What is it with new writers and fantasy?

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

  1. John Calligan

    John Calligan Contributor Contributor

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  2. CAROLINE J. THIBEAUX

    CAROLINE J. THIBEAUX Member

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    Nope. Nothing at all.
     
  3. SolZephyr

    SolZephyr Member Supporter

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    I can't really answer for anyone other than myself, but I switched over to fantasy for my current WIP because a) I discovered I really enjoy world-building; I don't know why, but it's more fun than writing the story itself to me and b) I'm trying to stick in some themes that are a bit controversial right now (at least in the U.S.) and I figured putting an unfamiliar face on them and not hammering home the parallels might be the best way to go about that.

    My first attempt at writing was actually hard sci-fi, but I dropped it pretty quickly for a variety of reasons (and no, having to do research wasn't one of them).
     
  4. CAROLINE J. THIBEAUX

    CAROLINE J. THIBEAUX Member

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    SolZephyr likes this.
  5. SolZephyr

    SolZephyr Member Supporter

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    I think that's a good approach, but I personally swap the order of importance of the "bones"(?) in the skeleton of the world. I first start off with the geography (i.e. a flat world floating in the sky), then try to come up with an underlying physics system that would support such a world (and maybe throw in some extra bits into the physics to give it some flair). I then try and deduce what religious beliefs would arise from a primitive people observing such a world around them, but I do this along side building the history of the world, because both religion and real-world events play off of one another.

    It was a good read, though. It reminded me that I need to keep an eye out for opportunities to reference legends of the past.
     
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  6. John Calligan

    John Calligan Contributor Contributor

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    I think it depends a lot on what is the most critical thing for your story. I personally like to write about worlds so low in magic that its presence doesn't help 99.99% of people in their day to day lives, so I start with geography and how people spend their time: agraculture, livestock, merchants, artisans, and caste/class.

    I worry more about magic when it comes to politics, warfare, and the capacity of the regular people to revolt or replace rulers.

    On the other hand, if you have an idea for a plot that involves a magic system that will affect how average people spend their day, you really have no choice but to nail down how all the magic works before getting to society, right?
     
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  7. Dracon

    Dracon Contributor Contributor

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    I agree. Yes, magic, if relevant, will inevitably play a key role in the worldbuilding and the world you will construct. Every conflict, from the argument between two neighbours over a house extension to the Second World War, can be traced back to geography, as the main source.

    Geography not only determines physical borders, but resources, access, security. And where there are these things, there is conflict. For example, Gibraltar, The Bosphorus and the Golden Horn, The Straits of Hormuz - an alien who knew absolutely nothing about world history would still be able to recognise the immense strategical importance of controlling these places. And the resources of the earth play their role too. Wars have been fought over oil (Falklands), gold (Spanish Colonisation) and even tea (Opium War). Even today, water conflicts are emerging as various countries are damming the Nile and Euphrates. It all comes back to geography.

    Just by looking at the contours of a map - sources of fresh water, resources, defensibility, you just know where certain cities and towns will lie. Worldbuilding can't force where certain cities reside without making some sort of geographical sense.

    So most of the ideas that I have had for potential storylines in my world have been from thinking about what potential conflicts might arise from the map that I created. And then take things from there.
     
  8. CAROLINE J. THIBEAUX

    CAROLINE J. THIBEAUX Member

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    I agree.
    The geography often determines the belief as well. What I posted were the bare bones.(pun intended. )
    The Vikings probably saw a few ice age sweeps hence Ragnarok. I did not use geography so much in my world due to the coming sequels that will have some changes in the geography. But yes, early communities fought over resources.

    As for magic. There has to be some limitation to the craft, hence an interesting story and yes, people can overthrow the villainous rulers, magic or not. Melanie Rawn did a great story in her Dragon Prince sage. The difference/limitations between the Sunrunners and the Sorcerers was brilliant.

    It is fun building a world.
     
  9. CAROLINE J. THIBEAUX

    CAROLINE J. THIBEAUX Member

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    I guess we're going for the elementals before the bones.LOL. What forms together and binds the land and water. There can also be a good mythology behind that. That's the nice thing about fantasy.
     
  10. Beloved of Assur

    Beloved of Assur Active Member

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    For myself I can say that my true passion is history and I much prefer to read historical fiction over fantasy, even while I've read alot of fantasy when I grew up. In fact me writing fantasy should come as odd since I don't even like magical or supernatural elements in what I read, I just think it takes valuable page and plot space away from interacting characters. For example, I think that Asoiaf has way to much magic. It started with a good level but stripping away the Others and sorcery would do much to make it even better in my opinion. I care for human characters interacting and don't care for magical villains out to destroy the world. They're just in the way of the story.

