Rules and Participation

Welcome to Authorial April! While pure writing prompts can be fun, it’s good to take a break now and again. This month, we will be focusing on world building and character creation, with a bit of story structuring on the side. If all goes well, these sorts of events and prompts could be repeated throughout the year in order to break up the monthly challenges. Please let us know what you think and how we can improve!

🌺 Goal: To Achieve at Least 30 pts 🌺

Why points? Some prompts are more involved than others and will take more time and effort to complete. Points are a replacement for days of participation in this event. You are welcome to score more than 30 if you wish for extra bragging rights!

🌺 How to Participate 🌺

• Create your own forum post, with which to share your creations
• Keep Discussions to the Discussion Thread
• You can repeat prompts if you like
• Ask your fellow Gardeners for help and opinions! Writing is so much more fun with community. While you are not required to interact with the work of others, everyone will have more fun if you do!
• Support each other as you work, and try to keep comments positive. Remember that we are all here to improve and learn! No one is perfect.

PROMPTS UNDER THE READ MORE

CHARACTER BUILDING PROMPTS

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10 PTS

Create a detailed profile page for your character that you can share with others.
– This could be on Toyhouse, Google Docs, Carrd, or even an OC-drop here on the server. You can decide what “detailed” means, but it should include more than just their name, age, and appearance. Need a character template? Have a look at these.

Create a detailed roster/organization document of your characters. How do they relate to one another?
– What is the hierarchy? What sorts of relationships do they have? How did they meet?

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5 PTS

Fill out this sheet about your character’s core urges.

Create a character relationship map for your main OCs.
– You can create one using Canva, a google doc, Toyhouse page, or even MS paint. This blog post has some examples of different sorts of charts.

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1 PT

– What unusual hobbies or interests does your character have? How do these hobbies reflect their personality or shape their worldview?

– What are some of your character’s earliest memories? How do these memories influence their present actions and attitudes?

– What was your character’s educational journey like? Did they excel academically or face challenges – along the way?

– Does your character have any secrets or hidden aspects of their past? How do these secrets impact their present actions and relationships?

– What is an internal conflict that your character grapples with? How well or poorly do they deal with this? Do they ever talk about it? With whom?

– What is your character’s biggest flaw? Write about how they came to terms with it (if they have) or how they react when someone calls them out for it.

– A character is cleaning out their attic and finds a dusty old box. Inside are things that belonged to a person they used to be close to, but haven’t thought about in years. What objects are in the box, and what do they mean to the character?

– What does your character typically wear? What is their personal style? Does how they dress match their desired appearance?

– What body language is typical of your character? Do they sit up straight or slouch? How would you describe their walk?

– Does your character wear any jewelry? Favorite pieces? Do those pieces have any significance within their story?

– What’s in the fridge? Do they cook or eat out more? Why?

– Do they often carry possessions with them? How do they carry them? (Aka, what’s in their bag? )

– How does your character handle a situation that they are unfamiliar with?

– What interests of yours have influenced the creation of your character? What bits have you borrowed from other media?

– Describe your character’s bedroom. What objects do they keep there? What’s the style like? Do they share it? Do they make their bed?

WORLD BUILDING PROMPTS

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10 PTS

Create a world map for your story, complete with important story locations. Create a document along with the map that has at least 1-2 sentences of information about each location. Consider adding political overlays.
– You can try using Inkarnate, Azgaar’s Fantasy Map Generator, donjon World Generator, use the rice method, or any other method that works for you!

Create an in-depth document about your world’s magical system.
– Where does the power come from? Who gets it? How is it used? How does society see it? Refer to this page for tons of prompts if you need ideas of what to delve into.

Create an in-depth document about your main character’s culture.
– What sort of festivals do they celebrate? What are their main moral concerns? What sorts of idioms and phrases do they use and where do they come from? Refer to this page for tons of ideas of what this document might include.

Create an in-depth document about the structure of a (dominant) organization (religious, military, political) in the world (e.g. what is their domain, who do they influence, who are their adversaries, etc.)
– What is their domain? Who do they influence? Who are their adversaries? This page has some good prompts for religions, and this one for governments.

