Real world, low fantasy or high fantasy?

[Kalchi]

This is basically like a small survey to see what people prefer. When you read/watch something, do you guys prefer real world setting, or low fantasy (real world mixed with fantasy), or high fantasy (set in whole fantasy world)? This can be about any genre; romance, action, etc. It would be great to hear your reasons for your preference as well.

[darthmongoose]

Whenever I see people doing surveys like this on the forums, I always feel the need to caution people that what a bunch of people who make comics isn't necessarily a reflection of what most readers are into. If you want to know what sort of stuff people are reading because you want to make something that will appeal to Tapas' audience, I recommend browsing the popular rankings on Tapas.

I like any setting, really. I don't have a strong preference, because I'm more interested in the quality of storytelling and it having interesting ideas and characters, and being nicely presented or produced for the medium. I have a very slight preference for Fantasy, but I don't mind the tech or magic level of said Fantasy so much, so long as the setting is inventive and the plot ties with the setting in a cool way. But on Tapas, most readers seem to prefer either real world setting stuff, or Fantasy with a low tech level and a high magic level.

[NickRowler]

I tend to like magical realism. Tho, I am ok with modern fantasy or low fantasy.

I personally don’t like high fantasy. I tend to find the world building more annoying than charming.

If you are making this poll to pick a genre for your writing, you should just pick the one you are the most passionate about. If you like high fantasy, my opinion shouldn’t be the one stopping you from writing one.

[cherrystark]

My preference is for a well-defined, yet realistic fantasy world. A lot of writers, especially newer fantasy writers, either try to create the most complicated fantasy world possible or follow every plot convention for their subgenre. While there is an audience for both types, I don't particularly find either interesting to read.

Edit - By "realistic", I don't mean modern or in our world. I mean worlds where the author provides realistic solutions to story problems instead of relying solely on established plot devices.

[Lucky_Foot]

Hmmm, there's alot to unpack.With me, it can vary. I think it's more about the skills of the writer ,and,or scenario.

I like me urban romances with kinky love scenes. When I finish those, I go back to a good old fashioned High Fantasy book about ancient evils that threaten the fabric of reality. And at times, I go for guilty pleasures like Isekais and erotic stories.

I'm guessing that's how other people are too. Never being too loyal to certain story types. Otherwise we would get tired of the same story beats being repeated again and again.

In my humble opinion, the most important thing is, what genre can you write the longest and fall in love with. I've seen too many writers abandon their stories if they're not getting the right amount of attention.

[Legendofgenii]

I like all of those, so long as the characters are interesting and the story is captivating.

[allisoncandraw]

(post withdrawn by author, will be automatically deleted in 24 hours unless flagged)

[allisoncandraw]

I've always preferred real world stories, both in my own writing and the content I consume. Seeing characters' daily lives is interesting to me, I was never that into fantasy

[Lensing]

I like to create, read and watch real world scenarios. I want to relate to i.e. the emotions of the
characters

It doesn´t matter much for me if it´s a funny comic, then I wouldn´t mind low/high fantasy because
the focus is on the humour. One example is Oglaf which is a funny, fantasy comic with
adult themes. The focus of the series are the jokes and the adult erotic themes and the setting
is a fantasy world.

Other than that I find fantasy worlds depressing or it reminds me too much of fairytales / stories
for kids or the direction/topics of the stories just doesn´t interest me, especially when the focus is
too much on the world they are living in. I´m not into stories where the creator did a lot of world
building and explains it to me as a reader, it makes me fall asleep

[katycoolnin]

I definitively prefer high fantasy, maybe low fantasy sometimes. For me, building your magic-filled world is just so fun! You get to create anything you want without limits (except the ones you define for yourself). Reading a fantasy novel is like seeing in the author's head, and like just thinking about the fact that they created that whole world and characters is exceptional to me. You can let your creativity flow freely and it's much more entertaining. I don't want to read a book about the real world, for me, reading is an escape from the real world.

[TheLemmaLlama]

For novels, I like real world. My brain can't handle too much worldbuilding without visuals

For comics, by your definition of low vs high fantasy, I prefer high fantasy; at least if the world is illustrated in an immersive way. I love naturalistic worldbuilding that emerge from the fantastical elements, without feeling like it was just slapped on a familiar world as window dressing :]

By other definitions of low vs high fantasy though; idk, I like and dislike elements of both. I like the low fantasy elements of no clear good vs evil, small scale, character focused plots etc, but I like the high fantasy elements of large scale worldbuilding (I just don't like neat solutions to big problems) and high levels of overall fantasticalness

[VersusVII]

I like low fantasies, especially the ones where magic isn't a common thing and the protagonists need to have a low profile while operating in the normal world.
Shadow hunters and Harry Potter (when Harry is at his relatives) are an example of what I mean.

[maddu]

I’m having a lot of fun with low fantasy worldbuilding. I like the relatability of “this could be you, this might actually be our world”. I love the tension of having to hide ridiculous scenarios, and of discovery and how people react to what they thought was impossible. I like trying to decipher the “why” of how this stuff is hidden in the first place, and the consequences bringing people into the know has on their lives. I also like thinking about the ethics of telling someone – I don’t think anyone could reasonably consent to such a life altering event, but isolation sucks too.

[LunarScyphozoa]

Definitely the genre of urban fantasy where yeah there’s New York City, home of a bunch of tiny dragons. We have Starbucks, the employees are fairies. Google maps mentions traffic caused by magic explosions.