The Iceberg Framework
Brandon Sanderson, a well known high fantasy & science fiction author, explains the Iceberg Framework like this:
The top of the iceberg is what makes it into “the book,” the bottom of the iceberg is what you (the worldbuilder) knows.
Brandon Sanderson
Most teach the The Iceberg Framework for worldbuilding:
- 10% of an iceberg is visible above water
- 90% is unseen below the water
This creates a few major problems for any Micro-Worldbuilder with big Iconic World dreams:
In worldbuilding — the general idea is that you use the 90% that no one EVER SEES to accurately inform the 10% that the public actually sees.
- The Iceberg Framework is Product-Centered not Fan-Centered
- The Iceberg Method requires you to waste 90% of your work, ideas and time
That’s effectively 90% of your potential fans being completely ignored and rejected.
That’s 90% of your work that goes unused — and often unnoticed.