In a fantasy setting, you may be trying to conjure up a certain feel right off the bat based on how you describe a character's clothing (and the words you use to describe them). This is a fun one. Casual. Im writing a little in the Epic Fantasy genre and there were quite a few useful notes I wasnt aware of here. They were warriors first and foremost. The fantasy genre borrows an awful lot from medieval history. stylish, expensive clothing, yet not specific to a certain time or place. How does their attire reflect what they want, what they fear, or where theyre going? Its hard to really appreciate just how sickeningly awful medieval warfare would have been. Heres a great visual guide on female fantasy armor by YouTuber Shadiversity. At least in most cases. To create a more futuristic looking style an easy way of doing it is to incorporate technology into the clothing itself. As a quick question, in film you see a lot of heroes and leaders not wearing helmets. Chest plates had grand etchings. For example, fur usually wasn't used as a piece of decoration for clothing and if used at all was often worn around the neck and shoulders or underneath other (often hide) clothing to keep warm. 1. Here, for example, Hilary Mantel describes a Cardinals residence being plundered by the Kings men in 1529 England, in her historical novel Wolf Hall. Impoverished with children to care for, she uses her last money to give her husband a dignified funeral. As for showing with clothing rather than telling, a writer could say, He was lazy and inattentive to his appearance about a character, or they could say his clothes always looked like hed just pulled them out of a pile in some corner of his bedroom and had thrown them on without a glance in the mirror. They give you the chance to offer comic relief, a dash of wisdom, and just some good old fashioned friendship., Sidekick characters. The answer can guide you towards certain fashion trends to inspire your characters wardrobe. One of the first things I learned when I moved to L.A. is that writers do not dress professionally for big meetings in Hollywood. Follow edited Jun 17, 2020 at 9:43. 60s-inspired. Good for the mobile knight. Whenever other races or species are involved, like elves and trolls, it's often best to give them clothing that differs from whatever humans (and other races) wear, even if those differences are subtle. That was the theory. Technology goes beyond simply what kind of clothes could be made though, it also relates to how technology is incorporated into style in general. Also bear in mind that not all clothing descriptions have to be presented as She put on x or He was wearing y. You can draw your readers attention to an item of clothing by having your character draw on their jeans or fiddle with their collar. That also will help readers really experience things through their eyes. And if you want more, this documentary is excellent. Understanding how to describe clothing in a story well will help you create fuller, richer character portraits. Using a squared, pixelated look or circuitry patterns usually works great too, which can even be combined with layered clothing to create the circuitry feel. For fantasy stories to be more believable, we need to understand how it interacts with our characters, especially if theyre enchanted. Fashion photographer Bill Cunningham said, Fashion is the armor to survive the reality of everyday life. Try applying this philosophy to clothing descriptions in your writing and see what happens. But for writers like me who get stuck in the white socks, green dress rut, heres a quick reminder: Details about fabric, fit, quality, and color are super effective when it comes to creating a sense of character, place, or moment. Although such armor exists in fantasy worlds, its important to understand how things work in the real world, even at a basic level. The last minute change suggests an indecisive nature. Now this won't work for every piece of clothing of course, not everything has buttons or edges that allow for simple changes we don't already use today, so here are a few ways that are commonly used to make things look more futuristic: If Im wearing lipstick with no plans of going out, one of two things is happening: Im in a great mood or Im feeling like I have zero control over my life and failure is inevitable. Stealthy clothes bring to mind burglars clad in black outfits and soft-soled sneakers. Share. You can also fulfil (or contradict) impressions your characters (or readers) form based on appearances. The answer to this question gives you a ton of clarity. Do all your characters embrace it? See more ideas about character description, fantasy fashion, fantasy clothing. 04. The padded material could absorb blows from blunt, A Guide To Writing Stories That Genuinely Helps, "Helped me land my first book deal" - Jack Shannon, Author, Get More Writing Support From Fellow Fantasy Writers, A complete guide to worldbuilding, with a template. The Victorian author Charles Dickens is widely regarded as a master of characterization, for good reason. This is a heavy generalization of course and entirely based on Western culture of today, but these rules may not apply at all in a fictional universe, no matter if it's futuristic or based on a historic setting. Ive always wondered that too! Vividly describing the colors of your character's clothing can enliven ordinary writing. And when Mother Nature gets involved, even the best suit of armor can have problems. Privacy Policy. Thanks Benjamin! It's what we're slowly doing today. Not a Dabble user? In Dostoyevskys Crime and Punishment, the poor, Tuberculosis-stricken Katerina Ivanovnas husband is trampled to death by a horse-drawn cart. She also writes for film and television with her brother and writing partner, Phil Wurdeman. Not to mention the social status of a person. At the end of the day, they were professional slayers, swords for hire. Clothing is one of the easiest and most immediate ways to establish an historical setting. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts However, you can tell your reader interesting things through a mismatch: A wealthy character might show off their expensive clothing. And as a reader, nothing bores me like an entire paragraph of detailed clothing description. Costume is a large part of a character. As the battle continued through the day, a rumor grew that Harold had died or fled the field, I forget which. Armor, therefore, wasnt that heavya full suit weighed approximately 50 pounds, which is around 3 to 4 stone. And if you dont write historical fiction? Even things like tattoos, hair colors, eye colors and so on can help with this. And here are some great concepts for female fantasy armor. Knights werent as immobile as people assum, though I can imagine in a quagmire itd be tricky to get up. You can quickly convey a number of things about your characters based on the clothing they wear. For example, think about a wealthy person and how that person might dress. Pre-empt this by illustrating everything in layers and completing each layer of clothing. You can try all Dabbles premium features for free for fourteen days. Lets take a look at some ways you can develop those unique ideas: In this section, well take a look at some cool pieces of knight armor in fantasy that people have designed over the years, to give you even more inspiration for your own designs. A self-conscious kid tries to disappear inside their oversized sweatshirt. In pre-thermometer times this was difficult as you can imagine, so instead, armorers observed the colour of the heated steel. Great article. