?  Do they have to be dwarves? That'll help you figure out how to make them different.

Re: Humans - Maybe you should consider different religions within the different states.  Since their powers were given to them by their God, clearly they have some form of religion.  But unless the guy's sitting down and having dinner with everyone, it's doubtful ANY of them have the exact same idea of what he wanted from them.  Are some sorcerers better at certain kinds of magic than other sorcerers?  There's one schism.  Or maybe there's a faction who thinks he wants humans to sacrifice other races.  Then you'd have political problems and religious problems; someone from Country A and Church B might be plotting with someone from Country B and Church B, though Countries A and B are enemies.

Just throwing thoughts out there. 

[Starbeam]

One thing to be careful of with wanting fantasy races to be different is that it's too easy to try too hard and be obvious that you're trying to make them different. Also, you could always do a little bit of searching for information on dwarves, wikipedia has a good bit to start with.

[The Observer]

Kali: Those are good questions on the Dwarves actually. I'll think on that. Already brewing up something that I think might work...
But the human stuff is superb. In fact I think I'm gonna go with the schism in the sorcerers due to difference in style. And each is competing for control of the kingdoms ala Protestant-Catholic in England...yeah....

Starbeam: Too true. I'm trying to balance out originality and subtlety, and so far I think it's working out quite nicely. My elves are basically huge isolationists and religious fanatics who don't have a ton of emotion, so they're scary and really fun to write. I'll check out wikipedia though, see if I can dig something up.

[Nickeris86]

well for your dwarfs instead of making them live in the mountains to resemble the rocks that they live around, make them from the plains if there are any in your world. yeah i know that sounds weird but if the area is under constant assault by wind storms then being short would be an advantage, and instead of giving them the build of a boulder build them more like the scrub trees that are found in plains lands, short and really hardened.

as for the humans yeah different religions factions and forms of government are great, one could be simpler Japan where the emperor is the embodiment of their god/s, another could be feudal society, and another could be Romanesque. as for churches i think a sect of sorcerer monks would be scary as hell especially if they viewed enlightenment is the same manner as Shaolin monks.

[shades of grey]

hows about the three sorcererdoms have been manipulated by the sorcerers for easier control, they all been altered to look alike in one way, say hair or eye colour and anyone who does not have the same trait is instantly an outsider.

could lead to some good plot lines where people are outcast because they are born recessive or used as spies, etc

[belial.1980]

First off I have to say I really like your idea. It sounds great so far!

World building is fun but it can be tough. The other day I listened to a podcast and heard a good bit of advice from a successful author. (Can't remember her name, sorry) She said that when she was world building she takes real world, events, cultures, and people that fascinated her and emulated them.

Another technique is the List and Twist. Let's look at some elements that typical fantasy dwarves have:

Drink, hoard gold, short, rowdy, stubborn, etc.

Then try to swap out or change some of these characteristics to make something that still has the same spirit but adds a unique flavor. "What if?" is always a good starting point. What if dwarves were always born as sets of identical twins? What if they worship cave demons? What if they're a matriarchal society? Etc. and so forth.

You could do the same thing with your human cultures. Take something familiar then dissect it then shoot a bunch of what if's at the idea till you come up with something that drives you.

One thing to remember is that no culture is homogenous. Some writers seem to disregard this. All Klingons are warriors; all elves are sublime, spiritual beings, etc.

Whatever direction you take your project, I wish you luck!

[The Observer]

well for your dwarfs instead of making them live in the mountains to resemble the rocks that they live around, make them from the plains if there are any in your world. yeah i know that sounds weird but if the area is under constant assault by wind storms then being short would be an advantage, and instead of giving them the build of a boulder build them more like the scrub trees that are found in plains lands, short and really hardened.

as for the humans yeah different religions factions and forms of government are great, one could be simpler Japan where the emperor is the embodiment of their god/s, another could be feudal society, and another could be Romanesque. as for churches i think a sect of sorcerer monks would be scary as hell especially if they viewed enlightenment is the same manner as Shaolin monks.

First off I have to say I really like your idea. It sounds great so far!

World building is fun but it can be tough. The other day I listened to a podcast and heard a good bit of advice from a successful author. (Can't remember her name, sorry) She said that when she was world building she takes real world, events, cultures, and people that fascinated her and emulated them.

Another technique is the List and Twist. Let's look at some elements that typical fantasy dwarves have:

Drink, hoard gold, short, rowdy, stubborn, etc.

Then try to swap out or change some of these characteristics to make something that still has the same spirit but adds a unique flavor. "What if?" is always a good starting point. What if dwarves were always born as sets of identical twins? What if they worship cave demons? What if they're a matriarchal society? Etc. and so forth.

You could do the same thing with your human cultures. Take something familiar then dissect it then shoot a bunch of what if's at the idea till you come up with something that drives you.

One thing to remember is that no culture is homogenous. Some writers seem to disregard this. All Klingons are warriors; all elves are sublime, spiritual beings, etc.

Whatever direction you take your project, I wish you luck!

Both of these are great, and I'm definitely going to use suggestions from both.

I just have one more problem. I'm looking for a word that would serve as a derogatory term towards normal humans. Does anyone have any suggestions?

Also, what do you guys think about curse words in fantasy novels? Should I make up my own?

[shades of grey]

if you make up your own then your devotees will be instantly spottable 

[Nickeris86]

making up curse words and slang is fun, but hard. at least for me.

i think it would largely depend on how you structure the cultures of the human nations, they are likely to each have their own derogatory terms for normal humans based on how their culture is structured.

[belial.1980]

Derrogatory terms for humans? Hmmm. You could start with a gross generalization than turn it into something insulting. Or you could play with the fact that humans are essentially bald monkeys. (Apes, really but an insult doesn't have to be scientifically accurate) Or you could take an aspect of human culture and run with it. Say, animal husbandry, and come up with something that insinuates all humans sleep with their livestock. Just tossing a few ideas at ya.

Swear words? Made up swear words can be fun. But I personally love it when George R. R. Martin's characters drop the f-bomb. If you make up your own, you might want to use some method of taking a deity's name in vain. This is usually something that'll ruffle feathers, especially in a theocracy or culture where religion is important, and swear words are meant to have that effect. It sounds like there's a lot of religious tension in your story so that might be something worth examining.