How to Write a Bestselling Fantasy Fiction Novel

Write a Bestselling Fantasy Fiction Novel

Fantasy fiction is a genre that has captivated audiences for centuries. From J.R.R. Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” to George R.R. Martin’s “A Song of Ice and Fire,” fantasy novels have proven to be some of the most successful and beloved books of all time. If you’re an aspiring fantasy author looking to write a bestselling novel, there are a few key things to keep in mind as you craft your story.

1. Develop a rich and detailed world. One of the hallmarks of fantasy fiction is the creation of a fully-realized, alternate world. This world should have its own history, culture, and rules. Therefore, it’s essential to take the time to build a rich and detailed world in which readers can fully immerse themselves. This includes creating unique and believable characters and developing a complex political and social landscape.
   
   
2. Create a compelling and relatable protagonist. In order for readers to connect with your story, they need to be able to identify with the main character. This means creating a relatable protagonist with a clear goal or motivation. It’s also vital to ensure that the character has a clear arc throughout the story, growing and changing as they face challenges and overcome obstacles.
   
   
3. Incorporate conflict and tension. A good story needs conflict and tension to keep readers engaged. This can be achieved through a variety of means, including a powerful and menacing villain, a life-or-death situation, or a political struggle. The key is to create a sense of danger and uncertainty that keeps the reader on the edge of their seat.
   
   
4. Use magic and mythology. Fantasy fiction often relies on magic and mythology to create a sense of wonder and imagination. This can take many forms, from a powerful sorcerer to a magical creature, to a powerful artifact. However, it’s important to make sure that any magic or mythology you incorporate into your story is consistent and believable within the world you’ve created.
   
   
5. Pay attention to pacing. The pacing of a fantasy novel is crucial to keeping readers engaged. A slow-moving story can quickly become tedious, while a fast-paced story can be overwhelming. Therefore, it’s critical to find a balance between the two, introducing new elements and twists to keep the story moving forward.
   
   
6. Edit, revise, and polish. Writing a bestselling fantasy novel is not a one-time effort. It requires a lot of hard work, dedication, and patience. It’s important to take the time to edit, revise, and polish your story to make sure it’s the best it can be. You should seek feedback from beta readers and consider hiring a professional editor to help you refine your manuscript.

In conclusion, writing a bestselling fantasy fiction novel is a challenging task. However, with hard work, dedication, and a clear vision, you can create a story that will captivate readers for future generations. Remember to develop a rich and detailed world, create a compelling and relatable protagonist, incorporate conflict and tension, use magic and mythology, pay attention to pacing, and edit, revise, and polish your manuscript. With these tips in mind, you’ll be well on your way to writing a fantasy novel that will be loved by readers around the world.

Note: Bestselling independent fantasy fiction novelist P.L. Stuart will release his third book, Lord and King, in The Drowned Kingdom Saga later this spring! I can tell you that it is the best volume in the series so far, and he is a world-builder extraordinaire!

Cover Reveal and Editor’s Review of Lord and King by Bestselling Author, P.L. Stuart

Cover Reveal and Editor’s Review

I am so excited about this book!

Last night, on Blaise Ancona’s Under the Radar SFF Podcast, Blaise went live with an interview with fantasy fiction author and my friend, P.L. Stuart, in which they reviewed Stuart’s books A Drowned Kingdom and The Last of the Atalanteans and they revealed the cover of Stuart’s latest book in the series, Lord and King.

This is not a traditional reader’s ARC review because I am proud to say I was the editor of this book, the third in The Drowned Kingdom Saga by the insanely talented bestselling author, P.L. Stuart. As a fan of the first two books in the series, I couldn’t wait to read the third, Lord and King, and when Stuart asked me to be his editor, I almost cried for joy and gratitude for the opportunity. I have never had so much fun as an editor, and Stuart made my job easy because he’s a brilliant writer.

