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- Mix cultures. First and foremost we need to know who we're designing for. Blunt, Once quenched, the steel was re-heated to make it more resilient. So here are some more ways to alter a design while sticking with familiarity and a more historic feel: - Christine, on How to describe clothing in a story (with examples), 8 story hook examples (how to grab attention), Story structure examples: How to create payoffs for readers, How to describe to immerse readers (complete guide), How to write deep POV: 8 tips and examples, 9 exposition examples: How to write clear introductions, How to make a plot captivating: 7 strategies, Writing great characters: 5 lessons from modern novels. In pre-thermometer times this was difficult as you can imagine, so instead, armorers observed the colour of the heated steel. In battle, you are trying to strike a moving target, so mail was sufficient as most blows were glancing ones. It's easy to try this out too, at least the simple line version. The image you create has to play a role in the narrative.Consider the character arc. Meanwhile, the character who works two jobs while going to school full-time might scour the Goodwill rack for a designer tag to help them fit in at the same party. Be specific and accurate. One way to deal with clothing is to not try to be unique. A self-conscious kid tries to disappear inside their oversized sweatshirt. You can quickly convey a number of things about your characters based on the clothing they wear. This usually involves dresses from some time pre-renaissance and a tunic or shirt paired with trousers for men and women who are doing warrior stuff. The reader does not need the full outfit in one go. Now add a thick, layered scarf or attach a hood to this tunic and you're already well on your way to a customized look. Tell us how the wool of your protagonists sheath dress scratches the skin on the underside of her arm. 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. Excuse the on hold background music. Stylish. If youre trying to learn how to describe clothing in writing, youre probably like me: Youve only pretended to know what organza is. Most clothing throughout history consisted of longer pieces of fabric and with minimal tailoring and cuts. 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. So have fun with that. 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. Of course there are more ways to alter historic designs and the middle ages aren't the only period to draw inspiration from. Ideas are forever being shared and discussed. Sometimes the simplest changes are enough to create something completely new and ideal for a particular universe. Further reading How To Write Fight Scenes. That also will help readers really experience things through their eyes. To navigate your way through this guide, just click the links below. Character description may change over the course of a story to emphasize a characters arc. What are the rules of your characters world? Some had pointed snouts, the purpose of which was to deflect arrows when walking into arrow storms. The surrounding culture dictates what they cant wear if they want to be seen as free-thinking individuals. I sincerely hope youve found some inspiration for your fantasy medieval armor. For example, a meticulously dressed character who is discovered in a disheveled and poorly dressed state. If you stopped to think about it, you may even notice yourself imagining things as specific as age, hobbies, and ambitions. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); 'There is a blog for every aspect of the writing journey.' 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. Clothes can betray our greatest joys and our deepest insecurities. You can try all Dabbles premium features for free for fourteen days. Richie Billing writes fantasy fiction, historical fiction and stories of a darker nature. Fashion trends come and go and they often return later, albeit in a slightly different form. An owl, a real owl! Like say a vest with mirrored sequins and rhinestones, but they all go in a pattern and you feel the need to describe the pattern line by line? Or they could be frantically running errands in leggings and a t-shirt. As the battle continued through the day, a rumor grew that Harold had died or fled the field, I forget which. Sure, it helps your reader to know how you picture a character. You suddenly know which details to include, which to leave out, and whether to call it a blood-red cloak or a goji berry wrap. Characters can also comment on or react to one anothers clothing, as long as the exchange reveals something about the world or relationship. Is this purely for cinematic effect or would some leaders remove their helmets to show their faces to their soldiers? Not to mention the social status of a person. An anxious college student buys a flower crown in the hopes of feeling young and free at Coachella. Elsewhere, Mantels novel is full of descriptions of garments for specific, era-appropriate purposes: Riding cloaks, town coats, and other clothing people of means would have worn at this time. Knights were, indeed, hard to defeat in battle. And as a reader, nothing bores me like an entire paragraph of detailed clothing description. ). That cloth ribbon tied around their waist? By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Clothing description is something I have to actively choose to create, too. - Use lines to break up a piece of clothing and create a kind of mosaic. No problem! New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast. Press question mark to learn the rest of the keyboard shortcuts Which is to say, if you write from the point of view of a character who thinks of clothing only in terms of the simplest descriptors, that's just fine. Very informative. Only when youre keeping secrets in fiction, you can make them even darker and deeper than any you might ever have in real life. 