Worldbuilding, and Why It is the Most Important Aspect in a Story
birbsophone
What leaves an effect on me, is always, not the highlights of the story or the ending; but how it feels to live and be encapsulated in the book that was written.
I like post-apocalyptic genres, so a somber, sultry atmosphere— and how the environment cradles one in. That’s how I remember a sci-fi novel.
But it’s not only dark grimey worlds that I like. For example, Dune, by far my favorite series, the vast universe it offers, and what the Sandworm symbolizes. The books genuinely live. They have heartbeats.
But having a dreadful sensation of danger, like in the Zone from Roadside Picnic, or in the Metro series, they’re quite similar in what they explore. It’s a one to one feeling.
One gets subjected to Worldbuilding while reading the whole book. Or watching. Or playing. Meanwhile an ending, or an important battle between characters is merely momentary. And that’s why I think this aspect of storymaking matters the most; and is the most valuable branch.
That doesn’t devalue any of the other categories of course; in the end even if one single aspect was made with carelessnes and lack of quality, all’s values are nullified.