Madeline James Writes
Madeline James Writes
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A Peek Inside my Society Worldbuilding Process || Class Systems, Religion, and Power
As I continue worldbuilding for my next book, I wanted to give you another peek into how I am building my society, this time focusing on class systems, religion, and power.
Entire Planning a Writing Project Playlist: ua-cam.com/play/PLmhjHG1F7VXmOXbULroIs1Fk8sHiO6LsT.html
Referenced Videos:
Building my next world, society restrictions, and choosing my setting || Worldbuilding Vlog
ua-cam.com/video/LBlO7rUF7cg/v-deo.html
Brainstorming how History and Society Would Have Been Impacted by Magic
ua-cam.com/video/lxdFCzRHSKc/v-deo.html
Society & Culture Worldbuilding Video - Early States:
ua-cam.com/video/iS96UCaYO_Q/v-deo.html
@HelloFutureMe Videos on Class Systems:
On Worldbuilding: How Class Systems Work
ua-cam.com/video/8tjvul5e1y4/v-deo.html
On Worldbuilding: Class, Wealth, and Power
ua-cam.com/video/Jr18Q0Cug_w/v-deo.html
On Worldbuilding: How Class Systems FALL
ua-cam.com/video/bbkSim9iaOQ/v-deo.html
00:00 Intro
00:56 Requirements and Starting Point
01:56 Foundation for Society
03:20 Coercion and Ideology
04:53 Changing Society
07:17 Outro
------ LINKS ------
Website: www.madelinejameswrites.com/
Ko-Fi: ko-fi.com/madelinejameswrites
Instagram: author_mjames
Переглядів: 206

