Like Dostoyevsky, think how something as small as a characters change of clothing can affecttheir own or others behaviour. List of Medieval Clothing (91 terms!) - The Medieverse: Tim's Realistic - Convert future clothing to a historic version. A knight, by definition, was a lord. Thanks, Sana. 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. How do you describe this dress - Writing Forums 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. Great article. 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. Pingback: Fantasy Weapons - Medieval, Magic And Other Types - Richie Billing, Helping writers on their journey and readers find their next favourite story.. - Furs and other animal parts: A quick and obvious way of making something look more fantasy-themed is by simply adding elements of fantasy creatures. Understanding how to describe clothing in a story well will help you create fuller, richer character portraits. Mail was particularly effective against glancing blows. Thanks Benjamin! Another similar and perhaps way more popular example of this is Steampunk. 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. Baggy jeans. Richie also runs The Fantasy Writers' Toolshed, a podcast devoted to helping writers improve their craft. They can tell us what era they live in, and even a persons current state of mind or intent. Which was, indeed, a little weird straight off! Beyond medieval Europe, you have the Far East, the Romans, Viking Before you know it youll have designed a full set of fantasy roman or viking armor. As a quick question, in film you see a lot of heroes and leaders not wearing helmets. These were worn on their own by those wanting greater speed and flexibility, but also by those unable to afford stronger armor. s a fantastic image that Thomas Feichtmeir, AKA Cyangmou has put together. Clean, powerful strikes were needed to disable a foe wearing mail. Struggling with describing clothes for a fantasy setting. : r/DnD - reddit Get free books, an invite to my exclusive writing group, writing tools and guides and much more when you join my community. So we've covered ways to make clothing look both futuristic and historic, but these are all just guidelines and mostly based on what's been done before. A scarlet pantsuit. Nov 1, 2019 - Explore Arisa Nightingale's board "Male Fantasy Outfit Concepts & Designs", followed by 456 people on Pinterest. Using the work of Alexander McQueen, this unit guides students through the analysis of a fashion collection, introducing them to the critical language and methodologies needed to evaluate fashion design and runway presentation. Our characters are always (mostly!) They also wear talismans, jewelry, and other objects. Dostoyevsky describes how Katerinas landlady, Amalia Ivanovna, dresses for the funeral: the table was properly laid at the time and fixed, and Amalia Ivanovna, feeling she had done her work well, had put on a black silk dress and a cap with new mourning ribbons and met the returning party with some pride. But the biggest challenge can sometimes be simply making something look futuristic or historic fantasy-ish, which is the main focus of this guide. I tend to avoid describing clothing. clothed and we should definitely be using them to portray our characters personalities. We see the contrast between the characters friends reaction and the advisory words of Gems aunt. 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. Its all in the craft.Its good that youre here to learn how to describe clothing in writing, because its a powerful tool. Thats a good example of using clothing to reinforce the narrative of a characters arc. But they could also dress in modest, inexpensive-looking clothes. Will using real-world cultural vocabulary in a fantasy setting This is often enough to make something look more futuristic, especially if used on something that looks glossy, shiny and/or smooth. It's something we have today as well, but they're oddly uncommon and work great for more futuristic looks. 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. We already have spray on clothing technology. What would high stakes clothing look like in your story? Characters wear more than just clothes. The description will describe a lot of clothing pieces, some of which you may not need depending on where your character lives. In some cases because they simply didn't have the technology for it, in others because it was too expensive and/or time consuming for the average person. By playing around with this you quickly create very subtle, but more unique fantasy-themed items. These are deep questions. Whether its a matter of indulgence or survival, feeling good is a deeply relatable goal. If you tell your readers about Nanettes light pink cardigan and string of pearls, you dont have to say much about the shoes and skirt and silk blouse. You can even use different pieces of clothing to cover up body parts differently. Character description may change over the course of a story to emphasize a characters arc. I thought if I did that at the beginning of a chapter it would be better but I worry it will turn readers off. Jeans and a tee it was. Theyre the lifeblood of any relationship. 