Category: Fantasy

Westwood University – Blog Tour #Fantasy #Paranormal #Romance

Westwood University
Westwood Chronicles Book 1
by Alexandria James
Genre: New Adult Paranormal Fantasy Romance
3 months. 90 days. 2,160 hours.
That’s all it took for my world to fall apart.
My life had always been so certain, I’ve had a concrete plan for as long as I can remember.
Until the day I was accepted into Westwood University.
Until I let anger morph my actions.
Until I opened the gates of hell.
Until him.
His eyes are what first caught me, I was a fly in his web. Once I was bound in the threads, I was doomed. I let him consume me, all of me.
I was in too deep when he told me the truth…
Alexandria James was born in California, but raised all over the US due to being a child of the military. She loves to laugh, sing and write– when not spending precious time with her family. Alexandria lives in South Florida with her husband and two sons.
Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!
$15 Amazon
Featured

Die Küchenkobolde und andere Düstere Geschichten #Fantasie, #Kurzgeschichte, #familienfreundlich

Die Küchenkobolde und andere Düstere Geschichten – sechs Kurzgeschichten voller Chaos und Unfug.

Gewinner des Preises für die beste Fantasy 2018 auf NN Light Book Heaven.

Freche Kobolde, verschwundene Socken, gerissene Diebe und verwirrte Götter begegnen Ihnen in dieser Sammlung von fantastischen Kurzgeschichten.

https://books2read.com/Kitchen-Imps-German

Die gebürtige Britin A. L. Butcher ist eine begeisterte Leserin und Weltenschöpferin, eine Dichterin und Träumerin, eine Liebhaberin von Wissenschaft, Naturgeschichte, Historie und Affen.
Ihre Prosa wurde als „dunkel und düster“ und ihre Lyrik als „beschwörend“ beschrieben.
Sie schreibt mit einer sicheren und manchmal erotischen Sensibilität von Dingen, die hätten sein können, nie waren, aber sein könnten.
Alex ist Autorin der Light Beyond the Storm Chronicles und der lyrischen Fantasy-Serie Tales of Erana.
Sie hat auch mehrere Kurzgeschichten in den Genres Fantasy, Fantasy-Romantik mit gelegentlichen Ausflügen in den Gothic-Stil Horror geschrieben, einschließlich der Legacy of the Mask-Serie.
Aufgrund ihres Hintergrunds in Politik, klassischen Studien, antiker Geschichte und Mythen, verleihen ihre Affinitäten ihrer Arbeit einen vielschichtigen und einzigartigen Geschmack. Sie vermischt Realität und Traum in alchemistischen Proportionen, die ihre Charaktere und Welten zum Leben erwecken.
Außerdem kuratiert sie für eine Reihe von spekulativen Fiction-Themenbänden auf BundleRabbit.
Ihre Kurznovelle „Outside the Walls“, die sie gemeinsam mit Diana L. Wicker geschrieben hat, wurde 2017 mit dem Chill with a Book Reader‘s Award ausgezeichnet und „Die Küchenkobolde“ gewann den Preis für beste Fantasy 2018 auf NN Light Book Heaven.
Alex ist auch stolz darauf, als Autorin für Perseid Press zu arbeiten, wo ihre Arbeiten in Heroika:
Dragon Eaters; und Lovers in Hell erscheinen – Teil der gefeierten „Heroes in Hell“-Serie. http://www.theperseidpress.com/

Auszeichnungen: 
Outside the Walls, gemeinsam mit Diana L. Wicker geschrieben, wurde 2017 mit dem Chill with a Book Reader’s Award ausgezeichnet.
NN Light Book Heaven Auszeichnungen:
The Kitchen Imps and Other Dark Tales gewann den Preis für die beste Fantasy 2018
Echoes of a Song – eine ihrer Phantomgeschichten – gewann den Preis als beste Fantasy im Jahr 2019

Dirty Dozen Author Interview – Danielle M. Orsino – Fantasy

Author name: Danielle M. Orsino

Please tell us about your publications/work.

