How do can I come up with fantasy names and places?
You can take multible approaches.The first is to combine words of your native language. This is one of the most natural methods, since it’s how most names were made. Say, there is a vale with no trees and it’s usually sunny there, so you call it Lightvale. If you want to simulate the effect of time on the name, take out the letters which you think people would stop pronouncing after a few years of usage. Lightvale turns into Litevale or Lighvale. Simulating the effect of time makes the name more original and natural.The second method is to combine a word or a suffix/prefix of your native language with a word distinct to your fantasy world. Say, there is a mythical lion in your fantasy world. He is called Belion. You want to name the region of his origin. So, you call that region Beliania.The third method is to create your own language and name something in that language. This is the hardest method since it takes the most time and you often end up creating unpronounceable names which need to be redone. To step up your game even further, you can apply the simulation of time on your own language. For instance:che = space, pi = to write, therefore cheapi = canvas for writing.ge = time, cheapige = The Canvas of Time, i.e. the UniverseAfter simulating a modernization of the said language, the name turns into Heapiga.After simulating a simplification of the name, it turns into Hega.So, you name your universe Hega.Similar rules apply to naming a person. You can also look for ancient forms of names we use today on sites like this - Meaning of Names, Baby Name Meanings and use those or slightly modify them to make sure your name will be original.PS: Don’t use the names I listed here, they are already taken (by me, obviously).
Are there any fantasy books with a word count of 500,000 words?
The Lord of the Rings is close to 500,000 words and it is only one book, not a series, it just got divided into three volumes. Infinite Jest by David Foster Wallace is over 500,000 words. This website has a list of popular sci-fi/fantasy novels with a large wordcount: http://loopingworld.com/2009/03/06/wordcount/
Alternate name for humans in fantasy world?
I would stick to calling them humans and use Folk, or Humani or any other words only as racial slurs. It's kind of like calling a species of tall, fair, immortals that live in the forest Mambi or something. They're still elves, everyone knows that they're elves. The only time/reason that I would suggest naming a race in a fantasy world is if they are an original race that is not in any way close enough to one of the already established races to simply be considered an artistic take on something that already exists.
Should a long fantasy novel (160,000 words) be broken into two novels? Artistically it's one work, but for publishing a break could be made midway.
Have you edited it, yet? Many first time/early authors finish a first draft or even a fifth draft and call it done, but there’s almost always some cruft and excess that an editor can cut out. (As an author, I never believe there’s cruft or excess in my work until the editor cut sit and the story becomes stronger, better, and clearer).With most works you can cut from a sentence here and one there and remove 10%, never even cutting a scene or section. This usually makes a better, more readable novel. It would also would move it into a better sweet spot for publishing. That said, if you’ve edited it down to the best 160K words it can be and you believe in the work, then I say go for it as one book.When I read books that are cut for these reasons it’s usually clear to me as a reader and almost always a detriment to the story.
How do you say these words in different languages?
Persian=farsi (Iran's language) : 1. bishour,ahmagh 2. bahoosh,nabeghe 3. jadoo 4.divoune 5. ajib 6. khande dar,sar garm konande 7. mard,khanoom,ensan 8. khar-khoon 9. khabis 10. khoob,roshan 11. motakhases 12. ayande,pishgoo 13. la'anati 14. bad-shans,mota'asefane please don't consider persian as arabic.persian is way differet from arabic.we use the same letters but the language is different and we don't understand each others words. becuz we are located near arabs,ppl think iranians speak arabic.unfortunately very few ppl now that we r persians and speak persian not arabic! good luck XXX
What is a real good and catchy fantasy name?
If you want real catchy names go onto a website that translates mundane english words to ancient languages like Sanskrit,Latin or even greek for that matter...they'll also give you its pronunciation. Its really amazing how beautiful words for something like flower can sound in the ancient languages. Another advantage of using words from ancient languages is you can use names appropriate to your story or character; and only you [or anyone who bothers to find out] know its special significance! Another way to get fantasy sounding names is anagrams.Anagrams are shuffled versions of a word or phrase.You can either come up with them yourself or there are lots of websites that help you come up with them! I don't want to suggest names straight of because that will be less fun compared to coming up with them yourself!I hope you like my ideas!Have fun writing your story!
How do fantasy authors find names for their characters and places?
I do this usually by either:Making up a completely new wordUsing a word (sometimes altered slightly) in a foreign/archaic language that has a meaning I want to conveyUsing foreign names (sometimes altered slightly) Using very old names that are no longer in use in modern times (sometimes altered slightly) For example, my writing partner (K.C. May) on a co-authored series (The Dragons of Kudare) and I are working a new book, and we needed to name a character that is a cult leader of a fanatical sect.We chose the name Hildewisa Lof. In Old English, hildewisa means "leader" and lof means "worship".In my The Gods of Talmor series, I named the main male protagonist Korbin, a real world name that is a variant spelling of Corban, derived from a French word meaning Crow. The female protagonist I named Octavia, also a real-world name, albeit an uncommon one. The number eight is of particular significance in this series, so the name fit the theme perfectly.
I'm writing a fantasy fiction novel. How can I generate lots of fantasy sounding character names that are original, yet sound legitimate and context accurate?
For fantasy names, I like to use real names (from any language) and jumble the letters.For example, I might use the Persian names Jamila and Mansour and turn them into Malija and Ransoum.I try to use a single ‘source language’ for all the names in the novel. This creates a unity, and the names feel like belong to the same culture.Where possible, I choose a language from a culture that’s similar to the fantasy world I’ve created. For example, I write a lot of fiction set in a fantasy world that resembles the Middle East during the Bronze Age. So I use languages like Hebrew, Persian, Aramaic. For my mediaeval-type fantasy stories, I use French, German or Welsh.You can also aim for a certain continuity. For example, all female names end with ‘i’ (Rimli, Bani and Sardi) and all male names with ‘u’ (Shibu, Dokku and and Wardu). Or all aristocrats have names beginning with consonants (Faltok, Senrig and Mayta), and all slaves have names beginning with vowels (Urtum, Alber and Emra). Or all members of one tribe have a name containing ‘cho’ in the middle (such as Tocholan, Bichotel and Suchota).However, be careful not to overdo the continuity, otherwise the names are too similar. (If you have characters named Milti, Milzi and Migli, your readers will struggle to keep them apart.)It’s best not to have several characters’ names starting with the same letter. If possible start each name with a different letter.Aim to keep names sort, especially for important characters.Best avoid a typical novice mistake - inserting apostrophes into names. (F’tlora, Mas’trachin, G’vernt’a’ll). Editors can often recognise a beginner’s work by certain novice flags, and names with apostrophes are one of them. There’s nothing wrong with being a novice writer… but you may not want to wave the novice flag when you submit your novel to a literary agent or publisher.I hope this helps.