Originality in Fantasy



Fantasy readers continue in pursuit of their favorite types of fantasy fiction; whether they be the typical sword and sorcery, quest fantasy, or dark fantasy. But many fantasy fans are growing weary of what seems to be the same old method in fantasy novels recycled over and over again.

There are a lot of complaints about books hanging on to the Tolkien-like setting. When most of us read the Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks, the similarities to the Fellowship of the Ring was too obvious. When we read the Eye of the World by Robert Jordan, we could sense the same resemblances from the Lord of the Rings in some parts. Peter Orullian’s debut fantasy novel, The Unremembered, is said to have utter likenesses to Robert Jordan’s the Eye of the World.

How many of us have read the farm boy going to fight the great dark lord story? How many have read the story of the orphan seeking revenge for the death of their parents; or the orphan that becomes an assassin or great magician? How about the story about an empire having slave warriors to fight and conquer for them; only the slave warrior becomes the hero against the evil empire? Don’t forget the stories about magic swords; a boy/girl and their dragon(s); or the reluctant hero who was prophesied to save the world. I could go on about the different formulas that we see, not only in the fantasy genre, but in fiction in general.

This is not only an occurrence in books, but in cinema as well. How many romantic comedies have we seen where the male or female character has some kind of secret (or lie), and the love interest finds out about it. The love interest gets upset and never wants to talk to the other again; yet they make up at the end and live happily ever after. And what is it with all the action movies? We know that the main bad guy and the hero are going to fight at the end, and the bad guy is going to get destroyed; can we at least get a surprising twist?

There are a few formulas to storytelling, but hundreds of thousands of stories (if not more), using the same old formulas. Can we say that originality is dead in fiction? Can anything in Fantasy be original anymore? Some say no to the latter. I say yes.

I’m going to use two authors, whose stories I admire, as examples of what originality looks like in fantasy. Now, let me say that I think each book in their series goes on for too long, but they have characters that are interesting enough to keep reading about (even though it seems like they are doing next to nothing sometimes). The two authors are George R.R. Martin (A Song of Ice & Fire books) and Patrick Rothfuss (The Kingkiller Chronicle).

George R.R. Martin has painted a dark and cold world where many dynasties are vying for power over a vast land (Westeros). We experience and learn of the world through the limited third-person point of views of many characters that you grow to love or hate (or a little of both). Though there’s magic in the books it’s subtle and builds up slowly through the series. There are dragons, but they are not set in the story with the same old casting as most books in the genre. Tyrion, probably my favorite character, is a dwarf—not the typical dwarf of fantasy, with the long beards, and living inside the mountains. No, Tyrion is just a normal human, born of “normal” people  with “normal” siblings; however, he was born a dwarf, like in the real world, and he’s a flawed and crafty individual. The books are loaded with political intrigue and battles; unlikely alliances; twists and turns; and disappointments (in regards to the fate or decisions of characters). You will not read Martin’s series and say to yourself, “Hey this looks similar to so-and-so’s book.” Why? Because it’s original. Writers are trying to emulate Martin now, because he has taken the Epic Fantasy genre and changed it into something unpredictable, gritty and realistic (for its period setting). As I stated in a previous post, I personally find the books too dark and graphic in some places, but I cannot deny that Mr. Martin is fantastic at what he does, and has produced an engrossing and epic tale.

Patrick Rothfuss only has two (fat) books out now, but he is definitely one of the giants in modern fantasy fiction today. The reason is because of his exceptional, original storytelling. His story of Kvothe in his Kingkiller Chronicle is interesting and entertaining. Rothfuss gives us a character that tells his own story (in first-person narrative) about his legacy. Kvothe becomes an orphan in the story, due to the death of his parents, and he wants vengeance for their death, but this is not the main plot of the books. Rothfuss tells a whole other type of story through Kvothe, giving us the tale of his life at the university, and his later tales of his adventures outside the university. The books have magic, but the magic system (mostly alchemy) is excellent, in my opinion; giving the readers something more than just the wizard’s staff or the magical object. The magic is a large part of the story, but it is not the drive of the story—the character is. Rothfuss makes it where the readers actually love following Kvothe through his story; and it’s a cool, interesting and fun piece. The books are completely original and memorable.

There are other original good stories out there, but the two authors that I’ve mentioned above are the ones that have stood out to me as being something refreshingly unique in the genre. Let’s not mistake originality with good storytelling. You can have originality, but to the point where it’s too original and does not make for good storytelling. There are writers that spend so much time trying to explain their “original” world instead of letting the story, through the characters, reveal the world to us. There are writers that can take one of the typical formulas described above and tell a great story, with a unique voice of their own, but it wouldn’t classify for originality.

There is nothing like opening a book by an author you’re not familiar with and discovering an original piece of fantasy fiction that was unexpected and different from anything else that you have ever read. It’s like finding gold in a pile of stones, or a diamond in the rough. 

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