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One question that all aspiring fantasy creators struggle with is how much realism to incorporate in the world and story they’re creating. Many understand that there is a fundamental difference between the two and that bringing elements from the former into the latter might be off-putting to some. The question of realism in fantasy is one all creators must face sooner or later.
What exactly is realism in fantasy? It depends on what one’s interpretation of realism is, considering different people have differing viewpoints on what that entails. One common thing to note is that it essentially takes things found in the real world and puts them in one that is magical or fantasy-oriented.
Another fundamental question is how much there should be in terms of realism in fantasy. This is where people get into trouble by adding too much, making the world and story feel a bit too familiar to the audience. People want to explore magical worlds filled with things that defy logical explanation, not things they know all too well in the real world.
When constructing your tale and the world where it takes place in, think about how much realism you want to bring in. If you deign to do so, be mindful of what you incorporate and work assiduously to ensure that it doesn’t deter from the magical or fantastical side of the plot. The last thing you want to to have your audience feel like they’re reading or watching something that feels like it could take place in reality.
This is article number three in The Sunlit Hearth series. For more, take a gander at our other articles on our blog page!
Realism in fantasy means different things to different people. Before you eagerly leap into making your world and story, you should think about what it means to you. This is an important question to ponder since what you consider realism in fantasy will be markedly different compared to someone else and it will impact how you approach worldbuilding.
Practically all stories in fictional realms feature elements of the real world in one fashion or another. For instance, you have homes or other places of residence, markets, and so on. This helps the audience immerse themselves into these fantastical worlds since even imaginary characters need a place to call home and get food, clothes, and other basic necessities. This is par for the course in the genre and is absolutely fine.
It is true that the main drama of the story is influenced by those found in the real world. You have tragic tales of love, the rise and fall of either a character, institution, or civilization, evil destroying everything it comes into contact with, and so on. These various types of stories set in fictional worlds work because they strike a chord in the audience’s hearts, whether they experienced something similar themselves or know someone it happened to.
Realism in fantasy even extends to the type of clothes people in these worlds wear. Depending on the time the tale is set in, people wear clothes similar to those found in their real-world counterparts. For example, a medieval world will be led by a king who wears extravagant clothes that are close in appearance to their real world brethren whereas a peasant will wear simple clothes that show visible signs of wear-and-tear.
The governments that appear in the worlds of the genre are even modeled off on that of the real world. Monarchy is the reigning champion, appearing in far more worlds than any other form of government even with all of its various forms. Democracy and authoritarian regimes are other popular choices as well. This helps the audience easily grasp how things are run and allows them to see how the citizens of these imaginary realms feel about the current state of affairs in the country they reside in.
Since there are elements of realism too integral to not include in the world and the story, it’s awfully tempting to keep adding even more. Before you know it, you’ve put in more than you expected but something about your world just feels off, like there’s something there that shouldn’t be but you’re just not sure what it is.
The trouble of having too much realism in fantasy is that instead of transporting your audience to a magical realm, you’ve taken them to a world too close to that of the real one. A world where there’s no magic but automobiles, airplanes, smartphones, and so on. Your viewers might wonder where the magic or fantastical aspects are, if any exist at all.
There is one exception to this and that’s if your tale is set in the real world or an alternative realm much like that of the Harry Potter series. While these stories primarily are set in Hogwarts and the magical community, viewers also see that they live with non-magic folk or Muggles as they’re called where they have access to the technology we have. This helps them see both the similarities and differences between the two communities.
For many people, fantasy serves as an escapism from reality. A place where they let their imagination roam free as visions of brave knights battling a vicious dragon, wizards furiously casting magical spells on each other, and a mighty king sitting on his throne flash through their minds. They do not want to be in a world too similar to that of the real one and that is the peril of having too much realism in fantasy.
Stories such as Lord of the Rings strikes a perfect chord in achieving realism in fantasy without diluting their fantastical charm. Viewers are treated to a spectrum of different races and cultures, each one with their own style of living. They see bygones of a glorious civilization that now lie underwater that only spur more interest and tales of love, sorrow, victory, and defeat inspired from the real world.
Having realism in fantasy isn’t necessarily a bad thing. The difficulty is trying to find the sweet spot between having too much or too little. It’s up to you, the creator, to find that balance and doing so will be worth it since you’ll have brought in some realism while still maintaining that quintessential charm that is so endearing to many people across Earth.
There are elements of realism that you definitely need to incorporate that might not appear in the story proper but are essentially the operating framework of the world it takes place in. Things like government and history shape the world as your audience finds it and shouldn’t be omitted.
On the other hand, don’t overlook the importance of that elusive magical charm like spells or noteworthy races like Elves or Dwarves. Though they are exclusive to the genre, they bring something to the table that you just can’t replicate with things found in reality like computers. All these fantasy-oriented things come with their sort of history and tradition that enrich the world.
The objective here is to achieve success by finding that balance between having too much or too little realism in fantasy. It can be tricky but the payoff is worth it since there are parts of the real world that help your audience make sense of a realm they’re just learning about for the first time.
In the final analysis, realism in fantasy can be good, provided it’s used in the right fashion which heightens your audience’s immersion in the world you built for the plot and doesn’t make it lost that indescribable whimsical charm that is associated with the genre.
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Sunfire
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