Not in creating the complex fabric of the worlds in my stories, but in how to share that scope with my audience. I don’t want to overwhelm my readers with details, the characters and settings should feel natural and nuanced. The information I introduce builds layer by layer without long tracts of exposition, or at least that is my intent. My problem is that the world of Fantastic America is more elaborate than the real world it’s based on.
More importantly, I have characters who know that deeper history. I haven’t revealed everything about these characters, or how they came by all this information. That’s part of the fun for me as an author, but can still cause that sense of overwhelm I try to avoid. Sometimes, you just have to go for it and ensure your readers have enough information to keep up.
The information these characters dribble out as the stories unfold is important to the over arching plot of the series. Each individual piece fits together to inform the whole picture. By the third act, the audience should scream at the main characters to put the same picture together. They have to put that picture together and that takes time, before they can begin to analyze what they see.
Other authors may have different opinions about how to reveal information. If another approach works for them, that’s marvelous! Giving my audience smaller pieces of the picture over time (maybe with a few larger chunks here and there to spice it up) works. It’s the perfect long term delivery method. The process works for world building, as well as plot, and character development.