A fantasy epic adventure of heartbreak, hope and rebirth — Birth of Fae: Locked Out of Heaven. The book was born from my time working as a nurse and treating a patient who needed some distraction during long I.V. treatment sessions. I jump into the  realm of angels, fairies, dragons and mermaids retelling their origins from a new perspective .

How did you become involved with bundles? (For Bundle Authors)

Stephanie Rabell  my PR rep.

Do you think the written word (or art) bring power and freedom? Yes it levels the playing field and gives people a voice.

What piece of advice do you wish you’d had when you started your publishing journey? so much, there are scammers just waiting to pounce, don’t doubt yourself. The whole “if you write it they will come.” line doesn’t work. YOU have to work at it. The publishing world is a game like anything else and you need to learn it.   

What’s your greatest networking tip? Book clubs, and the bookstagram community are phenomenal be appreciative of them.

If you could have dinner with any literary character or author who would you choose, and what would you eat. Shannon Mayer or Laurel K. Hamilton. I have to know how Laurel writes her sex scenes and how Shannon can write so many different characters and tie her universe together she is truly prolific. A food old fashion Italian family style dinner.   

How much research do you do for your work? What’s the wildest subject you’ve looked at? I have done a lot of religious text research and looked at tons  of conspiracy theories for book four. So probably the shadow government stuff dealing with the supernatural was pretty weird.  

How influential is storytelling to our culture? It’s ingrained in our culture when you think about it, storytelling was our first real source of verbal entertainment.

What’s the best advice you’ve received about writing/publishing? Be yourself.

What’s the worst piece best advice you’ve received about writing/publishing? Change for your audience.

If you could be any fantasy/mythical or legendary person/creature what would you be and why? A Fae. 

Which authors have influenced you the most? Ann Rice, Laurel K. Hamilton, for their fearlessness. Jim Henson and Walt Disney for their ways of showing how to craft a story.  

What is your writing space like? I handwrite all my books first so my space is anywhere. 

Tell us about your latest piece? I am editing book four, but we are getting ready to release Book two in which the Fae will see what happens when you can’t remember why you started a war and how it has affected their kin and their human worshippers. We will see the Fae in the end of Tudor England and the beginnings of Queen Mary the first.

What’s your next writing adventure? In book Four the Fae will be in the 21st century and I am currently editing book four and about 25 chapters into book five.

What are your views on authors offering free books? Do you believe, as some do, that it demeans an author and his or her work? NO I think the more people who read the better, price and money should never be an obstacle,  reading is not a privilege it is a right that everyone has.    

What are your views on authors commenting on reviews? Depends. if the review is inaccurate and coming from a nasty place and the author feels they are being demeaned it is up to them same if it’s a touching review and they want to say thank you they should. 

How do you deal with bad reviews? I am working on dealing with the reviews. I negate the best and the worst, together. Each review has merit. The ones that bother me are when its clear the person has a bias because I am a female author. An example is the subject of romance; I have had reviews about people wanting more romance. I have said book one has no romance. But because I am a female author they feel I should have romance. The reviews are bad because it is someone else’s opinion about me as a female author and their assumption. The book does not really get a fair shot. I have also had a few people have issues with the religious subject matter so I have warned people of the religious undertones some are offended by that and the violence which once again coming from a woman colours their view and the book. The reviews usually say something like “the religious stuff doesn’t bother me but…” and they go one to pan the book. It is clear the religious subject matter was an issue or “The violence is not appropriate for YA readers.” but my book is not listed for YA, I had someone write “for a woman she is angry and violent.” I am a world-class martial artist of course I write great fight scenes! Those are the types of reviews which bother me but, I am learning to deal with them. Everyone in entitled to their opinion and I respect it.    

Sort these into order of importance:

Great characters

Good plot

Awesome world-building

Technically perfect

With the influx of indie authors do you think this is the future of storytelling? I hope so, I think the big publishing machine has controlled and limited the voices long enough it is time for a change. 

