So for my inaugural blog post, I want to have a wee chat about the sub-genre of fantasy comedy. Also called humourous fantasy or comic fantasy or such other niche names, it is often seen as too niche for comfort.
There's a reason epic fantasy sells in droves, leaving us light-hearted writers to pick up the proverbial scraps. I love epic fantasy. The Stormlight Archive and Wheel of Time in particular. It's the reason I'm writing fantasy in the first place. They tell compelling stories on an epic scale, with deep worldbuilding and characters to boot
By comparison, fantasy of the funny nature (Discworld et al) is seen as less so. They're just silly stories against the backdrop of its more epic counterparts. I hear these opinions all the time; A funny fantasy story can't have stakes. A funny fantasy story can't have deep worldbuilding. It can't have deep characters.
I fundamentally disagree. Just because a fantasy story dares to be lighter, doesn't exclude it from being compelling, emotive fiction.
Just take Discworld for example; In Guards! Guards! we follow the story of jaded City Watchman, Samuel Vimes. He's at the end of a bottle, most nights. He doesn't take his work seriously, and has every reason not to. But at his core, he's a Watchman and when a mysterious dragon threatens Ankh-Morpork, he rises to the challenge, rekindling his spark for investigating.
Hopping across many ponds to the world of manga; One Piece, the uber best-selling series about a pirate crew on is as ridiculous and bizarre as fantasy fiction comes. One of the earliest chapters is about a stretchy pirate who fights a clown, for God's sake. But, it has these moments. These beautiful heart-wrenching moments, where you learn the pasts of these otherwise silly characters. The hard-hitting moments never feel out of place, or interrupt the generally jolly feel of the manga. And because of it, you connect with the characters which heightens the moments of triumph.
And don't get me started on the worldbuilding! One Piece boasts a fantastical world with a plethora of incredibly creative islands, which all have their own backstories and rules. Each arc, feels like a brand new story and builds that anticipation for the next wonders that the Straw Hat face as the sail into the open blue. Not to mention, the various competing factions and the genius interplay between them all.
You can have character. You have emotion. You can have the lowest of lows. You can have Tolkien-esque worldbuilding. And your story can still be a comedy.
If you can connect your readers to your characters and world, you can make them laugh. It's why sitcoms are more popular than sketch comedy shows. The jokes alone can only carry you so far. It's the characters in The Office, Friends, The Simpsons and It's Always Sunny that you keep coming back for.
The same applies for fantasy comedy. It's what I'm hoping to achieve with my debut novel The Ballad of Sprikit The Bard (And Company), which is out in 2024. Check out my website for more details on that one!
So write that funny fantasy story. Get it out of you system. Who knows, you might just be surprised with what you get.
If it's complete crap, don't even attempt to sue me. My lawyers are absolute sharks.
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