I may be biased, but I am a fan of this man’s phenomenal storytelling, first and foremost. He is a master and has created one of the most compelling, multifaceted fictional characters ever in the vainglorious Othrun, King of Eastrealm. If you love medieval literature, a fully realized unique world, a complex protagonist, challenging, exciting antagonists, realistic battle scenes, mystery, magic, and fabulous love scenes, Stuart’s books are for you! And I was waiting for that fabulous love scene! Lord and King does not disappoint.

Lord and King is a thrilling page-turner that will keep your pulse pounding and your heart in your throat. The unexpected tragedies Othrun must face, as well as the addition of Queen Undala, who could potentially be the most formidable adversary Othrun has faced to date, make for what I think is the most exciting book in the series so far. And this fan cannot wait to find out what happens next!

Author’s Synopsis of Lord and King

Finally, Lord and King of Eastrealm, Othrun, aims to restore the glory of his drowned homeland, Atalantyx. But dangerous warlords are determined to stop Othrun from rising to further power.

Furthermore, Eastrealm’s ruler must confront internal forces that could tear his new kingdom apart. Embattled Othrun is also devastated by personal tragedy. His belief in his Single God, and his ambiguous guiding spirit, has never been more tenuous.

To fight his enemies, Othrun needs more than faith or his formidable knights. He needs a mage on his side. Is the conniving Queen Lysi, with her divided loyalties and her own designs for Othrun, the ally he needs? Or, are there other mages who can help the beleaguered young king, who he can trust?

And, Lysi is not the only formidable queen Othrun must contend with. An inexorable power, tied to ancient founders of Eltnish civilization, is coming. A legendary ruler, the likes of whom has not been seen for centuries, plans to reclaim what’s owed to her.

She is named, Undala.

Fear for Othrun and anyone else who dares stand in her way.

Othrun is clever, bold, resourceful. Yet, kingship comes with many challenges, including facing the cunning, powerful, vengeful enemies surrounding him, marking him for death. Will Othrun’s reign end on the battlefield, in blood, before it’s barely begun?

Expected publication April 30, 2023

The Last of the Atalanteans (The Drowned Kingdom Saga Book 2) by P. L. Stuart

Fantasy Fiction Book Review

Title: The Last of the Atalanteans (The Drowned Kingdom Saga Book 2)
Author:  P.L. Stuart
Publisher: FriesenPress
Released: March 31, 2022
Pages: 534
ASIN: B08VS15WTR
Book Reviewer: Christine Bode
Stars:  4.0

Book Two in The Drowned Kingdom Saga, The Last of the Atalanteans by fantasy fiction master P.L. Stuart, opens with Othrun, Thurol, and Glathan: three Atalanteans in disguise as Lynchun soldiers using assumed names, entering the Lynchun border city of Lionshead, en route to its capitol, Lionfort. Together with the usurped Lynchun King, Centi, Earl of Lynchun, and the rightful King of Lynchun, Wely, this five-men ruse intends to get Wely’s kingdom back from his corrupt brother and wife.

Badan—the ugly Earl of Lionshead—sides with Wely’s usurping brother Orlu, Lynchun’s greatest, undefeated warlord. Badan is a man to be reckoned with and not discounted. Badan’s men are watching the “captured” Wely, for whom he hopes to be rewarded by Orlu while nudging Centi out of the way so he can gain the king’s favour.

Othrun, the narrator and orchestrator of their remarkable play, hopes that their deceptive plan will hold and that within twenty-seven days, their forces will besiege Lionfort. But he has no idea what lies in store for them.

And so, author Stuart sets the stage for another grand and bold chapter in this epic fantasy saga. He writes this brilliant chess match between usurpers, warriors, noblemen, and mages with a visceral description of the sights, sounds and odours of the places his heroes occupy. Stuart perfectly sets the tone for the adventure and inevitable battles to follow. Stuart skillfully interweaves the fascinating supernatural tale of Othrun’s beloved, albeit cursed, Atalantean steel sword, Sure-Steel, and the Anchali, an enigmatic angel who claims to be his true father. Othrun has a hard time wrapping his Single God-believing mind around the contradiction of the pagan beliefs he’s surrounded by, creating an absorbing conflict of a non-killing kind.

