Dirt: Worldbuilding, Pt. 2

In this decade, worldbuilding is not just an imaginative exercise with purely artistic aims. The writer-reader relationship has been supplanted by a creator-consumer dynamic. As a thinly veiled commercial endeavor, its purpose is to oil the wheels of major fan-favorite franchises. Worldbuilding provides grist for expansion. The wider the world, the... See more

• The long tail of the internet has provided a way for sovereign creators
  
  and businesses to ‘
  
  niche at scale
  
  ‘ in ways not possible at any other time in history, fostering unparalleled creativity and innovation;


• The quality of an audience matters;


• Being tiny is mighty;


• Delighting the weird is a superpower;


• When you build a business, you’re building a new

... See more

Franchise worldbuilding is a means without a conclusive end. Contrary to its literary roots, wherein narrative details are fleshed out to push a story forward, most attempts today are predicated upon commodification. The goal is to pander and please audiences. It’s the creative equivalent of a dangling carrot on a stick in front of a donkey — and i... See more