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. 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. Try some colour. Send private message Achievements: Need help with clothing description in Fantasy #1 I'm writing a Fantasy Novel in the middle ages, filled with swords and magic However, I realize I have trouble trying to convey how the characters look, like what the nobles' attire, the bandit's armor. Or it could be that they want to be charmed by their own image when they look in the mirror. Such simple things, but the clothes really helped show Jesus plight. Mail was lightweight and flexible. Nylon and polyester fabrics weren't invented until almost the mid 20th century for example. Katerina is affronted by Amalias fine dress because it is new and shows pride. "Garb" or "dress" (without an article) is a rather drab abstract noun for what a person is wearing. Have fun with it. Clothes can betray our greatest joys and our deepest insecurities. Something like this: As you can see, a knights armor is made up of a lot of different pieces. Its okay if Todds checks his designer watch three pages after you mention his silk tie. It doesn't exclude those that don't know what a qipao is, nor break immersion for those who do. 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. Another benefit to chain mail, a point which can slip the mind of writers, is that it was cheap and efficient, able to accommodate different-sized warriors, unlike expensive plated armor. Each lesson breaks down the analysis of one component of a fashion collection, progressing from a consideration of the designer's technique and influences to the . Think of other interesting combinations: A teacher who dresses provocatively; a beggar with an innate sense of style. Jeans and a tee it was. But even regular elements can help with this. By using fur for decoration you quickly create fictional pieces in no time. Not quite. These elements are very important when taking into account the previous point. Like Dostoyevsky, think how something as small as a characters change of clothing can affecttheir own or others behaviour. Hopefully, you now have more wardrobe ideas for your characters than just red shirt, blue pants. But what about the process of actually sharing these details in your novel? So why not join the gang? They should be doing that. Once blue, it is quenched a second time, permanently fixing its hardness. 1. Pingback: A fantasy writers guide to weaponry Richie Billing. The aim is to arm you with what you need to enrich your tales with brilliant detail. And right at the heart of it were the leaders of societythe medieval lords. 80s-inspired. Dr. Urbino in Marquezs example above fits the latter category. Our characters are always (mostly!) I love the way clothes can describe a character. (Huh.). In visual mediums like TV or comics, cool outfits are on-screen the whole time, and they're the first and most obvious impression you'll get of the character, so they have a big impact on how the character is perceived. Let it hang diagonally across their chest and over their shoulder instead. - "Digital look". There is simply more characterization, not only of Gem but the other characters, too. Richie also runs The Fantasy Writers' Toolshed, a podcast devoted to helping writers improve their craft. Make it look very clean and smooth and it immediately feels more modern. The answer to this question gives you a ton of clarity. I once wrote about imbuing everyday objects with meaning because talisman create great opportunities for symbolism! 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. A vintage polka dot dress with a sweetheart neckline. Your trust fund character might be completely confident showing up to a party in board shorts and flip-flops. 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. Its all in the craft.Its good that youre here to learn how to describe clothing in writing, because its a powerful tool. If all else fails use Google images and find some visual aids and inspiration sources, they can work wonders. A scarlet pantsuit. On the other hand you may wish to add layers for the same purpose. The pieces around the vital organsthe chest and headwere thicker and heavier than those on the arms and legs to try and reduce weight as much as possible. And its in designs that you can really go wild with your own fantasy armor. 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. Now on the other end of the spectrum we have fantasy clothing and more history based clothing. Subtle clothing changes can signal character development quite effectively in some scenarios. Changes in characters clothing can help revealcharacter development. What the description shows is that many of the inviteesplay at status through fancy dress. Clothing reflects the resources available in a specific time and place. Odds are, youve got a character who dresses to stay alive. Most picture the knight when we talk about plated armorrigid tin men that can withstand all manner of blows. Press J to jump to the feed. Black and white usually does the trick as well. They are more common around the chest and torso in Asian cultures though, so keep that in mind when adding diagonal lines. That would depend on a few things. See how Dickens contrasts the fact-obsessed, overbearingteacher Thomas Gradgrind and his wifes personalities through (among other details) their clothing description. One character might demonstrate their power by showing up to prom in a designer gown. As a friend told me, Wear jeans and glasses and have a favorite pen. You really can tell a lot about a person by what they wear, or what they dont wear. It's something we have today as well, but they're oddly uncommon and work great for more futuristic looks. How long do they need their clothes to last? I tried to add as much variety as possible, but without turning the whole description into a mess. That decorative belt? So Id say in films its more for cinematic effect and also for clarity so the viewer can see whos doing what. If its 1st person you'll describe things from the POV of your character, and I find that that's different than if you're in, for example, 3rd person. Since it's a friends' get-together, let's wear casual attire. These were worn on their own by those wanting greater speed and flexibility, but also by those unable to afford stronger armor. Leather could be stitched into coats, or added to mail to provide added protection. The train hums and throbs in place as people rush to pile in.. Costume is a large part of a character. Instead of a nobleman being described as wearing red silk slippers, parachute pants, a bejeweled cloth belt, a flowing blouse and an ascot; you can simply describe him as wear very fancy and extravagant clothing befitting his high status in society. 