Cat Fight In The Kitchen-Wattpad Rant

Fantasy

My migraine medication is so strong it makes me feel all weird, so I thought now would be the perfect time for the Fantasy rant. Because it just makes sense to me right now. Fantasy is weird. My head is all weird. It'll be great. 

Fantasy is one of those genres that is so big, it's hard to narrow down specifics for tips, but I'll do my best. Honestly, it's hard to even talk about fantasy, because it's one of those anything goes genres. So instead of doing my usual "this is the most realistic path", let's just have a discussion of important elements in fantasy. Sound good? Sounds good.

This may end up needing more parts, but here's our list for today:

1. World building

This is, to me, one of the best, yet most daunting parts of fantasy: you have the option of creating an entirely new world. It's seriously a free for all, but it doesn't necessarily have to be. A lot of times, I just see people build worlds that are almost on par with medieval Europe. You guys realize you don't have to have your own world, right? You can totally just set it in medieval Europe. That's fine. In fact, that will save you a lot of useless description. I mean, you can add magic or fantasy elements to anything. Hell, I can write a novel set right here, right now, and have magic, or dragons, or different races/languages/societies. And it would work. Because absolutely anything can happen in fantasy.

But, if you are going to build your own world, here are some really, really important things you have to keep in mind:

Patriarchal or Matriarchal: Is this a patriarchal society? Matriarchal? Have they established an equality? Are there more than two sexes? That's something that bothers me a lot in novels: people don't want to have to deal with these topics, because they don't want to perpetuate sexist or racism or whatever. But those are the topics that need explored the most. I hate when people comment on a novel saying "as a feminist, this drives me crazy that the girl isn't allowed to do what the guys do". I'm a huge proponent of fairness too, but c'mon. Sexism is something we face today. It's something that you will inevitably come across in your own world (especially if you base it off medieval Europe). So, don't be afraid to tackle these topics.

Religion: I'm a firm believer that ancient civilizations are fantastic resources to help you start building your world. And in all ancient societies (okay, let's just say 99%, since people on Wattpad hate generalized statements like that) the number one questions is: What happens when you die? Some form of burying ritual is found in the overwhelming majority of ancient civilizations. Arrays of worshiping rituals to all kinds of gods are found in all of them to. So, this is something I think you should really consider. How do people in your world deal with these existential questions? Do they turn to religion? Do they turn to science? Is there something else that they cling to?

Think about it: religion is the root of almost all the wars and conflicts this world has seen. That means it's a pretty powerful force, right? So imagine what it can do for your world. Just think about it. Even if you don't have a huge religious theme in your world, it's still something really interesting I think you should consider.

Customs: Here, I'm talking about how this society functions. What kind of rules are there regarding manners? What about courtship? What is their class system like? Do they have upper and lower? Is there royalty? Is it a run by some form of military? Are there conflicts between races, species, or even geographic regions? Is the society superstitious? How does this society function? What keeps them running?

Rituals: What are the marriage/courtship rituals? Is polygamy practiced? How is premarital sex viewed? Is monogamy even a thing?

What about burial rituals? I mean, not every society buried bodies, you know this, right? Some burned them. Some left them out for animals to eat.