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. One very important aspect of describing attire well is understanding why youre describing it in the first place. Our imaginations can do a surprising amount with just a few key details. Lets delve further into these ideas about describing characters dress: Think of your characters clothing like an actors costume in a play. Clothing tells your reader a lot about your characters goals and motivations within a given scenario. Now, for the feedbackit depends what POV you're writing in. A pair of starched Wranglers. You could introduce magical enchantments or ability-granting traits. Ill add it to my to do list . (Would people living in this area have access to leather goods? Writing Tips on Describing Clothes - Pen and the Pad Some wore a trapper a covering of full chain mailand down the line, some horses even had their own plated armor. (Cough-cough-cough.) It illustrates brilliantly the differences between fantasy armor and the boring armor of reality, in this case, Gothic armor. Whether its a beekeeping suit, climbing helmet, knee pads, or sun-protective fabric, what your character wears provides a clue about whats at stake in the coming scene. What exactly are you trying to communicate about the character, setting, or situation? Theyre probably less concerned with how they look (unless they want to look intimidating) and more concerned with things like survival or victory. On occasion, Abi pretends to be a poet. In 2021 his debut novel, Pariah's Lament, an epic fantasy, was published by Of Metal and Magic. As a friend told me, Wear jeans and glasses and have a favorite pen. My story feels like its set more in medieval times, but I don't want my characters running around in full out tunics and. - Another way to use color is to make things seem like they're glowing even if they're not and to use gradients. Get it right, and you transport your readers to a vivid world. One character might demonstrate their power by showing up to prom in a designer gown. Richie Billing writes fantasy fiction, historical fiction and stories of a darker nature. https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e7bbcc198c936bc1af3fbda128514c44fcfc10f0513ea31cad7c21ae61ba0ab0.jpg. 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. Most picture the knight when we talk about plated armorrigid tin men that can withstand all manner of blows. So let's delve deeper into the details of how to actually figure out what your character wears. Is your central conflict a life-or-death situation? Thank you for sharing this valuable information. He received his BA Honours in English Literature and his undergraduate in English Literature and Music from the University of Cape Town. It was my understanding that they quenched in oil, not water. Because like all other character details, its not enough to paint a picture. 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. Further reading How To Write Fight Scenes. Who's your rebel, and how does their clothing reflect their defiant spirit? Mail was one of the first types of metal armor developed, arguably by the Celts, though other sources say its origins came from Eastern Europe. They give you the chance to offer comic relief, a dash of wisdom, and just some good old fashioned friendship., Sidekick characters. 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 . The only cloak in the world made with silk spun by the cat-sized spiders that live in the forbidden mountains. Think of the process like dressing a doll: start at the beginning and up build the layers. 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. Consider this example from Hard Times. - Break up clothing into more separate pieces and give them their own styles. What I would like to ask is how you would go about describing very specific details on more complex clothing? By rejecting non-essential cookies, Reddit may still use certain cookies to ensure the proper functionality of our platform. And well dip back in time to look at medieval armor and how it was used and crafted. Theyre the kind of thing that often happen organically, but you can actually make use of character secrets to make your stories better. The more you know about real clothing and armor, the more tools in your bag of tricks for describing awesome fantasy pieces. Another quick way of making standard clothing fantasy themed is by converting clothes form the relative future to one that could be created in whichever time period your universe falls under. Mail was lightweight and flexible. Improve this answer. Even things like tattoos, hair colors, eye colors and so on can help with this. Both can lose clout simply by the way their peers respond to their wardrobe choices. Those of us who dont get all jazzed about writing clothing descriptions often fail to consider that a good wardrobe has layers. Which brings me to my next point. It's what we're slowly doing today. Using this site means trees will be planted. What your character wears can tell us a lot about how they feel or how they want to feel. We even have the technology to create clothing without seems. Maybe your character is snuggled up in their fleece pajamas while the blizzard rages outside. Hi Paige, thank you (and thanks for your question). One does not refer to "a garb". Which of these clothing types is your character most likely to reach for when starting their day? From time to time we may use affiliate links to help with the costs of running the site. As the battle continued through the day, a rumor grew that Harold had died or fled the field, I forget which. Help your readers feel the relaxed, organic cotton or the memory foam slipper, and theyll feel your characters priorities deep in their own souls. In fact, you should be putting lots of thought and development into protagonists because thats who the story is about.But how much thought have you given to your tertiary characters? Ha-ha! 