Writer June’s Thoughts

Fantasy stories can be pretty hard to master so we’ve been talking and we asked:

1. Of the stories that you’ve read, how heavy is the worldbuilding from a scale of 1-5? Additionally, how do you personally define “heavy worldbuilding”?

2. What are your general expectations of a fantasy story?

3. What are some things that the fantasy genre is notorious for? (Objective)

4. Conversely, what are some things that you don’t like about the fantasy genre/fantasy writers? (Subjective)
5. Have you read eastern fantasy? If not, please move directly to 5b. Otherwise, please talk about your experiences in delving into that subgenre and how you fell in/fell out of love with it. 5b. When reading stories with a total culture change/totally distorted perspective, what immerses you the most? What alienates you the most?

6. What are your thoughts on using ethnic lore/culture as inspiration for fantasy stories? For example, Polynesian mythology/witchdoctor-ing or Irish folklore.

7. Right now, in this moment, what do you feel like reading? Light fantasy? Snarky tweets? Your own unfinished story, perhaps? (I do want a genuine answer, but you could also just shamelessly promote your work if you wish lol)

Ladies and gentlemen please welcome Thoughts by the writer ‘June’. Be sure to follow them on their social and hear more of their creative writing tips and tricks or thoughts.

1. I think an amazing book you should reference for worldbuilding is everlasting nora by marie miranda cruz. it uses great flashback scenes to give the read more emotional attachment to situations the main character finds herself in. heavy worldbuilding for me is building up to an important event of a book without exposing most of the character’s so-told “secrets.” i use this effect in my book by purposely using words like, “the thing,” or “an unfamiliar [insert noun here].

2. Many fantasy stories i’ve read have always started and ended the same way. the main character (usually a peasant male or princess female) finds themself in a situation and they’re sent off on a legendary quest to save the world. i want to see more character vulnerability in these stories, showing the raw character development we usually see in throwaway characters.

3. I’m not entirely sure but def for making the main character a villain near the end of the book lol. school for good and evil did this so many times, i always expected one of the characters to become a wanted criminal.

4. I don’t enjoy the complicated world they make. i hate reading fantasy novels where one concept comes in for one chapter and never reappears in the book. for example, the main character could come across a village, ask a blacksmith what happened in the village or to a certain person, and then that blacksmith is never mentioned again in the story. i want all the concepts of a book to be reused in some way.

5b. Again, back to everlasting nora. this book is based in the Philippines and the greetings used in the book are from its native language. it also connects with the culture like honorifics, actions that the character does, her way of respecting elders, etc.. at first, it was hard to read the book because i was korean and had no way of connection to its culture. but it was easier to adjust than other books i’ve read with a cultural change. it even came with a glossary at the back lol..11

6. I think it’s a great thing to include in your story! i’m doing it with my book (using french, greek, roman, and irish culture in my mine) to convey friendships, love, family, and bravery and honor. i think it’s an amazing way to make the reader aware of some of these beautiful cultures in the world, and another way to make your character more raw rather than the basic girl who moved from across the country.

7. I feel like reading a highschool drama book about anything a highschooler has or could experience, similar to euphoria. as someone who’s in highschool, i want to have characters that are going through the same thing as me. i want to read a paragraph of a girl who doesn’t think she belongs and think, “wow, i can relate to this girl.” and also my book lol (ozymandias: casum majestias on wattpad guys lol)