Titan's surface
ESA/NASA/Univ. of Arizona

Jan. 26, 2005

Imagining a World of Your Own

In a previous challenge, Going to the Source, we looked at how a science fiction writer can use the characteristics of an organism living on Earth as a source of ideas for designing an alien.

For example, I used the cod, a large ocean-dwelling fish, as a model for what I called busfish, extremely large fish that were trained to carry passengers in their mouths. Since there are several kinds of fish known to carry their offspring in their mouths, this wasn't quite the stretch of imagination it might seem.

Living things have places where they belong. Cod in the ocean. Red squirrels in pine forests. When writing about alien life in a science fiction story, it's important to imagine the kind of place where that life might belong. Writers call this "world building." The more believable and interesting the world, the better the story. Again, a very good approach is to find a source or model closer to home.

The desert tortoise prefers habitat that is arid and rocky and likes to dig burrows in the sandy soil.

Beth Jackson, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Challenge: Building an Alien Landscape

Describe or draw an alien landscape using a real landscape as your starting point.

1. Find one or more images you can study carefully. Here are some ideas for sources:
   • One or more of the images on this page.
   • Pictures of the landscape where you live or somewhere you or a family member has traveled.
   • Images from websites such as:
     • Canadian landscapes: sts.gsc.nrcan.gc.ca/clf/landscapes.asp (Natural Resources Canada)
     • Icelandic landscapes: www.eas.ualberta.ca/elj/icepics/eljpics.html (Ed Jackson, University of Alberta)
     • Undersea landscapes (Gulf of Maine): www.gma.org/undersea_landscapes/ (Gulf of Maine Aquarium)
     • Earth from space: earth.jsc.nasa.gov/sseop/efs/land.htm (NASA)
     • Antarctic landscapes: www.aad.gov.au/default.asp?casid=1962 (Australian Government)
     • Landscapes by country: www.lastrefuge.co.uk/photolibrary/
       image_index/landscapes_index1.html (Last Refuge)

2. Ask yourself questions about the landscape you've selected. Does it appear to have vegetation or other living things? What do you think the air would feel like to your skin? What other sensations might you encounter there? What would the surface be like to move over, either on foot or by some machine? Is there water or some other fluid? What might have caused the landscape to look as it does? (Think about erosion, wind, volcanoes, and other forces that act upon landforms on Earth.) The more you imagine what it would be like to be in this place, the easier you will find it is to write about it.
3. Do you want to make your landscape more alien than it is? If so, how could you accomplish this? (Think about color, texture, plants, and other factors.)

An aerial view of the Innoko National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska.

U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Send your alien landscape, as a description or drawing, to challenge@snkids.com. Include an image of your source landscape, the real place you used as a starting point. You may be eligible for a prize. Please include your first name, age, city or town, and state. If you are under 13 years old, get your parent's permission to write to us.

This week's recommended scifi books

Art gallery

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