In terms of writing queries, I strongly suggest you get a group separate from your critique partners to critique only queries. #askagent #querytip

A couple things I'm noticing in the query box that I am NOT the right agent for:
1) graphic rape
2) agency dependent on pregnancy/marriage (includes loss of pregnancy)
3) drug/physical/sexual abuse main plots (light touches okay)
4) thriller or suspense
#querytip #amquerying

Query Box update: I am officially caught up to June! If you didn't get a response, maybe check spam? I answer all queries, so no one should be left unanswered before June. #querytip #amquerying

I've now gotten six submissions from different folks in the past few days addressed to David - there is no David at ELM. If somebody named David is telling people he's an agent at @Einstein_Lit, he... is not. Small PSA. #subtip #querytip

Aaaand @RaeLoverde brings up another point: language! How many? Who speaks what and why? Are any forbidden? You don't need to write out a Tolkien Elf language itself, but understand how language influences culture & vice versa. Are there accents? Language barriers? Translators?

By no means is this list exhaustive. And as always these are just my own opinions. But if you need a jumping off point for how to develop a thorough, immersive SFF world, I hope this helps open your mind and expand your worldbuilding beyond what you’ve already read and watched.

Once you’ve developed many of these elements, developing your magical system/plot/monsters becomes easier because you can clearly see where your MC sits in society and history, and WHAT THEY FEAR OR NEED, which is what drives your plot. This is motivation. This is stakes.

Is travel permitted/forbidden? Why? Fear shapes societies in powerful ways. If you doubt that, look at atrocities happening in the real world today. Fear, used to manipulate those who are vulnerable to it, particularly levied with false promises of prosperity, is a powerful tool.

Medicine: How is it accessed? How does it work? Is any of it extinct? Is it viewed as a useful tool or a form of witchcraft? Or reserved for the elite? Oral/topical/suppository? (Maybe avoid that last one.)

Is education encouraged/required/forbidden? What forms of education are available&to whom? Consider social/financial class structures in this. Consider what things are available to higher classes&where your MC sits in this structure.

Getting closer to your character lens, what in your MC’s history shapes the way they interpret the landscape? Did they lose family once&develop cynical/fearful attitude to one or more culture/system/structure/location? Is there racism? How is this navigated?

Backstory is part of worldbuilding. Why do characters live/scatter the way they do? Was there a war? A fire? A drought? A disease? Did it impact all locations or just one? How does this history influence attitudes&religions&power dynamics? Fear of recurrence?

Also consider political/authority structure. I see so. Many. Monarchies. In SFF queries. Does there need to be a King? What about democracy? What about anarchy? Who controls whom? Why? What do others think of the authority structure? Play with these things.

Consider material. Is the belt made of woven fronds? Leather? Cord? Hair? Does the shirt clasp or tie closed? What is armor? Why is it effective in this world? Is there only one place to get a certain replacement? Great way to drive your MC to new location.

Now let’s talk clothing! It’s easy to plunge into a story with a battery of standard clothing items: a dress, trousers, belts. These work well for most humanoid characters. How can they be made different? How do they decide what to wear? Who controls this?

From there: religion! What IS sacred? What do characters fear will happen if they don’t uphold beliefs? What are the gestures/words/tools they use to communicate moments of spirituality? How does society deal with different/opposing faiths? Is the faith’s realness in question?

What about food? Alcohol? Drugs? How many kinds are there? Who is in charge of supplying this? Do nuts/berries exist? Is cooking a thing? Is there one standard food animal and everything else is sacred?

So a broad landscape is selected&fleshed out. Let’s expand further. Weather! Is it consistent? Does it change based on season or location? Are there standard days, or long stretches of dark and light? How does the setting compensate for weather problems?

Also, as characters enter a new landscape, what happens to the emotion&power dynamic of the group? Fear changes everything. So does hunger. And cold, and heat, and humidity, and getting lost. Keep these things in mind.

The possibilities are truly endless. The originality of your landscape is truly what allows your readers to dive into the pages and forget they even have another life to participate in at all. This is a good thing.