Dan Birk Author
@danbirkauthor.bsky.social
YA Fantasy Author 📚
Medieval Dark Academia 🏰
Magic, Monsters & Forbidden Romance in 13th Century Paris 🔮 Fantasy Writing Updates & Tips 📝
https://www.danbirkauthor.com
Medieval Dark Academia 🏰
Magic, Monsters & Forbidden Romance in 13th Century Paris 🔮 Fantasy Writing Updates & Tips 📝
https://www.danbirkauthor.com
As with setting and tone, scope is a spectrum. A story can take place almost entirely within a single house, or even in one person's mind. Or the story can span eons.
April 23, 2025 at 8:59 PM
As with setting and tone, scope is a spectrum. A story can take place almost entirely within a single house, or even in one person's mind. Or the story can span eons.
By contrast, in low fantasy, the stakes and conflict are more personal and local. In Ninth House, for example, the story never really leaves Yale, and the stakes are personal to Alex, her friends, and the victims of injustice on campus.
April 23, 2025 at 8:59 PM
By contrast, in low fantasy, the stakes and conflict are more personal and local. In Ninth House, for example, the story never really leaves Yale, and the stakes are personal to Alex, her friends, and the victims of injustice on campus.
But high fantasy usually involves epic clashes of good vs. evil on vast scales. In The Stormlight Archive, the characters fight to prevent the return of ancient enemies that would destroy global civilization. In The Poppy War, Rin's quest has consequences for the entire empire.
April 23, 2025 at 8:59 PM
But high fantasy usually involves epic clashes of good vs. evil on vast scales. In The Stormlight Archive, the characters fight to prevent the return of ancient enemies that would destroy global civilization. In The Poppy War, Rin's quest has consequences for the entire empire.
Scope refers to the stakes of the story and the nature of the conflict. High fantasy is about separation from the reader's ordinary reality. For most readers, everyday reality is personal and local. Most of our decisions don't have globe-spanning or earth-shaking consequences.
April 23, 2025 at 8:59 PM
Scope refers to the stakes of the story and the nature of the conflict. High fantasy is about separation from the reader's ordinary reality. For most readers, everyday reality is personal and local. Most of our decisions don't have globe-spanning or earth-shaking consequences.
The third factor in what makes a work high fantasy or low fantasy, after setting and tone, is scope. What do I mean by scope, and how do high and low fantasy differ in scope?
April 23, 2025 at 8:59 PM
The third factor in what makes a work high fantasy or low fantasy, after setting and tone, is scope. What do I mean by scope, and how do high and low fantasy differ in scope?
The point of the graph I posted at the start is that one can measure how "high" or "low" a work of fantasy is along multiple axes, since multiple factors affect how much separation a reader will feel from their ordinary reality. Here's a blank chart for your own use.
April 22, 2025 at 11:02 PM
The point of the graph I posted at the start is that one can measure how "high" or "low" a work of fantasy is along multiple axes, since multiple factors affect how much separation a reader will feel from their ordinary reality. Here's a blank chart for your own use.
Or think about the use of genre conventions, such as romance in A Court of Thorns and Roses, or police procedural in Rivers of London. This can change the feel significantly. A noir-style story about an orc detective at Barad-Dur, for instance, would have a very different feel than The Two Towers.
April 22, 2025 at 11:02 PM
Or think about the use of genre conventions, such as romance in A Court of Thorns and Roses, or police procedural in Rivers of London. This can change the feel significantly. A noir-style story about an orc detective at Barad-Dur, for instance, would have a very different feel than The Two Towers.
By contrast, a more casual, conversational, or even humorous tone can lessen separation and make a work feel more like "low" fantasy, even if it's set in a secondary world. Think of the Discworld novels, which take place in an even more secondary world than Middle Earth.
April 22, 2025 at 11:02 PM
By contrast, a more casual, conversational, or even humorous tone can lessen separation and make a work feel more like "low" fantasy, even if it's set in a secondary world. Think of the Discworld novels, which take place in an even more secondary world than Middle Earth.
Yesterday, I posted about setting in high and low fantasy. Today, let's talk about tone...
April 22, 2025 at 11:02 PM
Yesterday, I posted about setting in high and low fantasy. Today, let's talk about tone...
