Travel Guide to Medieval Europe
by morgan on Jun.15, 2009, under Brandon Sanderson
Why are so many fantasy settings based on medieval Europe? The journeys through these new worlds seem familiar because they have this common root ancestor. There are exceptions, such as Daniel Abraham’s Long Price Quartet or Jane Lindskold’s Thirteen Orphans, but they tend not to catch on in a big way.
One of my favorite non-European settings is Stephen King’s Dark Tower world. This apocalyptic Old West is one of the most unique landscapes in speculative fiction, and it shows that the fantasy fan is willing to branch out. Granted, the Stephen King name helps. There’s also Star Wars, which is as much fantasy as science fiction. It features a traditional fantasy plot (rescuing the princess and overthrowing an evil empire) in an outer space settting.
So what other cultures or time periods are ripe for a fantasy interpretation? I’d vote for Shogun-era Japan.
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June 15th, 2009 on 3:19 pm
I’ve long thought there was more room here. We see some Asian fantasy (Sean Russell is a great example.) But that’s only the beginning of where it could go. Where are our African fantasies? Our Caribbean (non pirate) fantasy stories? South American? Native American? You see the occasional story pop out eventually, but I’d like to see someone familiar with these cultures doing some epic fantasy with these cultural influences.
June 15th, 2009 on 3:58 pm
My favorite non-European setting is the Otherland series by Tad Williams. Granted, I had to have my husband (computer geek) explain some of the technology aspects of the system they were using, but once you dug through that, it was a great series. I also enjoyed the Dark Tower series (although there are some references to a ‘knights and castles’ era in Roland’s past).
While moving outside of Medieval Europe would be great, I think it’s hard for a lot of fantasy writers to move outside of that comfort zone. I don’t believe many eastern cultures get caught up per se in “fantasy writing,” although if you look at some of the story arcs in some Anime series (Bleach is my current favorite), and thus the Manga associated with them, you might find some ‘fantasy’ elements there.
June 15th, 2009 on 10:13 pm
I submitted a novel I had written not too long ago that was set in Mexico. It was turned down with the note that they (the publisher) preferred the setting to be in England and Europe.
June 16th, 2009 on 7:34 am
Theres am aweseom fantasy triology based on the myth of south america written by Liliana Bodoc.
It was translated to german last year, but it seems there’s no englisch translation.
Here’s the spanish Wiki entry:
http://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liliana_Bodoc
June 16th, 2009 on 9:46 am
Dark Tower…now there’s music to my ears. One of my favorite series by far. It has it all: western, fantasy, quests, etc. etc.
One of the shining (no Stephen King pun intended) examples of great literature in my opinion.
In regards to setting, one of the things I like about it the most is its sense of familiarity. The world that has moved on, etc. In fact, my brother-in-law went to New York and walked around to all the locales mentioned in the series. What a cool idea.
With all that being said, and how much I love Dark Tower, I still haven’t finished the series yet. I stopped halfway through Book Seven because I didn’t want it to end.
These days, I’m always looking for something new. Sure, having a fantasy in the traditional setting is all fine and good, but I’d love to read something that isn’t as familiar.
June 16th, 2009 on 4:03 pm
Brandon, I think Robert Jordan was heading toward a Shogunate Japan style fantasy world with the book he mentioned he was planning after the Wheel of Time. The name escapes me at the moment, sorry.
But that seems to be what the Seanchan are based on. Possibly Imperial China, but they always felt more Japanese to me, because of a number of thing,s, but especially the rigid social system and with the loss of face “sei’tar” and “sei’mosiev” - hope I’m close on the spelling!
June 16th, 2009 on 4:03 pm
Brandon, I think Robert Jordan was heading toward a Shogunate Japan style fantasy world with the book he mentioned he was planning after the Wheel of Time. The name escapes me at the moment, sorry.
But that seems to be what the Seanchan are based on. Possibly Imperial China, but they always felt more Japanese to me, because of a number of thing,s, but especially the rigid social system and with the loss of face “sei’tar” and “sei’mosiev” - hope I’m close on the spelling!
November 23rd, 2009 on 8:54 am
An expert is a person who has made all the mistakes that can be made in a very narrow field.
March 11th, 2010 on 2:48 pm
I think this game is one of the best computer games I have playd so far. It is because of the nice visual effects. But unfortunaly nothing beats Call of duty Modern warfare 2 on playstation 3, so I am returning to the sofa now ^^ Maybe I will play this game tomorrow sometime.