Ask An Author: "With all of the existing imaginary worlds out there, how do you create a world that's unique to your own story?"

Each week, a new author will serve as your Camp Counselor, answering your writing questions. Michael David Lukas , our final counselor, is author of historical novel The Oracle of Stamboul:

With all of the existing imaginary worlds out there, how do you create a world that’s unique to your own story? — Katie Spektor

On the surface, this seems like a question oriented towards science fiction and fantasy novels. But, in fact, it’s applicable to any genre. Novel writing is, first and foremost, world building. You may be building a world ruled by the electric sheep from android dreams or you might be building a world that looks very similar to our own. Regardless, writing a novel is about creating a landscape, populating it, setting the rules, and telling the stories that bubble up to the surface.

Whatever your world may be, it has to be one that is uniquely yours. Your world can be influenced by other fictional worlds. But in order for the world to be successful it should be one that you have created and (importantly) one that you will feel comfortable living in for the next few years.

Spend some time in your world before you start writing, give yourself the space to imagine who lives there, what the air smells like, how hard the sun beats down. Build the world out in your mind before putting it down on the page. Because once you start writing, the demands of story start to take over.

And, if at all possible, try not to think about the market (whether people want to buy a book about talking hippopotamuses or a slightly noirish remake of Garfield). Try not to let all the vampires, werewolves, and plucky dystopian heroines influence your world building. A world that’s unique to you will be more enjoyable to write about and, ultimately, it will produce a book that’s more enjoyable to read.

Official word-count validation starts today! Make sure to claim your win (and some awesome winner goodies) by following these steps.