The Worldbuilder’s Tavern cover art

The Worldbuilder’s Tavern

The Worldbuilder’s Tavern

By: Emma Maione Allison Alexander and Christiana Jones
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Welcome to The Worldbuilder’s Tavern — where great books meet creative minds.

Twice a month, we explore the worlds inside your favourite sci-fi and fantasy novels and build our own right alongside them. Whether you're constructing your next novel, TTRPG setting, or just love speculative fiction, pull up a chair at the Tavern!

The Worldbuilder’s Tavern Art Literary History & Criticism
Episodes
  • 4.13 What Moves the Dead

    4.13 What Moves the Dead
    Jul 1 2026

    Join us for a chat about the worldbuilding in the adult horror novel What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher. We discuss gross mushrooms, how the author uses line level techniques to create a sense of dread and deliver worldbuilding information, modern pronouns in a historical fantasy, and more.

    • Visit the Tavern: Website | Discord | TikTok | Bookshop
    • Support us and get bonus episodes by joining our Patreon
    • Next month’s novel: Binti by Nnedi Okorafor (Disclosure: we are a Bookshop.org affiliate, so if you purchase through these links, we will earn a small commission AND you will support an indie bookstore!)
    • Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi
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    51 mins
  • 4.12 Building a Space Colony

    4.12 Building a Space Colony
    Jun 17 2026

    Join us for a hands-on worldbuilding exercise as we create a space colony by answering these six questions:

    1. Why are people leaving Earth to establish a colony on another planet?
    2. What planet are they colonizing? Why that one?
    3. Who is leaving Earth?
    4. How does the group of people impact the culture of the new colony?
    5. What kind of government does the colony establish?
    6. What kind of economy does the colony establish?
    • Visit the Tavern: Website | Discord | TikTok | Bookshop
    • Support us and get bonus episodes by joining our Patreon
    • Next month’s novel: What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher (Disclosure: we are a Bookshop.org affiliate, so if you purchase through these links, we will earn a small commission AND you will support an indie bookstore!)
    • Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi
    Show More Show Less
    34 mins
  • 4.11 Leviathan Wakes

    4.11 Leviathan Wakes
    Jun 3 2026

    Join us for a chat about the worldbuilding in the adult space opera Leviathan Wakes (The Expanse #1) by James S.A. Corey. We discuss the mystery/noir feeling of Miller's chapters, how the two narrators are foils for each other, balancing politics with adventure in a sci-fi novel, and more.

    • Visit the Tavern: Website | Discord | TikTok | Bookshop
    • Support us and get bonus episodes by joining our Patreon
    • Next month’s novel: What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher (Disclosure: we are a Bookshop.org affiliate, so if you purchase through these links, we will earn a small commission AND you will support an indie bookstore!)
    • Intro and outro music: "The Tavern" by Michael Ghelfi
    Show More Show Less
    45 mins
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