Fantasy Elements

 Supernatural Creatures
 Magic, or a lack thereof
 Love
 The Villain
 A Great Battle
 The Weapon
 The Setting
 Language

 Supernatural Creatures: Elves, dragons, dwarves, enchanted plants, vampires, werewolves and talking
animals. The right combination of these, alongside a few lowly humans, creates an essential dynamic between
the real and the surreal.

 Magic, or a lack thereof : Characters have to be able to perform some form of magic. Most often the hero or
heroine possesses a very strong magical ability that they don’t initially have, or don’t know they have, and learn to
develop.

 Love: Although the love factor must remain on the PG-rated side, a love interest exists in order to pull at the
heart strings of readers. Usually the love interest of the main character is unattainable. It helps if they are not of
the same genetic make-up (i.e. Human and Vampire, Human and Elf, Werewolf and Vampire, etc.)

 The Villain: The Villain must be extraordinary and not easily defeated. The villain is often not revealed in
person until the end of the story, in order to create the most impact.

 A Great Battle: Without an epic battle in which the hero is nearly defeated, ultimate victory would not be so
sweet.

 The Weapon: Harry Potter has his wand, Eragon has his sword and Bella has her ability to hide her mind
from others. Whatever the weapon, it has to be special in not only its capabilities, but also in the reason behind its
existence.

 The Setting: From Middle-earth, to Narnia, Alagaesia, Hogwarts, and even Forks, the setting is another
character in the story. It is the unique quality of the landscape that allows for most of the events in the story to
take place.

 Language: Whether it’s a fabricated language, such as the Elvish speak in Tolkien’s works, or it’s the
manipulation of how an existing language is spoken, common vernacular won’t do. The inclusion of a fantasy
language heightens the reader’s ability to transport themselves into a different world.
Here’s an example, Inkheart.

In this book, the characters have special powers. The objects have special powers.
There is a fight between Good and Evil. The story is set in or includes episodes from a
distant time period, place, or magical world.
Different types of fantasy can be as follows:

 Contemporary and Urban Fantasy – Stories taking place in the real

world, but with an element of magic or fantasy.
 Epic and Heroic Fantasy - Stories that involve a battles of Good vs.
Evil or quest. Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R Tolkien.
 Historical Fantasy - Stories that are set in factual History, but
contain fantasy elements
 Mythic Fiction - Stories directly inspired by myth, folklore, and fairy
tales.
 Humorous Fantasy - Light hearted fantasy stories.
 Science Fantasy – Stories where science and magic work, or science
extends to magical abilities.

Creating Magical Worlds and Characters

 One of the most striking elements of many fantasy novels is the unique worlds and
characters that exist within the pages. J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth was the basis for
both The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and both included otherworldly
creatures such as elves, wizards, dragons, ogres, orcs, hobbits and more. In J.K.
Rowling's Harry Potter series, the regular human (or "muggle") world lives unknowingly
side by side with the wizard world, and magical creatures pass between both.

The Magical World

 How does one go about creating a magical world?

1. Magic is an important part of most fantasy stories. It can affect everything from climate,
weather and landscape to the history and the future of a world.9
1. Determine who has the ability to use magic.
 2. How much does magic play a part in the societies of your world?
3. Understand how magic works, and don't overuse it to solve everything.10
2. Spend time mapping out the landscape and take into consideration water resources,
farmland, industrial areas and forest.11
3. Consider the climate throughout your regions and how it will work for and against your
characters.11
4. Write a history for the world that includes everything from religion and politics to wars
and natural disasters. Any major points that would stand out to the inhabitants will help
strengthen your world.11
5. Think hard about the types of creatures that will inhabit your world. Will your
environment sustain merpeople or unicorns?12 13
6. Don't complicate or try to reinvent the familiar.14 Complicating every day activities like
riding a horse, wielding a sword and baking bread will just act to confuse your readers.
7. Be sure to incorporate time and era factors into your world. If your world is set in a
medieval period, maintain that setting consistently throughout the entire world.15
8. Take a look at the world we live in and draw inspiration from it. Even though you're
writing fantasy, you still want it to contain elements of believability.15
9. Don't be afraid to make your own statement. As long as it is believable, you have free
reign to create worlds no one has ever been to before.16

Peopling Your World

What creatures will be in your fantasy world

 Once you've set up the world you want to write in, it's time to start thinking about its
inhabitants. One thing that people like about fantasy is that it allows them to escape the
mundane, everyday world. On the other hand, they look for elements in fantasy that they
can relate to, especially in the characters.