Stuart also reintroduces the powerful mage, Lysi, Princess of Nyrimia. She is my favourite character and the perfect adversary for the Fab Five of Fantasy—regardless of her sexual attraction to the married Othrun. Fierce, fearless, and intelligent, Lysi is the femme fatale warrior who will hold the fate of the Five in her hands. In addition, she adds much-needed humour, magic, and sexual tension to Othrun’s tale as she challenges his spiritual beliefs.

There are spies amongst the band of warriors trying to make their way to Lionfort, making their journey treacherous beyond the inclement weather and inhospitable accommodations. The King of Lynchun’s wife, Syda, also a powerful mage, wants Wely dead. It will take cunningness and hyper-vigilance for Othrun’s men to deliver Wely to King Orlu in one piece. Lord Badan doesn’t view Othrun as the noble hero he believes he is, so the arrogant Othrun will have to hold his cards close to his chest to protect his ruse.

Othrun hates paganism and blames it for the seduction of his brother Erthal by Dira and the downfall of Atalantyx. He believes that there is no room in the realm for other gods. They must eradicate them. 

“It was the God-given task of the virtuous kingdom of Atalantyx, I believed, led by my royal house, to rid the world of those idolaters. I had seen the Anchali’s power, its glory, and its wonder. I knew our Single God to be real. Any other sort of worship was heresy. Yet there I was believing in pagan magic, as wielded by Lysi.”

In Chapter Twenty-Nine, Yedwol the Old tells the story of the Battle of Berefet to Othrun, and the reader learns more about the history of the Atalantean warriors. It is superbly crafted. Describing the tragedy of war from the point of view of a thirteen-year-old warrior with the spirit of a dragon, Yedwol’s tale will make you weep. Beheading women and children for the gold in their land is beyond atrocious. However, the Berefetish people still tried to kill and poison the three hundred warriors left in the Atalantean army after their colossal battle as they resisted their sovereignty. Yedwol and his young men stole everything they could and killed everyone who opposed them while praying to their Single God. And how that sickens me. There is no justification for such behaviour, and no way I could cheer for them.

Othrun asks himself if he could kill Eltnish women and children to bring monotheism to the continent of Acremia and secure gold for the prosperity of Eastrealm, his soon-to-be kingdom. However, he cannot abide rape or violence against women, children, and the weak, so he watches the shine of his uncle’s glory tarnish.

As war rages between Russia and Ukraine, it is difficult to read such a passage knowing that millennia later, in the real world, men still kill each other for power, land, and greed and because they think their religion is the truth. War is not only something glorified in fantasy fiction or history books; it is inherent to man’s nature, which saddens this reader deeply. Of course, we should never ennoble war, but for those who enjoy reading about it and want to experience the horror, Stuart is a master narrator. He also manages to capture the humanity behind the carnage.

Othrun’s conflict is authentic and complex. This profoundly flawed man slowly evolves before our eyes in the second volume of this epic seven-book series that author Stuart is planning. In this story, he must be a follower rather than a leader most of the time. Othrun befriends a homosexual warrior named Hani, who enjoys cooking for their party of conspirators against Orlu. Although Hani favours sleeping with men, an abomination to the Single God, Othrun decides he doesn’t care and likes him anyway.

After reading Book One, I wasn’t sure if I would care enough about Othrun to follow him on his journey. But after reading Book Two, I am pleased by his evolving humanity, captivated by the storyline, and cannot wait for what will happen in the next installment of The Drowned Kingdom saga, Lord and King, to be published next year.

If you missed it, read my review of A Drowned Kingdom (The Drowned Kingdom Saga Book 1). Then, buy your copy of The Last of the Atalanteans here.

P.L. Stuart will be a fantasy fiction legend like his heroes Cornwell, Martin, and Jemesin before the last book in this series is published.

