Viking inspired fantasy has been a huge niche within the fantasy world, with TV shows like Vikings and video games like God of War. Viking fantasy typically includes elements like harsh northern landscapes, longships cutting through icy seas, oath-bound warriors, vengeful gods and more. The atmosphere practically builds itself. The problem is that a lot […]
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Grimdark is one of those subgenres that gets misunderstood a lot. Most people hear grimdark and picture relentless suffering, violence, and a general attitude of “nothing matters and everyone dies.” And sure, some grimdark fiction leans hard into all of that. But darkness alone does not make a compelling grimdark story. What actually defines the
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Knights are one of the most enduring figures in fantasy fiction, and honestly, it’s easy to see why. With knights are things like armor, swords, banners, oaths, tournaments and these are all staples of the fantasy genre. I was inspired to write this post after the show A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms released and
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Dystopian governments have been some of the most popular tropes to include in fiction for a long time. They often include elements of total surveillance, brutal dictators, oppressive laws, and controlled media. Stories like 1984 still get referenced to this day for their depictions of these near and far-future institutions that have turned society into
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If you’ve ever tried to write in a coffee shop, a busy house, or an open office, you already know the problem. One conversation nearby is all it takes to completely break your train of thought. You lose the sentence you were building. You lose the idea that was finally coming together. You lose twenty
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Feudalism is one of the most commonly used political structures in fantasy. You’ve seen it everywhere: castles, knights, hereditary titles, sworn oaths, and kings sitting on thrones. It’s practically the backbone of the fantasy genre at this point. However, a lot of fantasy writers use feudalism more as a visual aesthetic than as a functioning
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Throughout human history, one of the most powerful forces has always been religion. It has shaped law, influenced systems, and helps to give people hope and answers many important questions for many people. Religion has also been used as a justification for many things from forging nations to going to war. Just as in the
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Designing weapons for a fantasy military is one of those world building topics that looks simple on the surface but actually goes pretty deep once you start digging into it. A lot of writers treat weapons as set dressing where they include cool visual details that make battle scenes feel more exciting. But the truth
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World building is one of those topics that gets talked about a lot in the writing community, but it’s also one of those things that a lot of writers still struggle with. Some writers go way too deep into it and end up with a mountain of lore that never makes it into the actual
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Literary fiction and contemporary fiction are two terms that get thrown around a lot in the writing world. However, a lot of writers struggle to understand where their own work fits between these two labels. Is literary fiction just “fancy” fiction? Is contemporary fiction less valuable? These are questions I see come up constantly, and
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Fantasy battle scenes are some of the most anticipated moments in a story. They are where tension peaks, loyalties are tested, and consequences become unavoidable. However, they are also some of the hardest scenes to write well. Many battle scenes feel confusing, bloated, or emotionally hollow, even when the stakes are supposedly high. Writing a
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Post-apocalyptic fiction is one of the most compelling subgenres in speculative fiction. However, many writers make the mistake of thinking that a post-apocalyptic world is defined by destruction and chaos alone. The ruined cities, empty highways, and broken systems are only the surface of what makes these stories work. What truly makes a post-apocalyptic setting
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