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5 PTS

Create a map of an important structure in your story.
– You can try using Inkarnate, DungeonScrawler, Canva floor planner, modifying a modern building layout, creating it in the Sims, drawing it on paper, go crazy!

Write advertising copy for three important objects within your story. (Or create a regular document describing 5 different items)
– This could be potions, weapons, or general gadgetry. Who made them? What are they used for? What does ownership of these objects say about the world and who they belong to? Try looking at TTRPG magic item hand out cards for inspiration, or try copying an advertisement you see on the web. Here is a resource on writing ad copy.

Create a detailed history of a single location, written as a tourist brochure or newspaper article (such as one celebrating an anniversary)
– Here you can find some free travel brochure templates. For historical article inspiration, try searching for “celebration of 100 years” or “anniversary of opening” and your local news source.

Write a detailed report on how a location’s or your world’s general economy works.
– What sort of currency do they use? Are there any trade deals or tariffs? What is the main source of income? You can find some more prompts here, here, here, and here.

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1 PT

– Write about an influential artist in your world. What did they create and how is their work celebrated?

– Who is the most popular living person in your world? Why are they so beloved?

– Describe the most important animal used in agriculture in your world.

– Describe a species in your world that becomes an unwanted pest in large numbers. What nuisance does it cause?

– Write about an animal that is loved by some and hated by others. What about it makes opinions on this animal so divided?

– Describe a plant known for its appearance, either beautiful or horrible. What sort of symbolism does it have for your people?

– What is an object that most people in your world would give almost anything to have?

– Describe a prototype of a weapon in your world. Who is making it, and what does it do?

– Write about a medal or trophy in your world. Who is it awarded to and how is it earned?

– What is an item a child in your world would save up for? What is it made of? How is it viewed by community members?

– Write about a traditional gift that is given as a wedding custom.

– What tools do people in your world need to cast spells or use magical abilities?

– Tell us about an important food staple in your world.

– What’s the latest fashion trend in your world?

– What is the most prolific drug in your world? How did it come to be and what does it do?

– What is a bedtime story told to children in your world? Is there any truth to it?

– Write about a medical advancement in your world. How does it work or what does it do?

– How does a culture of your world celebrate birthdays?

– How does a culture in your world view death? What rites and rituals surround it?

– What gesture is expected to be performed to show respect in greeting a person? What is the consequence for not performing it?

– What is a common idiom in your world? What does it mean, and how did it come to be?

– What sorts of oaths and curses do your people use within the world? Do they have any additional meaning or context?

🌸 STORY STRUCTURE PROMPTS 🌸

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10 PTS

Write a full story outline.
– Need structure help? Try Save the Cat, The Hero’s Journey, The Snowflake Method, or just google “(your genre) plot structure”. There are as many ways to do things as there are people! Find the one that works best for you.

Write and share a full chapter of your novel.
– For the purposes of this event, a chapter is around 4k words, but it really varies by genre. This is about effort more than quantity, don’t stress it too much. Need more information on chapters, how to know when to end one, and how long they normally are? Check here.

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5 PTS

Write a “back of the book” blurb for your story. Give us a summary that will draw us in!
– Need a bit of guidance? Try reading this blog post!

Write down a snapshot summary of your story’s beginning, middle, and end.
– Beginning: Who are your main characters? What is their before life like, and how are they introduced? Middle: What happens to them? What is the driving force of the story? End: How does the story shake out? What are the consequences for the world and your characters?

Create a document explaining your stories main themes
– What are they? How will they show up in your story? Do you plan to have any recurring motifs? Do they change throughout the story?

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1 PT

– Who is the target demographic of your story? What have you done/what changes have you made to appeal to them?

– Tells us about some “darlings” you have had to kill. What bits of the story did you have to remove that you still think of fondly?

– Grab a story that you really enjoy and find a ~300 word section that really appeals to you. What word choices did they make and why? What about this part of the story appeals to you?

– Describe how you will foreshadow one major event in your story.

– How do you intend to share your story, if at all? Why? How does that influence the way that you write?

– Are you a planner or a pantser? (IE do you outline things or just go for it and edit later?) Have you tried doing things the other way?

– What motivates your writing? Does that effect the themes and structure of your work?