Is this the age of the e-book? Are bricks and mortar bookshops in decline? no I don’t think physical books are in decline but the way we shop is changing, the versatility of e-books can’t be denied. I think to each their own, I love the way a book feels in my hand and the magic of opening it. 

 Are indie/self published authors viewed with scepticism or wariness by readers? Why is this? I believe there is still a stigma and lack of validation that a big publisher did not “chose” you to publish so readers are still unsure to spend their hard earned money on you as an author which is unfair, many indie publishers have educated themselves on the ins and outs of the publishing world and do not want to be anchored to the contracts and want control of their works. 

What is your greatest success? Sitting down to write and having the guts to introduce my version of the Fae to the world.

How important is writing/art to you? it has become like air.

What are your hopes for the coming year? To have more readers enter into the Veil and perhaps forget their reality for a little while. The greatest joy for an author is to be someone’s tour guide into the world they have created.

Tell us a silly fact about yourself. I dressed up as Wonder Woman every year for the first 10 years of my life every Halloween. Then I went to see Lynda Carter perform a few years ago in concert and I dressed up as Wonder Woman because it was a few days before Halloween. Guess what I was the only one dressed up. 

What did you want to be when you ‘grew up’? Wonder Woman I wrote essays about it

 

Links to book

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/birth-of-the-fae-danielle-marie-orsino/1136777080

