Unbound Spaces; The Limitless Possibilities of World-building

World-building, when it comes to literature, is the complexity of the world made apparent and a way of presenting concepts of the planetary. World-building’s focus on systems of religion, ecology, sociology, history, natural phenomena, magic, and ideologies, that all interact with each other presents an ideal medium to explore difficult concepts like colonial matrices of power (Mignolo) and the Anthropocene. World-building provides a freedom for authors to shape the world and its complexities around their desired narratives and ideas. Through the construction of space, world-building can not only reveal human constructions and conceptions but also the agency of nonhumans in such constructions. In Frank Herbert’s Dune series, the rarity of the ecological sphere of Arrakis drives all interactions that happen in its space, from the colonial powers to the natives of the planet. However, with contextual clues the narrative reveals that the planet Arrakis transitioned from a water-filled planet to a never-ending desert due to an ecologically invasive species which in turn creates the coveted spice mélange that drives the narrative. The creation of space also allows the study of power relations. In Octavia E. Butler’s Xenogenesis trilogy, the end of the world in a nuclear apocalypse and the introduction of the Onakali, an Alien race, helps to understand the colonial dynamics that are still woven into the fabric of humanity to this day. Therefore, world-building helps to make evident how space creates social interactions and codes. However, these experiences are always seen through the eyes of an individual. Thus, world-building can serve to expose shortcomings or propagation of colonial powers and institutions but can also reinforce them. George R. R. Martin’s and J. R.R. Tolkien’s world constructions emphasize hierarchy and institutional knowledge. But even with their shortcomings, in using world-building as a mirror of our own reality we can expose the impact of those power structures and how they are reinforced. Space is the intermediary between the planetary complexities of the world and the individual. How one identifies and situates oneself within space, how these surroundings shape and transform ideas and feelings are of main concern in the way we experience and live in the world. These additions and in-depth constructions of a fictional world are not just ornamental or textural for the narrative but are crucial elements that shape the world around the characters populating the narrative.

The creative section of this issue, in an exercise of world-building, calls for poems, short stories, and excerpts of literary works that craft a world with a network of overlapping concepts with a special focus on the aspect of space and the way each individual treats it. In other words, for this issue of The Harbour Journal we seek authors who consider the complexities of space that shape our planetary position within the physical and socio-political spaces one might occupy and how these positions reflect potential futurities for our planet in crisis.

References:

Butler, Octavia. Dawn: Xenogenesis, 1987.

McNelly, Willis E., and Frank Herbert. The Dune Encyclopedia. Berkley Books, 1984.

Mignolo, Walter D. The Invention of the Human and the Three Pillars of The Colonial Matrix of Power, 2007.

Guidelines:

Submissions are open to all.

Please send a short bio with your piece.

Please submit unpublished poems only. We welcome simultaneous submissions, but please notify us immediately if your work is accepted elsewhere.

Multiple submissions are allowed.

Poetry: No more than five poems per submission. We have no aesthetic or formal requirements and consider all styles of poetry.

Short stories, plays, nonfiction texts, and autofiction: no more than 10 000 words.

Please send your full work with a set of keywords to theharboureditors@gmail.com by August 30th, 2024.

Articles must be submitted as a Word document, following the MLA formatting style, and include no personal identification (to ensure the confidentiality of the blind peer-review process).