Continuing our series of guest posts, I'm happy to have David Kummer today, talking about why we love Fantasy and Young Adult books...
Why the beep do people like Fantasy?
What is something you hate? What is something you love?
The thing about opinions is that somebody always disagrees with you. There is somebody that
loves what you hate, and hates what you love.
What does this have to do with the Fantasy genre? You might have guessed by now. If you hate
it, there’s somebody that likes it. If you like it, there’s somebody that absolutely despises it.
So, now that we’ve got all of that understood, let’s discuss. You might be thinking “Why in the
world would anybody want to read about pointy-ear creatures, complicated magic tricks, and
lots of boring battle scenes?” And then, on the other hand, you could be quoting some line from
Lord of the Rings and wanting it to be written on your grave when you die (hopefully in some
Fantastical event, if you were able to choose.)
There are, like any genre, some things that people on the outside-looking-in get wrong. What
are some of those? I’ll tell you, from what I can tell.
First of all, there seems to be an idea that Fantasy is all about magic, battle, elves, weird
creatures, and that some of the elements are just so bizarre that nobody could ever truly write a
good book! You’re thinking, “Have you seen those covers?? What am I even looking at!”
Well, let me clear things up. There are some unbelievable elements in Fantasy (as in every
genre ever written), but there are many great books that are captivating, entertaining, and
enjoyable… and they have elves, dwarfs, magic, complicated covers, etc. If you don’t believe
me, it’s probably because you’ve never even tried a Fantasy book.
Another thing people have accused the genre of is being too repetitive. They say everybody is
trying to copy someone else. Whether it’s Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, Harry Potter, or
one of Stephen King’s forays into the category, there are certainly some books that have a
legendary status (depending on who you ask.) But even if some authors try to copy these books
almost word-for-word, the best of them make their own trail through the genre.
Why should you like Fantasy, or at least give it a try? First of all, if you like maps, this genre has
tons of maps. Maps in the stories, maps on the back cover, maps online, they’re everywhere!
And along with those maps comes worldbuilding.
This is one of the few (if not the only) genre where you can see worlds literally being built in
front of your eyes. From the ground up, you see all the chaos and disaster of our own world
history, but on a different stage, with different actors, and with a few unique elements thrown in.
I’m not saying you have to love Fantasy, but hopefully in this short article I’ve shown you that
there are plenty of good sides to the genre -and to every genre of books ever written. If a book
has a good author, no matter what the genre is you will find things that you enjoy.
We all have a desire for the Fantasy in the world, for the unique and different aspects of life. We
all love a good adventure story, or a coming-of-age tale, or a treasure hunt. And all of those
have heavy roots in the Fantasy.
So why not give it a shot? What do you have to lose? If you ever get lost, there’s plenty of maps
to help you find your way home.
Why the beep do people like Young Adult?
What is Young Adult fiction? Is it a genre? Is it an age group? That’s a tough question, and not
the one I’ll be answering today.
What I’m more interested in is why people like and dislike the (for sake of time, we’ll call it this)
very controversial genre. There are many people online who write that it is unacceptable and
almost sinful for adults to read this. And then there are those who think the opposite. It seems
like the book sales and the movies being made agree with the latter, so I’ll try to give you some
reasons why people find these books intriguing.
First of all, these stories are written for younger audiences, clearly. So the themes in them are
more innocent, more simple. That’s one thing that appeals to people: the clear, black-and-white
good-vs-evil conflicts, or even the somewhat murkier stories that have been coming out
recently. As adults read more YA Fiction, the genre becomes more suitable to them, and more
like the Literary Fiction works that adults used to find the most entertaining (according to some
article I read. It said that YA was like the new Lit Fic. I don’t know about that.)
The other thing is that characters in these novels go through tremendous growth, both
physically and emotionally. Not to mention, the characters themselves are younger, and I’m
sure adults get tired of reading about other adults doing other adult things. So YA books are
different, and that can be refreshing.
