The mystery behind writing fantasy fiction
Fantasy as a style of writing is very rare and unique among authors and writers nowadays. Such a distinguished kind of writing typically features the use of magic or other supernatural phenomena in the plot, setting or theme of a story. Magical or mythological creatures are sometimes featured other than human beings.
Fantasy is distinguished from science fiction by the credibility of the narrative elements. The worlds within fantasy books or novels are usually old-fashioned in style, both in terms of technology and culture. This is what primarily sets fantasy apart from science fiction stories. World-building is highly significant indeed to fantasy as around 50-60 per cent of the work which a fantasy author has to put into a book consists of worldbuilding.
As a distinctive sort of writing, fantasy usually depends on the use of strange and unfamiliar worlds in writing. Possibly, some authors come up with cultures, races, religions, histories, weather, clothes, food, music and all the different aspects that we take for granted in our own world. Making this world rich and deep enough is the tricky part. However, sometimes tend to refer to legends.
For instance, the idea of using magic is an old one, but fantasy authors seem persistent in their mission to turn it on its head. Unlike genres such as crime or romance, fantasy is theoretically limitless, thanks to its very nature. It’s this reinvention and experimentation that appeals to many authors. Some authors mess around with their idea of magic when writing fantasy. Perhaps, it’s another way of being creative and different.
On the other hand, many fantasy authors use real-world folklore and mythology as an inspiration. Though, the inclusion of supernatural elements such as magic could be another defining characteristic of the fantasy genre, but this doesn’t have to be the case at all times. It’s always the author’s call on what approach or style of fantasy he writes on.
Case in a point, the two Arabic novels called A Curse of an Abandoned Land and Did I Become a Magician? by Abdullah al Jahwari the scenario is somehow different. The series of incidents in both novels is based on legends, but in a way or another it’s connected to social issues that are important to people’s life. Probably, the world of incidents and stories is built out of the writer’s imagination with reliance on some old myths.
The first novel, A Curse of an Abandoned Land, narrates a love story of a poor man who was in serious love with a lady from a wealthy family. However, like all other similar stories we heard about, the man will not be allowed to marry a lady who comes from a high-class family. For sure, as he belongs to low-profile family and it’s not as rich as the lady, he can’t even think to propose to her! It’s a non-achievable dream of course! The irony of fate that creates their unfair love story.
Likewise, the other novel touches on a social issue which is racism and its impact on traditions and people’s life in general. It describes how relations between people are influenced by who they are and where they come from and other conditional elements. Basically, the novel discusses some of the social challenges that people come across in their day-to-day life.
Commenting on writing his novels, Abdullah al Jahwari, pointed out: “What I really like about fantasy and why I love writing it is the opportunity of experiment and to dream big in my stories.