I've written one fantasy book, am working on another, and planning several more. The thing is, I may not be the most voracious reader out there, but I'm still aware that my idea for the overall series is different from most.
See, there IS an ultimate enemy working behind the scenes, planning a final war to annihilate mankind, potent forces who oppose him, mysteries to be uncovered, and a thousand-plus year history that explains how things got to this point. BUT the first book serves sort of as an introduction, featuring an amnesiac who discovers the world at the same time the readers do, and battles an evil unrelated to the Big Bad. In the second one, another protagonist comes into contact with the Big Bad's servants, enemies, and makes some discoveries about the overall plot.
In the future I plan to feature more direct conflicts and revelations, but also character-based (but still intense and bloody) tales of smaller issues, with various recurring protagonists, some of whom never encounter one another.
What I'm curious about is: Do you think this works? This may seem a bit odd, but I really just want to tell all kinds of stories of well-rounded characters and what they get into, with ancient cataclysms, supernatural armies, fallen empires and divine warriors serving largely as the backdrop explaining why things are this way.
See, there IS an ultimate enemy working behind the scenes, planning a final war to annihilate mankind, potent forces who oppose him, mysteries to be uncovered, and a thousand-plus year history that explains how things got to this point. BUT the first book serves sort of as an introduction, featuring an amnesiac who discovers the world at the same time the readers do, and battles an evil unrelated to the Big Bad. In the second one, another protagonist comes into contact with the Big Bad's servants, enemies, and makes some discoveries about the overall plot.
In the future I plan to feature more direct conflicts and revelations, but also character-based (but still intense and bloody) tales of smaller issues, with various recurring protagonists, some of whom never encounter one another.
What I'm curious about is: Do you think this works? This may seem a bit odd, but I really just want to tell all kinds of stories of well-rounded characters and what they get into, with ancient cataclysms, supernatural armies, fallen empires and divine warriors serving largely as the backdrop explaining why things are this way.
