Low Fantasy, Anyone?

Mine is a whole new world, it just doesn't have a ton of magic. Granted it's more magic than I'm used to, but it's still minimal compared to some other people.

And I might have figured out a way to end mine now....

NaNoWriMo 06: Between Renithian Winters -- Winner! (50232)
NaNoWriMo 07: White Ash Secrets -- Winner!

My world is one where magic is real, although many people don't believe it exists - mages, and other magickal creatures, tend to live in secrecy because of prejudice (and historical massacres of same); in most aspects it's identical to our own world except for the fact of vampires, werewolves, lucky spirits, and mages.

Historically, when the Catholic church started to extend its power and control, mages were driven underground. Werewolves were all but driven to extinction throughout Europe, and vampires split into three fairly distinct sorts. Lucky "spirits" are magical creatures born to generally normal human families but ones with magic in them, often powerful magic but sometimes not.

My half-formed plot for NaNo involves a vampire, a girl, and Las Vegas. What could go wrong?

In all honesty I'm not sure where this year's Nano is going to windup. I've got a couple characters who live in very mideaval places insisting on automatic weapons and not liking the crossbow idea... I've got a mage who hasn't bothered with a single spell and acts more like a museum coordinator. Telepathic unicorns who prefer to use actual speach because telepathy is bothersome and MUCH to easy to overhear. And random ninjas that make a cameo in the first scene but are being anoyingly secretive about thier abilities and motives. It could go anywhere from Sci-fantasy to high fantasy or low fantasy or just plain 'ok it's too wierd to be anything but fantasy" So I'm a confirmed maybe on the low fantasy side. ;)

~T'Star

2003 - Cold Steel
2004 - Gathering of Clans
2005 - Matters of the Mind
2006 - The Rose and the Cross (Won)
2007 - As yet untitled (remains to be seen)

No, I don't think I'm doing Low Fantasy this year. For some reason, I find it difficult to actually like the concept of time-travel - although this usually stems from the fact that most people create paradoxes (paradoxes drive me nuts.) ^^;;

2002 - 2004 Passed
2005 Almost, not quite - just bad luck
2006 Passed
2007 Attempting this year

vampires and time travel! ooooh! I'm gonna want to read that!
thinks of a Lesat/Dr.Who cross over~~~grins :D

This year I'm doing an Adventure~Fantasy
(I think....may change mind by the time November gets here... last year I had everything planned out a month in advance and than threw it all out on day 2 of NaNo and did something totaly differant!)

I'm thinking Carl Barks style adventure set in a fantasy world backdrop. I'm planning to send my hero off after a "lost treasure", and have him end up in the deep jungle where there's a lost civilization that is totally cut off from the rest of the world and is totally differant from humans as we know them. Not sure yet if it'll be a "magic realm" or not.

"Only two things are infinite, the universe and human stupidity." - Albert Einstein"

Urban fantasy is great fun, since it's the kind of thing readers can empathize with in terms of "If magic entered my life, this is what I would do!"

While steering well clear of Mary-Sues, magic vs mundane can be awesome. That's kind of where my book starts, in the sense that the MC is more or less "normal," then winds up in another world that is anything but. Plus she's expected to be somebody's pet when she gets there. And adventure ensues! :D

I suppose mine is vaguely low fantasy. Alternate side-by-side realities (one being ours) that exist in balance with each other - but that balance becomes skewed, and the MC is forced onto a quest to restore the status quo...

There's not *exactly* magic, but...

~Eslyssa

Mine's quite low-fantasy. Magic exists, but it's a bit wishy-washy and technology is starting to render it (mostly) too much effort. In some cases, magic and technology work together but it's rare. There is, of course, another more effective way to do magic, but only one person picks up how to do that, thereby sparking the plot.

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You euthanised your companion cube faster than any test subject on record. Congratulations!

I'm writing a sort of urban fantasy. Magic isn't quite the main point of anything though, so I'm calling it adventure (for now).

I much prefer this kind; it's too hard for me to find something I like for high fantasy.