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. - Another way to use color is to make things seem like they're glowing even if they're not and to use gradients. There is simply more characterization, not only of Gem but the other characters, too. You can go for standard quasi medieval fantasy clothing. Youre more than welcome to join us and wed love to have you on board. Ill add it to my to do list . The eye slits were narrow to prevent all sizes of arrowheads from finding their way through. We already have spray on clothing technology. A four-layer, bubble-gum pink taffeta skirt. This one is simple, right? The surrounding culture dictates what they cant wear if they want to be seen as free-thinking individuals. Some helmets had chain attached which hung around and protected the neck, called an aventail, and most were padded inside, for added comfort. I saw Jesus Christ Superstar a long time ago and Jesus was in a sharp black suit. I thought if I did that at the beginning of a chapter it would be better but I worry it will turn readers off. As a result, feudal England became rife with young murderous men. I once wrote about imbuing everyday objects with meaning because talisman create great opportunities for symbolism! Like all forms of exposition, your goal is to deliver this information without pulling the reader out of the story. Thank you for reading our blog! Baggy. Play with the question of presentation and power! Blunt, Once quenched, the steel was re-heated to make it more resilient. Well cover everything from helmets and plate armor to chainmail. Read these tips on how (and why) to describe clothes with examples from well-known novels: 1: Use clothing to show status and position 2: Build (or thwart) character expectations with clothing descriptions 3: Describe clothing to contrast characters' personalities 4: Show clothing to avoid over-relying on telling A scarf for example might be too hot for some areas, but it's obviously easy to leave those out. Never hose for men and probably never puffy breeches. (Cough-cough-cough.) A simple t-shirt could be cut diagonally in the front, give both shoulder parts a different style from the arms, elongate one side and so on. And what does she put that cap on for? Chausses / Chauces (15th century) Pantaloons; padded hosen for the legs, often worn under chainmail or plate armor. For instance, if I'm reading a story and the narrative mentions jeans right off, I'm thinking mid twentieth century or later (while dungarees would be late nineteenth . Any suggestions on how to properly do this? What does your character wear to feel safer in their world or in their own skin? All of these advancements will become more and more common as time goes on, so it'd make sense for them to be part of our clothing in the future. First and foremost we need to know who we're designing for. Were trying to avoid, Isabell gazed out the window, and by the way, she was wearing a white terry cloth robe.. How to describe clothing: 6 simple tips Use clothing to show status and position Build (or thwart) expectations using clothing descriptions Describe clothing to contrast character personalities Show clothing to avoid over-relying on telling Change clothing to highlight character development Use clothing details to create authentic setting Like Dostoyevsky, think how something as small as a characters change of clothing can affecttheir own or others behaviour. The unsung hero of so many stories. It's also an indirect way to describe their physical appearance by examining how the clothes fit them. This is mostly something to keep in mind when designing for characters living in the future, but it could work for alternative historic universes as well. As with body armor, great efforts were made with the designs of helmets. Consider this example from Hard Times. The more people that join this thriving group the better it becomes. The tragedy of Azincourt, for example, occurred because of a poorly-chosen battleground that had flooded. Those of us who dont get all jazzed about writing clothing descriptions often fail to consider that a good wardrobe has layers. First and foremost, remember that clothing description is still storytelling. With all that armor, its often assumed the medieval knight was immobile. Only the most powerful strikes could pierce such armor. These are usually a little trickier to do well as they can look familiar quickly, but it's a usually a good element to have at your disposal. Using this site means trees will be planted. His pants are simple and narrow and reach down to his hard leather shoes. You can also check out some of my other guides too, like: If you have any questions about this guide on fantasy armor, please get in touch. By playing around with this you quickly create very subtle, but more unique fantasy-themed items. So why not join the gang? Now on the other end of the spectrum we have fantasy clothing and more history based clothing. Well come to this below. Thanks I will be following your blog from now one I just came across it today. I'll allow my fangirl side to shine for a second and use the Legend of Korra as an example of how mixing styles can work amazingly well. Think of the process like dressing a doll: start at the beginning and up build the layers. Its a good time. I didnt even know how to begin describing this piece of clothing. What your character wears reveals where they come from, how they rank in society, how they want to be perceived, and even how they feel about themselves. Another important function of clothing description in stories is to create an authentic sense of time and place. If youre good at talking clothes, you can sit this one out. If you stopped to think about it, you may even notice yourself imagining things as specific as age, hobbies, and ambitions. Some materials are used more than others, some colors are more desirable than others and some accessories are more desirable than others and these all changed throughout time. But as the show moved forward the suit got more ragged the jacket was open, then gone, the shirt cuffs undone, half the buttons undone and I think by the end when he was on the cross the shirt was gone. Fully geared up, you were a walking fortress. You can immediately show a character is wealthy with descriptions of fine clothing. Copyright 2023 Richie Billing | Fantasy Writer. Figurative language . You can weave clothing description into your process when using our story planner for writers. - "Digital look". But that doesn't mean you can't deviate from these guidelines completely and do whatever you wish.