5. “We should start back.”
From A Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin
Perhaps my favorite opening line of all time. Simple, compelling, and spine-chilling. They really should start back, but you know they won’t. How do you not keep reading after this?
From A Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin
Perhaps my favorite opening line of all time. Simple, compelling, and spine-chilling. They really should start back, but you know they won’t. How do you not keep reading after this?
March 27, 2025 at 12:50 AM
5. “We should start back.”
From A Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin
Perhaps my favorite opening line of all time. Simple, compelling, and spine-chilling. They really should start back, but you know they won’t. How do you not keep reading after this?
From A Game of Thrones, by George R.R. Martin
Perhaps my favorite opening line of all time. Simple, compelling, and spine-chilling. They really should start back, but you know they won’t. How do you not keep reading after this?
4. “Some years ago there was in the city of York a society of magicians.”
- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Susanna Clarke
The opening line to Clarke’s masterpiece is a microcosm of the work itself – a fairy tale mixed with the playful erudition of Borges and the genteel irony of a Jane Austen novel.
- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Susanna Clarke
The opening line to Clarke’s masterpiece is a microcosm of the work itself – a fairy tale mixed with the playful erudition of Borges and the genteel irony of a Jane Austen novel.
March 27, 2025 at 12:50 AM
4. “Some years ago there was in the city of York a society of magicians.”
- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Susanna Clarke
The opening line to Clarke’s masterpiece is a microcosm of the work itself – a fairy tale mixed with the playful erudition of Borges and the genteel irony of a Jane Austen novel.
- Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, Susanna Clarke
The opening line to Clarke’s masterpiece is a microcosm of the work itself – a fairy tale mixed with the playful erudition of Borges and the genteel irony of a Jane Austen novel.
3. “Let’s start with the end of the world, why don’t we?”
- The Fifth Season, N.K. Jemisin
Jemisin immediately inverts the reader’s expectations and establishes a confident, arch narrative tone, letting you know you’re in the hands of a master.
- The Fifth Season, N.K. Jemisin
Jemisin immediately inverts the reader’s expectations and establishes a confident, arch narrative tone, letting you know you’re in the hands of a master.
March 27, 2025 at 12:50 AM
3. “Let’s start with the end of the world, why don’t we?”
- The Fifth Season, N.K. Jemisin
Jemisin immediately inverts the reader’s expectations and establishes a confident, arch narrative tone, letting you know you’re in the hands of a master.
- The Fifth Season, N.K. Jemisin
Jemisin immediately inverts the reader’s expectations and establishes a confident, arch narrative tone, letting you know you’re in the hands of a master.
2. “By the time Alex managed to get the blood out of her good wool coat, it was too warm to wear it.”
- Ninth House, Leigh Bardugo
With one sentence, Bardugo tells you what kind of story this is going to be and asks a question the reader would crawl through broken glass to get the answer to.
- Ninth House, Leigh Bardugo
With one sentence, Bardugo tells you what kind of story this is going to be and asks a question the reader would crawl through broken glass to get the answer to.
March 27, 2025 at 12:50 AM
2. “By the time Alex managed to get the blood out of her good wool coat, it was too warm to wear it.”
- Ninth House, Leigh Bardugo
With one sentence, Bardugo tells you what kind of story this is going to be and asks a question the reader would crawl through broken glass to get the answer to.
- Ninth House, Leigh Bardugo
With one sentence, Bardugo tells you what kind of story this is going to be and asks a question the reader would crawl through broken glass to get the answer to.
1. “Lyra and her daemon moved through the darkening hall, taking care to keep to one side, out of sight of the kitchen.”
- The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman
The opening line to Pullman's His Dark Materials series creates the perfect mixture of tension, curiosity and expectation.
- The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman
The opening line to Pullman's His Dark Materials series creates the perfect mixture of tension, curiosity and expectation.
March 27, 2025 at 12:50 AM
1. “Lyra and her daemon moved through the darkening hall, taking care to keep to one side, out of sight of the kitchen.”
- The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman
The opening line to Pullman's His Dark Materials series creates the perfect mixture of tension, curiosity and expectation.
- The Golden Compass, Philip Pullman
The opening line to Pullman's His Dark Materials series creates the perfect mixture of tension, curiosity and expectation.
