What is it with new writers and fantasy?

Discussion in 'Fantasy' started by EdFromNY, Jun 25, 2013.

  1. halisme

    halisme Contributor Contributor

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    I like fantasy but I'm not using the traditional setting. For a word that literally means anything you can think of, I dislike that we have a standard template. I'm writing for the genre as I enjoy constructing a setting as much as I enjoy writing the story.
     
  2. amorgan3

    amorgan3 New Member

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    I am an unpublished twenty-something and have only been writing for a few years. I really enjoy sticking to fantasy or science fiction from a setting perspective, though sometimes I feel it slows down my writing because I am very analytical when it comes to justifying certain details within that setting. If a certain technology exists as a defining characteristic of the setting, it really bothers me if I do not have a backstory explaining that.

    When it comes to fantasy, I really just enjoy using whatever I want to empower or define a certain character or type of character to serve a storytelling end. In my current work in progress, there are designated objects in the world that hold power, but this is the highest point of fantasy in the story outside of the unique world and history I have created to substantiate these elements of fantasy (imagine Lord of the Rings stripped to the bones except for a handful of rings, and then a world shaped by their presence thereafter).

    To really get back to the OP, I am not sure why I am attracted to this beyond the degree of freedom it provides and most importantly that it shields me from my own obsession with validating every single fact or detail presented in my story about history or setting. I would rather spend more time telling the story I want to tell than researching (lazy writers for the win!). Maybe one day I will develop the work ethic and courage to write a fiction based in our own world. Maybe.
     
  3. Meteor

    Meteor Active Member

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    I find fantasy to be a 'great escape' of sorts. Even when writing fantasy its a good escape. The rules don't apply and(to me)it gives more room to basically do what you want. So freedom basically. I'm not limited to what already is or what will soon be but, rather I can make what will be and what is without constraints. I also like the allure of fantasy. Namely your typical fantasy with elves, dragons and the like.
     
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  4. Skaruts

    Skaruts Member

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    When I started writing I started with fantasy and horror, mostly because those are the the ones I enjoy the most and consequently the ones I read the most. Reading those genres was what brought me the motivation to write in the first place.

    I think since there's a kind of hype going on around fantasy, a lot of people might be in the same situation.

    I find horror much "easier" to write, though "easier" isn't the exact word. I tend to make more progress when writing it. In a way, I have to think less, I just have to follow "the reality of the situation" that I'm imagining, as if I was in it.
     
  5. croak3r

    croak3r Member

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    I'm quite a new writer, but fantasy has always been more interesting to me due to how much more flexible it seems to be and how different two fantasy novels might be to each other, whereas a two books set in the real world are always constrained by how the world operates in real life.
    I have never understood peoples fascination with wanting a Tolkien LOTR style book though. Maybe it's because of how many people copied it, but i find it quite plain and far too restricted. The wizards hardly ever do anything interesting and when they do it's never directly described and powerful enemies such as the ring wraiths are made out to be dangerous, even though you never really see them do anything. They couldnt even find a few hobits for god sake.
     
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  6. amorgan3

    amorgan3 New Member

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    I was thinking about this more the other day. I actually prefer the real world or some version of it as opposed to outright fantasy. For my current WIP, I placed the characters in a unique fantasy world based largely on real world mechanics because I want the story to be removed from real world bias. My goal with the book is to provoke a reader's unbiased thought based on the story in a setting removed from names or places or organizations of our world that would otherwise automatically include their predetermined opinions of those entities. Some of the world building is fun and all, but more of a hassle to me than I imagine most fantasy writers would opine.
     
  7. Link the Writer

    Link the Writer Flipping Out For A Good Story. Contributor

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    There's just an allure to creating a complete world and lore out of thin air, and better yet, knowing that you could do whatever the hell you want in that world. That said, I don't deny that a lot of fantasy is ass-deep in Tolkien-esque settings, mine included.

    It's kind of ironic, isn't it? We can create whatever we want, yet our basic settings look like its been ripped from Lord of the Rings. :p That said I'm not going to say, 'You're not allowed to write your fantasy the way you want to'. Why would I? I'm not writing that story, so I have no say in how the creator wishes to do it. If I want to read/write a story not set in a Tolkien-esque landscape, the I'll read/write one. After all, no one is forcing me to read/write Tolkien-esque stories.
     
