Using the “F” word will spice up your writing and give your writing life a lift. Which word am I referring to? Fantasy. What were you thinking?

There are two ways to understand “fantasy” in a writer’s life. Many writers have a fantasy, or perhaps unrealistic expectation, would be a better way of describing their idea of how easily or quickly they will be on the best seller’s list, and of course, their novel will be made into a movie. The second way of looking at fantasy is what I want to bring to your attention in this article. Fantasy is necessary. Fantasy is available and free. Fantasy gives us magical episodes in our stories. Fantasy springs from the mind and comes to life in the mind’s eye.

Think of all the fantasy authors you really like. The usual number is between 5 and 10 (though there’s no accounting for ‘usual’, is there? ;). Now think of all the fantasy authors you’ve read and not liked, or felt neutral about. Big number, isn’t it? Okay – now think of all the authors on all the bookshelves of your local bookstore. No matter the genre, the author needed fantasy to imagine the story, the characters, the whole process of bringing the idea to a shelf in a store.

Something about what fantasy authors do makes us want to write. So, what is it? It is the ability to take every single idea within your imagination and put it down onto paper. In fantasy there are no required character traits, we don’t have to stick to an earth-like geology, we can create new species, people can perform magic, in fact, the rules of the universe don’t even exist. We can do away with gravity or the sun and we can travel as fast as we like, how we like. Basically, any idea inside your head is plausible in fantasy. That gives you a lot of scope.

Apart from the process of using fantasy to write, we have a genre named “Fantasy Literature,” as a distinct type of writing that emerged in Victorian times, with the works of writers such as William Morris and George MacDonald.

Have you noticed that fantasy stories and novels are among the most popular genres for both writers and readers? According to an April 2010 article in Publisher’s Weekly, companies specializing in fantasy and science fiction are opening their doors even in the midst of a general publishing industry slump. With the success of film adaptations of novels like “Lord of the Rings,” many aspiring authors are interested in writing fantasy stories. Fantasy writers take readers on a journey to colorful worlds filled with mythical creatures.

Still, fantasy writing is complex and challenging, but for a reader of fantasy they enjoy for what it is:  Good writing. If the writing is good they will enjoy it, and that is what links them to other readers everyone who reads wants a good book.