Tips for writing fantasy

Sabruness

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I've got a fantasy style story i'm trying to get going but fantasy isnt my usual thing so i'm struggling to finalize the details of the world, culture etc.

Fantasy writers, give me some tips for writing fantasy style stories
 

Scribbler

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To me, fantasy means magic, and middle ages.

Magic means supernatural monsters and magic. Monsters can range from the alien from alien to an articulate goblin merchant. Magic can range from the unexplainable to a science.

Middles ages means wars, and religions. Before the invention of guns and nukes war was a far more regular thing, where kings and lords would fight over territory as easily as two children would fight over a piece of candy. It was far more fun because people were less likely to die so easily. It was far more glorious because of the greater belief and loyalty to country, king, and god. Since science was so much less developed people explained things more with religion.

There's probably more stuff but I can't think of any.
 

sak-chii

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For me, fantasy is things that dont exist in rl

Like magic, monsters, reincarnation etc...

So since it doesn't have such things irl... describing how the character like monster or beastkin look like can guve the readers a visualisation

And its happen during the time of kings, wars or chaos....
 

ArcadiaBlade

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Fantasy means to expand how you see the world you build. It doesn't mean you have to start big, just start something that you can start off before expanding it. Making female knights wear bikini armor or have them look like bodybuilders, its your choice. Restriction doesn't make a fantasy but it only holds regulation as to how you build your world.
 

DaoFox

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When writing fantasy its important to fact check and keep a running log of everything you have made canon. unlike lots of other types of stories, fantasy by nature makes readers suspend their disbelief at what goes on and needs much more facts to hold things steady. you need to make sure your facts remain consistent and that you have a lot of them to convince the reader that what is happening is reasonable. in the case of the above post regarding bikini armour, give the readers a reason to believe that such armour actually has purpose/power in the setting. perhaps its divinely blessed, or its enchanted, perhaps the world works on a set of rules like a game in that the defensive value of the armour is determined by material and not the coverage, where the protection is applied to the whole body evenly et cetera.

basically, set rules to the world, and then NEVER break them.
 

NiQuinn

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Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction set in a fictional universe, often inspired by real world myth and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became literature and drama.

It doesn't necessarily mean it has magic and the like. What I can say about writing it is, you have to know your mythos like the back of your hand. For the reader, they know nothing about this world so their doorway to this is the author. Write it in a way that it doesn't overwhelm your readers. Try your best not to info dump on them and write gradually to help them assimilate into the world. Don't outright slam them with the history of a kingdom, magic, race, etc. because they'd be forced to take your word for it making the story feel inorganic.

Keep notes. Yes, notes. Items, animals, countries, kings, and whatever else is important. As @DaoFox said, consistency is key. If a reader notices something is off, fact check and correct it if you need to. If facts don't match up, the fantasy becomes ineffective.
 

HURGMCGURG

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Fantasy is magic. However, there are many kinds of fantasy.
Most people imagine "Lord of The Rings" as a perfect example of what a fantasy story is, but our opinions would differ. I would argue that fantasy is not a set genre, but a specific setting for your world. For example, if you pick fantasy as your genre, you know it will involve some kind of magic or monsters, but that magic can be placed within many different situations. For example:
High Fantasy: A fantasy story documenting an epic struggle between good and evil.
Contemporary Fantasy: A fantasy story taking place within a modern world, or a world similar to ours.
Science Fantasy: A story including both elements of science fiction and fantasy.

These are some of the most basic sub-genres of fantasy, but if you want a more specific list of fantasy sub-genres, then you can look here:
http://www.worldswithoutend.com/resources_sub-genres.asp

Honestly, you don't need to worry that much. You can be a little practical about things. You can mix in a little bit of the mundane among the magic. Or, you can make magic the mundane. Fantasy is a wide genre with a lot of freedom, so my advice matters little when I don't know exactly what your goal is.
 
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GDLiZy

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Fantasy is something that did not exist within the real world. However, realism needed to be exercised, otherwise, your story won't be believable.

You can add magic into your world, but you also needed to give them rules and property that defined their place within your setting. Too much none sense would piss the readers off or threw their logic out for a spin.
 

Shizun

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Read lots of Fantasy genre stories. I can recommend FFXI Novel Series > Travels of Al and Iris

Best ever Fantasy novel i read.
 

Azuroth

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I've got a fantasy style story i'm trying to get going but fantasy isnt my usual thing so i'm struggling to finalize the details of the world, culture etc.

Fantasy writers, give me some tips for writing fantasy style stories
I say just start righting and see were it takes you. Just make sure the stuff you come up with makes some amount of since. Also make sure to reread it so you don't contradict yourself.
 
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