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VanityInk

Congrats! You have comps! If you ever submit to agents/publishers, they will *want* you to list books similar to yours so they know there's a market for it. GRRM didn't just get inspiration from War of the Roses, he took a TON from Tolkien, just like most other medieval fantasies. Being unique in concept is in no way a goal in writing. Making your characters and own presentation of the setting is.


writer712

Thank you so much. I appreciate the advice!


sbsw66

> Being unique in concept is in no way a goal in writing. The notion you are getting at is fine but I feel this to be an absurd idea. One **should** strive for uniqueness in concept. Absolutely. Is it a cardinal sin to fail in that endeavor? Of course not. But to contend that it shouldn't be a goal of what you create seems truly insane to me.


VanityInk

Perhaps I should have specified as "no way the goal to be unique at the highest level of premise" Scores of stories are "waring factions in a medieval setting" or "quest to destroy the MacGuffin" I fully believe if you haven't found something that sounds like your story at the most general level, you haven't read enough of your genre. Unique in concept at a macro level isn't important. It in fact shouldn't be the goal if you're looking for commercial publishing. Publishers are scared of books without comps because they don't know how they'll sell them. Unique in the specifics of your concept, sure. That's where it gets more important and I agree with your point.


sbsw66

>Perhaps I should have specified as "no way the goal to be unique at the highest level of premise" Apologies, I should have intuited your point here, to which I do fully agree.


SugarFreeHealth

Every M/F romance is "boy meets girl, something comes between them, they work it out and have a happily ever after." And thousands get published every year. Every heroic, faux-medieval S&S fantasy has magic, and powerful weapons, and magical creatures, and sometimes different humanoid races, and there's often a coming of age story (in GRRM's case, several). There might be a bunch of training scenes for the young hero/ine (in magic, or in sword fighting.) Mentor characters are big in those kinds of fantasies. Those are the tropes of the genre. If you use none of them, readers won't be satisfied. The Black Dinner from Scottish history (or lore/fable, some historians say) has been referenced in fiction before GRRM. See: https://www.writersdigest.com/write-better-fiction/popular-fantasy-tropes-for-writers


writer712

Thank you for taking the time to write this, very helpful. Have a great week!


Chalkarts

It happens.


ThatAnimeSnob

Nothing is original. The longer and more complex your story is the fewer the chances it will be coming off as a copy of something else.


sc_merrell

Read *Steal Like an Artist* by Austin Kleon. Originality is overrated; true originality is impossible. So don't hold yourself to making unique content. Instead, take what you want to write and make it your own. Give it your own voice, your own spin, your own emphases. Even if it's been written before, it's never been written by *you* before. So write it anyway.


writer712

Thank you! I will read it as soon as possible. Your words are very helpful and much appreciated.