The streets of the Latin Quarter still echo with whispers of their story, a reminder that beneath the strict religious and intellectual structures of medieval Paris beat very human hearts…
#YAFantasy #DarkAcademia #TheParisianSorcerersGuild
#YAFantasy #DarkAcademia #TheParisianSorcerersGuild
March 24, 2025 at 9:32 PM
The streets of the Latin Quarter still echo with whispers of their story, a reminder that beneath the strict religious and intellectual structures of medieval Paris beat very human hearts…
#YAFantasy #DarkAcademia #TheParisianSorcerersGuild
#YAFantasy #DarkAcademia #TheParisianSorcerersGuild
They continued to write to each other, and their letters are a tender mix of sparkling brilliance, heartbreaking longing, and bitter regret. When she died, Héloïse asked to be buried next to Abelard, and now their remains lie together in a tomb in the Père-Lachaise cemetery in Paris. 4/5
March 24, 2025 at 9:32 PM
They continued to write to each other, and their letters are a tender mix of sparkling brilliance, heartbreaking longing, and bitter regret. When she died, Héloïse asked to be buried next to Abelard, and now their remains lie together in a tomb in the Père-Lachaise cemetery in Paris. 4/5
Their intellectual connection sparked a passionate affair. When Héloïse became pregnant, they married in secret, but her uncle led a brutal attack on Abélard. Maimed and humbled, Abélard became a monk, and Héloïse retired to a convent. But this didn’t end their love story. 3/5
March 24, 2025 at 9:32 PM
Their intellectual connection sparked a passionate affair. When Héloïse became pregnant, they married in secret, but her uncle led a brutal attack on Abélard. Maimed and humbled, Abélard became a monk, and Héloïse retired to a convent. But this didn’t end their love story. 3/5
In the 12th century, Pierre Abélard, a brilliant philosophy lecturer at the University of Paris, was hired to tutor Héloïse, a young woman renowned for her intelligence and learning, an extraordinary figure in an era when women were largely excluded from scholarly pursuits. 2/5
March 24, 2025 at 9:32 PM
In the 12th century, Pierre Abélard, a brilliant philosophy lecturer at the University of Paris, was hired to tutor Héloïse, a young woman renowned for her intelligence and learning, an extraordinary figure in an era when women were largely excluded from scholarly pursuits. 2/5
“How would it feel, she wondered, to burn with a love so pure that even a soul as tarnished as his could be cleansed by it?”
Aalise, the heroine of my WIP, is reflecting here on Héloïse’s love for Pierre Abélard, history’s most famous forbidden romance. #MedievalMonday 1/5
Aalise, the heroine of my WIP, is reflecting here on Héloïse’s love for Pierre Abélard, history’s most famous forbidden romance. #MedievalMonday 1/5
March 24, 2025 at 9:32 PM
“How would it feel, she wondered, to burn with a love so pure that even a soul as tarnished as his could be cleansed by it?”
Aalise, the heroine of my WIP, is reflecting here on Héloïse’s love for Pierre Abélard, history’s most famous forbidden romance. #MedievalMonday 1/5
Aalise, the heroine of my WIP, is reflecting here on Héloïse’s love for Pierre Abélard, history’s most famous forbidden romance. #MedievalMonday 1/5
The secret life of a fantasy writer—equal parts historian, linguist, and occultist. Here’s what’s on deck for the weekend. #YAFantasy #HistoricalFantasy #AmResearching #TheParisianSorcerersGuild
March 21, 2025 at 11:42 PM
The secret life of a fantasy writer—equal parts historian, linguist, and occultist. Here’s what’s on deck for the weekend. #YAFantasy #HistoricalFantasy #AmResearching #TheParisianSorcerersGuild
THE BARTIMAEUS SEQUENCE by Jonathan Stroud
Why: The perfect blend of wit and warmth in the complex relationship between Nathaniel and Bartimaeus. Just thinking about the end of the third book still chokes me up. 7/8
Why: The perfect blend of wit and warmth in the complex relationship between Nathaniel and Bartimaeus. Just thinking about the end of the third book still chokes me up. 7/8
March 20, 2025 at 12:26 AM
THE BARTIMAEUS SEQUENCE by Jonathan Stroud
