#anti-hero fantasy

[joncronshawauthor]

The Dark Mentor: How Tough Teachers Shape Fantasy Heroes

The wise, benevolent mentor figure is a fantasy staple. Think Gandalf or Dumbledore. But modern fantasy increasingly embraces darker mentors, those who shape protagonists through trauma rather than wisdom. These harsh teachers don’t guide heroes toward the light. They push them into darkness to forge them into something new. Dark Mentorship in Guild of Assassins My novel Guild of Assassins…

[graceshouldwrite]

Writing Compelling Side Characters

**NOTE: Some of these tips don't really apply to ensemble casts, where there are multiple Main Characters (plural).

1) Agency - motivations, actions, effects

Technically, they ARE side characters in your MC's story, but don't base your writing on that fact.

Side characters need:

Their own REASONS for joining the story (because they want to, not because the PLOT wanted them to) Example: In Arcane, Caitlyn inadvertently gets involved with Vi due to her compassion and desire to help the undercity, not because the plot needs a love interest

A GOAL, on which they act INDEPENDENT of the plot, and actually affects your MC/the main plot (not the other way around) Example: In Loki, Sylvie's independent goal is to take down the TVA, and her actions reveal the TVA's corruption to Loki, influencing him to join her in fighting against the TVA instead of working for them

A STAKE in how things end (e.g. someone getting paid after agreeing to join a heist); they aren't just in it to be a "comic relief" or a "damsel in distress" Example: In Breaking Bad, Jesse joins Walt in cooking meth because he makes BANK from selling drugs, not because Walt needed a funny and traumatized sidekick

Their own RELATIONSHIPS with other characters, aside from the MC—they have their own friends, enemies, love interests, etc., and these relationships can completely change the plot Example: In the original Percy Jackson series, all of the side characters (e.g. Annabeth, Nico, Thalia, Luke, etc.) have their own relationships with each other that greatly affect the plot. Check it out: Annabeth's attachment to Luke, even after he became evil, completely changed the plot in several ways: kickstarting a journey to save her from Luke in The Titan's Curse, revealing his true evil identity as a vessel for Kronos (big bad!) in The Battle of the Labyrinth, and mainly contributing towards Luke's reversion away from evil in the last book due to him remembering his promise to take care of her a long time ago, etc.

Their own PAST that affects how they act, move forward, and how they treat the MC Example: In Avatar: The Last Airbender, Azula's pressure on herself and desire for perfection is greatly driven by her father's expectations of her as the fire-bending prodigy, resulting in a childhood of earning parental love and care AFTER she proves her worth to him. This created a mentality ceaselessly focused on her goals—which are usually her father's missions—causing her to be deadly, manipulative, and constantly causing problems for the main character.

The side character is not an extension or byproduct of the MC's plot; their own story happens to collide and intertwine with your MC's plot, but is ultimately independently driven.

2) Affecting the ending

The story can't have reached the same ending regardless of the side characters' existence. They must be necessary to the MC in helping them reach their goal faster, more prepared, etc. For example, in Avatar, Aang would not have been able to reach his goal of defeating the fire lord without the help of his friends, who each taught him valuable life lessons as well as combat skills.

Each character must have an independent impact on the MC—don't treat them like a group (e.g. "the side characters," who are one individual collective). Arcane does a great job with this, as each side character has a completely different impact on the MCs (e.g. Silco, Ekko, Caitlyn, and Vi—not a side character but for the purpose of this analysis, bear with me—all have a different impact on Jinx). It isn't just a literal impact. It's what the MC learns, and the theme of the story. They should help the MC realize things about themselves, and contextualize the MC by showing them in different situations with different people.

3) Avoid stereotypes Don't create characters from moulds and conform 100% to the trope: e.g. the "comic relief" can also be "the outlaw/rebel" or the "love interest," the "brooding antihero" can also be the "caregiver" or the "wise one," the "seductive girl" can also be the "science nerd" or the "broken optimist," etc. Mix and match. Everyone has more than 1 personality trait in real life, and probably fulfils more than 1 role to the other people in their lives. Give them intersecting personality traits to flesh them out.

4) Theme and Arc Especially compelling side characters have their own arc and embody their own theme.

