“Your concerns about politics, culture, the environment, technology, violence, racism, misogyny - these issues can be explored in inventive, eye-opening ways while writing fantasy,” says Rebecca Faith Heyman, an editor who worked on Elise Kova’s The Alchemists of Loom. Keep your story relevant through real-world themes Stephen King also does an expert job in Under the Dome, when a small town is suddenly cut off from the rest of the world by a giant, transparent dome.” 5. Sounds simple, but you can see its complexity. How fascinating that such a massive piece of plot centers around a single wall. “He also adds architecture as a plot point in the form of the Wall, a massive ice edifice separating the North and the South. Martin uses the environment as a plot point when describing both summer and winter seasons - as winter brings dark, dead things that can wipe out the entire Realm,” says Foster. Importantly, a rich universe can be a major player in your plot - playing as big of a role as any other character. “You want to be original, so ask yourself, what sets my world apart?” says Alex Foster, a ghostwriter who’s penned eight bestsellers. Plot and worldbuilding should see eye-to-eye. Tie your worldbuilding into your plot Art by Jamie Noble. “Then, once your story is plotted out, you can use the plot structure as a skeleton to show where you want to build your world, scene by scene.”įor more food for plotting thought, you can read up on narrative arcs here.
“You’ll know your world so much better if you know your story first,” she says. That's why Young says to get a general sense of your plot before you start writing. And you don’t want to be that writer who gets to the end of the book and realizes they’ve forgotten to tie a knot in one part of the plot. You don’t want to accidentally trip over all 99 of your storylines. Stories in the fantasy genre are often complex and epic - all the more reason to plot it out before. “This gives you freedom to create a new universe with no boundaries.” “Do this with the intention of excluding from your book,” she says. That’s exactly what Jenny Bowman, an editor who worked on Robert Beatty’s Serafina and the Black Cloak, advises: a good way to build your world is to write short stories that feature some of your characters.
Develop your world through short storiesĭid you know that JRR Tolkien wrote a gazillion short stories about Middle-Earth before ever starting The Hobbit? To get a better picture of the various subgenres within fantasy, check out this guide as well as this post on the evolution of fantasy since the 1900s. As Young says: “If your characters are younger, you should be writing YA or MG, not adult.” Indeed, “fantasy” is such a broad genre that you’ll need to dig deeper to find your niche - but it’s important as your subgenre not only informs your characters and setting, it also allows you to identify your competition and audience. Norrell, for instance, doesn’t target Discworld’s readers, and no-one would instinctively group Harry Potter and Stephen King's The Dark Tower in the same category. But is your story steampunk, urban, or grimdark fantasy? Is it for children or young adults? Are there elves or tech? Is it set in the modern world, or is it a re-imagining of an alternate past? Jonathan Strange and Mr. “Oh, my market is fantasy,” you might say, waving your monthly subscription of Imagination And Me.
If you don’t know your market, you’ve already made a mistake, says Erin Young, an agent for Dystel Goderich & Bourret, which represents authors such as James Dashner of Maze Runner fame.