Writing epic fantasy
Filed under Tips & Tools on May 22, 2008
Tagged: epic fantasy, fantasy fiction
Epic fantasy, also referred to as high fantasy, is often the sub-genre most people identify as fantasy fiction, thanks to the popular work of Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, Terry Brooks, David Eddings and Robert Jordan. Many fantasy fiction authors were first inspired by reading titles from these creators, and aspire to have their own similar visions see publication. It can be easy, however, to cross the line into another sub-genre of fantasy fiction if the writer is not aware of the characteristics that define epic fantasy. I tend to keep these things in mind as I work on Shattered Amulet, the first novel in my epic fantasy series, Chronicles of Jord:
- Good and evil are clearly defined. If I were to pick any one theme that separates epic fantasy from all other fantasy fiction, it would be the concept of Good versus Evil. There is no confusion or ambiguity with regard to moral issues in epic fantasy. That is the realm of sword-and-sorcery. That doesn’t mean that you can’t create a complex villain, but the reader should not be lead to develop sympathy for him, or question whether the hero’s success is really the good outcome.
- It’s more about the journey than the destination. The “epic” in epic fantasy refers to the scope of the story. This includes not just deciding the fate of the world, but a long quest that takes the hero all across the realm. Geographic features become integral plot points and may even be personified as an enemy in some cases. This point also includes the hero’s internal journey. The protagonists of epic fantasy often begin with unrealized potential, slowly growing into their own over the course of the story. In either case, the focus needs to be on the steps taken to reach the final conflict, not the climatic end-battle itself.
- Always split-up the party. A good epic fantasy takes the old roleplaying game axiom of “never split-up the party” and flips it on its head. Multiple point-of-view characters strewn across the realm doing different things in the battle against Evil goes a long way toward achieving that epic feel I mentioned in the previous point.
- Magic is represented primarily through unique objects and people of power, rather than flashy spellflinging. Magic in epic fantasy is not something available to the common person, or something they even think about on a daily basis. It is forbidden knowledge, tied up in ancient and rare artifacts, or the purview of a select few who wield it with restraint, or embodied in fantastical races and monsters that inhabit the world.
Have I missed something? Do you have a different opinion on the characteristics of epic fantasy? Let me know in the comments.
May 22nd, 2008 at 1:22 pm
The characteristics that you’ve listed seem pretty spot-on to me … the only two things I’d add are:
Epic fantasy tends to be, well, epic. Heroes in epic fantasy save the world, not the town.
Epic fantasy usually features heroes who rise to power of some sort throughout the story. The protagonist often has a humble beginning (such as being a peasant, or farmer, or something considered ordinary) and eventually becomes extraordinary (mighty wizard or warrior, or king, or something like that). If there’s a character that starts out in that high-powered role (Gandalf), they’re usually more of a supporting character.
Mike’s last blog post was Taking on the Tomb
May 22nd, 2008 at 1:31 pm
Hey, Mike. Thanks for the comment, and I was glad to hear only the car suffered permanent harm in the accident.
I actually squeezed both of your additions into #2, but they were probably worth expanding into their own points. I totally forgot about the wise and powerful counselor, though that’s more of a trope than a characteristic.
May 22nd, 2008 at 2:31 pm
Mostly I agree with what you’ve listed, although point 1 should be clarified that the lines of good and evil are certainly drawn, but aren’t necessarily represented by the characters. Nor would I agree that moral lines can’t be ambiguous in a story, or that a villain can’t have sympathy, but the *main* villain should always be evil.
An example would be Gollum in the LotR epic, while technically considered a villain, some sympathy is gained for him as we see what it was like for him to hold the Ring for so long. He becomes something of an anti-hero by the end of the story.
Another example would be Raistlin in the DragonLance original trilogies. He could very likely be classified as evil, even as he helps the heroes in their “good” deeds. Most of his motives are selfish, and yet he is the “hero” of the story.
Robert Jordan’s characters are very often filled with moral ambiguity and side characters that could be considered “villainous” (such as the Aes Sedai) can garner sympathy from the reader.
In all cases, though, there is a “larger”, more powerful, more evil villain (or villains) – Sauron, Takhisis, Shai’tan. The line between good and evil is still absolute, there is still a complete embodiment of evil that must be overcome by the heroes of the story.
As for the outcome, that I think is also somewhat relative. The good outcome in epic fantasy is that the evil is defeated in some way (either destroyed, imprisoned, etc). This may not be due to the heroes success, however. In some cases, it may be the hero’s own demise will lead to the “good” outcome (Raistlin sacrificing himself to save the world, thus not achieving his own outcome, or in the Wheel of Time, Rand may not “succeed” in order to save the world, it could be the outcome is sad/bad for him and/or those around him, but the end result is that the evil is overcome). Thus, I’d revise that last line to say that the reader shouldn’t be led to believe that the heroes actions (not necessarily their success) will result in the good outcome (whether those actions would be considered “good” or “bad”, it’s the old addage “the needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few”)
Lukahn’s last blog post was Superheros – scifi or fanfi?
May 22nd, 2008 at 3:21 pm
See, this is where I feel like a complete hack. Before this post, I couldn’t have told you what high fantasy or epic fantasy were.
Teach me, oh my master
On a side note, I can see where my RPG games do actually tend to resemble epic fantasy. I almost always split the party, for example.
Bob Younce’s last blog post was Fiction Writing Thoughts
May 23rd, 2008 at 5:38 am
I agree with all the points except, perhaps, the last.
Magic can be flashy and still contribute to an epic fantasy. However, this is usually done by either A) having two obvious scales of magic (“today’s magic” and “the magic of the Ancients”) in the same world, or B) having a single magical event that is either horrifically catastrophic or epically heroic. A good example of such an event is the end of Firestorm by Mercedes Lackey; I won’t ruin the ending here, but suffice it to say that the magic involved is intense on a biblical scale.
So. As long as there are two distinct “levels” of magic, mundane magic can still be involved in an epic fantasy, to my line of thinking.
May 23rd, 2008 at 7:09 am
Yeah, I was a little hesitant on that point. Jordan’s Wheel of Time is another example along the lines you are talking about. Magic is prevalent, but much weaker than previous ages.
Kameron’s last blog post was Writing sword-and-sorcery fiction
July 1st, 2009 at 4:22 pm
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