how to describe fantasy clothingaverage 20m sprint time 15 year old

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(Where do they buy their clothes? Slog through another meaningless day in a world where nothing matters? So below, well take a look at the relationship between the genre of fantasy and medieval armor. First and foremost, remember that clothing description is still storytelling. Our characters are always (mostly!) When shes not writing, Abi is most likely hiking, reading, or texting her mother pictures of her houseplants to ask why they look like that. That fancy Ming dynasty dress looks completely different with exposed shoulders and that medieval set of pants look completely different if you turn them into shorts with exposed legs. For example, a shy person will often wear 'regular' clothing, clothing that isn't too bright or outgoing in both design and colors. We therefore see in the fantasy genre characters equipped with grand helmets and beautiful pieces of plate armor. I tend to avoid describing clothing. But that doesn't mean you can't deviate from these guidelines completely and do whatever you wish. Blend in? Showing what your characters are wearing can be a great way to show your readers what they might be up to that day without having to actually narrate anything. Maybe theyre wearing an article of clothing that once belonged to someone theyve lost. You can keep track of your characters signature style, upload photos, note how their style evolves, and keep these ideas right at your fingertips as you write. From time to time we may use affiliate links to help with the costs of running the site. 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. A four-layer, bubble-gum pink taffeta skirt. Dr. Urbino in Marquezs example above fits the latter category. Also his mother was poor and anyone who knew that might wonder how he could afford such clothing so it hints at the actual story. Thats a good example of using clothing to reinforce the narrative of a characters arc. 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. Continued successes could see knights rise higher up the ranks. Understanding how to describe clothing in a story well will help you create fuller, richer character portraits. What is the prevailing value in the society of your story? Other clothing pieces could be various types of hats and scarves, (trench) coats and even something as simple as pockets or buttons used for fastening rather than as decoration to name just a few. Ready to sketch vivid characters for your novel? 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. One reason clothing descriptions can start to feel like a tedious laundry list (see what I did there?) Sneak around? We even have the technology to create clothing without seems. What would high stakes clothing look like in your story? The unsung hero of so many stories. Not quite. To navigate your way through this guide, just click the links below. But your reader is going to picture something whether you guide them or not. In battle, you are trying to strike a moving target, so mail was sufficient as most blows were glancing ones. They looked something like this: One of the main defensive strengths of plated armor came from its curved design, which deflected both blades and arrows. One very important aspect of describing attire well is understanding why youre describing it in the first place. A few small details of clothing may distinguish your characters from each other, highlighting their personalities. So here are some more ways to alter a design while sticking with familiarity and a more historic feel: The train hums and throbs in place as people rush to pile in.. In most cases simply copying the style of whichever era you've based your story on is enough, but it can be fun to create your own styles and in some cases it'd make sense to have your own styles as well. To navigate your way through this guide, just click the links below. Because like all other character details, its not enough to paint a picture. In one single piece of clothing description (a pink-eyed bundle of shawls), Dickens conveys how timid and ailing Mrs. Gradgrind is in contrast to her bullish, overbearing husband. Chain mail is a great piece of fantasy armor to use in your stories purely because of its flexibility. If youre trying to learn how to describe clothing in writing, youre probably like me: Youve only pretended to know what organza is. Mantel describes the cardinals vestments: They bring out the cardinals vestments, his copes. As such, the contemporary tales that have followed, like Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones, Dungeons and Dragons and everything in between, have paid homage to that era. Your email address will not be published. However, you can show and imply a characters intention without spelling it out: Theyd agreed to meet downtown at six. Impress someone with my indifference? One of her poems is (legally) stamped into a sidewalk in Santa Clarita, California. Richard the Lionheart, for instance, was celebrated amongst his peers for his ability to chop his enemys skulls down to the teeth. Abi Wurdeman is the author of Cross-Section of a Human Heart: A Memoir of Early Adulthood, as well as the novella, Holiday Gifts for Insufferable People. Now, for the feedbackit