World theme

Most alien worlds we see in fiction have one main theme that makes them stand out. In Star Wars, Kashyyyk is a verdant planet covered by enormous trees, Kamino is an aquatic planet of endless oceans and storms, Coruscant is a planet-spanning city. In any story, we may only see a small representation of an alien world, but that sample is used to communicate the underlying concept.

In Phoenix, the underlying concept of Leo Five is revealed to us in the following paragraph.

And Leo Five looked dazzling. The streets were drenched in rich golden light, and lined with tall buildings all lit up from within. Between them, the skyline was spiked by countless cranes, building even bigger structures. Words and pictures scrolled across their walls. Advertisements flashed by on enormous vidscreens, faster than Lucky could read. Cycles and aircars whooshed past them as they drove, an electric blur of motion, their lights like one continuous stream of flame.

Phoenix

From this we understand that Leo Five is a developed, shimmering metropolis that is constantly moving and growing. Notice how our eye is guided as it is introduced to us, starting with an overarching word, then building it up layer by layer like a delicious science-fantasy cake. Each idea is added, directly building upon the last, from the ground up.

Read the examples below to see how they build a world with layers.

And the Ulysses IV was astounding. The size of a small city, its white, sleek exterior looked like it was carved from pure marble, the electric green light of the plasma drive weaving around the exterior of the ship like veins. The interior was lush; it felt like a cruise ship, not a military vessel. The crew Biff encountered were polite, professional, and friendly, which was far more than he could say for the usual society dregs he worked with. Maintenance bots floated past him as they did a final spot check before take-off, a humming, harmonious weave of perfection.

And Grendel B was hell. The upstation was nice enough, with a burnished golden lounge, twinkling music and excellent food synthesisers, but it was well above the atmosphere. As Vijay rode the lift down, the planet showed its true colours. At midstation 6, where the production commanders disembarked, the cable was undulating around them, and the view outside was a hazy screen of yellow gas. At midstation 3, where the exospheric miners departed, the cable was twisting serpentine and the window was streaked with violent orange and black liquids. Then, by the time she reached the downstation, the light was dark brown and red, the sound was nothing but an endless moan, and the pressure on her body told her the station was being dragged along at three or four times the speed of sound.

And the Thyna Shelf was spectacular. The shallows, dappled in morning sunlight, were populated with smaller fish eager to feed on surface insects. Just away from the light, schools of tuna, parrotfish and comber going about their business, chatting in their various dialects. Surrounding this, kelp forests that ran deep, hiding all manner of secrets. And, fortunately, no humans to be seen, either in their surface vessels or swimming in their strange, rubbery skins and breathing devices.

Write your own variation here, showing the reader what the theme of your world is.

Science fantasy worldbuilding in Phoenix 3: A whole new world