Plot, Character, and Worldbuilding are each part the same thing. Each element has its own framing to narrow the focus but they are different sides of a three-sided die.
I spent the entire time today working out characters, plot, and worldbuilding. Working them simultaneously works best for me because they really are the same thing. Characters live in a world and do things.
I had a plot idea and needed to figure out how it affects the main characters. I learned it drove one character to a different location with a new character. That new character was a military leader. Okay, how is the military structured, what rank does this person have – worldbuilding. Once I knew, then I could work out how that character achieved that rank, which I can only do as I learn about that character. Then how does this character react to the first character? I can only do that when I know both characters.
As I worked through these character dynamics, I needed to have a relationship one might call marriage because I realized the new character was in such a relationship. Okay – worldbuilding again. How do marriages worked in this culture; how some of it varies in other cultures because I will eventually need to know. This was all so I knew what the stakes were for this new character.
BTW the most beautiful 3-sided die you’ll ever see: https://www.shapeways.com/product/RBVF4Z6JY/modern-art-d3-3-sided-die
Kevin J. Fellows 