(Part 2) Top products from r/fantasywriters

Hi Remett, glad you're interested in writing! I'll work on answering your questions as best as I can. Before I get started, just know that there is by no means a set answer for any of the questions you ask. The beauty of writing is everybody figures out their own way to tell their story! Here's what I've learned since studying writing in school and dabbling in long form fiction since graduating in 2014.

• Most writers talk about two styles of developing their story, there are Gardeners and Planners. Most writers fall somewhere in the middle. Gardeners will sit at a blank page and see where their mind takes them, the world will start fleshing itself out as you go. Planners will outline and world build like mad before even writing a single sentence of the actual story. I'd suggest as you start with by coming up with major plot points and then figure out how you want to connect them. When I'm home from work I'll do some digging and see if I can find the old outlining tips I had from one of my creative writing professors that I found very helpful.
  
  
• I like to think of the culture that the town, character, religion, etc. is emulating (eg: Norse, Anglo Saxon, Chinese, etc.) then look up names from said culture. From there I can get a good idea of naming conventions for that culture, or simply take a common name from it that still sounds un-Americanized.
  
  
• You're inevitably going to write in cliches and tropes when you start out writing. Don't worry it happens to everybody. My favorite quote about writing comes from Ira Glass, I've cut away most of the fluff, but the bulk of it says "Nobody tells this to people who are beginners...For the first couple years you make stuff, it's just not that good. It's trying to be good, it has potential, but it's not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you." Here is the whole quote if you're interested. If it reads like crap, don't worry, everybody who starts out writing will have that feeling.
  
  
• I have two tips: Write and Read! And by read, I mean read everything, not just your genre you're interested in. Read everything, read crappy romance novels, read classic literature, read political thrillers. Read everything you possibly, every book has a lesson to teach a writer, even if it's something that you shouldn't do! Every day you write you're getting practice. The best artists aren't born great, they are made great through working at it regularly.
  
  A book I'd also recommend you checking out: "Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them". This book was great for teaching me what to look for in other people's writing when I read books.
  
  Let me know if you have any questions. Happy writing!

>Would you be interested in such book?

Possibly ... but speaking personally I tend to be a bit wary of stories which use multiple mythologies in the way you have described especially when not all of them are Gods (e.g. Gilgamesh, Cú Chulainn) and when they are Gods they are Gods of a very different kind from one another (e.g. Loki, and Thoth, and perhaps, again, Cú Chulainn).

I'm a bit wary of such stories because it is easy for them to:

• present different families of Gods as if they were something like national football teams (and sometimes this can lead to quite superficial national stereotypes played out through the characters);
  
• or it simply uses their names and some basic characteristics, but does not exploit the potential any further than that.
  
  It can be done well - Jo Walton and Marie Phillips have both written - in my opinion - really good novels using Gods at their core and Neil Gaiman - although I confess I'm very lukewarm about his stuff and feel that he's overrated - has also been successful with this concept.
  
  But it seems to me that it tends to work best when it's based on just one mythological pantheon such as Greek (Walton, Phillips) or Norse (Gaiman).
  
  I think if you wanted to throw all these different heroes and pantheons together I think you would have to go all out surrealist or post-modern to really pull it off.
  
  I don't mean to pour cold water on the idea - I certainly think the story you've outlined could be very good, brilliant even. But based on the concept alone, this is my initial reaction.

> … have they outlived their usefulness?

Not at all in my opinion.

> Are they too cliche to work?

Again, no - look at Robert Graves’ use of prophecy in his I Claudius and Claudius the God novels (I realise those are historical fiction not fantasy, but with the Imperial Roman setting and the belief in Gods and magic it makes compelling reading for any fan of Fantasy).

I think it’s only a cliche when surrounded by other cliches - i.e. an inexperienced or developing writer may not use it to best effect but the fault their is with the writer’s skill not the trope itself.

> Do they distract from a reader's ability to enjoy the story as it goes so they're not constantly looking to shoehorn an event into the larger prophesy arc?

Same answer as before really - I strongly recommend Graves’ use of prophecy in his I Claudius and Claudius the God novels - the narrator, the Emperor, and all the other characters live their entire lives in the shadow of various prophecies and astrological readings that they take to discover how their lives will turn out.

The way in which prophecy is interwoven into everything that happens therefore puts it right at the heart of the story and makes for a great read.

I'm not very well-versed in universal themes, or in Islam, but I have a few sources that might help you with some of the Christian side of your research:

The Christian Classics Ethereal Library has free PDFs of many primary sources from the early church fathers. Christian belief has taken many different forms over the last two millennia, and seeing some of their unique perspectives might help inspire you.

Also, The Mosaic of Christian Belief covers a lot of the different views held by different Christian groups today. If you're looking for a wide variety of thoughts and positions, it might be a good place to start.

Edit:

For Christian ethics, you might look at N.T. Wright's book After You Believe, or Samuel Wells' Christian Ethics: An Introductory Reader which includes a lot of great selections from different writers throughout history.

A word of caution: while /u/ProbableWalrus has succeeded in making your first few paragraphs more interesting, his version is still error-ridden. You'll need a solid understanding of grammar and punctuation if you want to get published.

I think Martha Kolln's Rhetorical Grammar would help you tremendously. It provides a thorough-but-accessible overview of modern phrase-structure grammar, favoring critical, rhetorical decision-making over rote memorization. If you're interested in something more advanced, Steven Pinker's The Sense of Style is also wonderful. Pinker is on the cutting edge of modern linguistics.

