Epic Fantasy

I think a lot of people are fans of epic fantasies, if they are done right. The success, both past and present, of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle Earth books is a testament to this fact. I consider Tolkien to have been a master of the craft.

When I was a teenager I got an idea for an epic fantasy novel series. I started writing the first book in the series, only to peter out after about a hundred pages or so. I knew then that I wasn't ready to really write the story. I had another crack at it several years ago, not too long before I started writing Shadow House. That time I produced about three hundred pages, but the whole thing felt off in a way I couldn't quite pinpoint. The smartest thing I did that time around was I did a lot of prewriting. When I say a lot, I mean I filled up a few notebooks and some sketchbooks with ideas, background for the world I was creating, character descriptions, ideas about the plot, etc.

I have continued to add to that body of prewriting since and the world I started to create has become much richer. The history of the world has deepened and become more complex. At the same time the characters have also become more interesting and three-dimensional. It's become a place where my mind can go and walk around, experiencing everything this other world has to offer.

I finally feel like I am nearing the point that I can really tell this story. The story is big and it is epic. There are multiple layers of themes, as well as many characters. It will probably still take me quite some time to bring the first book to market, and I anticipate writing at least two more. I will also likely be producing a large body of artwork to accompany the books, and so I might be doing some interesting projects with that as well. The story is not really like anything I have read, seen or heard of before and so it deserves to be told in a unique and memorable way.

From time to time I might mention this epic fantasy book, maybe even give everyone a few peeks into my sketches. Hopefully in the not too distant future I will have the first book ready for the public, and then you all can become familiar with the world my mind likes to traverse on a fairly regular basis.