70s-inspired. Slog through another meaningless day in a world where nothing matters? Earlier I mentioned how it's important to try and keep a feel of unfamiliarity to futuristic clothing. 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. When youre shopping for yourself, you know what you like but you dont know how to describe it. I thought if I did that at the beginning of a chapter it would be better but I worry it will turn readers off. Pingback: The Life of the Medieval Lord - Richie Billing, Pingback: How To Create Your Very Own Living Breathing Fantasy World - Richie Billing, Pingback: Fantasy Races - The Ultimate Guide To Elves, Orcs and Dwarves | Richie Billing, Pingback: Killer Diseases of the Middle Ages | Richie Billing, Pingback: Medieval Cannons: The Essential Guide | Richie Billing, Pingback: On Writing: Fantasy Without Magic Of Metal and Magic Publishing, Pingback: The Lives Of Medieval Peasants - Richie Billing. Which brings me to my next point. The novels protagonist Rodion gives Katerina the last of his money to host a funeral. Not really. But your reader is going to picture something whether you guide them or not. But they could also dress in modest, inexpensive-looking clothes. Youll be blown away by the number of awesome things on there. However, you can show and imply a characters intention without spelling it out: Theyd agreed to meet downtown at six. If your character comes home and immediately sheds three layers of down and fleece, Im going to assume theyre not in San Antonio, Texas. Nov 1, 2019 - Explore Arisa Nightingale's board "Male Fantasy Outfit Concepts & Designs", followed by 456 people on Pinterest. But I find looking back in time to the likes of the medieval period can provide some wonderful and unique ideas. Another might claim power by striding in wearing torn jeans and a tank top. Those outfits can become iconic. This is great! Creating new clothing styles for fictional worlds can be a daunting task, there's just so much out there already and so many elements to play around with to create a fun and unique style, no matter whether the art form is visual or not. 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. s a fantastic image that Thomas Feichtmeir, AKA Cyangmou has put together. This article was very helpfulcan you post some examples of showing versus telling when describing clothing? (Hopefully, I dont really know your life, so maybe not. This can be a very effective way if your universe is based on an existing culture. One major element that makes creating more futuristic clothing easier is to make sure it doesn't look familiar, to make sure it doesn't look like something you'd come across today. As soon as the actor enters stage right or left, we have an inkling of whether theyre a wealthy landowner or peasant, an elegant heiress or humble flower-seller. Mantel describes the cardinals vestments: They bring out the cardinals vestments, his copes. Make them earn any sightof skin, Aunt P always said. Your article is really great. You can even use different pieces of clothing to cover up body parts differently. Well, mostly. Because it actually is possible. Here, for example, Hilary Mantel describes a Cardinals residence being plundered by the Kings men in 1529 England, in her historical novel Wolf Hall. - 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). Theyre the lifeblood of any relationship. Dont worry, thats not a trick question. Sci-fi and fantasy don't necessarily have to be futuristic and historic respectively, but they're commonly associated as such, so for the sake of simplicity that's what I'm going with for the purposes of this guide. His pants are simple and narrow and reach down to his hard leather shoes. 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. It took leaving the Midwest to recognize it. At least in most cases. 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). Really like your article. - Break up clothing into more separate pieces and give them their own styles. The easy way to describe the setting is when the characters interact with it, e.g. Both can lose clout simply by the way their peers respond to their wardrobe choices. Blunt weapons were effective, causing haemorrhaging and concussion, so padded garments known as a doublet or gambeson were worn underneath to provide added protection. It's your creation, your imagination and your time you use and spend, so make sure you use and spend it on something you enjoy. That was the theory. 