Example 1: Mr. Darcy in Pride and Prejudice is more than the brooding love interest—he develops by being less arrogant and learning to see people beyond their social status, and opens up to new ideas, people, and situations.

Example 2: Nico di Angelo from the Percy Jackson series goes on a journey of self-acceptance and embracing his identity, instead of just being the stereotypical emo kid who is constantly in a state of angst.

Example 3: In Arcane, Silco goes from a ruthless crime lord who believes that attachment is weakness, to someone who genuinely cares about his adoptive daughter, so much so that he can't give her up even in exchange for his lifelong dream.

∘₊✧────── ☾☼☽ ──────✧₊∘

instagram: @ grace_should_write

Hope this was helpful, and let me know if you have any questions by commenting, re-blogging, or DMing me on IG. Any and all engagement is appreciated :)

Happy writing, and have a great day!

- grace <3

[mostlyfate]

@kdramaspace 2024 YEAR IN REVIEW from the heart | favorite OST(s) of 2024

澎湃 (Surge) by Yu Shuxin — Love Game in Eastern Fantasy 远舟的少年 (Yuanzhou’s Youth) by Hou Minghao — Fangs of Fortune 小诗句 (Little Verses) by Hou Minghao, Chen Duling, Cheng Xiao, Tian Jiarui, Lin Ziye, Xu Zhenxuan, Yan An, Lai Weiming — Fangs of Fortune hanataba by milet — Anti-hero 夕陽の上 (Above the Sunset) by Kawasaki Takaya — Hidamari ga Kikoeru 飞吧月光 (Fly, Moonlight) by Ouyang Nana — Snowfall 寄明月(Send to the Bright Moon) by Yu Shuxin, Ding Yuxi, Zhu Xudan, Yang Shize, Li Yizhen, Fei qiming, Lu Yuhao — Love Game in Eastern Fantasy Zarame by Aimyon — Furitsumore Kodokuna Shi yo

[sapphos-maiden]

reading ACOTAR made me realise how life was better when fantasy was just my guy Peter Johnson and the Olympians-

(also...)

[deadbydad]

People who like to ship, mostly people on Tiktok, would not survive Tumblr because they can't handle it on Tiktok.

They can't handle Sefikura from Final Fantasy, they can't handle Endhawks (i don't like it but still), and they can't handle zaundads.

It's a ship with two adults.

Now listen, I don't like Sefikura or Endhawks, but people ship them bc at the time we get to know them, they're both adults.

But people can't handle the age difference, which is fine, but they go about so fucking insane it's crazy.

They also don't like zaundads because they're 'brothers'.

No, they're not.

Jayce and Viktor are considered to be brothers (they aren't those two are so gay) but they're the most popular ship in Arcane.

They would not survive Tumblr.

[dropoutconfessions]

I feel like people who complain about Emily or Ally are noticing an overall tendency in the IHs, but not following it through far enough so they unfairly direct their hate at them. It's a pet analysis that I've nursed for a while.

I think the IH's have a pretty clear divide between performers who are comfortable demanding the spotlight (Emily, Ally, and Lou) and performers who need a little coaxing to step into a more lead role (Murph, Zac, and Siobhan). There's nothing inherently wrong with this table dynamic. But after x number of seasons, it can start to feel a little strange. And I would say table management is one of Brennan's serious flaws as a DM (as opposed to, say, Aabria). So he tends to lean on his more extroverted players. To the point where he's just more likely to throw them big moments. And not do much to pull in his more introverted players. Even in seasons where those more introverted players are sort of being set up as leads (Fantasy High, ASO, Neverafter, and sort of ACoC). Emily and Lou try to bring in other players, but that's not really their job and they have their own characters to focus on. I think we saw improvement in Neverafter, especially from Murph and Ally, as Murph put himself forward more and Ally did a better job of pulling others into their scenes. But Fantasy High JY allowed everyone to backslide. (That said, Ally really impressed me with their refusal to take the spotlight in NSBU. I don't think it was the right choice for the season. But I thought it showed tremendous growth in them as a player.)

