: Re: Serious real life problems in a fantasy? I have a fantasy story I'm writing and several other fantasy ideas, which treats (in-depth or almost) some serious real life problems, such as diseases

@Murray165

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Fantasy readers may indeed be looking for entertainment in a world that is different from their own. It does not mean, however, that fantasy world should be conflict free, or that those conflicts should follow established canons like fighting against a dark lord or eternal squabbling between dwarves and elves.

Your question is actually not limited to fantasy, it's common for all popular genres - how do we create an entertaining story that touches a serious subject? First of all, I think, the author should make sure that the story is entertaining, and reader would be engaged until the end.

Let's start with an example of Jonathan Swift, whose "Gulliver's Travels" is, in my opinion, an iconic example of fantasy book dealing with the real life's issues. The key to its success is that those issues, while introduced throughout the book, never "break the character" of the story. Reader can either focus on comparison with real life, or completely lose himself in the story - each way of reading is possible, and each is rewarding in its own way.

J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" is often thought of as an allegory for World War II, and even if the author himself denied that, nobody can deny that "Lord of the Rings" highlighted many serious issues.

So, you certainly can talk about serious issues, just make sure that they are a part of a story. Otherwise, those issues will be seen as a "payload" that was artificially attached to it.

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