So why should you read YA books? Well, they always have happy endings, at least 99.9% of
the time (not an actual statistic, although you probably know that.) Along with the endings, there
is normally a long series of books for any given story. So that’s nice, if you’re looking for a long
project of reading.
And one of the most important reasons, especially for some people, is that they keep making
movies of these books! If you’re the type of person that loves to say, “Hey, I read that book!”
when watching the previews of a movie, then this is definitely your genre.
No matter what genre you read, don’t be afraid to try others, and to always keep an open mind
when you’re deciding which next book is worth your attention! Chances are, it has a young adult
in it (even if it’s not this genre.)
Enden: A Fantasy Novel
To hear about the next release in this series, emaildavidkummer7@gmail.com.
They have grown strong in the shadows, the kingdom of Oldon. The land is void of hope and of strength against them. The human kingdoms grow corrupt everyday, so that the lines between good and evil are slurred.
One young man from a small village in the valley could change all of that. He fights with the passion of a warrior and the luck of a magician. And when the barbarians force him out of his home, the journey begins.
Trained by a knight, shadowed with secrets, and against the kingdom he once called home, Jonathan is an outcast, a rebel. But more than anything, he is a leader.
Enden is a world filled with wars, famine, sieges, torture, and death. But the greatest battle of all is to survive. Only one thing is certain. Something is rising, in the distance near the edge of the world where forgotten secrets brew. Something has risen. And it is coming.
They have grown strong in the shadows, the kingdom of Oldon. The land is void of hope and of strength against them. The human kingdoms grow corrupt everyday, so that the lines between good and evil are slurred.
One young man from a small village in the valley could change all of that. He fights with the passion of a warrior and the luck of a magician. And when the barbarians force him out of his home, the journey begins.
Trained by a knight, shadowed with secrets, and against the kingdom he once called home, Jonathan is an outcast, a rebel. But more than anything, he is a leader.
Enden is a world filled with wars, famine, sieges, torture, and death. But the greatest battle of all is to survive. Only one thing is certain. Something is rising, in the distance near the edge of the world where forgotten secrets brew. Something has risen. And it is coming.
Get Enden on Amazon here...
https://www.amazon.com/Enden-Fantasy-Novel-Wars-Book-ebook/dp/B01MYS1XFH
My name is David Duane Kummer. I'm a teenager, with a couple published novels and a collection of short stories.
I live in a small, river-town on the Ohio River in southern Indiana. Along with taking care of younger siblings (I have eight total), I make time for writing in between school and sports.
I've been writing since I was young, with As Trees Turned Away being my first published work and She being my first published novel. Along with writing, I am an avid reader and watcher of all things horror, and enjoy writing reviews on them for others who might want to know my opinion on them.
When I'm not writing, I enjoy talking with my hilarious friends and amazing girlfriend, spending time with my loving family, watching movies, and working out to burn all of the calories I get from binge-eating Hawaiian Rolls. Those things are really addicting, am I right? I'd rather get payed in those than money.
Anyways, thank you for taking the time to read this :) Have a great day!
I live in a small, river-town on the Ohio River in southern Indiana. Along with taking care of younger siblings (I have eight total), I make time for writing in between school and sports.
I've been writing since I was young, with As Trees Turned Away being my first published work and She being my first published novel. Along with writing, I am an avid reader and watcher of all things horror, and enjoy writing reviews on them for others who might want to know my opinion on them.
When I'm not writing, I enjoy talking with my hilarious friends and amazing girlfriend, spending time with my loving family, watching movies, and working out to burn all of the calories I get from binge-eating Hawaiian Rolls. Those things are really addicting, am I right? I'd rather get payed in those than money.
Anyways, thank you for taking the time to read this :) Have a great day!
Links:
My blog- http://davidkummer.com/
Newsletter- http://eepurl.com/
Amazon Author Page- http://www.amazon.com/Da
Goodreads Account- https://www.goodreads
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