I kind of want everyone who thinks they don't like Emily to listen to her on NADDPOD, where the other two players at the table are also extroverted performers. I think it really demonstrates how much the dynamic of the IH seasons are the result of this particular table make-up combined with some seriously weak table management

-

[blackblooms]

Lady (she/they) i had posted a profile for the main character some time ago, but as the writing of the game progressed, i think i need to update that description to reflect how she actually behaves during the game.

Lady goes by many names, mostly because she rarely bothers to give one. No one knows who or what she is, not even herself, only that she is destined to bring the great calamity and bring an end to the forsaken realm of Narkaas.

Lady is not an evil character, but she is a fatalist and a misanthrope, resenting people for the way she has been treated from the moment she came to be and believing that it is pointless to fight against her fate. She is also a very emotional and impulsive person, often acting reckless or self-righteous, with a complete disregard for her own well-being, but a strong conviction to do what she feels is right in the moment.

Lady is curious by nature, often finding herself intrigued by the people she meet and briefly forgetting about her goals as she pursue her current interest.She is very ignorant and naive, knowing very little about the world and the people in it and often being completely clueless about things that would be obvious to most.

Lady tends to be awkward around people, only speaking when needed and using short, to-the-point sentences. While she is prone to violence, she highly dislikes verbally confronting people and unless provoked, she will either quietly listen to them or ask questions to satiate her curiosity.

-

Anyway, thanks for listening to our girl story. I have to go now, please watch over her and make sure she doesn' t join any cults while i' m gone.

[somewhere-in-the-rain]

BookTok will claim to love morally grey characters and then get mad when the characters are actually morally grey

[punkeropercyjackson]

haiiiiiiiiiiii do you have any ocs

Not many fandom ones because self-inserts don't count but for original stories,yes!!!I have four book series' planned

Charlie The Tomboy/Charlie's The Man-Middle school aimed duology about a 2000s tomboy from Bronx and his egg crack that affectionately parodies and reconstructs tropes that were popular in that era

Heroes Of Our Time-7 book urban fantasy/capepunk about a team of vigilante kid superheroes who's powers come from a mix of scifi and magical sources and distrubutes archetypes to play with them and takes place in the 90s for the most part and has 'time' it's biggest theme in multiple ways

Chronicles of Existentia-14 book high fantasy with afropunk/solarpunk dripping from it's core(the mc is essentially a mythologically accurate Persephone and Percy Jackson fusion)and inspired by my daydreaming disorder combined with listening to Helena by Mcr on repeat and subquently going from there to inspire other elements of the books by the rest of Three Cheers For Sweet Revenge.My fave one out of all of them and it's heavy focus on girlhood avoids the hurdle bits unless you count Helena needing her egg cracked.If you find any similarities to Narnia including the title that was intentional

The Unprivate Diaries-5 book kids horror focusing on a girl with realistic amnesia and brain damage effects as the opener and the powers system here Magic and Morbid,essentially light/'traditional' kids fantasy elements and dark/'corrupted' kids fantasy elements but with taste and love for the craft i have,not 'a deconstruction of naivetee'

The mcs in order are called The Pro-Losers,Team Reject,The Forever Force and The Horror Solvers.The Pro-Losers are just normal humans but bullied weirdkids turned weird transsexual autistic adults(first book > second book),Team Reject i already described but a worthy note is there's 7 members,The Forever Force consists of Helena and her closest friends she built up over the series that swore their loyalty to her as their leader because she saved their lives not in the saving from danger sense but in the helping them move on and gain healthy coping mechanisms sense and The Horror Solvers are self-appointed kid dectectives that solve mysteries and take down people who want to hurt/destroy the world and it's people with M&M forces

And yes,i did make Team Reject and The Forever Force start the series at 11 to spite that author fascist and include an all girls magical school in Girasol(Helena's homecountry)that is exclusively for transfems🙏🏼🫶🏽Magnus aka the Hoot mc also insults the series as an at least once per book gag because he's a bookworm and it gave him endless psychic damage

[joncronshawauthor]

Why Modern Fantasy Assassins Are More Complex Than Ever

Fantasy’s love affair with assassins has come a long way from silent killers lurking in shadows. Modern fantasy has transformed the archetype from simple dealer of death into something far more complex. It’s now a lens through which we examine mortality, morality, and the price of power. Guild of Assassins: A Perfect Example of Evolution My novel Guild of Assassins represents this evolution…