https://bookshop.org/books/birth-of-the-fae-locked-out-of-heaven/9781734764505

https://www.amazon.com/Birth-Fae-Locked-out-Heaven/dp/173476452X

Lighthouses of Devmaer Blog Tour – Scifi/Fantasy Romance

Bound to the Admiral
Lighthouses of Devmaer Book 1
by Libby Campbell
Genre: Steamy Fantasy SciFi Romance
He controls the queen’s navy but can he tame the princess?
When her parents choose a gruff, battle-hardened admiral as her mate and give her no say at all in the matter, twenty-one-year-old Princess Gael does not hesitate to make her displeasure known. Despite her protests, however, her old-fashioned yet undeniably sexy future mate wastes no time in taking Gael over his knee and baring her bottom for a painful, embarrassing spanking when she defies him during an ancient ceremony intended to celebrate their upcoming union.
Fleet Admiral Kai Grenville has no doubt that taming his beautiful, feisty new mate will be a battle, but it is a battle he intends to win. If that means paddling Gael’s beautiful backside bright red with her panties stuffed in her mouth to teach her what happens to sassy mates, then so be it.
Though she does her best to remain indignant about her situation and Kai’s willingness to chastise her as often and as shamefully as he feels it necessary, Gael cannot deny her body’s response to his dominance, and when he claims her the pleasure is more intense than she would have thought possible. But with a plague ravaging their world and Gael’s reckless behavior putting her in danger, can Kai find a way to conquer her heart while also keeping her safe?
Publisher’s Note: Bound to the Admiral includes spankings and sexual scenes. If such material offends you, please don’t buy this book.
**Only .99cents!!**
Bound to the Commander
Lighthouses of Devmaer Book 2
He rules an entire nation but can he command her?
When rumors of twenty-three-year-old orphan Pepper Thornback’s incredible healing abilities reach the ruling Tribunal, Commander Quinn Garrick sets out to bring her to the capital. Pepper is given no choice in the matter, and when she attempts an escape during the journey she is taken over his knee for a sound spanking and then stripped bare for a painful, embarrassing switching.
More humiliating still, upon reaching their destination Quinn informs Pepper that she will be his ward for the duration of her stay and he will not hesitate to deal firmly with any disobedience.
Despite her blushing indignation at being treated in such a shameful manner, Quinn’s stern dominance arouses Pepper deeply, and when he takes her in his arms and claims her properly she is left utterly spent and satisfied. But when Pepper makes a shocking discovery concerning the fate of her parents, will the revelation strengthen her bond with Quinn or tear them apart forever?
Publisher’s Note: Bound to the Commander is a stand-alone sequel to Bound to the Admiral. It includes spankings and sexual scenes. If such material offends you, please don’t buy this book.
**On Sale for only $2.99 Mar 17-23!!**
Bound to the Sheriff
Lighthouses of Devmaer Book 3
Stranded in his savage land, she must learn to trust. But first she must learn to obey.
When she witnesses a violent incident while travelling to a nearby city to buy medicine for her village, twenty-one-year-old orphan Takyu is taken into custody by Sheriff Falcon Kingski. Locked in a cell for a humiliating interrogation, she soon learns that the stern, handsome lawman is not to be trifled with and defiance will earn her a sound spanking on her bare bottom.
The painful, embarrassing chastisement leaves Takyu sore yet intensely aroused, and it isn’t long before she has been claimed properly. Their bond grows stronger as they work together both to catch a dangerous fugitive and to uncover the cause of the illness ravaging her homeland, but when a secret Takyu has kept is exposed her punishment will be as thorough as it is shameful.
Publisher’s Note: Bound to the Sheriff is a stand-alone novel which is the third entry in the Lighthouses of Devmaer series. It includes spankings and sexual scenes. If such material offends you, please don’t buy this book.
**On Sale for only $3.99 Mar 17 – 23!!**
Bound to the Watchers
Lighthouses of Devmaer Book 4
When Radiance refuses to choose between the two men who love her, they join forces and take the decision out of her hands.
After surviving a harrowing imprisonment in her homeland, Radiance has a new and independent life in her adopted country of Icebridge. She has achieved a coveted senior military rank and now lives beside the ocean that is her lifeblood. Her secluded lighthouse home is the perfect place to keep the secrets she dares not share with anyone.
Because of her special gifts, she has sworn to never give herself to only one man. Instead, she enjoys the affections of two dominant Devmaerean officers, Ghent and Khari. She is lover to both and faithful to neither.
Then a freak storm draws her into dangerous seas to save a squadron of ships bound for Icebridge. As Radiance guides the fleet, with its royal passengers toward a safe harbor, a massive sea tornado sweeps her up. It drops her into the net of ruthless pirates, men whose raging lust is at a tipping point.
As Ghent and Khari plan her rescue, they decide there will be a change in their future with Radiance. First, she will have to present herself for a shameful punishment, as atonement for her life-threatening secrecy. Is Radiance as brave as she thinks she is?
Disclaimer: Bound To The Watchers includes spankings and sexual scenes, intended for mature audiences. These scenes are fantasies included for entertainment purposes only. If such spicy material, might offend you, please don’t buy this book. This standalone novel is book 4 in the Lighthouses of Devmaer series. It has a satisfying ending and can be read on its own or as part of the series.
***Check out the FREE Lighthouses of Devmaer Novellas too! ***
Bound By His Kiss
Get it FREE with newsletter sign up
Bound By Love
Get it FREE with newsletter sign up
Get the Prequel novella Bound to the Past FREE here!
My smart spicy romance novels feature strong, self-reliant women and the powerful men who love them. They deliver a sting in every tale.
Canadian by birth, I also lived in Australia for a couple of decades. While living there I overcame my aversion to saucer-sized spiders and, as a condition of marriage to my Aussie Prince Charming, I swore a lifelong allegiance to the Melbourne Football Club.
Then family called and my husband and I packed up and moved. We now live on a rocky island on Canada’s West Coast, close to beaches that once were frequented by smugglers and rumrunners.
My passions are reading and writing. I adore all animals and love hiking, beachcombing, and an occasional night of dancing.
Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!
$25 Amazon

Mystics in Hell #Fantasy #HistoricalFantasy #DarkFantasy

Mystics in Hell

Mystic Madness!