 Here are some important things to consider when creating fantasy world characters:

1. What type of creatures are they? Are they human or non-human?15

2. If your characters are non-human, make sure they don't act completely human. They may
share some characteristics with humans, but keep in mind that the actions that shape and
mold us all are based on the environments we grew up in.17
3. What do they look like? Know everything about them from hair and eye color to body
type and secret scars or birthmarks.18
4. Whether they are human or non-human, give them emotional characteristics human
readers can identify with.16
5. If characters are mythological, do research to make sure you understand the pre-set rules
about those beings before you start creating characteristics.15
6. Plan out the cultures in their world. Determine how that culture has developed their
personality.16
7. Take some time to interview your characters. Ask them their most intimate secrets and
take those into consideration.
 o If you know your main character is deathly afraid of magic, how will he respond
if he wakes up in an enemy's wizard camp?
8. Be creative, but don't forget that if the characters are too far-fetched, readers won't be
able to identify.

Research and Outlining

 Creating a whole world and all its people is a lot of work. Both research and outlining can
help you keep organized during the creative process.

Research

 Even though you're writing about a fantasy world you'll be doing a lot of research.
Taking time to understand things like the way politics work, society functions and how
cultures develop will give you a greater understanding for the people you are writing
about. You will also want to familiarize yourself with how weather and terrain effect
people. Architecture will put you in touch with building cities and villages, and if your
people go to war you'll need to understand different types of battle strategies.

1. Take advantage of your local library.

2. Use the Internet, but don't rely on just any old page.
1. Make sure the information comes from a reliable source.
2. You can also cross-reference information with several different sites to see if it
matches up.
3. Take care not to jumble the creative process as you research. Remember, writing fantasy
is a creative endeavor, and you should be making up the most interesting parts on your
own.19
4. If you're creating an entire world from scratch, know it inside and out. Even the most
minute details are important because they create a familiarity within you as you're
writing, and you never know when you might draw on them in the story.20

 Since you'll be dealing with everything from maps and character sheets to city outlines
and political structures, keep all of your notes and research organized in a binder. You
may even want to go one step further and color code the different types of information
you're storing for easy reference.

Outlining

 A basic outline is a great way to keep track of where you want the story to go, while still
allowing you the flexibility to be spontaneous and creative.

1. Having a basic idea of the plot structure will help you finish your novel.21
2. Think of an outline like a map of your story. It will allow you to check all alternative
routes to make sure they still wind up at the end you planned.20
 3. Try storyboarding (writing things down scene by scene) on note cards that you can flip
through whenever you need a refresher.22

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Research: A fantasy world is very complicated. Doing research is important. Creating a

complex background on a fantasy world is crucial to getting your reader into the setting, even if
the reader doesn't "see" your entire world. You need to know where your characters are, what
they will do and who's in charge.

As a reader, I will always make "real world" assumptions. So, if your fantasy world doesn't have
normal gravity, or a terrain I can associate with on Earth, you'll need to describe it in detail.
Detail doesn't mean giving your reader a laundry list, it means incorporating essential
descriptions and details, as your reader needs them. Remember, your reader is blind until you put
the pieces of the visual puzzle together for them.

Ordinary Objects: A fun part of writing fantasy is making ordinary objects can do
extraordinary things. The magic wand has been done...and done...and done. As a writer, you can
make the most ordinary object have different qualities normally associated with that object; for
example, a candle that works like a key, or a sword that will not cut but acts as a compass. The
possibilities are endless!

Stretch your imagination; twist the ordinary into something surprising. For me, nothing is more
interesting to read than fantasy world gadgets and how they work! I want one of those creatures
that devour dust. Intrigue your reader, think outside the box and give them fascinating objects.

Characters: The best characters I’ve read in fantasy have been the ones that had human
qualities. While it’s fun for fantasy characters to have interesting physical attributes, the best
stories show characters dealing with the classic struggles of human weakness and strength.
Struggles that readers cope with in their own lives. The more emotions your reader can relate
with, the stronger your work becomes.