Summer Camp Prep 2025
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Sat May 31st - Sat Jun 28th
Summer Camp Prep 2025
Get your world and yourself ready for Summer Camp!
But... what is Summer Camp, exactly?
In short, it's a prompt-based worldbuilding challenge. During July, we'll release four waves of prompts, and your goal is to complete as many as you can or want! If you complete 8, 16, 24, or 32 prompts, you'll get one of the completion badges (copper, silver, gold, and diamond). Each wave will have eight prompts themed around a keyword, which will help you tie everything together—plus two Wild Card prompts not related to the theme, which you can use instead if the themed prompts don't quite fit your world! After Summer Camp ends, there will be a prize raffle among all winners! Tune in to the Awards Ceremony to learn if you won a prize in the raffle or in one of the community-sponsored prompts. This year, Summer Camp will start on June 28th and will end on August 2nd.Weekly assignments
Every Saturday this month, we'll release a new homework assignment! These are the reveal dates:- First assignment: May 31st
- Second assignment: June 7th
- Third assignment: June 14th
- Fourth assignment: June 21st
- Summer Camp launch: June 28th
How does homework work?
Summer Camp is a month-long worldbuilding marathon, so it's really important to prepare for it! That's why, every week in June, we'll be releasing homework assignments to prepare yourself and your world. We'll also be revealing one of the Summer Camp 2025 themes each week. The goal of this prep month is getting yourself ready to be as creative as you need to in July. Feel free to adapt any of the assignments to your needs, or even add your own prep work! If you begin July and feel ready to achieve your Summer Camp goal, you'll have succeeded.Week 1
This week's theme: Nourishment
We must never stop dreaming. Dreams provide nourishment for the soul, just as a meal does for the body.We’re starting with… food! Ok, not just food. In fact, this theme is way more general than it seems! For example, technology is “nourished” by an energy source, plants feed on sunlight, and it’s often said that philosophy and spirituality “nourish the soul”. Basically, anything that gets “consumed” for a positive effect is nourishment, physically or metaphorically. Yes, this theme goes pretty deep—you could almost say it’s food for thought!
Assignment 1
Think about ways the theme of Nourishment affects your world. Do people generally have what they need? What happens when they don’t?
Think about ways the theme of Nourishment affects your world. Do people generally have what they need? What happens when they don’t?
Renourish your motivations
To decide what your Summer Camp goal will be, revisit why you’re worldbuilding in the first place! And, why are you building this world specifically? Most importantly, are you still serving those motivations? Are you focusing on things that will help you achieve what you want to achieve? Based on your motivations, choose which area of your world you want to focus on. This could be a geographical area (e.g. a new continent) or a conceptual area (e.g. factions, magic, etc). Answering this question will help you focus your efforts for summer camp! And it will also help you decide your goals for the month—that is, how many prompts you’re aiming for! The completion goals are 8 (copper), 16 (silver), 24 (gold), and 32 (diamond) prompts.Assignment 2
Download the pledge document and fill it out with your goal for Summer Camp!
Download the pledge document and fill it out with your goal for Summer Camp!
Revisit your world
If you’re not creating a brand-new world for Summer Camp, re-read your worldbuilding meta and the core articles. As the world grows, it’s easy to forget some of what you’ve written, so now’s a good time to refresh your memory. Not familiar with the worldbuilding meta? It’s a series of questions that help you define fundamental aspects of your setting to keep you consistent and on track. Check the guide to the meta for details (we just updated it)!Assignment 3
If you found any outdated articles in your world, update the most important ones now! Do the same with your worldbuilding meta.
Create a Summer Camp Prep article using the generic article template, write your answers in it, and submit it by June 28th!
If you found any outdated articles in your world, update the most important ones now! Do the same with your worldbuilding meta.
To recap the assignments:
- Think about ways the theme of Nourishment affects your world. Do people generally have what they need? What happens when they don’t?
- Download the pledge document and fill it out with your goal for Summer Camp!