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. The shrewd king essentially licensed out parcels of his land as rewards to his warriors in exchange for their military service. How long do they need their clothes to last? Since it's a friends' get-together, let's wear casual attire. The answer can guide you towards certain fashion trends to inspire your characters wardrobe. Use the Character section of the Idea Finder to develop quick story ideas and flesh out your storys cast. The more people that join this thriving group the better it becomes. From lowly serfs to great warriors, all could wear and fight effectively in chainmail. Lots of gear would have been looted. Do they need a ghillie suit to blend into the natural environment? Make it mandatory to hold up a piece of clothing. How to describe scenery ? : r/fantasywriters - reddit.com Thus his plain dress is, ironically, indicative of higher status. Like Borges would say, How to Describe Clothes in English - ESL Advice And what does she put that cap on for? That was the theory. Not all trends return and fashion isn't perfectly cyclical. Something like this: As you can see, a knights armor is made up of a lot of different pieces. An anxious college student buys a flower crown in the hopes of feeling young and free at Coachella. Maybe a bracelet represents a character's relationship to her mother. For example, think about a wealthy person and how that person might dress. - Taboos and nudity. You can immediately show a character is wealthy with descriptions of fine clothing. At least in most cases. Fancy dresses. Blunt weapons were effective, causing haemorrhaging and concussion, so padded garments known as a doublet or gambeson were worn underneath to provide added protection. ^.^ 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. Casual. Very informative. Clothing description is something I have to actively choose to create, too. Before I delve into the more detailed aspects of creating clothing there's one final thing to keep in mind and that is that fashion repeats itself. They were warriors first and foremost. Im struggling to properly figure out how to describe clothing for a fantasy setting Im trying to create. Does it Matter What Your Character Wears? - The Write Practice 04. But status can be communicated in more subtle ways, too. But it makes a good story. Copyright 2023 Richie Billing | Fantasy Writer. A person who doesn't want to draw attention to themselves would dress completely differently today than they would even a few decades ago. In other words, research. Describing armor and clothing. : r/writing - reddit Im writing a little in the Epic Fantasy genre and there were quite a few useful notes I wasnt aware of here. I like the way you wrote this information. If there is one thing I hope you take from all of this, its that none of this is about describing what a character looks like. We therefore see in the fantasy genre characters equipped with grand helmets and beautiful pieces of plate armor. I once wrote about imbuing everyday objects with meaning because talisman create great opportunities for symbolism! Impoverished with children to care for, she uses her last money to give her husband a dignified funeral. But if you do want some guidelines, inspiration or just help this guide'll hopefully provide it. Think armor, bulletproof vests, and bandoliers. The changes and improvements made by technology will often create new trends or alter old ones to the point you may as well consider them a new one, so depending on the technology available in your fictional universe you may wish to create a completely new trend. Besides knowing who we design for we also have to know what the rules for designing are within the universe of our characters. But there is so much more to the experience of clothing than that. Chest plates had grand etchings. 60s-inspired. 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. They mixed more traditional Asian styles with the more Western Industrial Revolution period styles. Now on the other end of the spectrum we have fantasy clothing and more history based clothing. or the world theyre desperately resisting. Your main character just put on some makeup and changed into a fancy dress, complete with heels and a tiny handbag. Characters Wear More Than Just Clothes. How does their attire reflect what they want, what they fear, or where theyre going? It can be as simple as making a dress shorter, a jacket longer or sleeves wider and longer. And here are some great concepts for female fantasy armor. The image you create has to play a role in the narrative.Consider the character arc. It's easy to try this out too, at least the simple line version.
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