Why fantasy?

First off, oops. Sorry for not posting yesterday. I need to do what Jon does and prep my post the night before to be published the next morning. But that requires so much planning! :)

I’m really good friends with the gal who cuts my hair. Like I’ve been going to her for almost 8 years now, and I worked for her husband’s company my last year of college. Anyway, she knows about my writing project and blog, so we chat about that sometimes when I come in.

Last night, Anya asked me, “Why fantasy?” A valid question, right? What is it about the genre that draws my interest? Why do I want to read it (almost exclusively)? Why do I want to write about it?

A more polished version of the response I stumbled through last night:

I love the realm of possibility and creativity that the fantasy genre opens up to readers and writers. Fantasy holds stories that take place in worlds where wizards and dragons and elves are commonplace, where men challenge the will and intentions of gods, where magic makes the impossible possible. It’s simplistically idealistic at times (or dystopian, if that’s your flavor), it’s got powerful and symbolic embodiments of good and evil, and it’s pretty damn epic in scope. It’s… well, fantasy. And we sometimes gravitate towards what lies beyond our reality, if nothing more than for the sheer entertainment that such a brief departure provides.

Oh, and a bit of a nerdier detail (to which my sister will wholeheartedly attest): I am (well used to be) a huge gamer. RPGs and MMOs were “my thang”. But is it the games that drew me to the genre or the other way around? Hmm…

So what is it about the fantasy genre that draws your interest? What do you like about reading that “made-up stuff”? And, if you write fantasy (as I intend to), why delve into that genre?

Another reason to clock gym time

My story comes in bits and pieces. Very small ones--microscopic, perhaps. And apparently, there are a lot of them, because I still have way too much to write, let alone revise, edit, get critted, etc. Ugh, when I think about it like that, I get pretty frustrated...

But there are pockets of inspiration when a moment or a scene from my story-in-waiting just flows through my head. Sometimes, even the words seem to write themselves on the e-page. (First draft-level words, anyway. Not saying it's all that pretty.)

Take this morning, for example. Cardio time at the gym. I don't always think about my MS during those times, but today, my book decided to impose upon my thoughts while I was stairclimbing. And I was grateful it happened, because a key moment/scene/realization for my MC ended up figuring itself out in my head. Something heartfelt with some warm fuzzies, perhaps capable of eliciting a few tears from some readers (well, my mom, at least :P). Nicholas Sparks would be proud. Oh wait, he writes sad stuff... nevermind.

I rushed upstairs to put my thoughts in my laptop as soon as I got back home. Creatine and protein shake be damned! I had a story to write!

For you writers out there, what sort of fun/unexpected experiences have you had with writing breakthroughs?