L.B. Graham — author of the series "The Binding Of The Blade"

Again, a post originally written for the Motiv8 website. After the Tour, I will redirect my blog-posting energies to my own website!

Fantasy writing would be classified by many as “genre writing,” which basically means it is a style that conforms to certain basic expectations as determined by the general “rules” of the category fantasy. That’s a convoluted way of saying that as soon as someone picks up a fantasy novel, they have certain expectations that are brought to the reading experience because it is labeled fantasy. This sets up a rather curious dilemma - how to “conform” to the conventions so as to meet expecations without falling into the “been there, done that” trap of mere mimicry. It can be a fine line to walk, and authors don’t always end up getting it right.

Now, to an extent, every story faces this same dilemma to a degree. Certain basic expectations about interesting characters, a clear plot or storyline, some sort of conflict that raises difficulties but ultimately comes to some sort of resolution along with many other things serve as fundamental expectations for any story, and authors ignore them to their peril. However, the dilemma is heightened in genre writing because the expectations are further defined so that certain kinds of settings and characters and plots have generally been established by the works in that genre that have gone before. So, the room to manauver can feel confining.

And yet, one of the real beauties of human imagination is how much freedom exists even within such forms to be creative. Right? Have you ever thought about how there are only so many notes on the piano, and yet the composition of beautiful melodies goes on and on and on? There are only so many words in the English language, and yet year after year, men and women find ways of combining them in striking and original patterns that capture our imagination and take hold of our minds and hearts.

Working on The Binding of the Blade pressed me to be mindful of both the need to acknowledge convention and be innovative. I’m sure not all readers were happy by my choices. Here and there readers complained that certain actions or events or characters were too much like others they’d encountered, and in some places certain choices I made appeared to disgruntle them because such things ran counter to their expectations (like a certain event at the end of Beyond the Summerland that will go unmentioned…:)

In my own defense, I would say I didn’t seek to copy another author’s characters or actions, though things like the name for Wylla’s city, Amaan Sul, were intended as an homage to some of the greats who’ve gone before - in this case Tolkien. In other cases, the similarities were due in part to the fact that some of the same sources for these writers - myths and epics of the past - and the conventions I’ve here described pressed my story and characters into some similar shapes.

For you who are working on your own stories and writing skills, come at this dilemma deliberately. It is true that some things in your subconscious ‘will out,’ no matter what you do, and some things in your story will be like things you encountered long ago but have long since forgotten. Even so, you can still think through “how am I playing by the rules of this genre or style while still developing my own voice and story?”

One quick example. Dragons have generally been symbols of destruction and greed in the stories of the past. We see Beowulf seeking to free his kingdom at the end of his life from the great dragon who oppresses his people and Smaug the horder of dwarven riches in The Hobbit as two examples. Aware of this tradition but eager to have “good dragons” in my story, I decided to acknowledge the larger history of dragons by making my dragons golden. Thus their color was a reflection of their historic link to greed while their choices and actions in my story made them a force for good. In this way, I sought to nod my head to the convention even as I tried to establish an innovation.

As always, comments and illustrations from any of you about wrestling with this dilemma is welcome!