Відео

Sword & Sorcery & Romantasy || Beating Hearts and Battle Axes Anthology Interview Part 2
Переглядів 8921 годину тому
I had the pleasure of interviewing Oliver Brackenbury and Jay Wolf about their upcoming crowdfunding campaign for their anthology: Beating Hearts & Battle-Axes by Brackenbury Books, a six novelette (12k words) length anthology of Sword & Sorcery tales with a romantic core to them. Part 2 consists of general questions about Sword & Sorcery and Romantasy, as well as some advice for writers! The B...
Sword & Sorcery & Romantasy || Beating Hearts and Battle Axes Anthology Interview
Переглядів 17014 днів тому
I had the pleasure of interviewing Oliver Brackenbury and Jay Wolf about their upcoming crowdfunding campaign for their anthology: Beating Hearts & Battle-Axes by Brackenbury Books, a six novelette (12k words) length anthology of Sword & Sorcery tales with a romantic core to them. Part 1 consists of questions about the anthology, including hooks for the different stories and some tidbits about ...
Brainstorming how History and Society Would Have Been Impacted by Magic
Переглядів 88721 день тому
One part of working on the magic system for my next story world is to consider how the existence of magic would have affected not just the society of my story, but the entire foundation for society throughout history. Ties into research and ideas for Antiquite and State-Building worldbuilding guide video: ua-cam.com/video/iS96UCaYO_Q/v-deo.html Planning a Writing Project playlist: ua-cam.com/pl...
Mapping Early Civilizations and States of Antiquity || Society & Culture Worldbuilding Guide Part 4
Переглядів 4,8 тис.28 днів тому
Welcome to the fourth part of my societies and culture worldbuilding guide series, which is a sort of season 2 of my worldbuilding guide series. These videos build off the physical world building we've already done. Part 4 will include talking about state-building, hunter-gatherers, and creating an antiquity map! Worldbuilding Guide Playlist: ua-cam.com/play/PLmhjHG1F7VXkkH4fG_t3WuZaikiQRJaHJ.h...
Story Structure, Reading My First Draft, and Other Updates || Writing and Revision Vlog
Переглядів 301Місяць тому
Welcome to March's vlog where my main goals are completing a read-through of my first draft and researching story structure to make a plan for my next outline! LINKS Website: www.madelinejameswrites.com/ Instagram: author_mjames Twitter: author_mjames
Side Swords, Sparring, and First Tournament || Side Quest in Swordfighting 3
Переглядів 437Місяць тому
The sword fighting adventure continues! I have almost been doing this for a year now, and while I have learned a lot.... there is so much more to learn. Watch part 1 here: ua-cam.com/video/E5uyj-11oDQ/v-deo.html Watch part 2 here: ua-cam.com/video/JjLpUV1707k/v-deo.html 00:00 Preview 00:29 Post-Practice Update 01:12 Various Weapon Shenanigans 02:13 Post Workshop Recap 14:08 Side Swords at Mtns ...
First Draft Problems || Preparing for Revisions
Переглядів 309Місяць тому
Now that I am done my read through of my first draft, I thought I would go over the main issues with my first draft that I am going to have to fix in the next revision! LINKS Website: www.madelinejameswrites.com/ Instagram: author_mjames
Building a Naming Language for my Novel Vlog || Conlanging Vlog 2
Переглядів 2 тис.2 місяці тому
Building a Naming Language for my Novel Vlog || Conlanging Vlog 2
Creating a Naming Language Builder for my Story Worlds || Conlanging Vlog 1
Переглядів 1,6 тис.2 місяці тому
Creating a Naming Language Builder for my Story Worlds || Conlanging Vlog 1
Plotting Character Relationship Arcs || Solo Writing Retreat Part 3 of 3
Переглядів 3182 місяці тому
Plotting Character Relationship Arcs || Solo Writing Retreat Part 3 of 3
Character Building Breakthrough || Solo Writing Retreat Part 2 of 3
Переглядів 3152 місяці тому
Character Building Breakthrough || Solo Writing Retreat Part 2 of 3
Diving into Character || Solo Writing Retreat - Part 1 of 3
Переглядів 5532 місяці тому
Diving into Character || Solo Writing Retreat - Part 1 of 3
My Character Notes, Worksheets and Cheat Sheets || Cast and Character Development
Переглядів 5223 місяці тому
My Character Notes, Worksheets and Cheat Sheets || Cast and Character Development
The Struggles of Character Development || February Character Planning Vlog
Переглядів 4963 місяці тому
The Struggles of Character Development || February Character Planning Vlog
Talking Sword and Sorcery with Oliver Brackenbury || Interviewing editor of New Edge Sword & Sorcery
Переглядів 3333 місяці тому
Talking Sword and Sorcery with Oliver Brackenbury || Interviewing editor of New Edge Sword & Sorcery
Domesticated Animals and Beasts of Burden || Society & Culture Worldbuilding Guide Part 3
Переглядів 1,4 тис.3 місяці тому
Domesticated Animals and Beasts of Burden || Society & Culture Worldbuilding Guide Part 3
Chatty Worldbuilding Research and Writing Project Planning Vlog
Переглядів 4863 місяці тому
Chatty Worldbuilding Research and Writing Project Planning Vlog
Migration, Extinction Events, and Available Animals || Society & Culture Worldbuilding Guide Part 2
Переглядів 2,2 тис.4 місяці тому
Migration, Extinction Events, and Available Animals || Society & Culture Worldbuilding Guide Part 2
My Theme and Conflict Cheat Sheet
Переглядів 6524 місяці тому
My Theme and Conflict Cheat Sheet
Cultural Divides and Physiographic Regions || Society & Culture Worldbuilding Guide Part 1
Переглядів 4,1 тис.4 місяці тому
Cultural Divides and Physiographic Regions || Society & Culture Worldbuilding Guide Part 1
Critique Partner Roles based on a Party of Adventurers
Переглядів 2384 місяці тому
Critique Partner Roles based on a Party of Adventurers
Building my next world, society restrictions, and choosing my setting || Worldbuilding Vlog
Переглядів 3 тис.5 місяців тому
Building my next world, society restrictions, and choosing my setting || Worldbuilding Vlog
Global Biomes || Worldbuilding Guide Series Part 10
Переглядів 2,4 тис.5 місяців тому
Global Biomes || Worldbuilding Guide Series Part 10
Recap of 2023 and My Goals for 2024 || Writing, Worldbuilding, and Personal Goals
Переглядів 3755 місяців тому
Recap of 2023 and My Goals for 2024 || Writing, Worldbuilding, and Personal Goals
Planning my Research, Worldbuilding, and Outlining for my next Novel
Переглядів 1,2 тис.5 місяців тому
Planning my Research, Worldbuilding, and Outlining for my next Novel
So you want to write Sword and Sorcery Fantasy
Переглядів 1,5 тис.5 місяців тому
So you want to write Sword and Sorcery Fantasy
Rivers and Wetland Biomes || Worldbuilding Guide Part 9
Переглядів 2,4 тис.6 місяців тому
Rivers and Wetland Biomes || Worldbuilding Guide Part 9
Desperately trying to finish this first draft || Writing Vlog Weeks 7-8
Переглядів 2986 місяців тому
Desperately trying to finish this first draft || Writing Vlog Weeks 7-8
Weather Events and Patterns || Worldbuilding Guide Series Part 8
Переглядів 1,9 тис.6 місяців тому
Weather Events and Patterns || Worldbuilding Guide Series Part 8

