The Worldbuilder’s Tavern
Welcome to The Worldbuilder’s Tavern — where great books meet creative minds. Twice a month, we explore the worlds inside your favourite sci-fi and fantasy novels and build our own right alongside them. Whether you're constructing your next novel, TTRPG setting, or just love speculative fiction, pull up a chair at the Tavern!
Episodes
Join us for a chat about the worldbuilding in the YA fantasy novel To Shape a Dragon's Breath by Moniquill Blackgoose. We discuss animalistic dragons, themes of colonialism and racism, romance in YA, and more.
Join us for a hands-on worldbuilding exercise as we create a university by answering ten questions:
- What does the University teach?
- Who is this University for, and who is excluded?
- What does the University value the most—profit, knowledge, power, etc.?
- What makes the University unique in its world?
- How do students physically experience the University?
- What are the social dynamics among students?
- How is power structured w...
Join us for a chat about the worldbuilding in the sci-fi novella Binti by Nnedi Okorafor. We discuss aliens with tentacles, culture-based worldbuilding, how less is more in novellas, and more.
Join us for a hands-on worldbuilding exercise as we create a zombie outbreak by answering these nine questions:
- What quintessential parts of zombie lore must be preserved to make it recognizable as a zombie?
- What is causing the zombification? How/where did it originate?
- What are the first symptoms of zombification? What are the later symptoms of zombification? What are the final symptoms of zombification? At what point does th...
Join us for a chat about the worldbuilding in the adult horror novel What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher. We discuss gross mushrooms, how the author uses line level techniques to create a sense of dread and deliver worldbuilding information, modern pronouns in a historical fantasy, and more.
Join us for a hands-on worldbuilding exercise as we create a space colony by answering these six questions:
- Why are people leaving Earth to establish a colony on another planet?
- What planet are they colonizing? Why that one?
- Who is leaving Earth?
- How does the group of people impact the culture of the new colony?
- What kind of government does the colony establish?
- What kind of economy does the colony establish?
Join us for a chat about the worldbuilding in the adult space opera Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse #1) by James S.A. Corey. We discuss the mystery/noir feeling of Miller's chapters, how the two narrators are foils for each other, balancing politics with adventure in a sci-fi novel, and more.
Join us for a hands-on worldbuilding exercise as we create a sea creature by answering these eight questions:
- What type of being is the sea creature—biological, spiritual, celestial, etc.?
- What does its body look like? How is it shaped by the depth, currents, and/or pressure of the water?
- How did the sea creature come into existence? Creation, transformation, evolution, punishment?
- How does the sea creature move, breathe...
Join us for a chat about the worldbuilding in the YA mythological fantasy Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen. We discuss African and Yoruba mythology, gods, fairy tale retellings, "The Little Mermaid," foreshadowing, and more.
Join us for a hands-on worldbuilding exercise as we create a spacecraft by answering these ten questions:
- What is the purpose of the craft?
- What scale of distance does this craft travel? Does it orbit a single planet? Travel between multiple in the same solar system? Travel vast lightyears across the universe?
- How fast does it travel? If it ...
Join us for a chat about the worldbuilding in the comedic sci-fi novel The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams. We discuss political humour, absurdism, aliens, the importance of writing craft, and more.
Join us for a hands-on worldbuilding exercise as we create a superpower-based magic system by answering these eight questions:
- Are the superpowers based on magic or science or both?
- Do the powers have a theme to them?
- Do people gain powers randomly, are they born with them, or can they acquire them in some intentional way?
- What can people do with their superpowers?
- What are the limits, requirements, or costs of having the supe...
Join us for a chat about the writing and worldbuilding in the fantasy murder mystery novel Voyage of the Damned by Frances White. We discuss genre blends, how to help readers keep track of multiple characters, what makes a novel voicey, and more.
Join us for a hands-on worldbuilding exercise in creating a cataclysmic event!
Here are the ten questions we answered in this episode, which can help guide you in building your own cataclysm.
- What is the nature of the event? Natural vs supernatural; single vs multiple events; unprecedented vs repeat, etc.
- What is the scale and impact of the event? Who or what is most affected, both immediate and long term?
- Who survives a...
Join us for a chat about the writing and worldbuilding in the horror novel Lucky Day by Chuck Tingle. We discuss luck and math as a magic system, how people react to trauma, and the wonderful weirdness of horror.
Join us for a hands-on worldbuilding exercise in creating a dragon!
Here are the seven questions we answered in this episode, which can help guide you in building your own dragon.
- What hallmarks of traditional dragons are essential to keep in order for something to still be considered a dragon?
- What is our dragon’s intellectual capacity? Is it sentient, or m...
Join us for a chat about the writing and worldbuilding in the fantasy novel, A Natural History of Dragons by Marie Brennan. We discuss dragons as the topic of academic study, worldbuilding inspired by Victorian England, and memoir-style novels.
In this episode, we're talking about writing and worldbuilding in the post-apocalyptic with zombies TV show (based on the video game series of the same name), The Last of Us.
- Proprietor's Pick: The Girl with All the Gifts by M.R. Carey (Disclosure: we are a Bookshop.org affiliate, so if you purchase through these links, we will earn a small commission AND you will support an indie bookstore!)
- Intro and outro music: "The Tavern...
In this episode, we're talking about writing and worldbuilding in the paranormal romance novel Twilight by Stephanie Meyer.
- Proprietor's Pick: Immortal Dark by Tigest Girma (Disclosure: we are a Bookshop.org affiliate, so if you purchase through these links, we will earn a small commission AND you will support an indie bookstore!)
- Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi
- Visit the Tavern: Website...
In this episode, we're talking about the writing and worldbuilding in the children's fantasy (with vikings) movie How to Train Your Dragon.
- Proprietor's Pick: Impossible Creatures by Katherine Rundell (Disclosure: we are a Bookshop.org affiliate, so if you purchase through these links, we will earn a small commission AND you will support an indie bookstore!)
Popular Podcasts
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by Audiochuck Media Company.
Gregg Rosenthal and a rotating crew of elite NFL Media co-hosts, including Patrick Claybon, Colleen Wolfe, Steve Wyche, Nick Shook and Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic get you caught up daily on all the NFL news and analysis you need to be smarter and funnier than your friends.
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.