How to Ruin a Fantasy Novel

[SaisMatters]

While I agree for the most part of your rant, their is a better way to ruin a fantasy series. Simply sign over the rights to Disney and let Sam Raimi make a T.V. series out of it!

[donfilibuster]

Immortality, invulnerability, omnipotence, etc. those are tricky and often deluding genres in fantasy but they can work if the writer is good.
In the case of invulnerability it involves a whole new set of challenges to the hero, tipically having a weakness.
Examples vary but there's achilles, sigfried, etc.
A common way to deal with indestructible beings is eternal imprisonment.
Examples vary again but there's the tarrasque. In the case of devils and deities the usual method is banishment.
Now the tarrasque can be killed (weakness) but the premise was just that, being near unkillable.
The only D&D book i have read featuring the tarrasque had it imprisoned and was killed via the double wish before the attempt of releasing it.

[Aspenor]

Immortality, invulnerability, omnipotence, etc. those are tricky and often deluding genres in fantasy but they can work if the writer is good.
In the case of invulnerability it involves a whole new set of challenges to the hero, tipically having a weakness.
Examples vary but there's achilles, sigfried, etc.
A common way to deal with indestructible beings is eternal imprisonment.
Examples vary again but there's the tarrasque. In the case of devils and deities the usual method is banishment.
Now the tarrasque can be killed (weakness) but the premise was just that, being near unkillable.
The only D&D book i have read featuring the tarrasque had it imprisoned and was killed via the double wish before the attempt of releasing it.

Meh, the Tarrasque never evoked much of an unkillable feeling to me. In fact, it is so horrifically weak that it's fairly easy to kill at level 15, perhaps even lower. Level 15 is definitely the point where the Tarrasque stands no chance of even inflicting one point of damage and might as well just roll over and die.

Granted, I'm speaking from a tabletop perspective and not one of fantasy literature.

[chester99]

took so much away from otherwise a pretty good story.

[Junts]

Dresek, this is why my favorite Salvatore writing isn't Drizzt, but the Demon Awakens series, in which he has absolutely no shame about doing bad things to his main characters, whom he seems to enjoy kiling off or randomly destroying the lives of.

[Draccus]

Dresek, this is why my favorite Salvatore writing isn't Drizzt, but the Demon Awakens series, in which he has absolutely no shame about doing bad things to his main characters, whom he seems to enjoy kiling off or randomly destroying the lives of.

I've seen that series but never paid much attention to it. I may give it a look.

I enjoyed the original Drizzt series (especially Drizzt's life in the Underdark and the details of Drow society) but lost interest after the first three books. I really didn't like Wulfgar at all.

Entreri was, to me, the best part of the original series but I thought RAS did a poor job of focusing on him in the later series. I read the first book of that Cleric series (Cadderly?) and absolutely HATED it. I despised Cadderly, that monk chick and think the two dwarf brothers were the worst characters in any Forgotten Realms series.

After that one, I gave up on RAS. Maybe I'll try his non-FR stuff.

[kaelis]

/signed

This is why I really enjoyed George R.R. Martin, A Song of Ice and Fire series. You can pretty much expect really bad things, even death, to happen to your favorite characters

George martin needs to end up someones *****, or soon he'll be dead, with his series unfinished just like Robjert Jordan.

[Quoivat]

George martin needs to end up someones *****, or soon he'll be dead, with his series unfinished just like Robjert Jordan.

Well George Martin is certainly not in any hurry and while i want him to hurry up, i dont want him to rush it. In an off-note Farseer Trilogy by Robin Hobb is an amazing series while you wait for George, almost done with book 2 of her Liveship Traders trilogy also. Great books so far, fills the gap while waiting

[MilkmanDan]

WARNING. SPOILERS.

Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series started out decently enough, at least the first half of the first book. Then the second half started getting mired in S&M fantasies. I can't understand how the main character could've gone through all of that without severe physical and psychological damage. I thought it was just a hiccup and continued reading.

But no. For example, over and over, the main character's SO found herself in situations where she was very nearly raped, only to be saved in one way or another. And the main character, oh boy, he started spewing self-righteous speeches left and right. And no one would argue with him, ever. They'd just let him go on for literally pages. Sometimes, he would make the exact same speech twice in the same book!

took so much away from otherwise a pretty good story.

No.

Well, maybe you are talking about the movie. I haven't seen much of it so I can't comment. But in the comic books, he very much belongs there. I'll always remember the issue that describes how Dr Manhattan perceives the world.

[Comfortably]

/signed

This is why I really enjoyed George R.R. Martin, A Song of Ice and Fire series. You can pretty much expect really bad things, even death, to happen to your favorite characters

YES! I loved these books.

Have you read The Name of the Wind? Epic.

[MysteryNotes]

I like the night angel series though.. :P

[Mockduck]

I loved the Song of Ice and Fire series, but wasn't a big fan of Feast of Crows. I have a feeling that it may end up involuntarily being the end of the series, which bums me out.

In regards to the OP title thread: The best way to ruin a fantasy novel is to start writing it while thinking, "man, this is going to make a GREAT series on television."

[Samadhi]

/signed

This is why I really enjoyed George R.R. Martin, A Song of Ice and Fire series. You can pretty much expect really bad things, even death, to happen to your favorite characters

Agreed.

[Chai]

If I am not mistaken, Drizzt is killed once by Entreri, but somebody resurrects him.

It is D&D, after all.

Yeap, when Drizzt lowers his blades and dares Entreri to kill him without honorable combat being involved.

I still think the "deaths" in The Ghost King are a joke.

[ViolentEnd]

Well George Martin is certainly not in any hurry and while i want him to hurry up, i dont want him to rush it. /snip

Meh, I was a huge fan of his books, until he stopped writing them, and started pawning figurines, swords, board games, and a ton of other ****, and going on endless booksigning tours for years on end.
His latest book has been on hold for years now. He has been putting way too much time into capitalizing on an unfinished product --- he needs to get back to what made him famous in the first place.

[Xyzima]

If I am not mistaken, Drizzt is killed once by Entreri, but somebody resurrects him.

It is D&D, after all.

Drizzt gets healed by a "priest" of lolth... which i always thought was wierd. a "MALE" drow.. and magic user of Lolth's divine power, who is highly matriarchal in nature(yes matriarchal is a word).. rather than ... the masked one that most males get their magic from, if they are divine casters.

[kaelis]

On the derailment of George RR Martin...

http://grrm.livejournal.com/166992.html