Stories and retellings about King Arthur, the Knights of the round table, and Merlin.

Arthurian Fantasy

Stories that are written as spoofs of other serious fantasies, or add humorous elements to a light-hearted tale.

Comic Fantasy

The stories follow a grimmer side to the fantasy genre. Dark fantasy includes the darker side of magic, creatures, evil, and demons. 

Dark Fantasy 

Stories of a young individual who is thrown unexpectedly into a "Good vs. Evil" struggle, where they must learn to uncover their own heroism to save the day. Often,  includes a "grail-finding" quest, where the 'grail' can be an icon, person, or magical talisman. In other words, a symbolic token. 

Epic Fantasy

High Fantasy includes lords and ladies, medieval styles/settings, kingdoms/ castles, dragons, and knights. High fantasy, is usually based on classical mythology and medieval European legends. The focus is on Good versus Evil. 

High Fantasy 

The original versions of most fairy tales and myths were often violent stories set in mystical lands, sometimes with strange creatures and stranger heroes.

Fairy Tales and Mythology 

Stories of magic and wonder set in modern times.

Modern Fantasy

These stories include fantastical worlds with a middle-age feel and often showcase
wizards, sorcerers, and dragons, or other mythical creatures. Usually, the stories follow a hero's archetype. Magic is accepted but the workings are usually left unexplained.

Heroic Fantasy 

Tales of high adventure in a fantastical version of a medieval setting. These stories are designed to follow the exploits of the hero as they battle to overcome evil by use of their trusty sword.

Sword and Sorcery

"Stories where magic is an accepted part of the system and of the culture." There must always be consequences to the use of magic, or involve some
form of "prop" to get the magic working, such as an amulet, potion, talisman, or incantation.

Magical Stories

These stories incorporate magical events into ordinary life, and they are not seen by the characters as unusual or abnormal. They are instead portrayed as a completely natural and normal element of the story. 

Magic Realism

- Arthurian Fantasy 
- Comic Fantasy 
- Dark Fantasy 
- Epic Fantasy
- High Fantasy 
- Fairy Tales and Mythology 
- Magical Realism
- Modern Fantasy 
- Heroic Fantasy 
- Sword and Sorcery 

Arizona State University

Similar to science fiction, but uses kingdoms and realms instead of planets, star systems, galaxies, and universes.  Like science fiction, involves a large amount of world-building. Fantasy stories are often characterized by the use of myths, along with other-worldly ideas and concepts, as well as taking cues from real-world historical settings, such as the Dark Ages. 

Fantasy

Masterson Lee. (2022). Fantasy Sub-Genres. Retrieved June 21, 2022, from https://www.scasd.org/cms/lib5/PA01000006/Centricity/Domain/1252/Fantasy%20Subgenres.pdf 

Fantasy Reference

Subgenres of Fantasy 

- Mythology or legend basis 
- Descriptive settings
- Magic 
- Good vs Evil 
- Quests
- Coming-of-Age themes
- Treachery
- Mythological creatures
- Romance
- Friendship 

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