Seven Principles for Creating More Emotion in Fantasy Novels

Based on "The Emotional Craft of Fiction" by Donald Maass

Background

• Donald Maass: Runs a literary agency for 40+ years.
• Notable clients: Fantasy authors like Brett Weeks and Peter McLean.
• Purpose: Analyze the "magic" of fiction to create emotional depth.

Principle 1: Infuse Info Dumps with Meaning

• Challenge: Conveying the rich details of world-building without bogging down the narrative.
• Solution: Attach personal significance to information.
  • Think about what the character observing the scene feels.
  • Example: The Lies of Locke Lamora by Scott Lynch
    • Description of a chaotic, bustling bar inhabited by thieves.
    • Emotional filtering through characters' experiences.
• Key Insight: Information gains emotional weight from its personal significance.

Principle 2: Write Around the Primary Emotion

• Challenge: Avoid clunky, unsubtle emotional writing.
• Solution: Write around the primary emotion, introduce complexity.
  • Identify the primary emotion (e.g., love) but write it indirectly.
  • Example: Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo
    • Scene of Kaz realizing his feelings for Inej while drowning.
    • Reflects complex emotions like inadequacy and attachment.
• Key Insight: Create feelings that are complex; let the reader infer the primary emotion.

Principle 3: Small Details Create Big Emotions

• Challenge: Writing emotionally important scenes which feel flat.
• Solution: Use small, specific details to evoke big emotions.
  • Example: Doctor Sleep by Stephen King
    • Specific life details as Danny Torrance comforts a dying man.
  • Key Insight: Small details allow readers to build their own towering emotional experience.

Principle 4: Building an Emotional Hook

• Components: Intrigue + Emotional Investment
• Strategy:
  • Intrigue: Plot-focused questions about the world-building or political system.
  • Emotional Hook: Show the character yearning or worrying about something deeply.
  • Example: The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
    • Character Bod's curiosity about the outside world.
    • Emotional and plot-based questions raise reader interest.
• Key Insight: Combine external intrigue with internal emotional goals early in the story.

Principle 5: Ask Your Characters the Right Questions

• Difference: Surface character (traits) vs True character (emotional depth).
• Strategy: Focus on meaningful life-shaping questions.
  • Examples: Biggest sacrifice, first heartbreak, most romantic night.
• Key Insight: Deep probing questions create a three-dimensional character.

Principle 6: Create Polarity Shifts

• Concept: Characters should experience both highs and lows.
• Strategy: Dramatize the swings between positive and negative situations.
  • Example: The Name of the Wind by Patrick Rothfuss
    • Kvothe's idyllic life vs the lows of family tragedy.
• Key Insight: Highs and lows create emotional engagement through contrast.

Principle 7: Moral Elevation

• Concept: Characters doing inherently decent and difficult things create emotional depth.
• Strategy: Build towards moments of moral elevation.
  • Example: Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson
    • Kaladin jumping into an unfair fight to save someone he dislikes.
• Key Insight: Powerful moments of moral goodness, especially under duress, elevate the story and character.

Summary

• Infuse info with personal meaning and emotional weight.
• Write around primary emotions to build complexity.
• Use small, specific details to evoke big emotions.
• Create an emotional hook by combining intrigue and deep character goals.
• Ask probing questions for depth.
• Show character polarity shifts for emotional engagement.
• Use moral elevation to create unforgettable moments.