    BUT

    I personally find that fantasy is a forgiving genre. I don't mind getting criticism because of plotting, characters or the like. But if I got my book rejected by readers because I wrote that a Welshman in Wales wore a footwear that came into use in 1257, in 1251, then I am sorry to say that I probably wouldn't take that in a stride. Thus while I wanted to write historical fiction, first in the ancient Near East (see my username, signature and avatar), then shifted to ancient Greece - I'm greatly interested in both areas - and now I'm leaning towards a low, almost no, magic kind of fantasy where characters and not kewl powerz are the driving elements. Still not sure if I should go ancient Greece or Mediterannean Middle Ages though. I find the Medieval British Islands to be kind of "been there, seen that" while Norman Sicily and Occitania (pre-Cathar Crusade, of course) are really interesting places well worth to base something on, and the Byzantine Empire is just a long interesting row of things that you could write stories about forever.

    But enough of my digressions. That's what's drawing me into fantasty.
     
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  11. ChickenFreak

    ChickenFreak Contributor Contributor

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    Yep. My WIP is normal humans and normal laws of physics, in a setting sloppily modeled after 18th century Europe. I don’t imagine up so much as a fruit that doesn’t exist. The kinda-supernatural elements are ones I’d be fine with putting in a real-world modern setting or a spaceships-and-robots future setting.

    So it’s a low-tech world that never existed, and therefore probably has to call itself “fantasy”, but.
     
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  12. Steerpike

    Steerpike Felis amatus Contributor

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    Yeah. This is like some of the work of KJ Parker and Guy Gabriel Kay. They get shelves under fantasy for the reasons you stated.
     
  13. Stormburn

    Stormburn Contributor Contributor

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    My WIP is full tilt high fantasy. I gathered all the familiar tropes on the starting line, fired the gun and now they are racing their little hearts out heading to the finish line. That said, fantasy is a very general genre that is given individual definition by the sub-genres used.
    Here's a recent article I read from Now Novel:

    Elements of fantasy: Writing a more magical story


    [​IMG]

    What makes a fantasy story? Our first instinct might be to answer ‘magic’ – spells, mythical beasts, potions. Yet fantasy contains multiple key elements. Read the following simple breakdown of elements of the fantasy genre and tips to write magical, fantastical tales:

    What are the main elements of fantasy?
    https://www.nownovel.com/blog/elements-of-fantasy/?utm_source=Now+Novel+Blog+and+Character+Mail&utm_campaign=dc07b80873-Blog_Mail_Blogandup_GDPRYCAMPACT_23072018&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_17f908e116-dc07b80873-57080205
     
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  14. Just a cookiemunster

    Just a cookiemunster Active Member

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    I chose to write it simply because I have a big imagination and as most said I enjoy creating all new races/worlds/ etc. It feels amazing. I also like writing non fantasy but I don't like the limitations of reality
     
  15. l nimbus

    l nimbus Member

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    Simply put, screw the haters. I write it because i like it.
     
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  16. Glen Barrington

    Glen Barrington Senior Member

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    Yup! I've read Science Fiction and Fantasy most of my life. It is only natural I would try to write it. What I'm working on now, started out as science fiction, but I quickly realized that the plot worked better as a fantasy. No magic though, I'm not big on magic. If I ever wrote about magic, I'd do it the way Harry Turtledove did it, magic was based on sound "scientific" principles that can be investigated, categorized, and applied to make the world a better place.
     
  17. cosmic lights

    cosmic lights Contributor Contributor

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    Fantasy is very popular and maybe many of those new writers are teenagers and influenced. This is a hard question for me to answer because I'm new to writing in the sense that this is the first time I've attempted to write a full 70,000 word novel and actually beginning to try and learn my craft instead of just sticking to what I normally do, and I'm writing a Fantasy.

    It's Fantasy because my story couldn't fit into any other genre but Thriller and Crime is my favourite to read and write. I've not seen many Fantasy movies actually, never liked Harry Potter and found Lord of the Rings movies a slog to get through, can't think of any others I've seen. Give me Silence of the Lambs any day.
     
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  18. Pandaking908

    Pandaking908 Member

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    For me, it's definitely got a lot to do with video games. I remember the first time someone showed Runescape to me as a kid. I played that game for hours on end both at school and at home. Also movies, but I don't think movies influenced my love for fantasy as much as games did. I use to rp on World of Warcraft a lot. Writing out my characters back stories really got me interested in writing. It was a good stepping stone for me.
     

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