EPIC FANTASY: EASIER OR NOT?

Fantasy Writing: Easy compared to story writing set in reality?

I have seen a lot of comments, mainly by nonauthors, about how much easier it is to write epic fantasy as opposed to writing a novel set in our own every day world. These persons seem to believe that this is so due to the author being able to make up whatever they desire and just go with it. They think making up your own set of universal rules is simple.

Now think about that. When you read a story/novel you expect consistency. You expect the rules that govern the world or societal setting to be applied in a manner that makes sense and remain constant throughout the story. When writing a mystery, thriller, romance, or other novel set in the normal world in which we reside, we know the rules and how they apply. We are aware that humans are unable to fly without mechanical assistance. We know the sky is blue and arsenic is poisonous. We can easily research historical facts, various religious and cultural systems, and pretty much any other information needed. A quick google search will tell me the yield of a particular type of explosive or the speed at which a particular type of boat can travel under what conditions. There is a world of information available literally at the writer’s fingertips in this internet age. So, the only thing the writer needs worry about is the actual plot and characters for the story. This is not to say that writing fiction of any sort is easy, it’s not. But, for writers of fiction based here on our own earth, the setting is there. Not so in fantasy, futuristic science fiction, and sci-fi involving fictional alien races.

When writing fantasy or alien and/or futuristic space fiction the writer cannot just do a quick google search for information. An epic fantasy writer has to envision an entire world, or even an entire universe, solely on his own. This means figuring out all the cultural, religious, political, and societal rules for an entire species – if not for multiple species. What about romance amongst alien species or fantasy creatures? This must be done for multiple nations, tribes, cultures, etc. If this sounds easy, you have obviously never tried it.

Now, toss in magic for the ever popular sword and sorcery fantasy. Now the writer has to envision an entire set of rules for the magic system. How does the magic work? Who can use it? Who can’t? Why? What are the limitations? How is it applied within the society? Does it depend on outside props or is it internal based or a combination of both? How are the magic users viewed from culture to culture?

Imagine doing this in an epic fantasy or alien based sci-fi setting with multiple species, races, etc., and keeping it consistent throughout. No. I for one do not believe for a second that writing epic fantasy is easier than writing novels set in reality. In fact, I am absolutely in awe of the fantasy writer’s ability to create entire universes within their own minds, and bring them to a printable version of reality in a consistent manner.

For some examples of well done (in my opinion) and intricate fantasy world building take a look at:

Brandon Sanderson - The Stormlight Archive series

Brian McClellan - Powder Mage series

Brent Weeks – Lightbringer series

Robert Jordan / Brandon Sanderson – Wheel of Time series

George R R Martin – A Song of Ice and Fire series – aka Game of Thrones

If any of those seem like they would have been easy to write, please do. We can never have enough truly great epic fantasy.