Join the doomed on their vision quests in eleven stories by the damnedest writers in Perdition: Janet Morris; A.L. Butcher; Joe Bonadonna; Andrew P. Weston; Gustavo Bondoni; Seth Lindberg; Tom Barczak; Michael H. Hanson; Louis Antonelli; Christopher Crosby Morris.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Mystics-Hell-Janet-Morris-ebook/dp/B0926LKYYH/

Janet Morris & Chris Morris: A Frame of Mind

The devil’s casting couch becomes a chopping block. On a blasted heath, Marlowe find’s his mystic powers and loses his head over the Weyward Sisters. At the Globe, unwitting Orpheus and Solomon set the stage for Satanic mayhem as real witches cast themselves in Macbeth.

Andrew P. Weston: The Come Right Inn

In the Come Right Inn, we meet one of Satan’s most secretive agents. A charming woman with a finger – and most other body parts – in every pie. She’s bewitching, beguiling, and bedeviled to be sure, but won’t think twice about skinning you alive if you cross her. 

A.L. Butcher: Abode of Woe

When the self-proclaimed anti-messiah builds a temple on their doorstep and ruins business, Calchas and Cassandra look to some devious means to bring down the walls.

Duelling mystics and misinformation bring mayhem to the underworld.

S E. Lindberg: Fool’s Gold

Rejoice Forty-niners, there is a gold rush in hell! King Midas still transmutes flesh into gold. He’s minting the promising new gastro-currency: buttcoin. Mine for a price. At your own risk.

Most-infamous archeologist Howard Carter discovers that exploiting mysticism can turn a profit, even in hell. If only he could only seize the Philosopher’s Stone from higher powers…

Thoth, Egyptian god of mysticism, seeks conspirators to regain control over his realm of afterlife, Duat. He just needs someone to retrieve his alchemical powers. You in?

Lou Antonelli: The True Believer

The man who invented Apartheid refuses to acknowledge his hellish fate and gets a special visit to set him straight.

Gustavo Bondoni: By Any Means Necessary

Umberto Eco knows he’s in Hell; the suffering and multiple deaths that never kill him permanently are more than enough of a clue for a man of his learning.  But when he gets forcibly recruited by Nazi Commando Otto Skorzeny to prove the theories of one of history’s greatest charlatans, he thinks things can’t get any worse.  He’s wrong.  Hell can always get worse.

Tom Barczak: Excalibur

Hell can be hard. But Rasputin has something even harder, and Lafayette Ronald Hubbard desperately needs it if he is going to pull off the greatest magic trick hell has ever known.

Michael H. Hanson: On the Run

Sufi mystic Rumi, Zen Buddhist Dōgen, and Charlatan Spiritualist Mina Crandon use their new found magics on the grandest of all quests, to find powerful talismans that will allow them to escape Hell itself.

Andrew P. Weston: The Sorcerous Apprentice

In The Sorcerous Apprentice, Daemon Grim learns new tricks from an old dog. And just as well. There’s a fallen saint to bring to heel, and she’s not known for playing ball . . . crystal or otherwise. 

Joe Bonadonna: Colossus of Hell

Victor Frankenstein and Alan Turing want to build a cyborg. Quasimodo wants to win the hand of a fortune teller. Rasputin and Cagliostro want to open a private club. And the Orange Ogre, he wants revenge.

Strange Arts: Janet and Chris Morris

Deep in the bowels of the Tower, Kit Marlowe is recruited by Elizabeth’s spymaster, Walsingham, for a perilous mission. Witches, wraiths, Fates? Who are the Weyward Sisters? And what do they want in hell?

The War of Nytefall – Savagery #Vampires #Fantasy #Adventure – Book Spotlight

Title:  War of Nytefall: Savagery

Author:  Charles E. Yallowitz

Genre:  Fantasy, Vampires, Action Adventure

Main character description (short):

In the magical world of Windemere, Clyde was your average vampire thief who ran a gang of criminals.  Then, the Great Cataclysm struck in the middle of his execution and transformed him into a new breed of monster.  Able to retain his strength in the sun and possessing a heartbeat, Clyde realized he could pass as mortal.  He also learned that he could turn old-world vampires into what would come to be known as Dawn Fangs.  For years, he has defended the hidden kingdom of Nytefall as he waits for the day vampires and mortals can coexist.  It doesn’t help that he really enjoys fighting and keeps looking for trouble.

