Use the Building template to write about any type of constructions, from the smallest hut to the largest cyberpunk megacorp HQ. You can also use it for monuments, streets, city squares, wells, and rooms within a building.
Contents
What should I use this template for?
The Building template is pretty straight-forward, but there's still some usecases you might not have thought of! Here are some examples of things you can write about with this template:
Buildings & rooms
Any construction in which people (or other creatures) can live, work, play, or do anything else is a building. But the template can also be used for individual rooms within a building (more on that later). It's up to you how much you want to narrow it down; for example, if you're writing a murder mystery that happens within a single building, you might need one article per room.
Streets & street furniture
You might not thing of a street as a building, but they definitely are; at least on World Anvil! And of course, so are bridges, roads, paths, tunnels, and any other place made for people to go through. Streets often have objects in them, like wells or benches, known as street furniture.
Monuments
Monuments, such as statues and other commemorative structures, are buildings too. They're a great opportunity to explain areas of your setting that might not be as directly relevant, such as old history. And in any case, they will help you add more depth to the world.
Natural landmarks
Technically, a natural landmark (such as a famous tree) isn't a constructed building, but you can use the Building template for that too. After all, a tree, just like a statue, is something that's forever sitting there and you can't take with you. The Sycamore Gap tree, in the UK, is an example of a tree that you could write about using this template.
Template walkthrough
As always, the Building template has a free-writing section at the top (which we call vignette) and the prompts are under the Expand prompts & connections button. Remember that all prompts are optional, and some might not be relevant depending on the type of building you're writing about.
Fields are divided into two tabs. The Generic tab has prompts relevant to any building, while the Room one is specifically for articles about a room.
Using maps with buildings
Maps are a great feature to use in combination with Building articles! Using map layers, you can toggle between the different floors of the building to see exactly what's where. Check how to create map layers.
Step-by-step guide to writing a building
Here are some quick steps you can follow to create your building or landmark:
- What's the building's purpose?
And, even more important, what was the building's purpose when it was built? Most buildings change purpose over time. For example, many temples were built on older temples from different religions, and many concentration camps from World War II are now museums. Individual rooms can also change purpose even if the building doesn't change overall. And an old structure that used to have a practical purpose might have become a monument now. - Who uses the building?
Based on the purpose, think about which characters and organizations would use this building. This is an opportunity to think about history too: the building has probably been used by different people throughout history. So think about your world's history and how it would have affected it. - What does it look like? Do people like it?
Does the building follow the traditional architecture for that place and time, or does it break with all conventions? For example, the Sagrada Familia church, in Barcelona, is world-famous due to its unique architecture. Some people might rebel against the building's construction or existence too. This could happen if it's used by a controversial organization or if its construction required tearing down other buildings people loved.
Need some more inspiration? Check how to design a fantasy castle for ideas!
Community examples for inspiration
- Seven Deadly Sins, by Graylion (casino)
- Stewart's Room, by LexiCon (WordiGirl) (room)
- Obvion Complex, by C. B. Ash (ruined residential complex)
- The Fitiri Inn of Tindrel, by Kwyn Marie (inn)
- Taisce Na Sinsear, by Morgan Berry (museum)