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. Do they strive to be humble before their god or do they want to spend this one and only life as their bold, ostentatious selves? These are deep questions. Baggy jeans. A few small details of clothing may distinguish your characters from each other, highlighting their personalities. What also worries me is that in Chapter 3 I used a lot of descriptions of the house, like the main characters room and then I had him go to various other rooms, looked at pictures of his family he has yet to meet so chapter 3 had the least story development or social scenes but the ones it had were good ones and I ended it with a scene that creates more development and story hype. Obviously clothing is extremely varied, especially dresses. Whats the respected uniform, and does your character wear it? Impress someone with my indifference? So its unsurprising to see soldiers wielding swords and axes and shooting bows. A warrior had to fight the enemy, and to fight his armor as well would be too distracting. Lets take a look at some individual pieces of armor. "White tunics" have been worn from 2016 to a good forty thousand years ago. Fashionable: Clothes representing a current style in fashion. Adding these other bits of lesser-known fantasy armor to your stories can really add extra depth to your worldbuilding. 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. Pingback: Fantasy Weapons - Medieval, Magic And Other Types - Richie Billing, Helping writers on their journey and readers find their next favourite story.. Whereas a more confident or attention seeking person might seek out the edges of what's socially acceptable more or just wear more stylish and potentially more colorful or flamboyant clothing. Chain mail is a great piece of fantasy armor to use in your stories purely because of its flexibility. Mention the familiar swooshing of the neighbors tracksuit as he runs by the house every morning or how the aunts jacket always smells like cold air and pine needles. Chest plates had grand etchings. Lots of gear would have been looted. Community . Make it mandatory to hold up a piece of clothing. What your character wears can tell us a lot about how they feel or how they want to feel. Fancy dresses. If you look at popular works of fiction you'll find two trends, one is the simplistic and often tight-fit look and the other is the more over the top and extravagant look. Ive always wondered that too! 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. As time marched on, small plates of leather or iron were added to the mail to protect key areas, such as vital organs. 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. 2023 NOW NOVEL CC. I would be great to expand it with armor from other areas, Samurai armor, for example. Another important function of clothing description in stories is to create an authentic sense of time and place. 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. Heres a great visual guide on female fantasy armor by YouTuber Shadiversity. You can immediately show a character is wealthy with descriptions of fine clothing. Similarly, find out (or, if youre creating a fantasy world, create) the garments your characters would wear in a particular time and place. show how hard is to escape in a narrow street. This is less important for non-visual arts as clothing isn't always described in writing, but it can still be incredibly helpful to have a fully detailed character in your head or written down somewhere for reference and just to make everything feel more real and alive. Join Kickstart your Novel and get professional feedback on your first three chapters and story synopsis, plus workbooks and videos. As well see below, one of the best things about using medieval armor in a fantasy story is the freedom to elevate it in some way. What matters more to them: fashion or function? Like Borges would say, It really doesnt take much. The last minute change suggests an indecisive nature. But the biggest challenge can sometimes be simply making something look futuristic or historic fantasy-ish, which is the main focus of this guide. Youre already obsessing over hat styles and what the undergarment situation was at the time of your story. The shrewd king essentially licensed out parcels of his land as rewards to his warriors in exchange for their military service. Does your character need to hide? The complete opposite is true for fantasy and historic clothing. Arrows will bounce off steel crafted in such a wayunless from close range, as we discussed, We mentioned gambesons above. For example, think about a wealthy person and how that person might dress. But it makes a good story. 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. Allrightsreserved, create an authentic sense of time and place, Use fashion and clothing history archives, https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/e7bbcc198c936bc1af3fbda128514c44fcfc10f0513ea31cad7c21ae61ba0ab0.jpg, 1: Use clothing to show status and position, 2: Build (or thwart) expectations using clothing descriptions, 3: Describe clothing to contrastcharacters personalities, 4: Show clothing to avoid over-relying on telling, 5: Change characters clothing to highlight character development, 6: Use clothing details to recreate authentic setting, 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. You find that its about more than throwing out fashion terms and listing articles of clothing. Normally I dont dress characters with such complex clothing that takes more than a few sentences to describe but the vest was inspired by a picture I saw and it took at least a paragraph to describe. Get free books, an invite to my exclusive writing group, writing tools and guides and much more when you join my community. (Find out more). These small but mighty players can add depth, complexity, and a fresh perspective to your plot. The fact that The rope belt is solely decorative and a status symbol. Love this topic!! And if you want more, this documentary is excellent. Reeking of piss on the battlefield was another weapon in the arsenal I suppose. And what does she put that cap on for? Non-visual senses are big, too. Added on top of that the condition that they had to supply him with soldiers too. She also writes for film and television with her brother and writing partner, Phil Wurdeman. And ninety-nine percent of the clothing descriptions in your first draft are just jeans. I get it. Lets talk about how to describe clothing in writing organically.