I need some advice on my future novel?

Question

I usually write horror, but I have a good series idea for the future. It's a blend with sci-fi and fantasy. I need some tips on how to write good fantasy, being its away from my genre

Answer 1

The secret to writing great fantasy is to understand that what you are creating is a whole new world. Anne Mc Caffrey did it so well in her Pern books - creating a whole new society. So did Jonathan Swift in Gulliver's Travels which after all was an early work of fantasy and a great one. You need to sit down with a notebook and spend a LOT of time developing the "world" you are going to write about. Swift based his on satirizing England in his time. Anne Mc Caffrey built hers around a singular problem - thread. Really get to know your world. Is it utopian or dystopian? How does the government function? How does commerce work? What do people do? How do they travel? When you have really created a "world" then start working on the people in it. Make them a product of their new environment. Make them exist and live in it.

Good luck. Pax - C

Answer 2

One key element you have to remember in fantasy and sci-fi....you have free reign of creating new and unique items/weapons. However, if you don't describe it in a way that is believable, your readers will put your book down. You don't have to be a nuclear scientist, but good details will win your readers over.

One thing I dislike when I am reading a book involving pirates is when they are on the ship. I know my rigging and nautical terms about as well as I can because I portray a pirate. However, I have seen more often than not writer's who gloss over orders and details of the ship. There are so many nautical/pirate books out there and info on the web, anyone can become a Sailing Master in weeks if they tried. But when I don't get the details I am craving, I get disappointed and stop reading.
While writing about my own pirates, if I don't know something I reference it or ask my nautical buddies. I wrote a vampire story and threw in some sci fi where I described a "containment chamber" that kept blood alive outside of the human body so it could be saved for later use by the vampires. I didn't even have to go into too much detail about how it worked, people just believed I knew what I was talking about.

So yes, believable details about imaginary items are very important in fantasy and sci fi.
Good luck.

Answer 3

If you're writing Sci-Fi/Fantasy then you're most likely creating your own world. Make sure that it is vivid. Describe it as well as you can. Treat it as you would a living, breathing character. Think back for a second about any Sci-Fi and/or Fantasy stories to which you have been exposed. The harsh desert planet of Arrakis. Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. The Cloud City of Bespin. Rivendell.

Atmosphere can be important in Horror, but here you're creating the setting. Be imaginitive, detailed and, maybe most important, interesting.

Answer 4

Good fantasy comes from good imagination. Don't just go out on a limb, make that limb bend as far as it can without breaking - make it as wierd and wonderful as you can. Most importantly...be different! Steer clear of what other writers have done, create something new. My sci-fi, horror and fantasy comes from my own fears and fantasies. If you somehow got sucked through a vortex into another plane of existance, what would you like to see?

Answer 5

Write what you already know about the fantasy genre--by applying your writing horror skills to it.

I'm doing the same myself with a fantasy saga (10 books with nearly 3 completed), and I have never wrote straight fantasy before.

I'm always into the sci-fi/fantasy realm of writing.

Answer 6

in fantasy/sci-fi, you're creating entirely new worlds and you're the only one who has seen them...focus on bringing that to life. and research them! don't explain away everything with just magic or science. you need to understand how that magic or science works, what it does and why. you are the ultimate authority, so know the world and the people who inhabit that world intimately. in fantasy, you could have the best plot in the world, but without decent, understandable, vivid setting and character, who cares? if your world makes no sense, no one is going to want to care about your plot. it takes a great deal of work to develop everything - I'm sure there's a similar trend in horror - so take your time. don't rush it and expect all your readers to accept "magic" or "new tech" as a solution to every little nuance of the world. culture is important, too...develop the society to fit the world you're creating and how it has evolved, what they believe, what events they note, what they celebrate...I can't remember the name *sorry!* but the second answer to the question had it really well. Bring your setting, your societies, your characters to life. Make the world real. Make the readers suspend disbelief and know that this world exists somehow. To do that, you need to have authority and truly know your world. good luck!

Answer 7

I'd suggest you read some fantasy to get a feel for the types of themes and characters are fairly standard.

However, you are not obligated to follow that standard. You are the author, and can write whatever you want. I'd recommend you read the Lord of the Rings if you haven't already. It really is a masterpiece and basically started the fantasy genre as we know it today.

Answer 8

Try going in the direction of Star Wars or Star Trek those are still popular.If not make it an anime graphic novel.But ether way you decide