ABSTRACT
This chapter examines a number of planets to identify the elements of successful and unsuccessful planet-building, and shows why some world-builders are more successful than others in their attempts at imagining other worlds. The first question in planet-building should focus on complexity; with the exception of planets in extreme circumstances, it must be presumed that a planet of sufficient mass should have different climates and biomes. Like Star Wars, Star Trek is known for its visual planet-building, with The Original Series famous for monochrome planets appearing next to The Enterprise. In Douglas Adams's The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, planet-building is not only possible, but so popular that an industry based on it bankrupts the galaxy. Successful planetary world-building requires complexity, some reasonable attention to scientific details, and, perhaps most importantly, time and effort spent on understanding how an alien world will affect its inhabitants.