КОМЕНТАРІ

  • @tarno_bejo_
    @tarno_bejo_ 22 години тому

    The best fantasy story is the one based on reality. The relatable story of people. Thats why people love isekai anime.

  • @umokno
    @umokno 23 години тому

    As an Anthropologist with a deep interest in geology, this series is an absolute gem. Thank you for creating the content that you do!

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 20 годин тому

      I'm so glad you're enjoying it 😊 it's been a blast to create

  • @Kron1K_
    @Kron1K_ День тому

    I noticed you posting videos about a conlang/naming language. I am very interested in this topic atm, but I'm confused about the python scripting. Could you do an overview of your language without involving any computer programming?

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites День тому

      It's all Java code actually. I do some walkthroughs in the earlier naming language videos, explaining the concepts and all that

  • @LuvLikeTruck
    @LuvLikeTruck День тому

    Oh nice mic upgrade. Also loving the series. I think it's so interesting how much of human history was shaped by geography (so fantasy history would be too)

  • @LuvLikeTruck
    @LuvLikeTruck День тому

    A few years ago i started creating a series of rules to simulate plate tectonics on a Dymaxion projection using DnD dice to randomize it. I'm excited to follow along your process and see if i can adapt your rules into mine.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites День тому

      That sounds like a lot of fun! Hope this guide can help in some way!

  • @SpuneDagr
    @SpuneDagr 4 дні тому

    No witch hat = unwatchable. ;D

  • @AhmadAli-kv2ho
    @AhmadAli-kv2ho 8 днів тому

    25.16

  • @SebRomu
    @SebRomu 9 днів тому

    Great Interview. On the topic of Dragon Romance.... I have a interspecies Bromance of sorts in my world. Really just a dragon book nerd and a travelling treahni (human) story collector, whom meet regularly to share stories.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 8 днів тому

      That is amazing! Dragon book nerd sounds like the best character concept haha

  • @mvalthegamer2450
    @mvalthegamer2450 10 днів тому

    30:37 by 450 CE, much more of the Gangetic Plain, A cluster around the southern coast of India, and larger parts of South China should be states

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 10 днів тому

      I'll try and look into this, I suspect there are a lot of problems with my rough attempt at amap but I hope it at least works for.... Vibes I guess 😵

