Easy Worldbuilding Template Creation: Track and Find Place Details Fast

A great worldbuilding template makes creating immersive story settings a joy. If your current system isn’t working for you, why not create your own? Learn how to do it in Plottr.

Why Create a Worldbuilding Template in Plottr?

A re-usable worldbuilding template featuring your favorite setting prompts makes it easy to brainstorm location details fast.

Custom attributes in the Places tab in Plottr make setting up a comprehensive settings bible a breeze. Create a store of details you can search and filter to find relevant details quickly. For example, all terrains that match the search “Woods.”

When you create a new place in Plottr, we’ve got a few built-in fields to kickstart your worldbuilding:

• Name: Give your setting its title.
• Short description: Highlight the essentials. For Narnia, this could be, “Magical world in enchanted trouble the Pevensie siblings discover.”
• Category: Pick a category from the dropdown (or customize your list by adding, reordering, or deleting categories via the Categories button).
• Notes: Jot down anything from a brief history or bullet list of facts to links, pictures, or quotes that bring your setting to life.

But why stop there? Custom attributes let you add any worldbuilding prompt you dream up.

Need to capture the vibe or magic of a place? Want to describe its unique scent or mood? Create an attribute for that. Keep reading to learn how to build your own worldbuilding template. First, here are some worldbuilding prompts you could add to your Place tab as attributes.

Worldbuilding Questions and Prompts

These prompts are designed to spark your creativity across any genre. Keep in mind, you don’t have to answer every question here. Tailor your worldbuilding template (see the steps below the prompts) to focus on what matters most: crafting worlds readers love to get lost in.

Conflict

• What is the largest conflict this place has known (or will see)?
• What rival groups or factions exist here?
• What phrases or gestures here would start a fight?
• If this place has little conflict, why? If not, what will peace require?
• Whose interests does conflict serve best here? Who does it affect the worst?
• What’s the largest conflict that will happen here in this story? 

Culture

• What important cultural practices exist in this place?
• How many distinct cultures exist here? Or is it monocultural? 
• Who are the most notable cultural figures here? 
• What art, music, literature, dance or other forms of expression exist here?
• What culinary specialties tell the story of the people who live here?

History

• What are the founding myths or legends of this place?
• Which historical events have left lasting marks on its identity?
• How do ancient ruins or relics shape the culture here?
• What pivotal battles or treaties were forged on local soil?
• How is history commemorated or remembered by locals?

Names and Their Origins

• How did this place get its name?
• What’s this place’s nickname? How did it earn that?
• Has the official name for this place ever changed? Why?
• Who has the power to rename officially? 
• Are there any disputes over this place’s name? Why?

Nature

• What endemic flora and fauna define the local ecosystem?
• How do natural resources and wildlife influence its culture and economy?
• What environmental challenges are unique to this place?
• How do seasons and natural disasters impact communities here?
• What conservation efforts safeguard this place’s natural heritage?

Power

• Who has the most power here and why?
• Who has the least power here and why?
• When has power changed hands (or when will it next)? 
• Who resists the dominant power structures here? Why?
• What system of leadership governs here?
• How free is speech or the press here?

Qualities: Senses, Tone and Mood

• What is the overall tone and mood of this place?
• What are this place’s unique physical features?
• Give five words that describe this place’s odors or aromas
• Share five words that describe sounds you’d typically hear here
• What’s this place’s greatest aspect?
• What’s this place’s worst aspect?
• What’s the most beautiful thing you’d see here?
• What’s the ugliest thing you’d see here?

Views and Perspectives

• What do people disagree about most regarding this place?
• What are common misconceptions about this place? Who holds them and why?
• Who has the most negative and most positive sentiment about this place?

You could keep going with more categories and questions! The above should be enough to already have a detailed sense of place. 

Download the 43 worldbuilding prompts above as a template added to a blank Plottr project.

