  Fantasy
This week: Edited by: Colin Back on the Ghost Roads  
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This newsletter marks my final installment. For the last several months, it has been a trial every month to come up with a topic, and get it done. This time around, I had nothing. In addition, factors in my real life are making writing difficult if not impossible as can be seen by my frequent and extended absences from the site. So, this will end my four year tenure as Fantasy editor. I'm sorry to go, but I'd be more sorry if I stayed and the quality of my installments started to slip as a result. You all deserve better than that.
So, it's been a great four years for me, and I hope it has been for you as well.
The Fantasy Editors:
rose_shadow
John~Ashen 
Feywriter
Note, if I think of anything noteworthy, I will continue to add items here: "Newletter items"
in the future. For example, I never did finish covering all the world's mythologies, so new articles may turn up here from time to time.
Thanks for all the letters you've sent in over the years, each one was cherished. And with that, one more for the road, and then adieu. |
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As this is my final installment of the Fantasy newsletter, this topic seems rather timely and relevant.
What Do You Do When It's Over?
The heroes have defeated the ancient evil that threatened to overrun their peaceful world. The band of mercenaries battled the impossibly large force and somehow emerged victorious. The starship captain successfully completed another difficult mission thanks to her intellect and the competence of her crew. So, what happens now? As an author you will often be forced to decide and frequently re decide where you want to go from here. Sometimes the decision is forcibly altered in some way. As an example, when Jack Chalker finished book five of the Well World series, he was soon asked when book six was going to appear. He had chosen to end the story there and not continue so he said, tongue firmly in cheek, "Well, if I have an idea, and someone offers me [insert insane amount of money here], there might be another one." He finishes that story with, "You know when someone really does offer you that much, finding an idea gets a lot easier."
There are many options you can take when you've finished your story. I will present six in the following article. Please note that these do not represent a complete list. More importantly (as Chalker found out) they are not mutually exclusive. You can always choose to do another one later, when you're more ready. So without further ado, the beginning of the end.
1) Just let it end. This is the choice for many authors, particularly those who write short stories. Once the story is over, it is over. There is nothing else to add to make it complete. Once this is done, the author can move on to other projects.
2) Write an epilogue. This happens a lot in long novels and in series of novels. Once the action is over, the author wants to let the reader know what happened next. There is often a lot of aftermath in the events of these novels, so the author can show the results. A famous example of this is in The Return of the King, where the Hobbits return home, and are not happy with what happened to the Shire. (I won't go into detail here as some people may not have read the books, and these events are left out of the movies.) Following that are the years when Frodo finishes his book, and finally the meeting at the docks when Frodo and Bilbo complete their stories together. David and Leigh Eddings also write epilogues in many of their books and series.
3) Write a Sequel. This is also frequently chosen. For precision's sake, let's be clear what a sequel is. A sequel is a story set in the same world as a previous story, usually using the same characters or at least characters who are in some way connected to the characters of the previous story. The sequel has its own plot, however. The plot may be related to the previous story, but should be able to stand on its own. Sequels are set in the same world, but at a later time. As examples, the proposed seven Harry Potter books are a single story, none of them are sequels of the others. The Lord of the Rings is also a single story, but it can be considered a sequel to The Hobbit. On the other hand The Hobbit might be a prequel to Lord of the Rings. It can get confusing. Michael Moorcock wrote many sequels to his stories. Most of the Elric novels are sequels to earlier ones. Both Corum and Hawkmoon had three book series that had another three book series as a sequel to them. Terry Brooks wrote several sequels to his first Shanarra Trilogy.
4) Write a Prequel. A prequel is like a sequel except it takes place at a time prior to the story at hand. prequels often involve different characters from the original story, but may have some in common. The prequel generally explains the events that lead up to the actual story, however if they are to be successful they must be written in such a way that, while the final result (the initial story) is know, the events of the prequel are still gripping and tense. The Simarillion is a prequel to Lord of the Rings, as it covers the history of Middle Earth from creation to the time of the War of the Ring. It succeeds because, while it is historical and sets the stage, it has an entirely different main villain and collection of heroes. Both Belgarath the Sorcerer and Polgara the Sorceress are Prequels to The Belgariad, telling the history of the world from two different perspectives and focusing on two different sets of events. The Rivan Codex, also related to The Belgariad, would not be a prequel, as it was written as a more academically sounding history of the world. It contains a story that was the seed of Belgarath the Sorcerer, and that part could be considered a prequel. First King of Shanarra is a prequel to the Sword of Shanarra. And of course we are all aware of the prequels to Star Wars, but don't let them discourage you.
