: Is it bad not to explain things? Background So I see a lot of questions on the site like this. They're all about deeply explaining worldbuilding and stuff, doing all of that explaining type

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I always enjoyed the works of Fritz Leiber, especially Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. He filled his world with the usual assortment of Medieval things and magic relics but focused primarily on his wonderful characters and their interaction with the denizens of his mythical land of Nehwon. His stories were hilarious and continue to inspire others including Terry Pratchett wiki.lspace.org/mediawiki/Weasel
Their misdeeds and ribald revelry are just as engaging today as they were in my youth. I would suggest your picking up a copy to see how they basically assume magic exists then abuse the hell out of it and others in their search for fun and adventure. And I must say they are long overdue for a great movie. observationdeck.kinja.com/why-fafhrd-and-the-gray-mouser-should-be-the-next-game-1773752445 tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Literature/FafhrdAndTheGrayMouser www.reddit.com/r/scifi/comments/3sg842/lean_times_in_lankhmar_fritz_leibers_fafhrd_and/

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Worldbuilding is not directly for the benefit of the reader

Building a world which makes sense is not primarily done so that you can explain this world to your reader but so that you can build stories in it that are internally coherent. If you understand how magic works underneath you can present it in a consistent fashion and write stories involving it that make internal sense. Some of this worldbuilding will be explained in your story to the reader but most of it will simply inform your writing and is revealed to your reader only in the consistency and coherency of the overall plot.

Now, of course, some people can write stories which appear to make sense and be internally coherent without doing this kind of worldbuilding but many writers find that it helps them write.

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Is it necessary to include tons of worldbuilding details?

It's never necessary to include details. But details are everything in a story, so they are necessary in a general sense. That is, it's necessary to have some details, but it doesn't matter what kind of details they are as long as they keep the reader interested.

Will a reader just 'accept' that something works, or require an explanation?

The reader will accept anything that looks like it moves your story forward. If it isn't clearly connected to the plot, readers will wonder why they are reading it.

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Well obviously there is a subjective element, but I would say:

Is it necessary to include tons of world-building details?

No.

Will a reader just 'accept' that something works, or require an
explanation?

No.

The question you quoted has some very good points, include world-building details to either "give sensual pleasure in its own right" or "support the story". To the first point, "supporting the story" and "including tons of world-building details" are very different. It almost sounds like you see world-building details as laborious, you use the term "waste words". This is not the case at all, the world-building details are a transportation mechanism. To take the reader out of his/her own life into your world. The world-building details are the vehicle. This isn't a text book, this is an assist, the sights, the sounds, the smells, the elements that fire the imagination. Also, having the world in your head is meaningless unless you can find a way to build your world on the page.

So no, it is not necessary to "include tons of world-building details", especially boring text book descriptions, but it is necessary to include the correct details that will transport your reader into your world.

To the second point, will the reader just accept? Unlikely.

My 'magic' system works by calling upon the power of the ancient tales and old gods.

If I read this with no explanation then I would dismiss it as trivial, there is no punch to the statement, it is meaningless. If it is a "magic system" then a system implies "a set of things working together", what things? How does the system call upon old stories? and if I called upon old stories then how does that help me? What do you mean old gods? Like gods with zimmer frames? None of it makes any sense.

There are several ways forward, either don't try to explain it, if detail is unnecessary then leave it out, simply say "she has magic" or "she has the same flavour of magic as her mother before her". If it is necessary to explain it then take the time to think it through, were the "old gods" her ancestors? Did the old tales inspire her?

If readers wanted shallow face-value statements then they read magazines or newspapers, if they want some escapism then they need to be immersed in the world and understand the origin or nature of their powers.

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My only objection to It Just Happens is when you overload the suspension of disbelief.

You can draw on the power of the ancients for magic? great.

You can draw on said power for flight, telekinesis, telepathy, physical transmogrification, healing, fighting, blasting fireballs, warding off someone else's fireballs, wayfinding, animal telepathy, and mixing the perfect Pan-Galactic Gargleblaster... all at once? by the same person? without paying a price? Now I'm going to need an explanation.

So as long as you don't strain your minimalist explanation with maximalist results, you should be okay. Each person can do one thing at a time, or maybe each person can only tap one kind of magic: sure. That's reasonable. You don't need to go into details about how you contact the gods or which gods bestow which power etc. It's when It Just Happens becomes Dei Ex Machinae Happens that you need to prop up the Dei with worldbuilding.

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