Synopsis:

After years of defending Nytefall and the Dawn Fangs from all enemies, Clyde may have met his ultimate challenge.  Matching the destructive vampire in power and ferocity, Alastyre the hunter is the first to make him feel fear.  Before he knows what is happening, Clyde has been driven from his home while his friends remain trapped with this new threat.  His only hope is to find a way to become stronger and return to reclaim his kingdom.  Yet, how can a monster who splits mountains with a single blow become more powerful?

Brief Excerpt:

The instant the longbow clatters on the floor, Clyde and Alastyre vanish for a moment and reappear on opposite sides of the courtyard. The force from their failed strikes create matching blasts of air and they whirl around in unison to face each other once more. Another charge results in the combatants crashing together, the shockwave sending a circular wall of sand billowing away from them. Palms pressing against each other, they appear to be evenly matched until Clyde is struck by a swift headbutt. Having been caught by surprise, his back-leg bends and he loses the leverage that was preventing him from being forced away. With his knee on the ground, he is bent backwards and left open for another shot to the face. It is only by increasing his Lord’s Rage that he avoids falling and musters the strength to shove Alastyre to the side. He dislocates his wrists to free his hands from the hunter’s grip and creates four illusions of himself to gain time to heal. With his own body masked to blend into the nearest boulder, the Dawn Fang crouches in order to pounce on the first opportunity. Instead, he has to leap away when his enemy ignores the decoys and punches exactly where he is lurking.

“I’ve studied your tactics, so your tricks are pointless,” Alastyre says as he throws the cracked boulder over his shoulder.

“Guess I’ll have to take you seriously then,” the Dawn Fang retorts with a grin.

Why should readers buy this book?

The only reason to buy this book is because it’s a fun adventure.  I write to entertain with humour, exciting action scenes, and colourful characters.  Like my other books, War of Nytefall: Savagery is pure, relaxing escapism.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0921ZGG44

 

Racconti Oscuri e Versi Contorti

https://books2read.com/Dark-Tales-Italian

Racconti oscuri sui fantasmi della guerra, il sangue dell’autunno del terrore, l’ira della natura, un omicidio insolito e un vampiro cinico. Poesia contorta di perdita e caos.
Alcuni temi e linguaggi per adulti.

#Fantasy #Fantasia #DarkFantasy

The Stolen Kingdom – Blog Tour – YA Fantasy

 
 
 
The Stolen Kingdom
by Jillian Boehme
Genre: YA Fantasy
 
 
“A bold girl, a kingdom under attack, magic everywhere—I devoured it in one sitting! This book is one wild ride!” —Tamora Pierce on Stormrise
 
Nothing is quite as it seems in this thrilling YA fantasy adventure by Jillian Boehme, The Stolen Kingdom!
 
For a hundred years, the once-prosperous kingdom of Perin Faye has suffered under the rule of the greedy and power-hungry Thungrave kings. Maralyth Graylaern, a vintner’s daughter, has no idea her hidden magical power is proof of a secret bloodline and claim to the throne. Alac Thungrave, the king’s second son, has always been uncomfortable with his position as the spare heir—and the dark, stolen magic that comes with ruling.
When Maralyth becomes embroiled in a plot to murder the royal family and seize the throne, a cat-and-mouse chase ensues in an adventure of dark magic, court intrigue, and forbidden love.
 
**Join the Live Chat Author Event March 5th here!**
 
 
 
 
 
Jillian is known to the online writing community as Authoress, hostess of Miss Snark’s First Victim, a blog for aspiring authors. In real life, she holds a degree in Music Education, sings with the Nashville Symphony Chorus, and homeschools her remaining youngster-at-home. She’s still crazy in love with her husband of more than thirty years and is happy to be surrounded by family and friends amid the rolling knolls of Middle Tennessee.
 