I suppose I would be in the low fantasy catagory.
Honestly I'm not very good at placing myself in genre's or sub genre's I just write the stories with out any real worries about where it'll fit.
My story deals with a select few humans that are angels and demons, the general conflicts of good vs. bad but more of a stress of the gray area in between. That's barely scratching the surface of it to be honest, otherwise I wouldn't have a whole lot of story to write.

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2007==> The Gift of Demise: Planning stages, 0/50,000

I write urban/contemporary fantasy. I don't think I've ever heard the term "low" fantasy before. I'm not sure I like that term. Not trying to be nitpicky, but it makes urban fantasy sound like it's inferior to traditional fantasy, and I have a hard time reconciling that.

That said...I write about werewolves. I've got one werewolf on crack cocaine, and one werewolf on the police department...and in this year's installment...we're gonna meet the American werewolf Mafia!

I'm doing low fantasy/horror.

I've gotten to the point that I can't stand reading high fantasy anymore, because most of it is so derivative and filled with cliches.

I feel the same way about high fantasy. I've seen far too many badly written high fantasies that I'm pretty turned of to the idea. My idea for NaNo this year has far more fantasy than I normally have. Some of my characters actually have limtied magical powers. Oh wow. I normally just place my stories in a world of my own creation where there is very little magic, and it normally isn't included in the story itself at all. Now it is. A magical object actually has a point in my story, but it's more abnout the characters than anything else. The fact they have magic is just something that has to happen setting wise, and in part for the plot.

The idea isn't something as serious as other ideas that I have, but this would be much easier for something liike NaNo.

NaNoWriMo 06: Between Renithian Winters -- Winner! (50232)
NaNoWriMo 07: White Ash Secrets -- Winner!

I'm doing urban fantasy again this year. Should be fun!

http://dragon.ycp.edu/~lmarsden (last updated 12/21)
I do free websites! PM me!

NaNo 2006: THE BLACK HEART - YA urban fantasy - WINNER!
NaNo 2007: THE WITCH BOOK (working title) - MG urban fantasy - WINNER!

I'm writing something this year which is half-urban and half... sort of high fantasy. There's another world, and it's got elves in, but there's no Quest to Destroy And/Or Save the Thing of Wonder. I love writing about people from our world in magical situations, basically. :3

2003: Anomaly (won!)
2004: Duodecium (won by a large margin!)
2005: Follow the Tides (won, but hated the story)
2006: Glass Jars and Seashores (won! This was Anomaly, mach II, with 100% new characters and a completely re-outlined plot)

If I go with what I am almost sure about (just decided today!), it'll be urban fantasyish. I'm stealing my main character and his family from last year's NaNo and probably keeping the setting (Seattle), but from there I'm not really sure. Last year's was a cracktastic novel about dreams leaking out of people's heads and changing reality. This year's will probably have more to do with slipping between realities. We'll see what happens. Like anything I ever write, I imagine it will be some sort of adventure/fantasy/romance Frankenstory. I'm calling it adventure at the moment just because I like that we can choose that as a genre now, but urban fantasy would probably be more accurate.

This is how you do it: you sit down at the keyboard and you put one word after another until it's done. It's that easy, and that hard. - Neil Gaiman

I'm doing a contemporary urban fantasy novel where magicians live in a parallel dimension to our own, but are still able to influence actions and attitudes of people in our dimension. Not sure yet if the magicians are able to travel _into_ our world. They may have to (whether they like it or not) - as the story itself is a little tame yet... Ideas to spice it up a little are appreciated : )

I'm planning a suburban fantasy -- set in a world similar to ours, where magic is real but most people don't believe in it.

Yep.

My story is going to be a sort of urban fantasy, although that makes it sound all gritty and tough, and at this point it's not. The idea is that magic exists and most people can learn it, but is fairly difficult to learn, so most don't bother. Working magic effects the user physically, so doing "big" magic is extremely painful to the point of being not worth it. My main character, who recently aquired the vaguely Sue-ish name of Columbina (her parents were weird! is my excuse) is a waitress who works magic part time. I'm still working out the kinks in the plot (i.e. "What is going to happen in this story, exactly?" and "Who are the characters?") but I am really excited about it.