depends what POV you're writing in. ). In other words, research. Get it right, and you transport your readers to a vivid world. What are the rules of your characters world? Jordan is a writer, editor, community manager and product developer. I'll make a separate point for sci-fi/futuristic clothing and fantasy/historic clothing. Sweaters or jumpers? Odds are, youve got a character who dresses to stay alive. One way to deal with clothing is to not try to be unique. For example, if a character is going on a date, you could write: Gem wanted to look sexy for her date downtown (but not easy), so she changed into more comfortable clothes. They're the ones who are always there to lend a helping hand, crack a joke, or provide some much-needed emotional relief.And let's be real, sometimes they dont go unsung. Otherwise they wont take you seriously as an artist.. Stiff with embroidery, strewn with pearls, encrusted with gemstones, they seem to stand by themselves. One does not refer to "a garb". And medieval warfare was a bloody affair. These detail could suggest that your character is miserly or down-to-earth despite their wealth. At least in most cases. They give you the chance to offer comic relief, a dash of wisdom, and just some good old fashioned friendship., Sidekick characters. This article was very helpfulcan you post some examples of showing versus telling when describing clothing? Leather could be stitched into coats, or added to mail to provide added protection. Get free books, an invite to my exclusive writing group, writing tools and guides and much more when you join my community. - Change lengths. Ive always wondered that too! Of course there are more ways to alter historic designs and the middle ages aren't the only period to draw inspiration from. (Find out more). Im struggling to properly figure out how to describe clothing for a fantasy setting Im trying to create. And what does she put that cap on for? Share. What would you think about a wealthy character who looked as though he shopped at thrift stores? Let your mind fill in the details, always checking back in with your adjectives to make sure the concept is moving in the right direction. Clothing description is something I have to actively choose to create, too. 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. A possible source of conflict for a story, perhaps! Even the non-conformists are influenced by societal norms. Such coats were made from brass or iron, though steel was deemed best due to its toughness. Ha-ha! The more people that join this thriving group the better it becomes. Theyre probably less concerned with how they look (unless they want to look intimidating) and more concerned with things like survival or victory. An anxious college student buys a flower crown in the hopes of feeling young and free at Coachella. To add to the previous mosaic part stealth technology can provide great patterns. 1. Sometimes the simplest changes are enough to create something completely new and ideal for a particular universe. But they werent administrators. 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. Not to mention the social status of a person. - Use nudity. Helmets were arguably the most distinctive feature of an armored knight. The surrounding culture dictates what they cant wear if they want to be seen as free-thinking individuals. Well also take a look at female fantasy armor and those used by knights, potential designs, and ways to help you find inspiration for creating your own. Other elements you could include are mood-based changes (exists today), clothing that uses lights or glowing elements (exists today), clothing that can be repaired or changed on the go (exists today), smart technology woven into the fabric of clothing (exists today), changing colors (think chameleons) whenever you feel like it (exists today, kind of). Lets talk about how to use clothing description as a storytelling tool, how to dress your character for their personality and setting, and how to make clothes interesting to anyone. Black and white usually does the trick as well. SHIRT AND PANTS | Fantasy-Writers.org It can genuinely be tough to come up with cool ideas for epic fantasy armor without drifting back to things that weve seen in the likes of Dungeons and Dragons, The Elder Scrolls and movies like Lord of the Rings. Follow edited Jun 17, 2020 at 9:43. Troubles with Clothing in Fantasy + Some Ideas - Brielle Andela One specific form of descriptive writing that particularly affects setting and characterization is the portrayal of characters' clothing. Here are five examples: 1. Fancy dresses. Borrowed armor wouldnt fit as well as a suit made for the wearer and wouldnt be as well balanced, so someone in borrowed armor would be more likely to have problems moving in his armor. Maybe a bracelet represents a character's relationship to her mother. Help your readers feel the relaxed, organic cotton or the memory foam slipper, and theyll feel your characters priorities deep in their own souls. Adding these other bits of lesser-known fantasy armor to your stories can really add extra depth to your worldbuilding. Think touchable fabrics and the light scent of lavender soap. This is further influenced/confirmed by the show Forged in Fire where the judges were a half step from putting their heads in their hands when a smith put his hot blade in water instead of oil to cool it down. Shoes made with bendable displays already exist, allowing you to change your shoe's design on the fly. 160 Best Character description ideas | character description, fantasy Are the characters of your dystopian novel forced to make do with burlap and mud? ^.