Are you a fantasy artist or a fantasy writer? And you’re wondering what to do next? You’re trying to write or paint but drawing a blank?
Well, worry no more. Bookmark this article and you’ll never run out of ideas again.
Characters
First, let’s talk characters. You have your lead character and your secondary characters. Are they human? What about the secondary characters? They don’t have to be human as well. They could be a humanoid race like elves, fairies, dwarves, goblins, orcs, ogres, genies, pixies, mermaids, giants, trolls, or even Gods, Goddesses, or Demi-Gods. Or the son or daughter of a God or Goddess.
Heck, they don’t even need to be humanoid. They could be dragons, unicorns, or even talking animals or familiars. Keep in mind that certain creatures can take forms of humans. I’ve even painted selkies before.
Quests
Now that you have your main character and characters, you need a reason for the story. What are they doing?
A common theme I’ve seen recently is a “bad creature” trying to be good and fit in with society. For instance, an ogre who’s now a good cop. Or an orc detective.
Sometimes, a race splits and you have to correct it. Like a race of elves goes totally evil and you need to rein them in.
Or, the old rescue mission. Rescue the princess from a dragon sacrifice? There’s been plenty of that in the old days. Why not do it again?
I know my son likes that Goblin Slayer cartoon. That’s a great one. People think goblins are easy. Until, they try to do it themselves. I could come up with three or four similar themes immediately.
Rescuing a thing. Or else. Something if not discovered in time will blow up a city. Some powerful artifact might fall into the wrong hands.
A bad guy needs to be reasoned with. Or slain. Something really big is at stake.
Settings
This is easy. You’re creating a fantasy world.
Simply take settings we have here. And exaggerate them.
The seas. The forests. The deserts. Mountains. Hills. Caves.
I’ve recently ventured into Sci-Fi territory. Except using Ancient Greek Goddesses. Why not?
The only limits in a fantasy world you have are the ones you give yourself. You’re literally allowed to do anything in the fantasy realm. That’s why it’s called fantasy. Your fantasy world gets to break all our earthly rules.
