Another important modern fantasy pioneer was English poet William Morris, whose books were the first fantasy novels to be set entirely in a fantasy world – previous fantasy stories took place in a dream world or on a distant land, but never in another world. “The Well at World’s End” tells the story of Ralph of Upmeads, the fourth and youngest son of a minor king. Against his parent’s wishes he undertakes a quest to find the magic well said to strengthen destiny and bestow near-immortality upon anyone who drinks from it. Along the way he meets and falls in love with a mysterious beauty who claims to have drunk from the well. Unfortunately she dies, and Ralph eventually meets another maiden called Ursula, who eventually helps him fulfill his quest. This combination of romance worked well with fantasy, and the fantasy romance subgenre is very successful and very popular.

In the early 1900s the modern fantasy genre grew rapidly in popularity, aided by successful writers like Rudyard Kipling (The Jungle Book), H Rider Haggard (King Soloman’s Mines) and Edgar Rice Burroughs (Tarzan). Yet traditional children’s fantasy literature also thrived, thanks to J M Barrie’s classic “Peter Pan”, L Frank Baum’s “The Wonderful Wizard of Oz” and A A Milne’s “Winnie the Pooh”. Perhaps at this point it would be remiss not to mention Lewis Carroll’s “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”, a children’s fantasy novel first published in 1865. I personally believe this book must surely have been an influence on those early modern fantasy writers, particularly considering its popularity today.

By the 1950s the “sword and sorcery” genre had arrived, most notably in the form of Conan the Barbarian, the creation of Robert E Howard. This genre features dashing heroes undertaking challenging quest for a noble cause. Other traditions of this subgenre include beautiful maidens/heroines, loyal friends/servants, faithful followers and fantasy stalwarts like unicorns, dragons, dwarves, wizards, fairies etc. In 1954 C S Lewis “Chronicles of Narnia” was published, and when Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” was released in 1955 the fantasy genre was well and truly established. And it has grown in popularity, as evidenced by the influence of J K Rowling’s “Harry Potter” books upon readers.

If you’re reading this newsletter there’s a good chance you are not just a lover of the fantasy genre, but also a writer of the fantasy genre. It is actually one of the most difficult genres for a writer, because it takes time and a good deal of planning to bring your fantasy story to life. Having the idea and the inspiration is one thing; translating your world, its citizens and their adventures is something else entirely. You may be able to visual your fantasy world but other might not be so fortunate. You need to draw your readers into the story, make it believable and make them feel as though they are participating in the story. Every writer quoted above spent a lot time on research and planning the story before committing one single word to paper. Tolkien went so far as to create an alphabet and language for his Hobbits.

Here are a few suggestions to help you develop your modern fantasy story:

Research the market trends. The fantasy literary market has changed over the years, and stories that were popular ten or twenty years ago may no longer hold the same appeal today. The Hugo and Nebula Fantasy writing awards are a good reference point, because reading the books on their shortlists will give you and idea of market trends. Buy and read a couple of the most popular fantasy books written over the last few years. Your plot should stay the same, but reading these books will help give you a different way of looking at your story and the different elements it needs to move the plot.

Fantasy world building incorporates things like geography, climate, flora and faun, wildlife, urban settlements. Draw a rough map, plotting the mountains, lakes, forests, villages, town and harbours. Draw in the roads linking settlements. You can then name the different features on your map.

Fantasy characters need personalities. Don’t just put a horse in the story simply because there’s a character missing. Give the horse a role, a name and a character. A little bit of background about its family, its friends and any unusual happenings or events in its life will add to your story. Give each character a name and a brief physical description, perhaps even sketching a rough picture. Take into account the social structures of the fantasy world, any religions beliefs and laws you may want to apply. You should also include some history, such as relationships with other fantasy worlds and peoples, any wars that might have broken out and any rulers who left their mark upon your fantasy world.

By now your plot should be developing and moving in the direction you first envisaged. Now it’s time to apply the fantasy elements, such as magic, spells and supernatural beings. Once you’ve decided which characters are going to live in your world assign each a name and his/her/its powers or magical talent. This is where you can insert any plot changes or twists to your story. Wizards, witches, hippogriffs, fairies, gyphons, elves, unicorns, dragons… there’s a myriad of supernatural characters to draw upon. And there’s nothing wrong with creating your own magical creature by combining an element or two from the traditional fantasy characters with another creature. Just make sure your creature is believable – both in description and magical abilities! Remember: it’s YOUR world and YOU make the rules.

Remember – the geographical and natural elements of your fantasy world may be affected by the magic influence of any spells your characters may cast. If a character takes a trip back in time to alter one single event remember the current world needs to reflect the change. The White Witch cast a spell to ensure winter reigned all year long in Narnia.

The Hugo Awards List: http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/Hugo.html

The Nebula Awards List: http://www.sfwa.org/awards/