  • @michaelchurch1324
    @michaelchurch1324 11 днів тому

    16:13 I hate to be the bearer of bad news, although I would argue that this is good news: Getting into traditional publishing will definitely *not* prove that you're a decent writer, to you or anyone else. You have to keep working on your craft until you've convinced yourself that you're good or, at least, that you've done your job and taken the work seriously, which is all anybody can ask for. The "Am I Talented?" question is almost like the existence of God or an afterlife-you'll never truly know, and you can't do anything about it, so the best way forward is to live as best you can in acceptance of not knowing the answer. There are fantastic writers who never get published at all, and there are shitty ones who win awards and sell millions of copies, and even in the weird case where a really good author sells millions of copies, he or she is still going to be asking if it was all a fluke. Good writers tend to be people who question everything; this includes, at least on occasion, one's own talent. Traditional publishing can kill your confidence, say, if your first book doesn't sell and your agent drops you. And this is not a great time for epic fantasy in trade-a lot of authors are being smacked with word count limitations, because the industry has decided that epic fantasy is unfashionable (although there are plenty of readers who still want it.) On the same token, self-publishing is difficult and not everyone has the time and money to figure out how to do it well-and the rules are always changing, and the amount of power certain tech companies have is way too high. Ultimately, trad vs. self is a business decision and nothing more. Looking at both options, and see what's best with the resources and opportunities you have, and don't take it too personally either way. Whichever path you choose, I wish you the best!

  • @QuirkyBard
    @QuirkyBard 12 днів тому

    Elfquest changed my perception of Fantasy. I found it by accident at a comic fair as a new teenager and loved it! Great discussion over publication and genre. Thank you for providing this interview.

  • @plurinerdideas
    @plurinerdideas 12 днів тому

    Darn I missed the live stream- at least I have the VOD!

  • @Ratchet4647
    @Ratchet4647 12 днів тому

    Its interesting that you want both relative isolation and technological parity. Isolated societies tend to fall behind technologically.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 12 днів тому

      There is also access to magic to consider

    • @Ratchet4647
      @Ratchet4647 12 днів тому

      @madelinejameswrites that's fair. Magic can be an equalizing force, depending on the system. If it slows technological progress due to magic dependence or facilitates the transmission of technological advances across the globe, for example.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 12 днів тому

      @@Ratchet4647 in this case it eased agricultural pressures for awhile, allowing them to have a smaller part of the population focused on food production (plus during the same period, weather would have been less destructive). I'm sure there are some areas they'd be bound in still, but overall I don't think they'll be at a big disadvantage

  • @SebRomu
    @SebRomu 15 днів тому

    "None of these are the full story" - Of course, they're 10-12K long there has got be be more. It's cool to support small and independent press like this.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 15 днів тому

      Yes, I totally agree! Definitely a great team, excited to read the anthology!

  • @kaidensimons2389
    @kaidensimons2389 16 днів тому

    ive been using this guide to create my own fantasy world and its been really helpful but i dont have any large landmasses under 35 degrees south and its made it a bit weird when mapping the ocean currents. Im planning on adding some underwater societies but should i add some decently sized islands so it doesnt look empty?

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 16 днів тому

      Thank you!!! If that's how your tectonics worked out that's perfectly fine! If you want to add some islands, consider adding some more continental crust on one of your plates or see if you have a convergent boundary to dot some islands along

  • @juniperberrymead
    @juniperberrymead 21 день тому

    Every time you mention the name of the garment 1000 Italians cry out as their soul leaves their body

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 21 день тому

      I presume you're trying to point out bad pronunciation?

    • @toxic.forest
      @toxic.forest 16 днів тому

      Gee or nee uh. No. Jour(like journey) nay ah

  • @76kilosofshade81
    @76kilosofshade81 22 дні тому

    🤯 Glad I don't write fantasy anymore because almost none of this has ever crossed my mind. 😄 But if I do, I know where to come for more info.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 21 день тому

      There are VERY different styles to fantasy worldbuilding, I don't think most fantasy writers need to worry about this kind of thing, but I find it really interesting

  • @ronniabati
    @ronniabati 23 дні тому

    I prefer magic systems that do not impact food production, energy and labor productivity, transportation and trade, or state defense. Otherwise, magic will supersede geography, which means you’ll have to redo the entire world building.

  • @MasterTMO
    @MasterTMO 23 дні тому

    Even though the geographic determinism arguments are completely false, that doesn't mean your societies on your world won't use them to justify their own expansions. So they're still good to keep in mind.