^ There is simply more characterization, not only of Gem but the other characters, too. Is this purely for cinematic effect or would some leaders remove their helmets to show their faces to their soldiers? The important thing to remember is to remain in the character's point of view. For example, the corset wasn't popular until the 16th century and while earlier versions can be found incredibly early they weren't common place. A vintage polka dot dress with a sweetheart neckline. And if you dont write historical fiction? Fashion trends come and go and they often return later, albeit in a slightly different form. "A dress" (or using "the" to refer to a particular "garment") means an item of clothing that is normally worn by women. Affordable . Non-visual senses are big, too. And well dip back in time to look at medieval armor and how it was used and crafted. Some helmets had chain attached which hung around and protected the neck, called an aventail, and most were padded inside, for added comfort. And above all, people share their writing, get feedback, build friendships and develop greater confidence not just in their writing, but in themselves too. Make sure you know whats hot and whats not in your specific setting, as well as what specific words the locals would use. Clothing description also presents an opportunity to play with different points of view. By playing around with this you quickly create very subtle, but more unique fantasy-themed items. You could even move the buttons to the side and have it close diagonally instead. Sure, it helps your reader to know how you picture a character. But there is so much more to the experience of clothing than that. If all else fails use Google images and find some visual aids and inspiration sources, they can work wonders. Use the Character section of the Idea Finder to develop quick story ideas and flesh out your storys cast. Improve this answer. It was my understanding that they quenched in oil, not water. Its about building a life and a world, and that is something you can do. Vision in such helmets was extremely limited, but this was the cost of added protection. Or it could be that they want to be charmed by their own image when they look in the mirror. - Diagonal lines: Diagonal lines aren't all that common in historic clothing and they usually only came in the form of neck lines, the edges of unbuttoned jackets or from large pieces of fabric being held up (think ancient Rome). The clothing itself can be just standard medieval gear, but with these elements they immediately look (wood) elvish. - As far as colors go they often seem to be either toned down or bright and happy (or even over the top), depending on the style. Subtle clothing changes can signal character development quite effectively in some scenarios. Or theyll be living off soda crackers and peanut butter for the next week because they drained their checking account for a suit to impress at their job interview. By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. Adorable. This may seem like a tricky thing to do as there's so much out there already, but it can often be as simple as simply changing a texture, the patterns used or the amount of fabric. We have all sorts of headphone designs to reflect our clothing styles and just wearing or not wearing a headphone will completely change how a character is often perceived. 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. So this really reaffirmed that approach for me. How do they change, and how does their clothing reflect that change? Examples of the prior are Star Trek, 2001: A Space Odyssey and to some degree Star Wars and Tron. They also wear talismans, jewelry, and other objects. Because it actually is possible. It can be as simple as making a dress shorter, a jacket longer or sleeves wider and longer. The time period of your story. A scarf for example might be too hot for some areas, but it's obviously easy to leave those out. I saw Jesus Christ Superstar a long time ago and Jesus was in a sharp black suit. Really, the topic of this article is not how to describe clothing in writing as much as it is how to tell a story with clothes. You can even use different pieces of clothing to cover up body parts differently. In this section, Ive included some more guides on creating fantasy armor designs that you may find useful. We see the contrast between the characters friends reaction and the advisory words of Gems aunt. Sometimes they're more interesting and lovable than the main characters themselves and end up stealing the show., Secrets. So why not join the gang? Fantasy Armor - The Ultimate Guide - Richie Billing Also try searching cool fantasy armor, or epic fantasy armor. Youre already obsessing over hat styles and what the undergarment situation was at the time of your story. Another similar and perhaps way more popular example of this is Steampunk. 