“Oh, Canada!” or “Fictional Politics”

Today has been wonderfully comfortable.

One, it is a snow day.

Two, I have no assignments.

Three, the second podcast is all done editing, which goes up Sunday.

And four, I found out that not only does my roommate not care about me using my Canadian accent, but doesn’t even recognize it when he hears it. This is beautiful to me. I can speak naturally in the States for a short time and no one gives two cents. Except the guys across the hall. They may at some point. But I don’t care anymore.

For those confused, my mother is Canadian and for most of my life I have had a double citizenship. I consider Canada my second country. So while I am in the States, I am also Canadian half-way-through-and-through. I only know the Canadian anthem when others are singing along, though.

Canada as described in a single picture.

And speaking of anthems, it’s time to talk about how to write politics of fictional worlds. People don’t always want to write all the tiny details of the fantasy world. They want to get the story out. But they make a big deal in the end. For instance, say we are talking a rebellion of some sorts. While some people in your world will be totally ok with this, there are always going to be opposers: conservatives vs. liberals, tories vs. whigs, etc. While it may be easier to just have an entire city rebel against its king, it’s just not realistic. There may be meetings, riots, intense discussions, and just general talking before most things get done. The ones doing no talking and most of the doing are probably going to be the radicals/anarchists. If you want your characters to be anarchists, that’s fine, but otherwise one has to think of these things.

A more modern version of what could be going on in your story.

And also, remember that there are sometimes more than one political party. Even in the United States, unbeknownst to most, there is more than one political group. In Canada that’s more common knowledge with the Green Party as a commonly known third party. People may not always be on one side of the fence. Sometimes there is a completely different option. Say that we are back in the rebellion or something. One party may call for absolute freedom from the state. The other may think the state ought to be leading. Then a third one may say that although the state is helpful in some cases, we need to have more freedoms and less control from the monarchy. There may even be a fourth option, and a fifth! Think of all the possibilities!

Ok, maybe not THIS diverse.

And while we are discussing politics, how is your government run? Is this a monarchy, a capitalist state, a democracy? Are there states/provinces within your country? Do they have their own governors/lords/mini-rulers? Or do you have your own plans in mind for how this ought to be run? This is, of course, up to you, the writer.

Now that I have helped you along, go out and conquer! Make your world! Command it to your liking! And most of all, do what you love!