I'm doing urban fantasy this year, though I may have to switch to a different label depending upon the amount of science that ends up in it. It's not the most original plot, but it's going to be fun: a serial killer runs amok in city, and a famous oracle is pressured to help authorities find the guy.

I completely agree with you about the term "low fantasy." Just because the world it's set in wasn't created from scratch doesn't mean it's better than an original world.

That said I write dark fantasy and horror set in what would be our world if vampires and sorcerers existed.

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Script Frenzy '08
Working Title: Nate and Dick
Script Type: Stage Play
Genre: Dark Musical Comedy
Page Count: 35

I agree about the "low fantasy" thing. It makes me think of low-brow humor or low-class. *sweat*

First time I've heard the term, too, so I'm not quite sure if my novel falls into the category... >_> <_<

"All you have to do is think up a certain number of words! Plus, you can repeat words! And they don't even have to be true!" ~Dave Barry

Well, since everyone has heard of 'high' fantasy, and generally agrees that it exists as a genre, it only makes sense that there is a 'low' fantasy genre as well!

Although I do have to admit I have never before heard 'low fantasy' used as a synonym for 'urban/contemporary fantasy' before. For me, 'low fantasy' is a genre where magic is acknowledged by the author as existing in the world of the novel, but has very little impact/influence in the day to day life of people in the story. (The first book of George RR Martin's Song of Ice and Fire series would be an example of what I would call 'low fantasy' - and that book is certainly NOT something I would consider 'second rate' in any sense.)

"To practice any art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow. So do it." - Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (1922-2007)

2006 - Famine: A Novel - failed
2007 - A Midsummer Night's Dream...IN SPACE! - on hold

At last a thread for something I've been doing for ages, low fantasy rocks!
I have been thinking of doing my 07 Nano on a magical community that are kind of guardians for our ordinary world. Keeping us in ignorance and safe from the dark forces that would enslave us.

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'05 Hand (win)
'06 Hodge (win)
'07 Making Magic is Unfair (?)

Yay for low fantasy. I'm, personally, sick of high fantasy. I prefer low fantasy, urban fantasy, and fairy tale fantasy (yes, fairy, not faerie.).

Anyways, my best friend and I are writing two books with sort of one story. We are telling the story of one major event from the perspective of characters on opposite sides of the conflict. It's a vampire story. We're still hashing out the details, though. We made a whole list of rules for how vampirism works in our books, too. It's always important to define stuff like that before you start any fantasy world. Define your rules.

Anyways, a brief description, I guess: The main event is this gang war amongst two groups of vampires, and these two girls (our two characters), though best friends by day (when the vampires look like normal humans), are on opposite sides of the gang war by night (and neither know). Her story is more about her character adjusting to her new life as a vampire, mine is more about my character uncovering the truth about the gang war she's been sucked into.

November 2006--Surrea--23,178 words by the end of the month, never finished.
July 2007--Flight of the Arrow--62,200 words by the end of the month, 75,107 currently.
November 2007--Who knows?

I'm....not really sure. I'm actually not entirely clear on the distinguishing features of the sub-genres of fantasy. I haven't been a big fantasy fan, but my friend and I one day made a list of things that would be Good In Fantasy Novels and things that are Bad In Fantasy Novels. So now I'm compelled to write one. I think I will tend toward the low fantasy end of things, since I like urban settings and I don't have much interest in complex world building, detailed mythologies and histories, deep spiritual magic, elves or being serious in general, really. Two of the things on the Good list were drugs and bicycles, so that sort of shows how I'm approaching this.

My idea is cyberpunk at it's core, but I'm playing with the idea of adding some fantasy elements to it. They'd certainly help throw the darkness and grit of the world into contrast, and I just feel more comfortable working with some fantasy. It would be my life preserver in the sea of techno jargon I'm going to have to look up or make up, and neon internets. Plus it might make the question of what makes up a human a more interesting one, as well as making some parts of my plot a tad more plausible without spending 8 years world building.

But...I just can't decide.

You got no muscles to show for it (yes, the brain is a muscle, but if you show it to people it’s usually because part of your skull has been torn off and that doesn’t impress the ladies – unless the ladies are ZOMBIES! Where did this paragraph go?)
-Joss