 
 
 
 
 
Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!
 
$20 Amazon
 
a Rafflecopter giveaway https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

 

5 Tips on Writing Fantasy Characters – Guest Post Desiree Villena

5 Tips for Writing Fantasy Characters – Desiree Villena

Most creative writing classes treat writing characters and writing fantasy characters as one and the same. They provide run-of-the-mill tips (create conflict, establish flaws, etc.) and you end up with run-of-the-mill characters — well-developed, but nothing out of the ordinary.

But what fantasy writers need are legendary characters — characters that stay with you for a lifetime, like those that occupy the worlds of J. R. R. Tolkien and George R. R. Martin. Unfortunately, these writers haven’t exactly revealed all their secrets to the rest of us. But by working backwards, I’ve put together five top tips, exclusively for fantasy writers, that should help you think outside of the character-profile box.

1. Interview your characters to get to know them

Whether you adopt the tactics of a police interrogator or Oprah Winfrey, interviewing your characters is a great way to flesh out their motives, weaknesses, history, habits, and hobbies. Sure, the same advice is given to authors of all fiction genres, but when writing fantasy this exercise calls for more creative flair.

For instance, most questionnaires will ask your character about their career: What’s your dream job? What job would you never consider? When writing contemporary fiction, it’s easy to fall back on conventions: I want to become a writer, a football star, a successful entrepreneur. I’d never be a high-school teacher, a telemarketer, a pest control worker. Your fantasy characters, however, will need to produce answers that make sense in the context of their world.

Let’s take the Harry Potter series as an example. Some Hogwarts graduates will join the Aurors — an elite group of Dark Wizard catchers — others take soul-crushing jobs in magic middle management, and I imagine someone has to clean up the mess made by the post-office owls. These jobs are recognizable; we can place them in the real world, and even make assumptions about a character based on their magical nine-to-five. But at the same time, they place the character firmly in the unique world of the books, seamlessly weaving the two together and adorning the bigger picture with original details.

2. Don’t assume that your characters think like you

When a story takes place in a world that’s not our own, its characterizations should reflect that on a deeper level than just creative job titles and otherworldly hobbies. Everyone in your world, good or bad, leading lady or forgettable friend, will share a baseline set of assumptions informed by the world they inhabit, which means that their inherent ways of thinking won’t always resemble our own.

Let’s say your fantasy novel is set in a world where gods regularly show their faces to interfere in everyday life. Though atheism might be common here on Earth Prime, it would make no sense for anyone in that world to be an atheist. This doesn’t have to mean that everybody thinks and feels exactly the same way about the gods; some characters might fervently believe that they reward devotion and punish sin, while others might quietly think of them as meddling pranksters.

Setting up coherent belief systems and knowing where your characters stand on your world’s “big questions” will help you to build more complex relationships among your characters, and between your characters and their world.

3. Build diversity into your cast of characters

In general, creating some diversity in your cast of characters can be a really useful thing to do. Meaningfully different perspectives and experiences will add complexity to your world, and hopefully create intuitive conflict or tension among your characters.

If your world is divided into different regions, for example, then the people in each region might have vastly different cultures due to the influence of climate, landscape, or the way they’re ruled. Take A Song of Ice and Fire. The people in the North live, think, and dress very differently from the people in King’s Landing: the first being sparsely populated, harsh, and independently ruled while the other is crowded, coastal, and right under the thumb of the Iron Throne.

Even within distinct groups, one member doesn’t need to have the same mannerisms, views, and values as the next. In The Lord of the Rings, Tolkien has creatures that are familiar to fantasy readers, and certainly employs generic tropes. But his elves, dwarves, hobbits, and wizards are not carbon-copy fantasy races. Among the dwarves, for example, there are good and wicked, eloquent and crass, loyal and traitorous characters.

