I'm writing a Fantasy novel - Fantasy enthusiasts, what are you looking for in a new Fantasy novel?

Question

What do you want more of? What are you sick to death of?

Tell me about the novel you're dying to read

Answer 1

I have taken to reading the lighter ones recently.  I'm tired of the epics.  I just want a relatively quick read with likeable, fallible characters.

Answer 2

s*x and more s*x...Action adventure....s*x....Mystery....s*x....

Answer 3

theres always the classic Hero, Sidekick, and the Girl as main characters. please, dont do that. ex: harry potter, but at least rowling made the sidekick get the girl instead of the hero always getting her

also, please dont do too much romance. we want action, suspense, and cliffhangers, maybe have a slight love interest or just a crush, but dont get mushy, no one wants to read that except drooling teenage girls and mothers. we want action

also, plot twists are amazing! if your characters make a plan to defeat the villian, dont let the reader know what it is until its happening. ex: in Artimus Fowl, theres a whole complicated plan to steal or stop someone but you have no idea what it is until its over, it adds great suspense

good luck!

Answer 4

I like the twists and turns .. Plus Irony.

I want to read a book and not expect what's going to happen .. I'm sick of the usual atagonists (if you'll have one) you know the one who's just born to be evil with no apparent reasing which suddenly goes Muahahhaha .. not my style.

I like flash backs and back stories !!

Answer 5

something really interesting

i hope this helps

Answer 6

I'm sick to death of all the stereotypes people write about in fantasy. There always seems to be the unexpected hero that goes from ordinary to extraordinary when he realizes he has some special power/influence. There always seems to be the wise old man that looks out for the main character. He usually dies. The villain always has to be pure evil, his only motivation being power. Basically, I'm sick of seeing a bunch of writers trying to copy JRR Tolkien's masterpiece.

I'm sick of dragons. Not the evil ones, but the good ones that are the main character's best friend and have magical powers. It's boring, and where's the fun in a tame dragon?

I want to see more creativity. Fantasy writers can write about almost anything, and yet so many never think outside the box (and it's a very small box). I've seen dragons, orcs, talking animals, goblins, dwarves, and elves. Give me a creature that nobody ever writes about, and make it your own.

I want to see a new type of fantasy world. Most fantasy books have worlds that feel exactly like middle earth (LOTR). Where are the arctic countries? I feel like no one ever writes about arctic lands, and I think that would be so cool to write about.

Anyway, those are a few things I want (or don't want) to see in a fantasy novel. Have fun writing!

  

Answer 7

1. Cool worldbuilding

2. No cackling evil-for-the-sake-of-being-evil villains, no Designated Love Interests, basically - characters who act like real human beings instead of stock characters

3. Unless they aren't human, which which case they should be distinctly non-human

4. A willingness to go there, i.e. if you get your characters into an impossible situation, don't go all deus ex machina to get them loose, kill them, if that's what would happen in real life. *Use* that gun on the table in act one, to kill your darlings if necessary.

I'm sure there's more... I tend to find myself in agreement with Limyaael's rants quite a lot: http://www.livejournal.com/tools/memorie...

Answer 8

Give us characters to care about.

Give us a quest worth questing.

Places worth exploring.

Everyone goes on about stereotypical this that or the other, but originality isn't much good without a d**n good story to back it up.  So whatever you do should be in the service of a d**n good story.

If I knew more, I'd write the d**n thing myself and beat you to the market.

Write the book _you'd_ read.

Answer 9

There are plenty of books on elves, dwarves, orcs, and dragons out there, so unless you've got a completely (and I mean COMPLETELY) new view of them, I'd say just leave them out or be accused of copying Tolkien.  ^^

I love reading about new magic systems.  Not just wave your hand and stuff happens magic, but like an in-depth knowledge of how the magic works (that's probably why I like both the Wheel of Time and everything Brandon Sanderson has written).  

Characters are important!  Your world is going to be fantastic and unbelievable, which only makes it more important that the characters be realistic.  They need good points, bad points, and omg wtf points, and we (as readers) definitely need to be able to either sympathize or empathize with your main character.  ^_^  I love characters.  That's probably the most important part to me because I really couldn't care how cool your magic is if the guy using is flatter than a cartoon drawing of Edward Cullen.

World building too.  You don't have to know every foot of land, but it really shows if you go into decent depth in at least the important areas of your world.  ^^  Instead of just making the road your character is walking on, have the roads they didn't take too.  It just makes the world seem more complete, yeah...  This means things like currency, religion, tradition, architecture, etc.  I think this is lower on the list for me though because I'd rather read about interesting characters in a unique plot than read something boring in the most innovative fantasy world.  ^^;

Humor.  Maybe this seems out of place (since you're not writing comedy), but all the best books incorporate a lot of genres, just the dragons and wizards make it fantasy, lol.  You need to give your reader time to relax between epic scenes, and adding in something funny takes care of that pretty quickly.  Besides, people like laughing.

^^

I rambled... I do that... maybe you'll find somethign useful in there.  I certainly hope so anyway. ^_^  I've been reading fantasy since fourth grade, most of it adult because my parents didn't have kids and teen books to lend me, lol.  

Answer 10

OOOOH!! I love dragons. please KEPP OUT the Vampire Romance. YUCK

Pixies, faeries, brownies, sphinxes, nymphs ect.

Wizards and witches are cool. But maybe instead of making them in OUR world make their own world. Its just a thought.

Lots of suspense. U kno like JK Rowling and the Diladem. Well mayb u dont but anyways twists and such. Dont follow twilight and make the MAIN MAIN thing love. If there is any then keep it too the side. Not too gushy. Be able 2 show the characters feelings but dont make them perfect. <Make good villians who are decietful and powerful.

GOOD LUCK!!

Answer 11

Sick to death of immortality!!

Craving romance and adventure, for sure!