Fantasy Wish List

[James]

Fantasy Wish List

Like many people out there, I’m a huge fan of fantasy! Besides writing fantasy, I’m an avid reader. I read lots of different books by many different authors. Lately I’ve had questions popping into my mind. What do fantasy fans like best? What do you want more of, less of? Why do you read fantasy? What is it you love about the genre?

Do you want more dragons, or less dragons, more trilogies, or stand-alone books? Do you want traditional fantasy settings, like a medieval kingdom, or something new?

Let’s call it a fantasy wish list! What’s on yours?

Thanks for sharing :)

Best wishes,
James

[[deleted user]]

James wrote: "Fantasy Wish List

Like many people out there, I’m a huge fan of fantasy! Besides writing fantasy, I’m an avid reader. I read lots of different books by many different authors. Lately I’ve had ques..."

I would love to read more fantasy that's character-driven. (It's what I like reading AND writing.) But things like George R.R. Martin's A Game of Thrones and the sequels--that's what I like. Often in fantasy, there's great world-building, but the characters are one-dimensional. Also, character and place names, another Martin example, he's got easy-to-pronounce names for his characters. People don't necessarily have to be named things like Fajequinn Rhamosuth Yyevari. Martin has characters named Jon, Jamie, Tyrion, etc. :-D

[Alexes]

I'm with C.J. I want fantasy that's character driven, and characters with vowels placed in normal positions in their names. I want fresh settings and don't care if I never see another dragon, fairy, or elf--unless they have something to bring to the story that couldn't/wouldn't be there without them. I want to be transported. :)

[William]

I like both traditional and fresh settings. I tried to do that in my fantasy adventure novel The Gemstone Chronicles Book One: The Carnelian. The characters are a mix of humans and elves (and I tried not to have too difficult names since the books are written for middle grades/young adult), and the setting, though a mythical land isn't overdone.

[James]

I agree completely on the names! Sometimes the really long, strangely spelled names can be a bit frustrating.

I also enjoy character-driven fantasy. I find that if I don't really care about the characters, I don't care about the story. The memorable stories for me are the ones where I hope there is another book because I can't wait to see those characters again!

[Lee]

I agree with you all about character-driven fantasy. The people are the real story, and I much prefer the genre to be a 'backdrop' which enables their tales. Much the same with science fiction.

And the names! Yes, I find difficult name somewhat distracting.

In a fantasy setting, how do you feel about whether the names say something about the character? In a real world setting, I feel a name can convey much about the character - can the same be said in a fantasy world with an unusual name?

[James]

Lee wrote: "I agree with you all about character-driven fantasy. The people are the real story, and I much prefer the genre to be a 'backdrop' which enables their tales. Much the same with science fiction.

An..."

That's a really interesting question Lee! I do think the names can say something about the character, even in a fantasy world with an unusual name. Tanis Half-Elven and Tasslehoff Burrfoot from the Dragonlance series popped into my mind when I read your question. Tanis's last name reflects quite a bit about where he came from, and I can't imagine him being named anything else. Maybe that's true of every character though, as we get to know them ;)