    Last edited: Apr 23, 2015
  8. Lance Schukies

    Lance Schukies Active Member

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    I have not read the whole thread but if it is younger writers (sub 35) they may use the fantasy genre to shock their readers, they may like the idea that what they write will have a surprise element.
    as for older writers I have no idea apart from wanting to write fantasy, escapism.
     
  9. Justin Rocket 2

    Justin Rocket 2 Contributor Contributor

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    A young writer might find the real world or anything that depends on it overwhelming. How exactly would a city react to a fire/an invasion/a hacker attempt, etc.? It can feel like a huge amount of research is required.

    Also, fantasy can feel a lot purer, more archetypal.
     
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  10. croak3r

    croak3r Member

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    I agree. I was questioning the idea of writing a space novel instead of a fantasy novel, but i felt like i did not know enough about space. I could just wing it and make it up as i go along, but i feel that some more knowledgeable readers would be put off and i wouldn't have a complete understanding of my own world.
     
  11. jannert

    jannert Retired Mod Supporter Contributor

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    I was thinking back to my own younger days, and thinking 'what would I have written if I'd started writing at, say, the age of 16? Well, in a way, I did. I used to write fanfic, based on ...wait for it ...The Beatles! You know, the Beatles as characters. I did this with a friend of mine. We'd scribble a few pages a night and exchange them the next day. Hers were a lot better than mine, because she was one of those writers who doesn't need to do umpteen drafts. Mine were always a dog's breakfast of changes, and I had to copy and recopy umpteen times. Okay, that Beatles trope died the death a couple of years later, but it was fun.

    Later on? Hm. I used to make up stories in my head all the time, but never wrote any down (until the advent of the wordprocessor enabled me to do this changing easily.) But the stories I thought up always involved historical settings (which were fantasy, to the extent that I hadn't done research, but just plopped them into how I imagined the historical setting to be.) I had a medieval 'story,' an old west 'story,' and several others. I also found myself pretending to be on a modern-day yacht, sailing to new and exotic places. What I know about sailing could be written down on the back of a postage stamp—so while that was technically not fantasy, in actual fact it was.

    I think, back then, I liked the freedom of going anywhere I wanted in my head and making anything I wanted to happen a reality. Maybe that's why Fantasy as a genre appeals a lot to new writers. It's that idea of creating stories that are pure and unaffected by 'research.'
     
  12. Shadowfax

    Shadowfax Contributor Contributor

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    If your definition of fantasy is writing something without having done sufficient research/writing something in a world of one's own invention, @jannert, I think you'd have to include an episode of Silk in that category.

    In that the case revolved around a diagnosis of death from LQT syndrome. This is a situation where the victim has a cardiac arrest and dies suddenly (it's also referred to as Sudden Death Syndrome). In the episode, the victim was heard calling loudly for help and proclaiming his distress until his calls faded slowly away as he died.

    WRONG! This scenario might have resulted from a heart attack (Note: cardiac arrest and heart attack are frequently used interchangeably - I've even seen a newspaper report where both descriptions were used for the same episode) in that the victim will be in considerable pain. With a cardiac arrest, the heart just stops. Death occurs. No drama. That's why they call it sudden death.
     
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  13. StCecil

    StCecil New Member

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    I like Sci Fi and Fantasy because they are generally set in the far past or far future.

    Fiction based in times we live in doesn't interest me as much. It's less intriging to see something based in a world I know well and see everyday.

    If there is a twist, like a disaster or war that changed the world, I am less intrigued because I live in these times and know it didn't happen (and won't in the near future).

    With Fantasy or Sci Fi I can't entertain the idea in my mind (just for fun) that perhaps it did happen.
     
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  14. GingerCoffee

    GingerCoffee Web Surfer Girl Contributor

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    "can't entertain"? I love the fantasy world I live in.
     
  15. Selbbin

    Selbbin The Moderating Cat Staff Contributor Contest Winner 2023

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    I'm thinking that it isn't that new writers start with fantasy, but that fans of fantasy want to write their own and try their hand at writing.
     
