*WikiAnswers cannot give you ideas - writers must come up with their own ideas in order to be writers - click the Related Questions to learn how to find good ideas*
Fantasy is a difficult genre to define! Here's how Sandra C. Durham divides the genre:
- Contemporary and Urban Fantasy - Stories taking place in the real world, but with an element of magic or fantasy. Memory of Fire by Holly Lisle.
- Epic and Heroic Fantasy - Stories that involve a battles of Good vs. Evil or quest. Lord of the Rings, by J.R.R Tolkien.
- Historical Fantasy - Stories that are set in factual History, but contain fantasy elements. Mists of Avalon, by Marion Zimmer Bradley.
- Mythic Fiction - Stories directly inspired by myth, folklore, and Fairy Tales. The Gates of Sleep, by Mercedes Lackey.
- Humorous Fantasy - Light hearted fantasy stories. Xanth series by Piers Anthony.
- Science Fantasy - Stories where science and magic work, or science extends to magical abilities. Darkover series by Marion Zimmer Bradley.
Worldbuilding is a crucial step in writing fantasy - see Related Question! Your fantasy world needs to be rich, vivid, and believable.
Here are some more tips for writing good fantasy:
- Give your characters plenty of personality! You need especially rich characterization in fantasy, because most of it is character-driven. Make sure that your characters are unique individuals, cleanly described so that the reader feels as if they would recognize them in a dark bar!
- Know your world and your characters - avoid unexplained shifts in character personality, or continuity problems because you forgot where that mountain was!
- Make it believable - your readers are going to be willing to go along with you up to the point where your internal logic starts falling apart. If magic works a certain way in your world, then it must always work that way; if you have dwarves, they can't be six feet tall.
- Avoid copying - fantasy is an area where it is very tempting to "take the easy way out" and just toss in some generic "dark elves" or dragons - Just Say No! Use your own imagination to create a unique world.
- Use rich imagery and vivid descriptions!
- Action! Make your stories full of adventure and excitement.
- Sometimes the best ideas come from others. Check out writing idea sharing sites, or "plot bunny" websites for inspiration.
