True creativity begins not just in imagination but in design. Hello and welcome to a world of imagination crafted from the lives that we all experience. For you see, anyone can write a book featuring dragons and magic, but only a small few can turn our world into a masterpiece of literature.
This masterpiece I speak of is Hard Fantasy—fantasy based off the aspects of the real world with fantasy elements. Now, Hard Fantasy definitely lives up to its name because it is not a common subgenre of fantasy, but the works made underneath this expansive subgenre are wonderful nonetheless.
For instance, what sets Hard Fantasy out from all the different subgenres is the "balance." An author has to add fantasy elements such as magic or fantastic landscape but must also "balance" the world by using physics, limitations in society or the very weapons people use. It is a balancing act that truly is something hard to master. But, the result will be amazing as the readers will be able to imagine that they are in this world and will plot ways to overcome its limitations and rule the world that you create. Is it not the dream of an author to have the readers so engaged?
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But before we go anywhere in explaining how it is made or why you should be interested in it, allow me to give my own point of view on this subject. I have written only one fantasy book on Wattpad called Unreality and it fell under Hard Fantasy, not really by choice but by coincidence. I simply had this story featuring magic based on how creative a person can be and the destruction of this order due to my main character. It was only till I was asked to write this introduction did I ever realize how amazing this topic is. It's so complex yet so simple at the same time how you have to change the real world into a new one while still keeping its structure. You want a world filled with dragons, well, add them but alter them so they fit into the limitations of physics. Do you want the sky to be a different color? Change what the sky is made of and maybe add another sun all so it fits together. See, there is so much to be done and so much creativity that can be unleashed. That is why I personally love to write under Hard Fantasy.
Don't let my speech be all that entices you, however. Look at these past examples of Hard Fantasy: 1984 by George Orwell and Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. No, I'm do not jest. Yes, these book fall under Hard Fantasy though they are mostly seen as examples of historical fiction or philosophy. The true elements of fantasy, however, lies in the setting.