  • @MultiGardenofeden
    @MultiGardenofeden 23 дні тому

    Something I'd say is probably relatively minor but I often think about is how magic affects people's average lifespan. If there's some sort of healing magic that is accessible enough, I would guess average lifespan would go up, kinda like what medicine does right now but possibly even better. States and nations would probably be led by older people on average, the appropriate age to get married would probably also go up, infant mortality wouldn't be so high as it historically was, and probably many other things would change as well, like for instance maybe it's normal for monarchs to start their reign being 60 or 70 years old, and there would probably some sort of system that allows for their successors to wield power well before they become head of state since maybe they wouldn't want to wait so long to be relevant? Anyway, great video!

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 23 дні тому

      Ooh that's definitely relevant if you have healing magic like that! Very good point.

  • @xevira
    @xevira 23 дні тому

    Something else I've pondered with regards to magic in a fantasy world is its impact on the technological _development._ Magic can either impede, accelerate or have no effect on the progression of technologies. It would depend on things like the kind of magic, the prevalence of said magic and the particular technologies involved. Places where magic is intricately woven into the mundane world could see their technological progress stifled because magic would fulfill this role too much for the people to have any need to develop the equivalent technology. On the other hand, magic could get around certain technological hurdles if used in a symbiotic manner, accelerating the development, just down a very different route. Place where there is very little access to magic would probably progress at a "normal" pace, whatever that is. I've contemplated a wild west era style world where magic exists, and I'm still trying to hammer out how magic affects it, as it is a massive web of technology that would be affected by the existence of magic.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 23 дні тому

      Yes, absolutely! It is extremely complicated to think about, but all the ways it can affect innovations is definitely relevant. I imagine you'd really have to consider what base technologies magic might have made redundant in certain places, and then perhaps some things that developed from that base technology might be missing... And potentially also consider new problems magic could have caused and what technologies or innovations would have helped? There's just so much to consider!

  • @egomaniac7230
    @egomaniac7230 23 дні тому

    Great video as always!!!

  • @EricVulgaris
    @EricVulgaris 23 дні тому

    It will be interesting to see your point about how society's views of religion change with the advent technology and magic.

  • @hubrigant
    @hubrigant 23 дні тому

    I'm intrigued by your technical setup. Do you have a template you'd be willing to share that shows the Java framework you use?

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 23 дні тому

      How specific do you want? I'm using a Java SDK and my IDE is IntelliJ. I can put notes in the description of the video, but just want to make sure I know what details you want first

    • @hubrigant
      @hubrigant 23 дні тому

      @@madelinejameswrites I'm more interested in the code itself. I've tried a couple methods for managing the process and content of the conlangs I've worked on but haven't really liked any of them. Your Java process is a very different approach that I'd like to give a try.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 23 дні тому

      @@hubrigant oh! I see what you mean. Let me look into putting something up on gitlab maybe

  • @MrVlandus
    @MrVlandus 23 дні тому

    Dang just missed this

  • @ashleydavis3318
    @ashleydavis3318 23 дні тому

    idk what the algorithm thinks i do for a living, but i have no idea wtf a phonotactic is 😂

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 23 дні тому

      Oh no! This stuff is so overwhelming for me and I've done a fair bit of research 😅 I explain some of the terms a bit in part 1 if you're actually interested

  • @rho-bot
    @rho-bot 23 дні тому

    i think the structure is coming along great, the sound combinations just need a little iteration. looking forward to next stream ❤

  • @MadIronWizard
    @MadIronWizard 23 дні тому

    This channel was a huge discovery for a history major building a post-cataclysmic fantasy world (roughly steampunk -> medieval). Thank you for all the great content, this is a true trove of treasure! Now where did I put my coffee and notebook...

  • @uruzrune7216
    @uruzrune7216 24 дні тому

    45:40 Where do condiments come in? Condiments? like, ketchup?

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 23 дні тому

      I don't follow?

    • @uruzrune7216
      @uruzrune7216 23 дні тому

      @@madelinejameswrites Sorry, must be your accent. Sounds like you're saying "condiments"

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 23 дні тому

      @@uruzrune7216 😂 I assume I probably meant continents?

