Tonight I'm blogging from my hotel room, while away at a conference. My internet is a little dodgy, but I'll try and get around to everyone's blog as soon as I can.
My first Fantasy novel I read reluctantly, but then fell in love and had to read the whole series. That was Phillip Pullman's His Dark Materials.
Then, for my first NaNoWriMo novel, I decided to try and write a fantasy novel, and now I'm editing The Costume Maker. One of the tools I'm using is the book Adventures in Fantasy:
I blogged about this helpful book in A is for Amazing Writing Books.
A key element of fantasy is magic. Here are some interesting things I learned about magic:
- Magic must have limits. You can't just whip out a wand to solve every problem. I like books that have a magic that first appears useless, but later its worth will save the day.
- There must be rules for magic. There must be costs. Many fantasy stories will show magic as physically draining to the user. In The Picture of Dorian Grey, the protagonist manages to stay young, while his portrait ages instead. But the young man gives up his soul for this magic. The price must be high, otherwise the protagonist would not question if it were necessary to use magic.
- Often magic will appear in the 'other world'. This is the magic's natural setting - an enchanted land. This is changing though. With Paranormal novels becoming so popular, often contemporary protagonists posses some magical gift withing our everyday urban setting.
- Magic is not good or bad, only the way it's employed will decide if it is white or black magic.
- Magic is old. Traditional 'other worlds' in fantasy are pre-industrialization. Meideval times host dragons, and Harry Potter, although contemporary, goes to a school in a historical building where old dusty bound books rule over technology.
For some more information (from people who know a lot more about fantasy than me) check out these sites:
The next fantasy novel I'll read is:
"I like books that have a magic that first appears useless, but later its worth will save the day."--I like that too. I like it even more when it's in the hands of characters who others think is initially worthless too. (I'm always rooting for the underdog)
ReplyDeleteGreat post. I write fantasy and really enjoy the magic element. It comes from my gaming days that are still going :) I agree with you that magic must build and change throughout the story. Magic is a character in my mind and should be treated as such.
ReplyDeleteGreat points on magic. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteI'm a new follower from the A-Z challenge. Nice to meet you! :)
Without doubt the genre of the moment with a huge market. Interesting post as always.
ReplyDelete-mood
I did not realize magic involved so much and that there was a price to pay. But then I guess the Salem witches did not either :)
ReplyDeleteJules @ Trying To Get Over The Rainbow
I write fantasy and you hit on all the key elements to magic... Well done.
ReplyDeleteHello from your newest A-Z follower :) Great post! I look forward to your thoughts on the Amanda Hocking book. I haven't read any of her work (yet), but I plan to and I've heard lots about it (of course. Who hasn't?). Best of luck with everything!
ReplyDeleteSarah Allen
(my creative writing blog)
Fascinating F post! Good Luck with your book~
ReplyDeleteI love fantasy! It's my favorite genre. I'll definitely be picking up a copy of Adventures in Fantasy! :-)
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing about Adventures in Fantasy. This is the first I've heard of it, but I'll definitely be checking it out. I'll be interested to hear what you think of Switched
ReplyDeleteHi Charmaine. As someone who struggles to read fantasy I enjoyed reading about the rules. There are some fantasy novels I adore and some I just don't get, maybe some of this is helpful to explain why.
ReplyDeleteDenise<3
L'Aussie Travel A - Z Challenge Posts E for Eire, F for ?
I do admit it was a bit hard for me to get into The Golden Compass. But the reading provided its own reward! There are so many layers to his writing.
ReplyDeleteI agree 100% on all of those points about magic. I love it when books don't portray magic as something to "whip out a wand to solve every problem." That's pretty much cheating.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed reading fantasy as a teen. It would be fun to try my hand at writing some... currently writing urban fantasy and suspense.
ReplyDeleteI am actually just starting to read fantasy and feel like ---wow, I can't believe I've missed this all along!
ReplyDeleteI love that it is neither good or bad, but dependent on who uses it. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI also follow Amanda's blog, so I'm starting to feel the urge to read her books! Thanks for the post!
ReplyDeleteNice to meet you through the A-Z challenge :)
Magic is something I struggle with for my characters - just so they don't appear contrived or over the top! Thanks for the great tips :)
ReplyDeleteFollowing you from A-Z challenge!
I love the world's people create in fantasy novels. They show how amazing and gifted we are as humans ... my next novel is fantasy romance, and my favorite books to write have always been fantasy since I was a little girl and saw The Black Crystal ... Lizzy Ford
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