- If you found any outdated articles in your world, update the most important ones now! Do the same with your worldbuilding meta.
Week 2
This week's theme: Roots
Change your opinions, keep to your principles; change your leaves, keep intact your roots.Roots are foundations, the beginnings of things. And that's worldbuilding gold! The past is gone, but its effects are felt throughout history. And while the past is messy and full of events that shouldn’t repeat, it’s also the reason we are where we are—standing on the shoulders of giants! So, for this theme, we’re going back to the roots of your world and exploring where your characters and cultures come from. You don’t need to write a detailed history, but thinking about the origins of things will make the present time of your world all the more real and interesting.
Assignment 1
Look at the cultures and areas you’ll focus on for Summer Camp, and think about how their past shaped them.
Look at the cultures and areas you’ll focus on for Summer Camp, and think about how their past shaped them.
Review your setting's roots
Some areas of your world are more important than others, depending on your priorities when worldbuilding. This week, we’re taking a look at the first things your readers interact with: the world hook, the homepage, and the primer (i.e. introduction article). If you’re making your world public, it’s essential to make these the best they can be! Here’s a couple of resources with advice:Assignment 2
Go to your world’s homepage and imagine you’re a new reader discovering the setting for the first time. What should you change to make the experience more engaging?
Go to your world’s homepage and imagine you’re a new reader discovering the setting for the first time. What should you change to make the experience more engaging?
Back to your roots
What was your first worldbuilding project like? Did you even know that worldbuilding was a real word back then? Look for your earliest worldbuilding notes, or try to recall your earliest ideas. You’ve come far since then, and your art has improved a lot! But you can always learn from your past self, and this week’s a great moment to do so.Assignment 3
Find your earliest worldbuilding project. What mistakes did you make that you want to avoid? What good ideas from those early days can you integrate into your current project? Remember to take a moment to be proud of how far you've come!
Add the answers to these assignments to your Summer Camp Prep article, and make sure to submit it by June 28th!
Find your earliest worldbuilding project. What mistakes did you make that you want to avoid? What good ideas from those early days can you integrate into your current project? Remember to take a moment to be proud of how far you've come!
To recap the assignments:
- Look at the cultures and areas you’ll focus on for Summer Camp, and think about how their past shaped them.
- Go to your world’s homepage and imagine you’re a new reader discovering the setting for the first time. What should you change to make the experience more engaging?
- Find your earliest worldbuilding project. What mistakes did you make that you want to avoid? What good ideas from those early days can you integrate into your current project? Remember to take a moment to be proud of how far you've come!
Week 3
This week's theme: Metamorphosis
I cannot make you understand. I cannot make anyone understand what is happening inside me. I cannot even explain it to myself.While our roots are ever present, the world slowly transforms and takes on new forms. And so should your world, if you want it to feel a living dynamic place! A metamorphosis isn’t a mere change, it’s natural evolution, or transformation with intent. It’s not about what changes, but about why it changes—and why some people don’t want this transformation to happen! Knowing the roots of your setting will be really helpful here, as you need to know where you’re coming from to understand what will change.
Assignment 1
What transformations and adaptations have the people in your world gone through? What changes are going on right now… and who is trying to stop them?
What transformations and adaptations have the people in your world gone through? What changes are going on right now… and who is trying to stop them?
Shake things up!
You are a metamorphosis machine: you take inspiration, add perspiration, and turn it into something brand new!Inspiration + Perspiration = Creation!
Many worldbuilders get inspiration from music, art, books, or media—these probably inspired you to create your own world! This week, let’s step outside of your comfort zone for a bit: look for new inspiration sources! Explore music you wouldn’t listen to otherwise, look for art you would usually not look for, and maybe even read a book in a new genre or by a new author.
To find inspiration sources you don’t know about, try asking a friend or family member, or the community! They’ll probably have different tastes from you, and most people are happy to recommend their favorite music or books!
Assignment 2
Choose a new genre, style, or author, and take a look at their art! Write what you learned from them and what inspired you.