Conquering the Divide: The Legend of Barsicon by Angela Stever

Fantasy/Sci-Fi Book Review

Title: Conquering the Divide: The Legend of Barsicon
Author:  Angela Stever
Imprint: Tellwell Talent
Released: October 30, 2021
Pages: 284
ISBN-13: 978-0228863120
Stars:  4.0

Conquering the Divide: The Legend of Barsicon is new, young adult, LGBTQ-friendly fantasy/dystopian science-fiction for the 21st century by well-known Kingston, Ontario radio host Angela Stever. The book’s hero, Seneca Ellis-Brant, is a girl just turning 16 years old, and she’s the youngest Light Seeker in Barsicon history. Seneca has been training her whole life to be a Light Seeker with the help of her two moms, Ma Marie and Mama C (Catherine), and her combat instructor, JD, a diminutive warrior with a neon-coloured mohawk.

In July 2022, two days before the Light Ceremony, she believes it is her destiny to conquer. Seneca meets Alex, JD’s cousin, who is referred to using the pronouns they/them. Alex is the first stranger Seneca has ever met, a popular singer in Light City, and sexual-spiritual fireworks ensue.

Seneca has trained diligently for the Light Ceremony, believing that she will complete it and be able to move her family from The Darkness, the land to the east of Light City, inhabited by the 1% elite of Barsicon on the shores of West Ocean. To gain the privilege of living in Light City, Light Seekers must complete Seven Steps into the Light, which amounts to a battle to the death. But has Seneca been brainwashed? Is the story she has been told about her miraculous birth true? Is she simply a pawn in a very toxic game?

Light City is ruled by President Barbara Crow, an angry woman with daddy issues whose father, General Walter Crow (a comic book buffoon of a bullying leader with no real backbone), demanded the construction of a wall between Light City and The Darkness following the Battle of Barsicon in 1972. Northern Warriors erected the barrier parallel to the coastline, two miles inland from the West Ocean. Only the wealthy live along the West Ocean; its residents are made up of people who sleep until noon and feast until midnight, playing games and dancing all day. The wall offers them protection from the ‘unworthy.’

While reading this book—which could arguably be a parable—during the middle of the umpteenth lockdown of the COVID-19 pandemic, one cannot help but recognize the parallels in the world in which we live and the authors’ world of Barsicon, a simply constructed, dystopian fantasy world. Many of us are seeking a higher spiritual path in light of the darkness we have found ourselves in for the past two years. The 1% elite who govern and decide how we will conduct ourselves and live our lives have divided us with vaccine mandates, passports, and other draconian restrictions. In today’s world, there is a divide between the vaccinated and the unvaccinated, people who are described by the media and even our Prime Minister as unworthy of living in regular society. It may only be a matter of time before we are physically segregated, even though many of us can see that our leaders’ plan to deal with the pandemic is not working. Right now, most of our lives are about survival and not thriving, just like the citizens of Barsicon who live in The Darkness.

There are psychopaths, unexpected twists and turns in Conquering the Divide, and a little bit of magic, lots of mystery, and plenty of heart-centred heroes to cheer for. If you loved The Hunger Games or The Mortal Instruments, you’d want to join Seneca as she discovers her new normal and realizes her true destiny, moving out of The Darkness and into the light. This fast-paced, exciting adventure is filled with nuggets of spiritual wisdom and a satisfying ending that will leave you wanting more.

Angela Stever has peppered her story with “Easter egg” references to local singer-songwriters who music fans in this region know and love and named the main protagonist and another heroic character after her two sons. I suspect she may have used Prince Edward County and Sandbanks Provincial Park as inspiration for Barsicon. Conquering the Divide (available on Amazon now) is her first novel, and it is an outstanding debut. This reader cannot wait for more stories by Stever.

May the God of Light’s Final Judgement find you worthy before you are forced to die for the greater good. “The power should be in the hands of the people, not in the hands of one man.” As in all fantasy stories, there is a battle between good and evil, and the protagonists must overcome seemingly impossible challenges to defeat their adversaries. Sometimes the men in power are simply weak, bullying idiots being controlled by psychopathic puppet masters. And sometimes, it takes standing up to our oppressors and being willing to start a revolution before the light can shine through The Darkness.