[graceshouldwrite]

Writing Villains (Underrated Tips)

1. Variety

Not all villains have to be the next Darth Vader, Luke Castellan, John Wick, etc. Your villain’s arc doesn’t have to originate from the Big Traumatic Thing that happened when they were X Years Old. Here are some characterization ideas that still keep them interesting (no tragic backstory required):

misguided villain. They don’t think what they do is that evil/they think they are benefiting others (e.g. Thanos from the MCU)

IDGAF villain. They just don’t care about the disaster they leave behind them (e.g. Ozai from ATLA)

past bystander villain. Nothing bad happened to THEM particularly-- they just saw bad things happen to other people, and decided that they need to correct society (e.g. Light Yagami from Death Note)

I was bored villain. They were bored. And millions died for it. They’re probably also an ENTP. Oh, well (e.g. Ryuk from Death Note)

zealous villain. They do it for their cause--god, cult, organization, whatever--there’s a greater power that is their greater purpose (e.g. Cthulu cultists from Call of Cthulu)

staunch traditionalist (often allegorically racist) villain. They want to act according to, and preserve the statusquo (tends to be heritage, race, class, personality, etc.), and believe that any change is bad (e.g. Lucius Malfoy from Harry Potter)

These are just some examples of interesting villain characterizations that absolutely do NOT need a tragic backstory to function.

2. Spill the tea

Show how they treat the people closest to them.

Instead of just focusing on their actions, create moments where readers can see them interacting with their family, friends, etc. This is a powerful tool with the potential to humanize them in a softer way, or make them seem even more scary, merciless, corrupt, secretive, etc.

For example, the audience doesn’t just see Azula from ATLA fight people and conquer cities with a crazy amount of skill and power. The writers show how she interacts with her two best friends; the way she shamelessly belittles them to their faces, manipulates them as pawns, and has no problem putting them in incredible danger reveals a LOT more about her character in a way that only showing her actions cannot.

3. Polarize

Consistency isn’t always key. Sure, the cold and calculating overlord should generally make cold and calculating decisions, but to spice things up, find the thing that will make them snap. Change. Show weakness. Become their opposite, if only for a moment.

(SPOILER WARNING for Arcane)

Silco is a drug kingpin in an underbelly city that is full of gangs, criminals, murderers, thieves, and the sort (you get it).

He not only survives--he THRIVES in that kind of environment as one of the scariest authorial figures. He himself had to experience crazy backstabbing, and grew to be nothing but calculated, manipulative, and ruthless...until he unofficially adopted a daughter! He realized that she had “undone” him to the point where he refused to give her up for a dream he would have been willing to die for.

It DOES sound pretty inconsistent for the ruthless drug kingpin to sacrifice EVERYTHING he’d worked for to clean up after an insane daughter who runs around making murderous messes that attract flocks of authorities. And, it is. Like he says himself, he loses “nothing but problems.”

But, real humans are almost never 100% consistent, and this sort of polarity will humanize your villains without necessarily requiring a tragic backstory or a noble motivation.

∘₊✧────── ☾☼☽ ──────✧₊∘

instagram: @ grace_should_write

Hope this was helpful, and let me know if you have any questions by commenting, re-blogging, or DMing me on IG. Any and all engagement is appreciated :)

Happy writing, and have a great day!

- grace <3

[dariothecat-blog]

Decided to try drawing Jax with a Helluvaboss style in mind. Can't say it matches Helluvaboss perfectly. But I really love the style it adds to Jax himself. Very angular, and fun to draw. ^^

Lemme know what all of you think. Also do you love Jax? Do you want to see more Digital Circus drawings?

[witchthewriter]

[imaginal-ai]

"You Sexy Devil" (0001)

(The Diabolicus Series)

[dropoutconfessions]

The way that Brennan/NPCs and the IHs treated Kipperlilly finding the rogue teacher as illegitimate/susp/cheating is such bs, it was a clever move and very on brand for Rogue behaviour, and one of many examples of them not looking beyond "she's an annoying teenage girl"

yk what, i never realized that. yeah. damn

[herssian]