Mythical Traveller
Scribe
I'm tossing up on what type of setting to use for my next story and on that note, I wanted to get a feel for what people here think is the better type of setting for a story?
Do you think the "secret fantasy world existing within our own world" kind of setting is better, where an average Joe from our world is suddenly thrust into fantastic situations that their world generally regards as myth? (e.g. Harry Potter, or the Twilight series)
Or do you think that completely fantasy worlds, e.g. Lord Of The Rings, make for a better setting?
Both have pros and cons. The "secret underbelly" setting makes the protagonist more relatable for the reader, and allows the exposition to flow more naturally if there's a visitor to this fantasy world who needs an explanation himself.
On the other hand, a true fantasy world gives you more free reign as an author. You get to write all the rules of your setting and you don't have to worry about any incompatibilities that your story environment might have with our world.
Do you think the "secret fantasy world existing within our own world" kind of setting is better, where an average Joe from our world is suddenly thrust into fantastic situations that their world generally regards as myth? (e.g. Harry Potter, or the Twilight series)
Or do you think that completely fantasy worlds, e.g. Lord Of The Rings, make for a better setting?
Both have pros and cons. The "secret underbelly" setting makes the protagonist more relatable for the reader, and allows the exposition to flow more naturally if there's a visitor to this fantasy world who needs an explanation himself.
On the other hand, a true fantasy world gives you more free reign as an author. You get to write all the rules of your setting and you don't have to worry about any incompatibilities that your story environment might have with our world.