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This are the steps to take when writing a fantasy novel. Well the steps I’m taking when writing a fantasy novel. I hope it helps anybody else who wants to give it a shot.

Fantasy Novel Checklist

___ Draw A Map.Include Interesting Places of Note that Could Possibly Be Used in Story

___ Draw Inhabitants Of People or Races on Map

___ Develop Creatures and Eco System for World, Record in World Building Notebook

___ Place Creatures of Importance on Map, Indicate Rest in World Building Notebook

___ Develop Language For Each Race as Needed in Current Book, Record in Culture Notebook

___ Develop Culture For Each Race as Needed in Current Book, Record in Culture Notebook

___ Develop the History of the Interesting Places of Note. Record in World Building Notebook

___ Develop Characters as Needed in Current Book, Record in Character Notebook

___ Develop Plot, Using Ideas From Past Check Points, Record in Plot Notebook and Cards

___ Begin Writing Book

___ Go Back to Any Check Point and Add Details as they are Needed While Writing Book

There is a lot more to each check point. Like in culture, you have to develop home life, community, religion, government. Each one of those will have different things related like architecture, clothing, magic, science, folk lore, music.

Characters are going to have many questions aside from physical attributes and habits. You need to go into past life, future plans, present problems. What do they need now, and how are they getting it. What are the things they have done they don’t want others to know about. How will they react if people do know, etc.

There is a lot to this list, but I break it down in an order that will help me move ahead and get the book finished. I placed it in a certain order for a reason.

I find that if I don’t have a map, I don’t have a place to start. I then find I need to place people on the maps, and creatures and other important places of note. I don’t know anything about the people or the creatures, or the places, but I know I will know when I start researching the languages of the people, and the culture, and developing the ecosystem, and the creatures. I have to do it in order.

Once that is done, I can then go and create characters based on their culture. Once I learn about the people I will then work on my plot. Usually if I’m not sure what I need for a plot, it will start developing as I learn about the characters.

If I have a plot already, I can work the people to fit into it. But usually, so far anyways, the plot comes after I develop the people.

Now you write.

While your writing, you will find there are things you need to know about. So then go back and research it as you write. Don’t try to research everything at once, because half of it you won’t even use. If you try to research everything, you will never get to writing. Just research enough to get the book started. Then research as you need the info.

Hopes this helps.

This is an email I received probably about five years ago, give or take. I stumbled upon it in my email and remembered why I had saved it. I loved it. It is a great piece of writing, a great inspiration.

I did not write this. As it says, an Australian Dentist wrote this. But of course, I’m not even sure if it really was an Australian Dentist. This piece just says it was.

So enjoy,

Cuyler Callahan

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A nicely written piece… Written by an Australian Dentist…
> >>>>
> >>>> To Kill an American or an Canadian
> >>>>
> >>>> You probably missed it in the rush of news last week, but there was
> >>>> actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a
> >>>> newspaper an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American or
> >>>> Canadian, any American or Canadian.
> >>>> Read the rest of this entry »

Fuck. What is wrong with me? I still am blank. I sit here thinking to myself about how much I want to write. I want to write I want to write I want to write… but what do I want to write? Everything that used to seem so important to me doesn’t seem so important any more. When I was younger I wanted to write about things that I wasn’t allowed to do, or I couldn’t do because I wasn’t old enough, or things stopped me.

I wanted to write about great sex and alcohol, and drugs, and I wanted to write it in a fantasy story. I wanted to write about hot characters, with smoking bodies. Curves that I could elusively talk about so I wouldn’t get in trouble by my parents if they read the story. I wanted to write about wars, great battles, with great heroes. I wanted to write about things that couldn’t ever happen in this world, about creatures that didn’t exist, about cultures and worlds and languages that I would make up myself and write about.

What happened to that? Why am I not interested in writing about it any more. Is it that my experiences since I was younger have made these things not seem so exciting any more? I’ve had sex, I’ve been with good looking women. I don’t need to write about sex, or hot women to get off and feel like I’m experiencing it. I have experienced it many times now. I don’t need to write about being drunk. I’ve been drunk many times now. I don’t need to write about drugs. I’ve done drugs.