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. The final design with all its layers will often hide elements of the clothing that a client may want to see later. Make it look very clean and smooth and it immediately feels more modern. Chest plates had grand etchings. Its fun to play with power in clothing, because it's a relative concept. These images all go a lot further than white socks, green dress, and most of them dont require a lot of extra words. With all that armor, its often assumed the medieval knight was immobile. (Cough-cough-cough.) Technology goes beyond simply what kind of clothes could be made though, it also relates to how technology is incorporated into style in general. Clothing is one of the easiest and most immediate ways to establish an historical setting. Heres a superb glossary, with pictures, of all types of armor. An owl in new ribbons, ha-ha-ha! Much of the clothing we wear today were either rare or completely nonexistent a hundred years ago. Like Marquez, compare and contrast characters clothes to reveal important details about their social status or position. For more information, please see our Arrows will bounce off steel crafted in such a wayunless from close range, as we discussed last week. Examples of the latter are The Fifth Element and The Hunger Games. Looking for a word - prince's clothes - English Language Learners Stack Im writing a little in the Epic Fantasy genre and there were quite a few useful notes I wasnt aware of here. To illustrate this in a way we did with the futuristic shirt example let's take a standard medieval tunic and turn it into a fantasy-themed version. More on that in a bit. Need help with clothing description in Fantasy | Royal Road Describing clothes : writing - reddit It's part of culture, so it's definitely something to keep in mind since your fictional universes will have some form of culture as well. Reddit and its partners use cookies and similar technologies to provide you with a better experience. 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. Think of the process like dressing a doll: start at the beginning and up build the layers. Armor, therefore, wasnt that heavya full suit weighed approximately 50 pounds, which is around 3 to 4 stone. Or one who was forever wearing poorly-fitted clothing that appeared to be handed down from friends? As time marched on, small plates of leather or iron were added to the mail to protect key areas, such as vital organs. PsstDoes Your Character Have a Secret? [Find more articles on character description in our complete guide to character creation.]. I second the idea of describing the reactions of the characters to the city. See more ideas about character description, fantasy fashion, fantasy clothing. Not to pile on, but dont forget to make sure you know which materials wereand werentavailable in the world of your novel. Required fields are marked *. Writing Tips on Describing Clothes - Pen and the Pad Either way, their goal is to be desirable, whatever desirable means in this situation. This is a fun one. A lowly one at that, but one very much capable of climbing the ladder. Have fun with it. It gives you an idea of the capabilities that armor can have. Its okay if Todds checks his designer watch three pages after you mention his silk tie. On occasion, Abi pretends to be a poet. show how hard is to escape in a narrow street. Clothing in fantasy novel | Absolute Write Water Cooler That also will help readers really experience things through their eyes. A band t-shirt. Although such armor exists in fantasy worlds, its important to understand how things work in the real world, even at a basic level. - "Digital look". Since it's a friends' get-together, let's wear casual attire. Its not an aspect of character design that bubbles up naturally from the depths of my creative soul. For a bigger image, just click on the link above. Be specific and accurate. 60s-inspired. But they could also dress in modest, inexpensive-looking clothes. 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. It would have been extremely warm too. She also writes for film and television with her brother and writing partner, Phil Wurdeman. Another important function of clothing description in stories is to create an authentic sense of time and place. Those outfits can become iconic. )Secrets might not be something youve specifically thought about when youre drafting a story. Or is it really important for a reader to know the specific pattern? But if you do want some guidelines, inspiration or just help this guide'll hopefully provide it. But they are a common element used in fantasy clothing in all sorts of works of fiction. What does your character wear to feel safer in their world or in their own skin? A warrior had to fight the enemy, and to fight his armor as well would be too distracting. If your protagonist is donning a tri-cornered hat, loosening a corset, or strutting through town in a new toga, your reader has a good sense of time period. Discover an extensive list of terms you may want to know here. As far as guidelines go this is the first to be broken though, consider this one more of a starting point rather than something to necessarily end on. Well, mostly. In pre-thermometer times this was difficult as you can imagine, so instead, armorers observed the colour of the heated steel.

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