Guide to Writing

How to write... Fantasy

The Wattpad Profile: Fantasy

The Wattpad Definition: Fantasy is a form of fiction which takes place within an alternative world - an imaginary realm wherein magical and supernatural forces pervade. Fantasy stories explore archetypal truths and experiences of an ordinary protagonist, as he or she embarks on an extraordinary quest. Legendary, mythological, and folkloric traditions characterise the genre, thus fantasy stories are often rife with dragons, trolls, wizards, and knights. Typically, fantasy deals with universal themes, such as the struggle of good against evil or the struggle of an individual against society.

In plain English: A story where the entire world is made up, and you probably wish you lived in it. The main character will often go through a journey that follows a certain path and encounter certain character types that are the same as those used in classic ancient stories (Luke Skywalker and Harry Potter for instance).

Fantasy and paranormal differ in that paranormal will normally take place in a modern setting, and the creatures in that world will be considered abnormal. In a fantasy, the creatures are typically part of that world, and considered the norm.

Famous Examples: Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling; Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan; The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini; Artemis Fowl series by Eoin Colfer; A Song of Ice and Fire series by George R. R. Martin; The Lord of the Rings trilogy by J. R. R. Tolkien 

Famous Film/ TV Examples: Pan's Labyrinth, Game of Thrones

Fantasy is a genre many of us love, whether it's vampires, werewolves, witches and wizards, fairytale retellings or stories based on myths and legends, it's a genre that truly lets you take your imagination and run wild. It takes readers to whole new worlds, where anything can happen! But like with all genres, there are some common mistakes that writers fall into, so here are the dos and don'ts of the fantasy genre.

Do know your world as if you lived in it yourself - one of the reasons stories like Harry Potter are so popular is because the world described in the books was so detailed that you could easily imagine being in it. Fantasy is a genre all about taking us to a new place, so if you as the writer don't know that world intimately, then how can we as readers? A good technique for planning the setting might be to make a map of some kind (or even to take a picture of the world map if the story is set in our world) and mark out details of where places are. This helps give you an idea of the obstacles characters may have to cross, or where characters may be in relation to each other. A reason why so many modern fantasy stories have maps is because it helps us as readers to visualise this.

Do give elements to the story that readers can relate to - even if your story is about elves or vampires, we as readers need to have something that we can attach ourselves to and relate. Whether it's the behaviour of the characters, their lifestyles, or their interactions, try to have details that are somewhat relatable to the reader.

Don't assume that readers know the lore - Certain mythologies may be popular (Greek mythology, vampires and werewolves being examples) but fantasy is about building your own world. This means that you can expand on the mythology and tweak it to fit your story. Because of this, try not to assume that every reader going into the story knows the mythology of the creatures you create. Unless it's a sequel, assume your reader doesn't know anything beyond the absolute basic (e.g. vampires drink blood) and build up on that.

Don't info-dump - there's a lot to cover in fantasy, but you never want to overwhelm the reader. Have your characters act as they would in their normal day to day lives, gradually giving us information along the way. This will help the reader slowly feel more integrated into the world, allowing them to explore and discover it with the characters.

Do keep it grounded - This genre may be about letting your imagination run wild, but that doesn't mean that you should get rid of realism entirely. Establish a set of rules for your universe, and make your characters work within those rules. If one character is different from the others, make the reason why logical within the laws of your universe.

Do show us how the various characters relate to one another - Fantasy is often combined with adventure, and while this is fun, we as readers need to see how the various characters relate to each other overall. Maybe they all have a similar motive, or a similar upbringing. Letting readers know the connections between various characters, even if they have yet to meet one another, helps readers to connect more with the story, especially in the wider universe created by the writer. An example of this is in Game of Thrones - several of the characters take a while before they meet one another, but their stories interlink in the sense that characters within the separate narratives either are aiming to possess the throne or have a link to the throne, hence the title.

Misconception #1: Fantasy is "just dragons, witches and wizards"

Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and recently Game of Thrones may be famously popular stories, but this doesn't mean that you're obligated to write a similar story. Fantasy is a genre that lets your imagination roam free, so create whatever you like - there's so much you can do with it! Don't forget that it also includes fairytale retellings, stories based on different mythologies (e.g. Greek) as well. Even things like vampires and werewolves fall into fantasy, depending on how the world in the story is structured. (Though of course if your story is just about vampires or werewolves, Wattpad has set genres for these, which we'll cover at a later point.)

Misconception #2: There must be romance

Many of us love romance in a story - romance isn't one of the biggest genres for no reason! But that doesn't mean your story has to include it. You can tell a great story without romance being the main plot, so don't ever feel obligated to.

Misconception #3: Everything has been done already

This genre is one that truly lets you create what you like. You can make creatures and races that don't even have their own mythologies, or put your own spin on different mythologies to make them something truly new and exciting. Because of that, not everything has already been done already, so let your imagination run wild!

Chosen by you: Top 10 fantasy clichés

Thanks to WatchMojo again, we have a top 10 cliches of fantasy movies video for you to watch with this chapter. Once again, we asked you what your top ten cliches of fantasy stories were, and here they are! So with number one being the most common cliche, here are the results. Have fun comparing!

10. The wise older figure

9. Creatures

8. Magic

7. Badass female characters

6. Powerful objects

5. Medieval worlds

4. The Dark Lord

3. The Prophecy

2. Romances

1. The Chosen One

Honorable mentions: The comic relief friend; Magical schools; Untrained kids being sent on quests; good vs evil; alternate fantasy worlds

We hope you enjoyed the chapter! Do you have any advice on writing an epic fantasy? Comment below!