Why: The perfect blend of wit and warmth in the complex relationship between Nathaniel and Bartimaeus. Just thinking about the end of the third book still chokes me up. 7/8
Why: The perfect blend of wit and warmth in the complex relationship between Nathaniel and Bartimaeus. Just thinking about the end of the third book still chokes me up. 7/8
TALES OF THE OTORI by Lian Hearn
Why: The beautifully rendered non-Western fantasy world, the gorgeous prose, and Takeo’s complex character journey. The moral dilemmas he faces as he navigates conflicting loyalties showed me how richly personal fantasy can be. 6/8
Why: The beautifully rendered non-Western fantasy world, the gorgeous prose, and Takeo’s complex character journey. The moral dilemmas he faces as he navigates conflicting loyalties showed me how richly personal fantasy can be. 6/8
March 20, 2025 at 12:26 AM
TALES OF THE OTORI by Lian Hearn
Why: The beautifully rendered non-Western fantasy world, the gorgeous prose, and Takeo’s complex character journey. The moral dilemmas he faces as he navigates conflicting loyalties showed me how richly personal fantasy can be. 6/8
Why: The beautifully rendered non-Western fantasy world, the gorgeous prose, and Takeo’s complex character journey. The moral dilemmas he faces as he navigates conflicting loyalties showed me how richly personal fantasy can be. 6/8
THE HOBBIT & LORD OF THE RINGS by J.R.R. Tolkien
Why: The meticulous worldbuilding that makes Middle-earth’s history feel realer than our own, and the notion that there’s hope even in our darkest moments. Plus, Gandalf. I love Gandalf. 5/8
Why: The meticulous worldbuilding that makes Middle-earth’s history feel realer than our own, and the notion that there’s hope even in our darkest moments. Plus, Gandalf. I love Gandalf. 5/8
March 20, 2025 at 12:26 AM
THE HOBBIT & LORD OF THE RINGS by J.R.R. Tolkien
Why: The meticulous worldbuilding that makes Middle-earth’s history feel realer than our own, and the notion that there’s hope even in our darkest moments. Plus, Gandalf. I love Gandalf. 5/8
Why: The meticulous worldbuilding that makes Middle-earth’s history feel realer than our own, and the notion that there’s hope even in our darkest moments. Plus, Gandalf. I love Gandalf. 5/8
HARRY POTTER by J.K. Rowling
Why: The absolute delight, the relatable characters (esp. Hermione & Ron), and compulsive readability that makes you forget you’re turning pages. Then you look up, it’s 4 a.m., and the whole next day is shot. Might as well keep reading! 4/8
Why: The absolute delight, the relatable characters (esp. Hermione & Ron), and compulsive readability that makes you forget you’re turning pages. Then you look up, it’s 4 a.m., and the whole next day is shot. Might as well keep reading! 4/8
March 20, 2025 at 12:26 AM
HARRY POTTER by J.K. Rowling
Why: The absolute delight, the relatable characters (esp. Hermione & Ron), and compulsive readability that makes you forget you’re turning pages. Then you look up, it’s 4 a.m., and the whole next day is shot. Might as well keep reading! 4/8
Why: The absolute delight, the relatable characters (esp. Hermione & Ron), and compulsive readability that makes you forget you’re turning pages. Then you look up, it’s 4 a.m., and the whole next day is shot. Might as well keep reading! 4/8
EARTHSEA by Ursula K. Le Guin
Why: The powerful magic and exploration of complex themes. Ged’s heartbreaking arc across the series and the revolutionary gender themes in Tombs of Atuan changed how I saw fantasy’s potential. 3/8
Why: The powerful magic and exploration of complex themes. Ged’s heartbreaking arc across the series and the revolutionary gender themes in Tombs of Atuan changed how I saw fantasy’s potential. 3/8
March 20, 2025 at 12:26 AM
EARTHSEA by Ursula K. Le Guin
Why: The powerful magic and exploration of complex themes. Ged’s heartbreaking arc across the series and the revolutionary gender themes in Tombs of Atuan changed how I saw fantasy’s potential. 3/8
Why: The powerful magic and exploration of complex themes. Ged’s heartbreaking arc across the series and the revolutionary gender themes in Tombs of Atuan changed how I saw fantasy’s potential. 3/8