  • @trollsmyth
    @trollsmyth 24 дні тому

    So if I wanted to read some of your S&S, where would I find it?

  • @NithinJune
    @NithinJune 25 днів тому

    would it be possible to obtain a better microphone 🙏🙏

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 25 днів тому

      When I stream, I use a whole different setup using a webcam with built in microphone. I need to look into a way to hook my newer camera up to my computer for using as a webcam. If I can figure that out the microphone I have connected to that is WAY better

    • @weeb3277
      @weeb3277 24 дні тому

      would it be possible for you to buy it for her

  • @TMThesaurus
    @TMThesaurus 26 днів тому

    I would read them as exo-ray-ic and endo-ray-ic personally

  • @dayalasingh5853
    @dayalasingh5853 26 днів тому

    26:49 just a note that "q" in Chinese romanization is pronounced as a sound close to English "ch" so it should be something close to "ching dynasty". If you know the IPA the sound is /tɕʰ/. Great video though I can't believe I haven't seen your videos before, will definitely be watching more of them 🙏🏽

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 26 днів тому

      Oh good to know! I'm notoriously awful at pronouncing things so I appreciate the help! And thank you! I'm glad you enjoyed it ☺️

  • @76kilosofshade81
    @76kilosofshade81 26 днів тому

    Your commitment to worldbuilding continues to astonish me. I couldn't imagine trying to write fantasy now without being intimidated by some of these considerations. 😅 Which makes me happy I'm writing contemporary right now.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 26 днів тому

      😂 it's definitely a lot, but I will say for my story worlds I don't fully go into all this detail for the entire world. I typically try to focus my energy on the places that I'm going to be writing about, and what I do for each story is a bit different based on what I need. I think this process helps me to understand the fundamental processes though. Every story I write I include more and more depth for this kind of stuff, it's a growing process and I'm always learning!

  • @user-fm9km1qg3c
    @user-fm9km1qg3c 26 днів тому

    Hello, i have a question, what might a hotspot do for stationary (all sides divergent) plate? Could such plate go underwater

    • @user-fm9km1qg3c
      @user-fm9km1qg3c 26 днів тому

      Another question is a hot spot on the edge between plates.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 26 днів тому

      I would expect you'd just get one big volcanic area. I don't think the plate would go underwater, depending on what type of crust you have.

  • @marcidy
    @marcidy 26 днів тому

    This is excellent. This probably popped up on my feed due to my interest in actual states and history, but fills in a lot of information i was not aware of. Great job!

  • @tampagirl7533
    @tampagirl7533 27 днів тому

    This was so great!!! I needed this! I found this sooooooo helpful in mind mapping my story, and how you did it was fabulous!!!! can you show this for character arcs and character building, this is where I need it the most.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 26 днів тому

      So I have a retreat vlog where I came up with how I would do character arcs and all that for my characters, let me see which part it's in

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 26 днів тому

      Okay so I went over all the character stuff afterwards to sum up the cheat sheets I did, but it's definitely at a much deeper level than this mind mapping process, so I'm not sure if you'll like it as much. Let me know if this still leaves something to be desired for a shorter mind mapping approach... ua-cam.com/video/3-63dX-hby8/v-deo.htmlsi=h5esOy1f-Dvug7t5

  • @kentario1610
    @kentario1610 27 днів тому

    Rewatched the previous parts to prepare for this one, I'M SO EXCITED!! When it first came out, I shared it with artist/writer friends like "!!!!!" like we do Artifexian videos too.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 27 днів тому

      I hope you enjoy it, I'm particularly proud of this one! And it's an absolute honor to be hyped like Artifexian, he's amazing 😊

  • @rolandzfolyfe8360
    @rolandzfolyfe8360 27 днів тому

    3:50 I don't understand this widespread dislike of geographic determinism, since the only other possible explanation of the different outcomes of history would be racism; if you don't buy that, for example, the aboriginal australians didn't form great empires because of their geography, then what other reason could there be? note: accepting it can be used to justify racism but rejecting it inevitably leads to racism.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 27 днів тому