I third this. I'm Irish and all I have from my school days are a few words, and the following sentences: "An bhfuil cead agam dul go dti an leithreas?" & "Ba bhrea liom cupán tae!" (Can I go to the toilet? & I'd love a cup of tea!").

If you want to incorporate Gaelic elements, I would recommend focusing on mythology, and instead of the language, maybe use a few words here and there. Check out the writings of W.B. Yeats and Lady Gregory also - they wrote during the Irish Literary Revival, and you get a real feeling of "Irishness" from that period.

Here are a few books to check out:
Writings on Irish Folklore, Legend and Myth (Yeats)

Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry, Edited by W.B.Yeats, Social Science, Folklore & Mythology

A Treasury of Irish Myth, Legend & Folklore: Fairy and Folk Tales of the Irish Peasantry (Yeats & Gregory)

Lady Gregory's Complete Irish Mythology

Biddy Early: The Wise Woman of Clare (Biddy was a real woman, with lots of magical stories surrounding her. Apparently she could foresee things, and cure anything - all with her bottle. Even if not for world-building, I'd recommend this).

Inventing Ireland: The Literature of a Modern Nation: Literature of the Modern Nation by Declan Kiberd.

Learn grammar, then learn how to break the rules.

I've met a lot of good journalists who know nothing about grammar. However, many of them develop an intuitive sense for it overtime and make due. You might be the sort of person that can get away with this. To increase your chances of success, though, I would recommend you at least study a few books on the subject.

Skunk and White's elements of Style is a good starting point. After that, you can move on to something like Rhetorical Grammar by Koln and Gray (http://www.amazon.ca/Rhetorical-Grammar-6th-Martha-Kolln/dp/0205706754/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1369411827&sr=1-1&keywords=rhetorical+grammar).

Study rhetorical devices as well. Here's a small online guide http://www.virtualsalt.com/rhetoric.htm

Robin Hobb's Farseer Books are pretty much the pinnacle for me when it comes to an assassin protagonist. Start with 'Assassin's Apprentice' if you haven't read it yet. Brilliant characterisation and great plotting.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Assassins-Apprentice-Farseer-Trilogy-Book-ebook/dp/B005JE1K9M/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1541609228&sr=1-3&keywords=robin+Hobb

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I also really enjoyed Anthony Ryan's Blood Song Trilogy, especially the first book, which focuses on the young assassin in training.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Blood-Song-Book-Ravens-Shadow/dp/0356502481

I love Joe Abercrombie's fantasy noir/grimdark. It's long on swords and short on magic. If you want to emulate someone, I can't think of a better choice. He writes fully realized characters, even for his bit parts. He avoids cliches in his phrasing and dialogue, so everything seems fresh. And he does great action scenes. I think the best introduction to Abercrombie is Best Served Cold.

I think it's also important to read Mark Lawrence, starting with Prince of Thorns.

Lol don't take me too seriously. i only just picked it up and am working my way through it. I really enjoy Robert Fagles' translation

Just some basic suggestions, you can do with it what you will :)

https://www.amazon.com/Mythic-Bestiary-Illustrated-Fantastical-Creatures/dp/1844834840

https://www.amazon.com/Dictionary-Imaginary-Places-Updated-Expanded/dp/0156008726/ref=pd_sim_14_6?ie=UTF8&dpID=518h-D4AR8L&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR123%2C160_&psc=1&refRID=8C817F7QAQJ2BTBRMV4H

https://www.amazon.com/Illustrated-Guide-Mythical-Creatures/dp/B006QS5XAC

https://www.amazon.com/Giants-Monsters-Dragons-Encyclopedia-Folklore/dp/0393322114/ref=pd_sim_14_2?ie=UTF8&dpID=51mZJ7gzjvL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR122%2C160_&psc=1&refRID=8C817F7QAQJ2BTBRMV4H

https://www.amazon.com/Monsterology-Complete-Book-Monstrous-Beasts/dp/0763639400/ref=pd_sim_14_4?ie=UTF8&dpID=61GBdkOSy3L&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR136%2C160_&psc=1&refRID=8C817F7QAQJ2BTBRMV4H

https://www.amazon.com/Spirits-Fairies-Leprechauns-Goblins-Encyclopedia/dp/0393317927/ref=pd_sim_14_5?ie=UTF8&dpID=61H%2BqteBZML&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR123%2C160_&psc=1&refRID=8C817F7QAQJ2BTBRMV4H

A couple ape examples off the top of my head: the librarian orangutan in The Color of Magic and the various chimeras in Daughter of Smoke and Bone. And Planet of the Apes, of course.

If you're going to use nonhumans, I would much rather see them acting like nonhumans. If you want a quick read to pick up some ape behaviors, check out the graphic novel Primates (science, not fantasy).

"He was a baboon" totally makes sense, but you could also twist it so that characters were calling him that when he's another species and they're just calling attention to whatever stereotypical traits they think baboons have.

Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. A personal favorite.

One of my personal favorite books is the dreaming void. it blends Space opera with high-fantasy.

Torn by is a novel about a magical seamatress whose biggest concern for much of the book is running her small business.

https://www.amazon.com/Torn-Unraveled-Kingdom-Rowenna-Miller/dp/0316478628