Introduction

Welcome to another newsletter! I can’t believe it’s already Monday. If I didn’t already say it, I’m excited to announce that I’m going to have a flash piece, “A House With Good Bones,” published in April in Flash Point SF! You can always check my website for an updated list of my published and upcoming short pieces.

I also want to make sure I talk about Starting Off Write, a writing challenge I’m co-hosting. Starting January 1, writers will be writing either a 50k novel in a month, or a Choose Your Own Adventure goal in a month. There’s a Discord you can join and occasional Bluesky chats. Check out the website for more!

Last week, we dipped out toes into the world of writing software. This week, we’re going to look at everything you need to build your world. SFFH writers, this one is especially for you! But historical writers may get a kick out of these as well, or anyone keeping track of large systems.

The list

Worldbuilding

Campfire

A multi-functional worldbuilding software that allows you to purchase individual modules or the whole program, customizing your experience. Your dashboard includes info pages for Characters, Locations, Magic, Languages, Calendar, and more. Each info page includes customizable modules for entering text, answering questions, and more. Get this one discounted; it often goes on sale. Integrates with Inkarnate.

(Recommended by: me! This is my main worldbuilding bible.)

Get it here

World Anvil

Similar to Campfire, World Anvil is a multi-functional worldbuilding software. It’s a one-price software so you get all the modules at once, with all the segments of lore you could want: history, objects, language, etc. It’s a little sleeker than Campfire, and has a fictional family tree maker that’s really cool, you can upload pictures and everything.

(Recommended by: new to me!)

Get it here 

Obsidian

Obsidian isn’t a dedicated worldbuilding software but I wanted to include it because it’s basically a way to make a wiki for your own world, which I think would appeal to anyone who likes freeform worldbuilding but wants a little structure. You can also get plug-ins like Kaban boards to keep things even more organized. I definitely want to play around with this when I have more time.

(Recommended by: Bluesky rec. New to me!)

Get it here

Other

Inkarnate

A powerful mapmaking software with a specialization in fantasy mapmaking. With multiple styles of maps (e.g. battle map, fantasy world, city map) and oodles of stamps for things like houses, it lets you make beautiful maps without much skill. I wish it had a way to allow you to trace a real map though. (If this is possible, someone please tell me in the comments.) Integrates with Campfire.

(Recommended by: me! I’m not the best at urban planning but it helps me visualize my cities.)

Get it here

Wonderdraft

Wonderdraft is a map making program with a one time fee of $30. It comes with dozens of free assets like mountains, trees, and city markers with even more available for free or purchase through cartographyassets.com. It is a very intuitive and easy to use program with built in land mass generators and city name generators if you need a little extra inspiration while building out your world. Wonderdraft is excellent for world and regional maps and with the addition of some extra assets is a great tool for making city maps as well. One unique feature I love about Wonderdraft is the ability to have an overlay of country borders and an accurate map scale and distance tool to tell how far your characters would need to travel from one city to the next.

(Recommended by: Lilly Lockwood. C.J.’s note: The map styles seem more versatile than Inkarnate, rather than fantasy-specific.)

Get it here

VulgarLang

A simple but effective tool for generating words based on conlang rules. Enter your allowable consonants and vowels using International Phoentic Alphabet and the generator will give you oodles of words. There are grammar tools and others to play around with too. And it’s free online!

(Recommended by: me! I don’t actually use it much because I like coming up with my own words, but it’s a great tool if you need assistance.)

Get it here

Polyglot

A software specifically developed for making constructed languages. Has utilization for International Phonetic Alphabet, support for Excel word list import, and more. Oh, and it’s free! Integration for Zompist word generator.

(Recommended by: me! I’ve played around with it a little and it’s pretty intuitive if you’re familiar with basic linguistics)

Get it here

Extras

Pacemaker

A nifty progress tracking tool that lets you track your writing as word, pages, etc. You can set a deadline, choose a goal type (e.g. staggered, same pace every day, oscillating), and Pacemaker will set up a personalized daily word/page count for you to meet. Free for up to two projects.

(Recommended by: me! It helps me stay motivated.)

Get it here

Trackbear

Another tracking program. It’s a little cheaper but the functionality is somewhat more rigid than Pacemaker, so pick your poison. However, the free functionality is nice, and it allows you to pace yourself against other writers so you can write with friends.

(Recommended by: #StartingOffWrite)

Get it here

Conclusion

Thanks for checking out the big list of worldbuilding! If you appreciate my work, consider one-time buying me a coffee. See you next time!