I don’t need to write about battles. I haven’t been in a battle, but I’ve been in real life simulations, and had explosions go off around me that could injure me If I wasn’t careful. I have stayed up for days on end, and I’ve had hallucinations from being sleep deprived. I’ve experienced a more realistic battle then I could ever write about. The only thing more real would be a real battle. What I write about in a book though was not as rough as what I experienced in training, and so what could I possibly want to write about now. I suppose a more grisly and real life scenario of a real battle.

It seems that my main motivation for writing when I was younger was so I could experience things that I wasn’t allowed. Now I am non religious, and I have experienced many things I wasn’t allowed. I’m in the military, I’m a soldier. What do I want to write about? What reason is it that I want to write? I want to write because I remember what it was like to write before. The enjoyment I got from it. I like writing because I like to see the reactions I get from my readers. I want to write because I want to entertain, I want to make people experience emotion and say “that was a great book. Where is the next one.” I want a lifestyle where I can chill with a coffee in a nice suit and write a book. I want to be the distinguished writer. I want that lifestyle. I want a decent looking woman who is kind, and understands my passion.

What I more or less have written about lately now is my feelings. I’ve written about my feelings, and expressed them. I’ve had deeper conversations with people and written about them. I’ve written about deeper topics. About deeper thoughts I’ve had. I’m expressing myself on paper more directly then through fictional means. So what does this mean? Does this mean that even though I think I want to write fantasy again and fiction, that the reality is I want to write about deep topics and change the thoughts and ideas of other people out there?

Maybe that is it? Maybe I think I want to write fiction, when really I want to write about ideas, theology, and deeper topics that impact people on a deep level, not just give them a good story. But give them something to think about that might change their lives.

I want to write about where we came from, why we are here, and where we are going. The questions that religion today has tried to answer. I have my own answers, maybe I can share them with people. Though why do I want to share them with people? Do I want people to understand me? Maybe I feel like I’m alone in the world. I have tons of friends, but my family is all Mormon. I sometimes feel they don’t understand me. And the truth is, no matter how often they say they understand me, they never will. They can never understand me until they have lived my lifestyle.

That is why wars start. We here think we understand a people in another land, so when we try to give them our ideas, and they reject them, they get mad as we try to force them on them.

I’m lucky in this regard that my family doesn’t force their ideas on me, but they still do not understand me and I think I want to write my ideas so that I can see if others out there would like to learn about my believes and maybe they will take an interest in them.

I have started up a website where I share my writing with people. My ideas, my stories, my insights. I want to share an article on my beliefs on there. Maybe people will like it, and they will want to learn more. What more can I teach them? My beliefs are pretty simple. Maybe instead of writing a book about my ideas and thoughts, I will just continue to share them on my website and get faithful readers on there.

But will people take a great interest into my writing? Do people really care about my beliefs enough to be faithful readers? I don’t know, and the best way to find out is to just get people to read my stuff. Maybe later in the future I’ll have enough material an paper to write a full size book. I think another major reason I write is to get my ideas on paper because I have so many of them that I eventually get overwhelmed with my ideas and forget some. So I write them down as a way to archive my ideas.

So when I eventually get enough information for a book, I could put one together. But who would buy it? Who would by a book that has ideas and insights from a young twenty something man who doesn’t have important connections? Why would any body take notice of my ideas. If a famous actor writes something, everybody cares. I’m just a low ranking soldier and a very unfamous young man. Who would care to read? Why would a publisher publish my stuff? Even if it’s put together well, and the editor likes it, they have to have a market for it.

What market would such a book fall into? What genre would a book about my own insights and ideas fall into?

So what have I learned from this writing? I want to write, but my old reasons for writing have disappeared. I think I want to write fantasy, but I really want to write about my new ideas that have formed in my head over the last few years.

I will go about this, by publishing my writings on my site. I will build traffic to my site and get readers.
I also want to write so I can make money. I want to write good content that people take interest in, and they tell their friends, and I get enough traffic to sell advertising, and they buy products. But that means I need to find markets that I know enough about to write interesting and engaging content about.

I know a lot about body building, but I really am not that much of a body builder any more. What else do I know a lot about? I know a lot about writing. But who would listen to me? An unpublished young person. I have no real publishing creditability. I would just be teaching stuff I learned and rehashed to teach others. Thats the problem. I need to be able to write about stuff that I am accomplished in, and that people can see that I have a real say in. I can’t have a real influence in a market if I am not successful in it.

This is stuff I need to think about.