      It isn't a dislike of geographic determinism just because it's been used to justify racism and imperialism and the general othering of different peoples, but because it does all that AND it's not actually correct regardless. Geographic determinism (vs say geographic possibilism) ignores many of the important factors that have led to state-building and the development of society. It is taking an extremely narrow look at history and ignoring a ton of factors, in a way that also does a lot of harm. As for Australia, most of my research hasn't touched on the societies there specifically yet, but there have been other places where empires formed that were more unlikely. Take the Incans in the Andes. It's not geography that explains how the Incans came to be.

    • @rolandzfolyfe8360
      @rolandzfolyfe8360 27 днів тому

      @@madelinejameswrites Yes it does; everything from Quechua being a lingua franca in the region to potatoes existing as a food source to the harsher climate requiring coordination led to the Inca, much like porous rock did for the Maya, though they obviously aren't the same similar pressures caused similar outcomes

  • @plurinerdideas
    @plurinerdideas 27 днів тому

    Been really enjoying binging your playlists!

  • @ronniabati
    @ronniabati 27 днів тому

    How could land degradation caused by agricultural be determined? Specifically, the gradual desertification over centuries, unnoticed by the farmers, until their society suffers agricultural collapse (thinking of the Mayans). Could this potentially be the outcome of most antiquity states? Explore adventurers from the lucky faraway state would then discover vast ruins of lost civilizations all over the world :)

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 27 днів тому

      This is definitely an effect I ran into! Against the Grain talks about this with the increased salinization of their water, upstream logging, etc. basically destroying their local environment slowly until it can't support them anymore. And societies definitely did collapse from that, like you said! I have looked too much into this yet, but I would think the more a population is trying to optimize their use of land, the more at risk they'd be for this. So faster population growth, more restricted farming land, other needs for large amounts of lumber, etc.

  • @HelotOnWheels
    @HelotOnWheels 27 днів тому

    Although I think you’re right that emergencies and danger helped encourage people to accept authoritarian states (a tactic that still works today, unfortunately), I think another part of it may have been the astronomical expertise of the priest classes in states like Egypt or the Mesopotamian or Indus city-states. We unfortunately tend to think of ancient priests as mere spinners of superstition, and of course they did believe tons of stuff that we now know isn’t true, but that nonsense was mixed in with a lot of genuine observational knowledge of astronomy and its correlations with seasonal rains, frosts, and droughts. If your priests can tell the whole community that the position of the Sun is a sign from the goddess Inanna that she’s ready to bless the sowing of the millet crop (which happens also to be the exact date of the spring equinox and the start of the rainy season), it may make sense to the millet farmers to raise a little surplus to feed those priests, so they can get the planting time right again next year.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 27 днів тому

      Ideology is definitely a really important factor in coercion and hierarchy. I saw it all over my research!

  • @HelotOnWheels
    @HelotOnWheels 28 днів тому

    Very enlightening video! I had no idea transhumance worked that way; I had always assumed that the whole community packed up and moved back and forth with their animals. Do young men “graduate” at some point from moving with the herds to settling down and becoming marriage-eligible? I suspect another huge effect of domesticating livestock animals is ending, or at least reducing, human sacrifice. Human sacrifice is basically the idea that gods like to eat flesh and blood just like predators and scavengers do, so if you offer them some flesh they’ll do you a favor or at least leave you alone. It’s revolutionary to have a cow or a sheep to offer them instead of your firstborn son, a female virgin, or a war prisoner (what do all three have in common? None of them can fight back). The version of the Iphigenia story where Artemis saves the girl by offering a goat or deer in her place, the Mithras cult’s bull sacrifice, and of course the Judeo-Christian-Islamic story of the sparing of Isaac (or Ismail, in the Muslim version) all suggest the impact of livestock domestication in ending human sacrifice.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 28 днів тому

      I think it really depends on the individual society and beliefs. I believe in some societies animal sacrifice was done frequently but human sacrifice was considered a greater form of sacrifice. So human sacrifice would be more for special occasions if you will... And I believe the Andean region domesticated animals before plants, and they had animals for sacrifice pretty early on.

