What makes a good fantasy novel? Obviously, the answer
varies from reader to reader. Everyone has their own preferences. While there
aren’t any hard-and-fast rules, there are some things that elements that attracts
readers and make the story interesting.
Let’s take a look at a few of them:
An Emotional Connection with Readers
What separates an average fantasy novel from a great
one is that readers should be able to develop an emotional connection to the
story and characters.
The story should be able to “evoke” emotions in its
audience. Quality fantasy novels are known to be emotional rollercoasters. There
are ups and downs; twists and turns. That’s what makes the story interesting.
Unique Characters
Each character brings something new and unique to the
story. They all have a story to tell but are somehow connected to the main
characters. The amount of characters in the book is entirely up to the author.
One thing to remember is that even though the characters
are fictional, a good fantasy book will create a real connection between the
readers and characters. Despite having amazing magical powers, they are flawed
characters who have been through a lot in life.
An Interesting Central Conflict
Every good story needs an interesting central
conflict. Generally, there are three types of conflicts— inner conflict, small-scale conflict, and large-scale
conflict.
Inner conflict is when characters have challenges they
need to face that come from within themselves. External conflicts are the
threats posed by other characters, mainly the antagonist.
A Unique Magic System
For a fantasy novel to be considered a “fantasy novel”
it needs to have some form of a magic system. This is what distinguishes fantasy
from other genres of literature. Genres like science fiction are similar to
fantasy and plenty of people get confused between the two.
What makes these two genres different is that science
fiction uses facts and scientific research, whereas, fantasy uses magic and
supernatural beings.
In a nutshell, the fantasy genre in order to be
considered “fantasy” needs to have elements that are entirely fictional and not
possible in real life. This includes supernatural creatures, enchantment,
witchcraft, sorcery, superpowers, and more.
Stimulating Action Scenes
Action scenes are a crucial part of fantasy novels. There
needs to be conflict between the antagonist and protagonist. They make the
story of fantasy fiction more intense and exciting!
Some fantasy novels don’t have detailed action scenes
while others do. The effectiveness of an action scene in revealing the
characters and engaging readers all depends on the author’s writing style.
Nevertheless, every fantasy novel has some kind of
action, especially near the end when the protagonist defeats the antagonist.
These are the elements of a great fantasy novel. If
you’re looking for a good fantasy book to add to your reading list, we
recommend “The Child
of Nature” by Talissa
O’Shrigar.
In every generation, a child is born in
mortal clay, blessed with the power of nature to take care of nature itself and
its people. People across the mainland, comprising four equal-sized countries
surrounding a dense forest, have easy and unproblematic lives, yet there is an
air of unease.
Queen Senida and King Dinam, the
leaders of the eastern countries, hunt the obscure and mythical Child of Nature
who belongs to the central forest because of the Child’s powers.
The book is available here: https://books2read.com/u/bw11dY
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