Why are so many epic and high fantasy books set in worlds with medieval levels of technology? Magic becomes the technology. If magic can do it, why do people need to design machines? Is it really that simple? Of course not.

How many people can use magic in the world? Are they a small majority that rule or have power? Do they use their magic to control the non-magical people? You can explore a lot of topics and themes in this kind of world, especially about unequal status in society.

Maybe they don't have power as most people think of it, but they still have positions of respect in a community, like as healers and scholars. If so, there isn't likely to be much technology in worlds where magic users are there to assist, if mages are scattered around the world. The only exception might be if they are too few in number to really make up for the lack of technology.

Does everyone have magic? There might be little need for technology here. Does everyone use the same magic, or are there different categories? Are some kinds more rare than others? If magic is common and readily available in all kinds, there's probably incredibly little technology here.

Are there fewer magic users, but they're not in power? Are they being treated as servants or less, under the control of those in power? This situation can be more complicated, depending on how you imagine it. Maybe they're being persecuted. In these worlds, you're more likely to have high levels of technology. These societies bring a lot of other issues as well. If you want to write about inequality and social issues, this sort of society might be right for your world.

One last thing might impact technology, whether magic is present or not. What resources do the people have? They might not have much magic, but if they don't have iron or a comparable metal (as an example), they may never leave the bronze age, so to speak. Jedara's community from Rogue Magic is like this. An isolated community, they have plenty of wood and some ability to work metal, but no advanced metallurgy. They can trade with people outside the community, but magic is prevalent there, so technology is not much more advanced. What they can trade for is limited.

Other genres of fantasy exist in all kinds of worlds. Urban fantasy is the most likely to have full technology, I believe. I love this diversity. There's a story for everyone out there. Even if no one ever reads it, have some fun and write your own!

I freely admit, I don't have a world completely fleshed out and designed when I start a story. There are some things I do need to know. How does magic work in that world? What level of technology is there? Those two questions are related, and I'll make a whole post on that later.

The largest world I've made so far was Aili's world, Athia. This is where the Forest Guardians books are set, as well as Ilia's stories and The Last Dragon. When I started, I really only knew how normal magic worked, and how it affected Aili. Everything else developed as I wrote more stories.

One of the reasons I write this way is it gives me freedom. If I'm writing a later book and want something to happen, all I have to do is look back and see if that thing is possible. Have I already written something that prevents it? No? Okay, new rule or feature in my world, now!

With Athia, I also have the fun of writing in a world in two different time periods. In Ilia's youth, magic works differently than in Aili's, and is actively changing. I can explore things in her stories that I can't in Aili's, even though it's the same world. I find that exciting.

This works for culture as well. In my stories, you experience the worlds through the protagonist's view. You see the world as she does. Does she know everything? No. You get to discover the world along with her.

The challenge with writing this way is making note of all features I include. With the way my memory works, I won't get it all right without writing it down. I have a paper notebook where I actually write it down, so it sticks in my brain better. I also need to keep the different story worlds separate. Magic works differently for Aili, Jedara, Marla, and all my strong young women. They all have their own worlds to explore.
​
​Have you ever made up a world? How do you do it?