I got to thinking about how money works in the Drifting Amalgams universe. Since there’s no all-encompassing governing body, I’ll need to create multiple fictional economies to accommodate the dozen societies in the timeline.
But writing economic systems in sci fi can be as small as “what’s the money called” or as big as “What governing bodies manage financial matters.” So what are the essential things to consider?
Let’s talk worldbuilding economy.
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Worldbuilding Economy: Detailing History and Evolution
I never really think about how economies develop. Or, at least, I never used to. But now that I’m writing economic systems in sci fi, I started wondering how humans went from thinking solely about meeting individual and community needs to exchanging goods, services, and money across cultures. Kind of a fascinating evolutionary jump, really. And one that I think is important to explore when worldbuilding economy.
Why did the culture I’m creating need a cohesive economy? Perhaps the population was too large for simple exchange of goods and services. Or maybe someone just wanted the power that comes with controlling wealth. And, once the fictional economy was built, what purpose did the economic and financial structures serve? Or, I guess, what ideal purpose were they meant to serve? If that ideal wasn’t met–and ideals often aren’t–how has the economic system changed over time… and why?
One of the fictional economies in the Drifting Amalgams universe is unique because I built the cultural history to be a cooperation between two species-centered civilizations: the pentapadi and the tadaribrae. The pentapardi mostly kept to themselves on wide swaths of land where they tended to individual, survivalistic needs. Meanwhile, the tadaribrae developed large marketplaces where they conducted all manner of commerce—a system that fit their large population centers and communal nature.
First, interactions between these two civilizations involved small trades. Individualized trade gave way to shops and small shopping centers and, before long, the cohesive societies began to industrialize. Rather quickly, financial services and a centralized currency became necessary, and once trade became extraplanetary, central bodies were needed to oversee the planet’s interests amongst planets.
Worldbuilding Economy: Businesses and Commerce
When I’m worldbuilding economy, one of the first things I think about is whether my fictional economy is market-based, command-based, or something else. For mixed-market economies like in North America, private businesses are important for the society to function smoothly. So the next thing I think about is what is the nature of those businesses.
For most of the cultures I build, I keep the idea of “What businesses exist” pretty general. Otherwise, I could easily get lost creating dozens of companies. The exception to my goal to generalize occurs when I need to detail a business or company that is integral to the narrative. This is something I’ll probably chat about more deeply in the future, but for now, just keep in mind that the questions here are more about writing economic systems in sci fi, and the answers will illuminate what doing business in this fictional economy is like.
So, in general, what business types exist? Goods? Services? Necessities? Luxuries? The answer to this is going to speak to the values of the culture I’ve built. What they value …and what they deem unworthy. To tease this out, I also look at whether some business types are considered indecent. Maybe there’s an equivalent of a sin tax or some business types have been banned. Maybe, too, there are businesses that are on the line–perhaps allowed only for a certain age group.
I also like to look at businesses focused on physical vs. mental work. This often helps me connect my fictional economy to other aspects of my world like natural resources and power dynamics between trading economies.
Within the Drifting Amalgams universe, the United Barpadai Nation’s business model is pretty simple. Businesses are known to offer anything and everything that can be imagined …on any planet. Frankly, entrepreneurs look to make money any way they can get away with. This strongly capitalistic mindset will allow me to take advantage of the risks and rewards that this type of system can present for various individuals.
Worldbuilding a Fictional Economy’s Individual Impact
So, now that I’ve figured out what types of businesses there are, I’ll want to bring my fictional economy back to the individual.
Here, I’m looking at what vocations and careers are available. And how common each type is. Maybe there are only a few jobs in the society and this scarcity is a source of contention or conflict amongst skilled workers. Perhaps only the lower classes are expected to work. Plus, remember that I’m writing economic systems in sci fi… who’s to say people are doing any of the manual labor? Menial tasks could be completed exclusively by robots and advanced AI. There’s a lot of narrative intrigue that can be created with just this one aspect of worldbuilding economy.
To add more layers, I look at what jobs pay and how the average pay compares to the cost of living. As in the real world, these questions can lead to civil unrest.
Within the United Barpadai Nation, industrial and business vocations are very common. Additionally, engineering is common amongst tadaribrae, who are very dextrous. Because this is a society that has expanded extensively to extraplanetary business, all useful trades have become desirable and available for hardworking individuals.
As for the cost of living, there is a wide range of salaries that create a notable income stratification. The highest salaried individuals are able to afford well beyond their basic needs, while even the lowest salaried individuals on Barpadai earn a living wage.
Then again, who gets to decide what a living wage is? Well, that’s something for me to work out in the narrative, I suppose…
Until next time, stay inspired.