4. Revitalize common character tropes

Lots of fantasy writers love character archetypes — which is not necessarily a bad thing, because fantasy readers love them too. But if you rely too much on clichés, you might stray into overly predictable territory. There’s also no reason to get anywhere near that black hole when there are so many great ways to revitalize common character tropes. Here are a couple to get you thinking:

  • Deconstruct it: Even if you adhere to its traditions, you can deconstruct a trope by shining a light on its implications and consequences. For example, Harry Potter may be the Chosen One — but only because the antagonist, Voldemort, decided to believe a prophecy and mark Harry out. The notion of the Chosen One only has as much power as Voldemort gives it.
  • Defy expectations: When readers encounter an archetypal character they’ll bring certain expectations to the table (because that’s how archetypes work). But you can give your character a dose of originality by meeting enough of the required standards that make a trope recognizable, while defying other characteristics that are simply expected. For example, the White Witch of Narnia ticks all the boxes of an Evil Overlord, but she defies character conventions by being a woman shrouded in white, rather than a male character cloaked in darkness.

5. Keep the bigger picture in mind

You may have noticed that in fantasy writing, worldbuilding and character development often go hand-in-hand. And nowhere is this more evident (or more important) than in the mood and tone of your story. Whether you build your setting or your characters first, the general tenor of both elements should work together to create the perfect atmosphere.

The easiest way to think of this is to look at some more examples. In the Song of Ice and Fire books, where the dead stand up to fight and swords are forged with blood, even our favorite characters are flawed — Arya is obsessed with revenge, Tyrion is morally ambiguous, and Daenerys is proud and stubborn (and burns down a city). These gray characters meld perfectly with the grim and somber tone that shrouds this highly cynical series.

Meanwhile, the first few books in the Harry Potter series are full of wonder and whimsy. Its magical world features bat-bogey hexes, dodgy spell-checking quills, and wacky divination lessons. So it makes perfect sense that the protagonists be quirky teenagers who are always bickering, fumbling first crushes, and failing to get to grips with Muggle technology (I’m looking at you, Ron).

So take inspiration from fantasy legends JKR and GRRM. Don’t just fill in a character profile. Think about the emotional texture of your book and the kind of reaction you want from your readers. Then approach the task of character development with your mind on the bigger picture.

Scarlett and the Big Bad – Blog Tour – Paranormal Fantasy Romance

Scarlett and the Big Bad
Fated Fairytales Book 1
by Sierra Brave
Genre: Paranormal Fantasy Romance
What if Red Riding Hood invited peril and the big, bad wolf was the only hero who could save her?
Promised power and position, Scarlett Capuche left her tiny village to join the prestigious Order of the Phoenix.
Monty Blackwolf never wanted a mate, especially not a human raised on a hidden farm for blood-ritual sacrifice. But his werewolf’s heightened sense of smell drew him to Scarlett’s sweet fragrance from miles away.
Duty-bound to protect her, he will break her of her religious devotion to the magical terrorist group responsible for the murders of his parents and older brother, even if he has to put her over his knee and turn her bottom as red as her hair.
She belongs to him now, and he will claim all of her despite his affliction with a unique, third shifter-form he doesn’t fully understand and isn’t able to control.
Will Monty save Scarlett, or will he prove more dangerous to her than anyone else?
Author’s Note: If you’re offended by steamy fairytale retellings with graphic language, explicit put-you-in-the-moment love scenes, elements of power exchange, and domestic discipline, you might want to look for a different book.
Sierra Brave is a multi-published author of heart-pounding, blush-inducing romance with put-you-in-the-moment love scenes. She enjoys writing about a variety of gorgeous alpha males who can’t resist head-strong heroines. Curvy girls have a special place in her heart and often grace the pages of her books. Tales of shifters, cowboys, twisted fairy tales, space pirates, Amazon warriors, and vampires capture her imagination as do tempting spanking and ménage scenarios, but she also engages in more down-to-earth themes such as office romance. You’ll find lots of unique characters and humor in all of her stories.
Follow the tour HERE for special content and a giveaway!
$10 Amazon giftcard, ebook – 1 winner each