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  16. daemon

    daemon Contributor Contributor

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    That is probably it. Fantasy is the most inviting genre of fiction. It is a playground for the imagination. It is telling that fantasy fandoms have the most fanfiction.
     
  17. Todd Carnes

    Todd Carnes New Member

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    Personally, I think that neither Hollywood nor video games are to be blamed. Rather they are being influenced by the same thing that is influencing the young/aspiring authors of which you speak.

    So, what do I think this mysterious influence is? Life.

    Historically, whenever things in the real world get to be too much to bare - be it war, financial collapse or something else - the public turns to the fantasy worlds of books, movies, etc. for escape. They want to forget their troubles and the troubles of those around them for a while and movies, books and even video games provide that temporary escape.

    Heaven knows, people have had plenty of things to want to escape from over the last years. Terrorists, world financial crisis, environmental issues, school shootings... The list goes on.
     
  18. Diatribe

    Diatribe Member

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    Personally, it is what I started out in. I was a fairly old school D&D player, back in the good ole days of D&D v.1.0 before AD&D hit and whatnot. It's what I cut my teeth in and what to this day I still feel a fond connection to as both a reader and someone who might one day be a writer in.

    Does this mean that I will write only in it or mainly in it?

    LOL, I hope to heck not as I'm not 7 years old anymore. I've long since gone beyond those days and have reader hundreds of novels by dozens of authors, from the classics to the modern. I like most mainstream genres out there. Yes, the main ones I PREFER are the Sci-Fi and the Fantasy ones. YES, they'll be what (if I ever do get published) I would like to stick with as my prime subject matter.

    With that being said, does it mean that I wouldn't love a good Western?

    Heck no!

    Sam Spade styled novel?

    Why the heck not?

    The list goes on and on.
     
  19. Bookish_Introvert

    Bookish_Introvert Member

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    I grew up writing X-Men and TMNT fanfictions. I've got a thing for scifi and always thought my first novel would fall into the scifi genre. Honestly, though, I just got tired of it. I just didn't want to write it anymore. I'd been doing it for too long.
    As you can tell, I draw my inspiration mostly from comic books, so I started learning about characters like Dr. Strange, Raven, and Ironfist and I just liked it. It appealed to me because it was a type of fantasy that I hadn't really been exposed to before. It was more urban-fantasy than Harry Potter or Dungeons & Dragons, and I just fell in love with it.
     
  20. Lemex

    Lemex That's Lord Lemex to you. Contributor

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    I think there is a lot of truth here. And fantasy is very popular, thanks I think to the Lord of the Rings. I've read a fair few fantasy stories by new members on this site and ... yeah.
     
  21. Mordred85

    Mordred85 Active Member

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    I believe the resurgence of young writers in general is due to the digital age of self-publishing and the e-book. Just about anyone can jump on the boat and claim to be some 'soon to be published' author.

    Lord of The Rings, Harry Potter, Twilight, The Chronicles of Narnia, Percy Jackson, True Blood etc. have all become cinematic adaptions of books. Those who typically don't read would probably find it easier to watch the films.

    Also, fantasy is everywhere. Not only in video-games. There's music, traditional art, Japanese animation which has had a HUGE U.S. following since the late 90's. Just about any 16 year old kid is going to be familiar with Anime or Manga now.

    There's a lot of successful paranormal books with fantasy creatures out there.

    Don't forget comic books and comic-book to film adaptations. X-Men, Avengers, Thor. Might not be considered fantasy, but they have quite fantastical creatures.

    Quite recently, Game of Thrones (A Song of Fire & Ice) is considered among many to be the hottest show on television right now.

    Many factors come into play, but fantasy has always been around. It's us the writers who come and go.
     
  22. Aaron Smith

    Aaron Smith Banned Contributor

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    Because it's easy. Fantasy doesn't need a really deep story to be good. It just needs an interesting story that you can read at leisure without feeling pain. Interesting characters and interesting world building.
     
  23. Mordred85

    Mordred85 Active Member

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    Are you fucking insane?
     
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  24. NiallRoach

    NiallRoach Contributor Contributor

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    This goes for everything, basically.
     
  25. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

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    He's trolling the thread. My recommendation is to move on.
     

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