Writer of fantasy here, happy to join an active writing community!

Hi there! I'm an avid fan of reading and writing fantasy. I've been writing for as long as I can remember. It took me writing several really awful novels (that will remain hidden forever on my hard drive) to learn my craft. I'm currently polishing up the fifth draft of a ~120k manuscript and am 50k into the first draft of completely different project. I also exchange writing with a few good friends and have provided in-line critiques on their own fantasy stories. This has helped me learn a lot about spotting potential improvements in my own writing.

Some of the best writing advice I've found has been from K. M. Weiland's website. Her posts about structuring plot and character arcs have really helped me and I highly recommend checking out her blog. I hope I can learn lots here, and share some of the tips I've picked up over the years as well! Nice to meet everyone.

Thank you everyone for the warm welcome!!

PhoenixFlower said:

What kind of Fantasy do you like to write? For me, I like Middle Age Fantasy!

Click to expand...

It's hard for me to choose a favourite, I've written epic fantasy and romantic fantasy and lots in between. Middle Ages fantasy is always a lot of fun! One of my current WIPs has a Middle Ages feel, but with some steampunk-esque elements thrown in thanks to the magic system.

indianroads said:

This is a good place to be. I’m more of a sci-fi guy, but there’s a strong fantasy crowd here.

Click to expand...

Awesome, that's great to hear!! I struggle to find fantasy readers/writers (or sci-fi, for that matter) where I live, so thank goodness for the internet.

Thank you Ambrosia, I'll be sure to check those out this week!!

Thanks again everyone!!

CameronJohnston said:

Are you looking to self-publish it or send it off to agents?

Click to expand...

I've never engaged in the good 'ol uphill battle of querying agents yet, so I think I'd like to give that a try first. That being said, I've done some research on self-publishing, advertising, promoting, etc. so that is something I'd still like to try in the future, too. I hear some authors have both traditionally and self-published books, which is kinda neat -- a bit of both worlds.

Soliloquill said:

Welcome! Fantasy is my first love, so I'm always excited to meet other fantasy writers. I look forward to maybe seeing some of your work on the site

Click to expand...

I see you're new here too, so likewise for you! What sort of fantasy do you like to write?

CameronJohnston said:

There is a whole wealth of information on these boards from people subbing to agents, having agents and subbing to publishers and also self-publishing people too, so you are in a great place to find out more before deciding which route you fancy trying for. Personally I went for agents first as it seems so difficult to make a name for yourself self-publishing.

Click to expand...

I'll check those boards out, thank you! There's sooo much here, it'll take me some time to familiarize myself with everything. And I agree, there are definitely challenges to self-publishing, but I do also like the idea of retaining the rights to my story, commissioning or designing my own covers, and seeing my marketing efforts directly impacting my success. On the other hand, having an agent rooting for me and who can help take my book to the next level would be amazing too (and seeing my books in bookstores...).

P.S. I just visited your Twitter and realized I'm already following you! (@EmmaSkysong). Awesome to connect here with a published author, and congrats on the release of your book.

CameronJohnston said:

Oh hello! So you are! There's a whole lot of published authors on here in all sorts of genres, all more than happy to share advice. Thanks for the congrats! It's going pretty well so far.

Click to expand...

Small world! That's very cool, I look forward to meeting more writers and authors. And I'm really happy to hear your novel's release is going well!