Choose a new genre, style, or author, and take a look at their art! Write what you learned from them and what inspired you.
Learn from other worldbuilders!
If only there was a friendly community full of amazing worldbuilders… oh wait! ;) World Anvil is full of extraordinary worldbuilding you can freely explore. Here’s some ways you can find new worldbuilding!- Worldbuilding Awards winners: These are the best of the best! Check out the nominees too.
- Community shares: Click on “Community” in the World Anvil top menu bar, and see what people are sharing!
- Discovery tab: In the Community modal, click on the “Discovery” tab to see a selection of cool articles to check out.
Assignment 3
Read a couple of articles from the community, give them a like (and why not a sticker!), and write about what inspired you.
Add the answers to these assignments to your Summer Camp Prep article, and make sure to submit it by June 28th!
Read a couple of articles from the community, give them a like (and why not a sticker!), and write about what inspired you.
To recap the assignments:
- What transformations and adaptations have the people in your world gone through? What changes are going on right now… and who is trying to stop them?
- Choose a new genre, style, or author, and take a look at their art! Write what you learned from them and what inspired you.
- Read a couple of articles from the community, give them a like (and why not a sticker!), and write about what inspired you.
Week 4
This week’s theme: Tomorrow
Tomorrow belongs to those who can hear it coming.Last week we talked about the past… this week, let’s look ahead! What does the future hold for your world’s people? And what do they think the future looks like? People’s perception of their future is usually heavily influenced by the current state of the world, so you’ll need an understanding of the present in order to write about the future! The future also rarely ends up being what we expect it to be—so to make this more realistic, make sure what people expect from the future is different from your actual plans!
Assignment 1
Think about current events that will impact the future. Who is working to create a specific kind of future?
Think about current events that will impact the future. Who is working to create a specific kind of future?
Plan ahead
You’re looking ahead in your world, so let’s look ahead to next month too! Make sure you have everything you’ll need to succeed in your goal:- Writing schedule: especially if you have a busy life, this is essential to keep you consistent! Be sure to set aside time to write.
- Writing space: make sure it’s free from distractions. If you need productivity apps to keep you focused, set them up now, before you begin.
- Worldbuilding resources: if you need to do any research to write about your area of focus, get everything ready now so you don’t waste precious time later.
- Look at your stubs: The stubs of today are your articles of tomorrow! During Summer Camp, you can reset the creation date of any article under 50 words to submit it! In Articles & Categories, go to Lists -> Stubs to see all your stubs. Then identify articles related to the themes, which you can expand during the challenge!
Assignment 2
Make sure everything’s ready—from your writing space to your writing schedule—before Summer Camp begins!
Make sure everything’s ready—from your writing space to your writing schedule—before Summer Camp begins!
Connect with the community
For many, the best way to keep working on something is accountability—having someone else check in every few days! Having a community you can bounce ideas around with, or friends you can share your worldbuilding with, is a great experience for an event like this.- Join our Discord server! We have a dedicated Summer Camp channel and a fantastic community of friendly worldbuilders.
- Let your friends know what you’ll be doing! If they’re worldbuilders, invite them to join the challenge!
- If you’re in other worldbuilding communities, be sure to share your worldbuilding and ask for feedback if you’re comfortable with that (make sure to follow each community’s rules!).
Assignment 3
Who or what will help you achieve your goal? What will your sharing strategy be during Summer Camp?
Add the answers to these assignments to your Summer Camp Prep article, and make sure to submit it by June 28th!
Who or what will help you achieve your goal? What will your sharing strategy be during Summer Camp?
To recap the assignments:
- Think about current events that will have an impact the on the future. Who is working to create a specific kind of future?
- Make sure everything’s ready—from your writing space to your writing schedule—for action before Summer Camp begins!
- Who or what will help you achieve your goal? What will your sharing strategy be during Summer Camp?
Challenge entries
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by 3 Armored Kittens · Prodromos v.1.1 - World Anvil 0.9.15.045 © 2017-2024 [en] | Anvil Time: 21:48, Jun 21 2025