How to Set up Worldbuilding Prompts in Plottr Using Attributes

You could print all your favorite worldbuilding prompts out on a piece of paper. In fact, do that, too! Yet there are key advantages to having your prompts added as place attributes in Plottr:

1. See attributes alongside place details and notes. The split view in the Places tab makes it easy to recall each place’s key details at a glance. 
2. Filter your full world by custom attributes. For example, if you create a place attribute called “Weather,” then specify which places as rainy vs “arid” or “desert-like,” then you can filter your place summaries to show only the locations that match each quality. Useful for retrieving information fast!
3. Upload and recall visual inspiration. Find stock images or prompt place images using your favorite AI image generator, then add representative images to each place card. This will help you remember distinctive features to include. 

So how can you create a reusable worldbuilding starter template of your own in Plottr?

Let’s Make Worldbuilding Tools: Steps to Set Up Your Project

To get started, make sure you have an active Plottr plan! You can also get started with a free Plottr trial.  

• Step 1: From the Plottr Dashboard, click Create Blank Project (you can also complete this process in an existing Plottr project, but for now we’re creating a worldbuilding template you can use to start brainstorming in and import to another project if needed)

• Step 2: Click the Places tab in Plottr, then click + next to Places or +New in the navigation bar to create a new place card. You’ll see that it appears uncategorized with the placeholder name, New Place and default fields for Name, Short Description and Notes

• Step 3: Click the Attributes button. In the field under the words Add Attribute, enter a worldbuilding prompt, then click “Add”. Enter two more, clicking “Add” after each one

• Step 4: You can also delete attributes, rearrange the order in which attributes appear, and choose whether attributes have single line or paragraph entries (for paragraphs, make sure the paragraph checkbox is ticked). To rearrange the order of attributes, click on the hamburger icon and drag the attribute to rearrange it in the order displayed

• Step 5: Once you’ve finished, click Close to see the attributes you’ve saved. Choose File, then Save As and give this Worldbuilding Template a name. Make a copy of this file and start from it whenever you want to start a blank project with this worldbuilding setup. You can also import your custom place attributes to any Plottr project using the Import feature by clicking the Import button on the Project tab, then checking Places under Custom Attributes before importing

Extra Worldbuilding and Place Organization Hacks

Once you’ve created your worldbuilding template and filled it out for places in your story, the fun doesn’t stop there! Make it even easier to find the details you need:

Use Filters to See Overlap Between Places in Your World

Each attribute you fill out in the Places tab within Plottr becomes a filterable element when you click the Filter button. 

For example, in the screenshot below, you’ll see the full place list filtered only to show places in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe that empower the White Witch’s corrupt magic. The Woods of Narnia, for example, where her enchantment makes it always winter. Or her house where she collects the wretched creatures she’s turned into stone. Explore a full demo of this fantasy classic in Plottr.

Give Places Organizing Categories

You can categorize places in Plottr to make it even easier to find information when you’ve created a complex world. 

1. Scale. You could create categories for “Worlds,” “Realms,” “Regions” and “Towns,” for example.
2. Division. You could make your highest level categories distinct kingdoms (if writing fantasy or historical especially). Then, each place could be sorted into which kingdom it lies within. 
3. Ordinary vs Magical (or Primary vs Secondary) world. You can also create categories for magical and non-magical (or normal vs paranormal) spaces. This will help you keep clear separation between spheres. 

Tag Places to Keep Attributes Lean

What if you don’t want your list of custom attributes to get too long with a lot of scrolling needed? Use the Tag system in Plottr with color-coding to tag places in your world with information. 

For example, you could create tags in categories such as:

Category: Nature

Tags: Flora [Name], Fauna: [Name}

Then whenever a new animal or plan is introduced in your story, you tag where it appears or is mentioned. 

It’s your choice whether you go into this depth of detail, of course! Whatever will help you visualize an immersive world that your reader can hear, smell, touch and see, too. 

Start Creating Worlds Readers Remember

Ready to build out worldbuilding prompts and questions to make your perfect template? Start now with a free trial of Plottr.

What’s your favorite worldbuilding resource or tool? Comment below!