The Worldbuilder's Tavern

Listen in as we chat about how to write comedy and action for different age categories, traditional vs. self-publishing, the "sucked into a video game" genre, and the movie Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle. Proprietor's Pick: Rainbow in the Dark by Sean McGinty Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Visit the Tavern: ⁠⁠Twitter⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠ | ⁠⁠Discord⁠⁠ Access bonus content and support us on ⁠⁠Patreon⁠

In today's episode, we're chatting about bending, magic rules, disability, and how to reveal worldbuilding details as they relate to character via Avatar: The Last Airbender! Proprietor's Pick: Wingbearer by Marjorie M. Liu and Teny Issakhanian "Five Tips for Writing Disabled Characters in Speculative Fiction" by Allison Alexander "How to Escape the Show Don't Tell Trap" by Jeni Chappelle Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Visit the Tavern: ⁠Twitter⁠ | ⁠TikTok⁠ | ⁠Discord⁠ Access bonus content and support us on ⁠Patreon⁠

Join us for a chat with author Ada Hoffmann about their sci-fi horror novel The Outside. We talk about how to choose narrating characters, writing antagonists, writing nonbinary characters, and making stuff up when worldbuilding. Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Visit the Tavern: Twitter | TikTok | Discord Access bonus content and support us on Patreon Find Ada Hoffmann at ada-hoffmann.com

Join us for a chat about Over the Garden Wall, the animated series that you have probably never heard of! We chat about dream sequences, leaving clues, over-explaining, and trusting your readers. Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Proprietor's Pick: The Horrible Bag of Terrible Things by Rob Renzetti  Visit the Tavern: Twitter | TikTok | Discord Access bonus content and support us on Patreon

Season Two is here! In this episode, we talk about the TV series Wheel of Time, adapted from the novels by Robert Jordan and Brandon Sanderson. We chat about complex worldbuilding and how to distill it, why it doesn't matter if the show is different from the book, and gendered magic systems. Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Proprietor's Pick: Iron Widow by Xiran Jay Zhao  Visit the Tavern: Twitter | TikTok | Discord Access bonus content and support us on Patreon

It's the Season One finale! In this episode, we talk about House of the Dragon, so be prepared for some dark and disturbing topics. Allison gives her top seven horrifying moments from the show, and we give some tips on how to write your own grimdark worlds. Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Proprietor's Pick: The Sword Defiant by Gareth Hanrahan Visit the Tavern: Twitter | TikTok | Discord Access bonus content and support us on Patreon

In this episode, we talk about The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom with guest Jeni Chappelle! We talk about how to immerse readers in your world, telling information out of order, and how to write interesting puzzles. Jeni is an independent book editor, a co-founder and editor for Twitter pitch event Revise & Resub (#RevPit); and co-host of the Indie Chicks and Story Chat Radio podcasts. Find her at Jeni Chappelle Editorial. Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Proprietor's Pick: In the Lives of Puppets by T.J. Klune Visit the Tavern: Twitter | TikTok | Discord Access bonus content and support us on Patreon

We discuss Annihilation by Jeff VanderMeer in this episode! We talk about how weird it is, the unsettling narration style, and how to worldbuild according to genre. Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Proprietor's Pick: Lone Women by Victor LaValle Visit the Tavern: Twitter | TikTok | Discord Support us on Patreon to access bonus content

As per Bigolas Dickolas's recommendation, we're discussing the novella This is How You Lose the Time War by Amal El-Mohtar and Max Gladstone! Learn how to use worldbuilding as a backdrop and subtle ways to deliver worldbuilding in this week's episode. Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Proprietor's Pick: Translation State by Anne Leckie Visit the Tavern: Twitter | TikTok | Discord Support us on Patreon to access bonus content.

What is worldbuilding without fat dragons, magicless bards, and birdfolk named Jarnathan? Join us for a discussion about the fun romp that is Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves. And don't forget to vote on the topic of our finale episode! Will we discuss the worldbuilding of Wednesday, The Last of Us, or House of the Dragon? It's up to you, dear listeners! Cast your vote on Twitter here. If you're a patron, vote here instead, and your vote counts as double! Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi Proprietor's Pick: The Adventures of Amina al-Sirafi by S.A. Chakraborty Visit the Tavern: Twitter | TikTok | Discord Support us on Patreon to access bonus content.