So I picked the hard magic system over the soft one for my fantasy novel...

I've been kicking around this fantasy story for about 4 months now, and I kept going back and forth between a soft magic system like in Lord of the Rings where it's more mysterious, or a hard one like in Sanderson's books with clear rules. I eventually decided to go with a hard system where magic users can only manipulate metal through touch, but it costs them a memory each time. Now I'm about 30 pages in and I'm second guessing myself because every scene I write feels like I'm building a rulebook instead of telling a story. Anyone else run into this where you pick one approach and then wonder if you backed yourself into a corner?

2 comments

2 Comments

maxm501mo ago

I just read an interview with Brandon Sanderson where he talked about how he actually outlines the rules before writing because it keeps him from painting himself into a corner later. That memory cost for metal manipulation is a cool hook though, like if a character forgets something crucial at a bad moment that could drive the plot. Try writing a short scene where the magic barely comes up, maybe just a character describing how tired they feel after using it, and see if that breaks the rulebook feeling. The 30 page hump is always rough for me too, I usually push through to 50 before I know if something is working or not.

evannelson1mo ago

Whoa wait, Sanderson actually outlines every rule before he writes? I didn't know he was that strict about it. I always figured he just had a general idea and then fleshed it out as he went. @maxm50 that memory cost thing you mentioned is a killer detail though. I could see a scene where a character is trying to remember their kid's name while bending a metal bar or something, and they just freeze up. That 30 page hump is real, I usually hit it around page 25 myself.