Photo by Kaique Rocha
The Black Shadow book series by Count Sigurd A. Olson presents readers with a vibrant and intricate urban fantasy world that establishes a setting that’s more than just magic and monsters.
Fantasy has a lot of subgenres—and we mean a lot–but one that’s been growing in popularity over the years is urban fantasy.
Urban fantasy takes the tropes of traditional fantasy and juxtaposes them against a visibly modern setting. Basically, urban fantasy reimagines our world as hiding the magic—that beneath our concrete blocks, stifling traffic, and monotonous work life, there is something stranger and more magical, eking out an existence within the cracks (or even in plain sight).
The idea that there is a world hidden alongside ours is what urban fantasy is; it allows us to escape the doldrums of modern life without actually having to find another world to flee to. And this is a very appealing premise to a lot of us who’ve worked the 9-to-5 and found ourselves wanting to do something more exciting with our lives.
Common tropes you’ll find in an urban fantasy world include:
- Supernatural creatures living in the modern world, often in secret.
- Protagonists who are human, supernatural, or a combination of both.
- Stories that explore the conflict between the supernatural world and the human world.
- Settings familiar to the reader, such as modern cities or other real-world locations.
- Real-life social and cultural issues in the worldbuilding and narrative.
Worldbuilding Tips
Urban fantasy can be tricky to write in. Odd, we know. Since urban fantasy is already based in the real world, surely your work’s cut out for you? Well, one thing with an urban fantasy world is that you have to be capable enough of balancing the fantastical with the realistic—because if you go too far enough in one end, then it begs the question: Why set in the real world in the first place?
So, before we dive into the specifics, here are some general worldbuilding tips:
- Start small. Only try to build part of the secret world at a time. Start with a few key elements. Once you have a good foundation, you can flesh out the rest of the world.
- Be consistent. Once you’ve established the rules of your world, stick to them. This will help to make your world feel more believable and immersive.
- Find inspiration. You don’t have to invent everything from scratch. The great thing about urban fantasy is that it asks us what would happen if our urban legends and folklore were real.
- Be creative. Worldbuilding is a chance to let your imagination run wild. Come up with new and unique ideas for your world–but keep them consistent with everything else.
Remember, you don’t have to build a perfectly detailed world before you start writing. It’s okay to leave some things vague. The important thing is to create a world that is believable and engaging.
Creating an Urban Fantasy World
If you’re looking to create an urban fantasy world, there are some tropes you need to consider—while these are not the only ways to look at what an urban fantasy world might look like, they have been present in almost every example we can find. Sufficed to say, these are traditional urban fantasy elements:
- A modern urban setting: This provides a contrast between the familiar and the unfamiliar, which is one of the critical elements of the genre.
- Supernatural elements: These include magical creatures, magic, or other paranormal phenomena.
- A conflict between the mundane and the supernatural: This can be an external conflict, such as a battle between competing factions, or an internal conflict, such as a character struggling to balance their human and nonhuman sides.
- Characters who bridge the two worlds: This could be a human who discovers they have magical powers, a supernatural creature trying to live in the human world, or a character who simultaneously exists in both worlds.
In addition to these essential elements, urban fantasy worlds also have other recurring components, such as:
- A unique magic system
- A hidden society of supernatural creatures
- A dark and gritty setting
- A noir or detective aesthetic
The Black Shadow book series by Count Sigurd A. Olson is set in an epic urban fantasy world with demons, angels, and everything in between.
The Damsel’s Files 