Someone recently said writing fantasy was easy. Let’s nix this notion right now. In the process of coming up with Darkspire Reaches I created a whole new planet and a variety of very distinct races to populate it. How? Creating fantasy isn’t as simple as calling a bunny a flubbit, or some other strange name. A bunny is still a bunny and recognizable as such to any reasonable and sane person, to misquote Mark Twain.

A new world has to be just a tad off kilter, but still easy to visualize for the reader. Still thinking this is easy to do? A world must have weather patterns and this means a north and a south pole. A world entirely constructed of tropical rain forest would never be possible in nature. Why is this important? When I read a book I need to be able to suspend my disbelief. If this does not happen, I am questioning everything else. A world is therefore built from the bedrock upwards. 

This is just one book, Darkspire Reaches. Shadow Over Avalon explores a whole new world, complete with rules and structure. If anyone else would like to tell me this is easy, they are inviting a fat lip.