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I’ve loved fantasy fiction for most of my life – even before I learned to read. However, as I grew older, I often thought that the stories I read were too tame, to the point where the characters and events were unrealistic. Obviously, some things in a fantasy setting aren’t going to be realistic, but some things should be. At the very least, the characters should be as real and as believable as possible. The violence and passions should not be diluted. Events should still follow the tenants of cause and effect.

To say it another way, if most fantasy novels were converted directly to movies, they would be PG-13. I believe there is an adult audience who will pay for an adult fantasy story, something that’s rated R.

At the same time, I believe that many people avoid fantasy stories because the story is too far out. Many authors practice no control. Their stories are full of inhuman races and impossible monsters – all of which have names a mile long that cannot be pronounced. Worst of all, too many fantasy authors use MAGIC as the ultimate deus ex machina. They can write what ever they want, no matter how impossible or improbable, and they don’t need to explain it other than to say, “It’s magic. Isn’t it wonderful?”

No, it isn’t. It’s the reason fantasy fiction isn’t taken more seriously by the literary community. It’s the reason more people don’t read it, because they read one incomprehensible name doing something impossible to another crazy name, and they say “Why am I reading this stupid bullshit?”

Before I wrote a single word of my stories, I established a few guidelines to ensure these books accomplish my goals. Some were easier to follow than others, but so far, I am confident that I have achieved all of them.

1. These books will be written with as much skill and style as I can muster. I read too many books that are not written well. They use nondescript pronouns, passive verbs, and enough fragments to make my old grammar teacher rise from the dead. They have homophone errors, punctuation errors, an over abundance of adverbs, and misplaced clauses. My books will not be this way. They will be written well enough that I am proud to put my name on them.

2. There will be no races other than humans. Inhuman opponents will be few and far between. Most adversaries will be human, or derived from humans, because humans can be monstrous and evil enough in their own right.

3. There will be no names that cannot be pronounced. I see no reason to call the hero Xandeflopnigrotranese when I can just as easily call him Robert. Along the same lines, time will be measured in hours, days, etc. Likewise, distance will be measured in feet or meters. Some may argue that having special methods of telling distance/time is a good way to immerse a reader into a fantasy world. I say it’s an unnecessary distraction.

4. There will be fighting, and it will be violent. There will be blood and guts and screaming and loss of bodily functions. Characters will kill others. Characters will die. There is no guarantee that a primary character will live. If the story calls for it, they will die. I will not contrive and warp the story to keep someone alive.

5. There will be sex. I will not write a porno script, but if a man and a woman are attracted to one another, they very well could have sex. There will be no “fading to black.” If two characters decide to fuck, or if a bandit rapes a woman along the highway, I’m going to describe it. I’m not going to sugar-coat anything.

6. There will be magic, but it will be rare, and in most cases it will be subtle. I will not explain exactly what can and cannot be done with magic, because that’s giving away secrets, but rest assured that I know the exact limits.  If those limits seem to be broken, I have a very good, very explainable, reason for that.

7. The characters will be real. The setting may be fantasy. The battles may be epic. The deeds may be legendary. But the characters will be real people to whom adult readers can relate. They will have dreams, fears, strengths, and flaws. They will be caught in the same flow of cause and effect that pushes all of us. They will love and hate. They will create and destroy. The characters in these books will become the reader’s friends and enemies.

8. The book will be entertaining. It will be fun to read. Once the entire series is printed, readers will want to go back and read it all again, at least once, just for the fun of it. But behind the fast-paced fun, readers will also be given an opportunity to think about themselves. They’ll be prompted to consider the power of faith. They’ll be guided to focus on the way they handle the consequences of their own actions.

These are the goals and guidelines I keep in mind when I write. I think the result is a very worthwhile story that many people have read and liked. I’m sure it has flaws, and some critic somewhere will probably point them out some day. That’s fine with me. I realize I can’t please everyone. I’ll be content if I can make a few hard corp fantasy fans sing my praises side-by-side with a few folks who never liked a fantasy book before mine.

(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)
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