With the rise of Game of Thrones (the final season is almost upon us!), Harry Potter, and of course, Lord of the Rings, the fantasy genre has never been more popular. Dreaming of becoming the next J.K. Rowling or George R.R. Martin? Many new writers have been inspired to take up the pen and write a fantasy novel of their own. However, it’s not as easy as it may first seem, and there are numerous pitfalls to watch out for if you want to write a fantasy novel.
In this special two-part article, one of our veteran manuscript editors has taken a look at a few of the main problems that writers run into and how to avoid them. Believe us when we, as editors and proofreaders, say that we have come across a lot of the following issues over the years when editing novels.
An important thing to bear in mind are clichés. Most modern fantasy is influenced by Tolkien, who based his own work on Western European myth and legend. Dungeons and Dragons, which itself drew on Tolkien, is also another major influence on modern fantasy. As such, writers often set their own work in similar worlds, with gods, magic, monsters, quests, and a vaguely medieval theme.
Now, it’s worth pointing out that we’re not saying you can’t include some or all of these tropes, but if you do, then you need to create something very original and distinguishable. It’s important to make your fantasy world your own: take inspiration from lesser known history and sagas, don’t copy a specific era or culture, and keeping in mind existing popular fantasy, plan how yours will be different.
Similar to clichéd settings are clichéd characters. You’ve heard them all before: the unassuming boy who doesn’t realize he has a prophesied destiny, the mustache twirling sorcerer in a remote, evil-looking tower, or the band of unlikely travelers that get caught up in larger events and have to save the day. If you are going to use well-used tropes like this, then you’ll need to make sure there is something unique and different at play.
Either that, or avoid clichés entirely. A good way to do that is to read widely and become familiar with them—not only across decades but also sub-genres. That way, you won’t make the same mistakes. Reading a ton of bad fantasy novels might be a bit of a slog, but at least it will show you what not to do.
I think that’s all to be going on with for now. In Part 2 we will look at magic and the fantasy world in general, as well as how to neatly end your narrative. Time for us to be getting back to editing and proofreading some novels!