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Originally Posted by bthrowsnaill
Has the working definition of "builder world" drifted a bit during this discussion? ... But it sounds like Steven Lake creates settings that diverge from the actual story settings and plop the characters into these worlds to see how they react (eq: like dropping your Sci-Fi hero into "High School Musical", or something equally bizarre?)
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That's how I read it. And yes, that's how I do it.
However, it doesn't have to be ridiculous. It can just be... different. Like those games you play on the internet "If you could be a master criminal, what kind would you be?" Doing that sort of thing with your characters could be interesting.
The other thing I use as a "builder world" is my own life sometimes. For instance, my creative writing classes in grad school were interesting pressure cookers of human interaction. For years afterward I would sometimes drop my characters into a typical creative writing class and watch not only what kind of stories they choose to tell, but also to see how they handle the extreme battling egos.
Try it some time. Put your character into a situation that doesn't fit into your story - a different genre, time travel, put 'em in charge of the office at your day job. Put them in group therapy with other characters, make 'em learn a new trade.
Camille