The Writers' Camp

1. Introduction to Fantasy

Ganap na nagsimula ang klase ng Campers at ang unang paksang pinag-usapan pinamagatang "Knowing your genre."

Navigating the fantasy genre can be difficult.

There's a simple reason for this: 'fantasy' is not a single definite genre, but a cohesion of many diverse, often wildly different, genres. We call these distinct genres with tangible elements we can label 'subgenres'. These subgenres, for better or for worse, help to categorize fantasy into different, distinct collections of elements.

Ang Genre na Fantasy ay hindi mapagkakailang lumalaki at may mga naging subgenre ang nabubuo gawa ng malikot na imahinasyon ng tao. Pinaghalo-halo rin ang iba't ibang genre tulad ng Action, romance, mystery, horror at iba pa upang pumatok sa mambabasa.

Going back..

This master list of all the fantasy subgenres is our effort to help you find out what makes each subgenre distinct and a cheat sheet guide to the best books that fit into those subgenre categories.

1. Epic Fantasy

The most popular type of fantasy today. Usually associated with High Fantasy. Epic fantasy usually includes a life or death struggle between good and evil, a large cast of characters, and multiple books. Most modern fantasy books are considered epic fantasy.

Epic Fantasy Examples:

Ilan sa mga sikat na akda ay ang
Jordan's The Wheel of Time , Martin's A Game of Thrones , and Brandon Sanderson's Mistborn.

2. Coming-of-Age Fantasy

Fantasy with a lot of focus on the journey from youth to man. A VERY common aspect of the epic fantasy subgenre, but this motif is found in many different literary genres.

3. High Fantasy

A broad classification for fantasy. High fantasy sometimes refers to epic fantasy, but it can be it's own subgenre.

The classic definition for High Fantasy is a story that includes a well drawn world where magic follows a very specific set of rules. Those rules may be different from the real world, but they are consistent.

High Fantasy can include many themes like Coming of Age, Quests, and may be serious in tone or epic in scale.

Because High Fantasy is such a broad definition. Lord of the Rings would be considered the classic definition, but other works such as The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe are also High Fantasy. The 'opposite' of High Fantasy is the Low Fantasy genre.

4. Low Fantasy

Fantasy where traditional elements are not present (or emphasized). The fantasy world might not have magic (or if magic exists, it's not important in the context of the story) and the focus tends to be on the characters and/or plot rather than the fantastical elements. Low fantasy is fairly active fantasy genre these days.

5. Sword and Sorcery Fantasy

A genre that includes plenty of hand to hand action and was one of the first 'fantasy' genres to emerge nearly a hundred years ago.

Example:
Miles Cameron's recent The Red Knight. Erikson's Mazalan Book of the Fallen, and Glen Cook's The Black Company, and Mark Lawrence's The Prince of Nothing.

6. Dark Fantasy

A fantasy subgenre that combines elements of fantasy with horror. Dark fantasy is often used to refer to horror fantasy and include stories about demonic creatures, mummies, vampires, and the like.

Dark Fantasy Examples...

If you like vampire fantasy, (Vampire Chronicles ). One of the best dark fantasy series is C.S. Friedman's Coldfire Trilogy.

7. Fables / Fairy Tales

A broad subgenre (arguably even a genre to itself) of fantasy.
Fables tend to focus on imparting some sort of moral wisdom to the protagonist the end of the tale. A Fable is often approached from the perspective of a child or youth. Currently, some writers are modernizing fables for the modern adult reader.

8. Urban Fantasy

A broad subgenre of fantasy. Urban Fantasy is often called Contemporary Fantasy. The setting is contemporary, often taking place in urban settings. Often the magical world hides behind the normal world -- i.e. there is a hidden fantasy world that most people don't know about. May include creatures like vampires, fairies, witches, and werewolves. Urban Fantasy can be divided into even more specific subgenres (or at least include heavy doses) such as Paranormal Fantasy,Fantastic Romance, Mythic Fantasy, and Fable fantasy.

9. Magic Realism

A type of fantasy where magic is accepted as part of the system. Magic itself has consequences (you can't just throw fireballs with impunity) and may involve the use of some prop or tool to utilize (spell, amulet, potion, incantation). The main quality of Magic Realism is that magic must follow a set of established rules (i.e. no Deus Ex Machina via magic is allowed). There are often negative effects resulting from the use of magic, overuse of magic, or negative use of magic. GrittyFantasy /Realistic Fantasy often incorporates Magic Realism as do some High Fantasy works.

10. Cross Over Fantasy

A very specific fantasy subgenre where characters "cross over" from one realm to another realm, via some sort of magical portal. Typically, the characters are normal people from earth who cross into a new realm; the realm is usually medieval in nature and magic, in this realm, may exist.

The characters crossing into the new realm may gain magical powers or bring with them modern knowledge which is used to challenge some sort of evil which is seeking to dominate that land. 

11. Bangsian Fantasy

A bit morbid, a bit comedic, a bit philosophical (or theological), Bangsian Fantasy stories are a kind of thought experiment about the afterlife. The setting is most often in the afterlife, but the story can also take place in our own plane of existence with some ghosts hanging around.

Bangsian characters are familiar ones; they are historical figures, famous fictional characters, or otherwise influential figures readers would be able to identify. The story itself is an exploration of the afterlife and is most often a comedic adventure.

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Ilan lang iyan sa sub genre ng fantasy.

Ang mahalaga ay alam mo ang sinusulat mo.

Lyn,
The head.