Tag Archives | Fantasy

A Non-Nerd Primer to Fantasy & Science Fiction

With the new Star Wars movie hitting big, people unfamiliar with fantasy and science fiction may feel out of their depth.  For you normal folks, I offer a short introduction – a non-nerd primer so to speak – of accessible examples from fantasy and science fiction in four different media. Movie:  Star Wars Recently my […]

primer
read more >

Artistic Problems of Ending a TV Series Too Early: 3 Examples

A TV series has a potential advantage over a movie in that a series affords the chance to follow a story over an extended time.  Events are able to unfold into broad plots and themes.  Characters can be developed in depth. This is a potential but not an inevitable advantage. Problems happen when a series […]

tv series
read more >

The Fantastic Appearance of the Human Body

Fantasy and science fiction fans are accustomed to extraordinary beings.  We expect such things.  Star Trek introduced an alien race of blue bipeds.  Farscape one upped them with a sentient species of blue plants.  How’s that for fantastic?  Creatures with tentacles, tails, and antennae have parade by.  The general human body is boring. Or not?  […]

human body
read more >

Science Fantasy? What Hybrid Is That?

I’ve been blogging about science fantasy for a time now but have never sat down with you and defined what science fantasy is.  Hold onto your hat, here we go: Science fantasy is a work of fiction that has elements of science fiction mixed with fantasy. O, now that helpful, wasn’t it? I think not.  […]

science fantasy
read more >

Where’s My English-Elvish Dictionary? Languages in Fantasy and Science Fiction

This blog is from my son-in-law Matt Wright, a bona fide linguist.  He’s also a fantasy/science fiction fan.  But who isn’t?  Languages are rich treasures for us fantasy and science fiction geeks.  This is where alien cultures get good; this is where another world pulls you in! Let’s get Matt’s professional view. Language is a […]

languages
read more >

5 Out-Genre Movies Exemplifying Story for Science Fantasy Fans

A fantasy and/or science fiction fan doesn’t have to be bound to watching movies only in the fantasy and science fiction realm.  Outside the genre are excellent examples of what story can do.  Stretch your horizons and take in these five movies exemplifying story. Doctor Zhivago – Epic Scale Most fantasy and science fiction films […]

movies exemplifying story
read more >

Fantasy Worlds in a Real Universe

A fantasy or science fiction author chucks out one or more real physical laws in order to construct an imaginative world where magic and dragons coexist, where starships can exceed the speed of light, where heroes still look good even with blue skin.  But there’s danger in straying too far from this real universe where […]

real universe
read more >

Romance in Fantasy and Science Fiction

Face it:  As genres go, fantasy and science fiction do not lend themselves well to romance. Now before you protest by citing examples of book covers, let me say that romance is more than a buxom vixen next to a muscle man riding a dragon.  That’s not romance; that’s just sex. Sex is not romance.  […]

romance
read more >

The Problem with Invincibility

Invincibility is a story killer. The magic in fantasy or the technology in science fiction can be so awesome that nothing is able to stand against it. For storytelling, this is bad. Story needs conflict, a way to endure or overcome, a real chance of failure. If the hero is so endowed with greatness that […]

invincibility
read more >

Is The Lord of the Rings Really a Story of Samwise?

I’d like to give you a short thinker blog. Have you ever wondered if the epic tale of Frodo and the Ring of Power is actually the frame for a much more intimate tale of the value of friendship and loyalty? What if when stripped down, the real crux of the three books is perfectly […]

samwise
read more >