    • @HelotOnWheels
      @HelotOnWheels 28 днів тому

      @@madelinejameswrites Agreed, and there are certainly cases of agricultural, livestock-raising peoples who still sacrifice some humans - the pre-Christian Norse, the Carthaginians, and the Aztecs, for starters - which often alienates them from their neighbors who’ve abandoned or sublimated the practice. And fantasy adds its own wrinkles; in my world of Firma, a female elf can live 800 to a thousand years and have two hundred or more babies during that time, so as elves developed advanced healing arts and child mortality went down, child sacrifice was adopted for a time to keep the population in check; later, the struggle over ending child sacrifice split elven society in two. I’m still curious about how marriage works in those transhumance societies. Do the herdsmen ever get to settle down and tie the knot, or are males divided into marriage tracks and herding tracks from childhood? And is their eligibility for marriage determined at all by whether their parents were married or not (and is the answer the same for boys and girls?).

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 28 днів тому

      @@HelotOnWheels honestly I haven't done that in depth of research on transhumance societies, but I suspect it will differ by society.

  • @QazwerDave
    @QazwerDave 28 днів тому

    tAIga

  • @SpuneDagr
    @SpuneDagr 28 днів тому

    For what it's worth I would LOVE to hear you talk about magic and society. Either at a general level, or specifically about your own system.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 28 днів тому

      I've been working on this more lately, I'll definitely put a video or two up as I work this out for my world!

  • @HelotOnWheels
    @HelotOnWheels 29 днів тому

    This guide impressively ambitious. I’ve been building cultures for several years now for my RPG world, and developed a much more detailed culture template than most UA-cam worldbuilders seem to have, but I never considered this evolutionary approach that tracks back to the original arrival of humans or other sapients. And only recently did I add a whole section on domestic animals instead of just integrating them into the economy, property, and military categories. This way is much more work than I would be able to put in for my world, but I applaud you for your dedication. I’d encourage you and your audience to consider the why as well as the how of early human migration. Just as in modern immigration studies, there are “push” factors that make people want to leave their old territory, and “pull” factors that influence their choice of where to go. Population pressure is probably the commonest "push” factor, but climate change, natural disaster, disease, and pests might also have played parts. In the real world, there doesn’t seem ever to have been a big predator species so nasty that we just decided to abandon its habitat completely, but in a fantasy world with dragons, giants, trolls, or other imaginary terrors, we might well have done just that. “Pull” factors would be more abundant forage or prey species, milder winters or more rain, availability of medicinal herbs or hot springs, or even just natural beauty.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 28 днів тому

      Sounds like you've really developed a robust system for your world! And thank you! In the next part (2 after this) we'll get into more of the factors you've mentioned, talking about conflict and migration and the rise and fall of societies etc so we can build era maps. I'm TRYING not to get too in depth this early, and increasing in detail as we get closer to the present but we shall see!

  • @thirdcoastfirebird
    @thirdcoastfirebird 29 днів тому

    Watching Artifexian lead me to you. This was a great video.

  • @madelinejameswrites
    @madelinejameswrites 29 днів тому

    Not sure what happened but I copied the description back in, so the chapters are back!

  • @Distortion0
    @Distortion0 29 днів тому

    This is interesting but as a new viewer chapters would be super helpful. Not sure I have the willpower to sit through a 1 hour video on a new channel.

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 29 днів тому

      Wait there should have been chapters... My description got lost somehow. I should still have that noted down, let me add it back in! Sorry about that!

    • @madelinejameswrites
      @madelinejameswrites 29 днів тому

      They should be back now! Not sure how the description got cleared but hopefully it stays this time!

  • @Jpteryx
    @Jpteryx 29 днів тому

    Great video! I didn't know about the difference between states and feudal polities.