5) Write new stories in the same setting. These stories should stand on their own and not rely on the reader having read the first story. If this is not the case then you are probably writing a sequel or prequel. The new stories can use some of the previous story's characters and settings, though, but the characters should be minor characters and not ones that drive the plot forward, unless they are doing so in a very different way than in the previous story. This can be a wonderful option for expanding and elaborating on places and people only touched on in the previous story, or for writing a story set in a different country or even continent of the previous world setting. Tolkien's Adventures of Tom Bombadil (of which only two selections in the book concern themselves with that character) is such a book.
6) Move on to something new. Many writers don't like to limit them selves to a single world. Jack Chalker had The Well World, the world of the Changewinds, the world of The Soul Rider and many more. Terry Brooks wrote stories set in the world of Shanarra, the modern day and in a parallel magical universe. The Eddingses wrote The Belgariad and Malorean in one world, The Elenium and Tamuli in another, and The Redemption of Althalus in a third, and then did others in other times and places. Just because you become famous for writing in one setting doesn't mean you can't branch out. Many authors adopt pseudonyms to write in other genres, so you certainly can too.
So, that's a whirlwind tour of the choices you have when you finish your story. All are good, and can be done if (and only if) they suit you the author. The only one I would personally not recommend is the unwritten -1, stop writing altogether. Don't do that, okay? Thanks.
It's been fun, and so it'd good night from me, and goodnight from him (Two Ronnies fans may get that, the rest of you will just scratch your heads and wonder). Thanks for a great four years. |
New Authors' Showcase
Excellent fantasy poem. Uses Native American mythology to create the fantasy setting.
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#1172624 by Not Available. |
Interesting explanation for an annual phenomenon.
[b}Contest Corner
A spot to highlight some contests that might appeal to writers of Fantasy and Science Fiction.
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#1173316 by Not Available. |
Contest with a different theme. The contest is open to longer fiction (contest owner requests 10,000 words or more). Judging guidelines and rules are in contest intro. This looks like a good one.
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#1061276 by Not Available. |
Another themed contest, this one has a small fee and the prize is half the pot. Looks like it's going to be an ongoing thing, so check it out and see if it interests you.
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#1022757 by Not Available. |
This one is still running, but ends on Nov. 17 so you'll need to hurry. Fantasy stories where the main character must be someone or something that would be the villain in most stories. Says she saw the idea in a newsletter, hmm... (I wrote about that sometime ago, so I have to wonder.  )
Fantasy Forums
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Just the place if you want to talk about dragons.
If you're looking for fantasy campfires, check here first.
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And here's the place if you have a fantasy item that you want some opinions on.
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#547548 by Not Available. |
This one looks to have been comatose for a while, but if you're interested in LOTR, you may want to post here and see if there's still life.
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#449219 by Not Available. |
Another great place to talk about your favorite SF and Fantasy items, and to get some opinions on them.
Collaborative Collection
A showcase of some interesting group efforts on Writing.Com
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#1163541 by Not Available. |
Currently just an introduction and character bios, looks like things are ready to get started, so you can get in at the beginning of the story. Very different setting for a fantasy tale. |
Have an opinion on what you've read here today? Then send the Editor feedback! Find an item that you think would be perfect for showcasing here? Submit it for consideration in the newsletter!
https://www.Writing.Com/go/nl_form
Don't forget to support our sponsor!
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From: The Knight Has Found Romance
I was fascinated by "Crossing the Boundaries: Horror and Fantasy". This was an excellent side-by-side comparison of the two genres. I was struck by how elements of both can be included in a story. I have a work-in-progress, which I didn't realize was combining the genres, until I analyzed it based on these guidelines. What a great help to the creative process, thank you!!
Glad you liked it. If the newsletter has been helpful in your writing, then it's done its job. Thanks for letting me know.
From: Bradly
Hey, I was wondering if you guys had written a newsletter on haw to bring back the dead. Sometimes you kill off a character because they aren't needed. Later you are writing something that could really use the same guy you killed.
I know this is more Comic book then Speculative fiction, but I think it might be cool to devote a news letter to all the ways you can bring a character back believably.
I don't know if anyone else has done this or if they plan to in the future. I did an article about death and the many ways it can work in a fantasy setting so you may find that helpful. You can find the article here: "Invalid Item" . Hope that helps.
That's all for me. If you have any feedback to this newsletter and would like to get a reply, please email it to me at Colin Back on the Ghost Roads since I won't be able to see it other wise. |
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Fantasy: November 08, 2006 Issue [#1360]
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