When you’re building a world full of invented cultures, magic systems, creatures and political structures, it’s tempting to capitalise everything that feels Important.

But the truth is that using too many capital letters can make your prose look very cluttered, and it frequently brings emphasis to the wrong words.

So how do you decide when an invented word in your story should be capitalised?

A surprisingly useful trick is to imagine your fantasy language has been translated into ordinary English.

If the English version would normally have a capital letter, then your invented word probably should too.

If it wouldn’t, then you should probably leave it lower-case.

The “translated into English” test

When readers encounter unfamiliar terminology, they rely heavily on context. Capitalisation helps signal whether something is a proper noun – a specific place, title or group – or just a general concept.

A good rule of thumb is to ask yourself: “If this was a normal English word, would it be capitalised?”

For example:

• The Order of the Silver Star – yes, because it’s a specific organisation.
• Queen Alara – yes, because it’s a title used with a name.
• the northern kingdoms – probably not, unless it’s an official political entity called the Northern Kingdoms.
• magic – no, because it’s a general concept.

Now apply that to invented terms.

If you create the word thalren to mean a type of magical energy, it probably shouldn’t be capitalised.

But if the Thalren are a specific religious order devoted to that energy, then capitalising the group name would make sense.

In other words, the rule isn’t about whether a word is invented. It’s about what role it plays in the sentence.

A common capitalisation mistake

Here’s the kind of sentence you often see in early drafts of fantasy novels:

Kael drew on the Ancient Power of the Eldren Flame as the Guardians of the Crystal Path prepared to defend the Western Gate from the Shadow Beasts.

Nearly every concept has been capitalised. The result is visually cluttered and difficult to follow.

Readers start wondering whether each capitalised word represents something specific they should remember – and this in turn increases cognitive load which will slow them down. Effectively, it’s a barrier to reader enjoyment.

A cleaner version might look like this:

Kael drew on the ancient power of the Eldren Flame as the guardians of the Crystal Path prepared to defend the western gate from the shadow beasts.

Now only the genuinely specific terms remain capitalised.

You might even reduce it further, depending on how those terms function in the story.

Why using too many capitals hurts your writing

Over-capitalisation causes several problems.

1. It creates visual noise. A page filled with capitalised nouns looks dense and intimidating, especially for readers who are still learning your world’s terminology.
   
   
2. It confuses hierarchy. Capital letters signal importance. If everything is capitalised, readers can’t easily tell which terms actually matter.
   
   
3. It breaks immersion. Instead of smoothly absorbing the story, your readers will stop to wonder whether a capitalised word is a Proper Thing that they need to remember. In other words, using too many capitals accidentally turns your prose into a glossary.
   
   
4. It’s quite shouty! When I read in my head, I read capitalised words more loudly. Which means a Sentence With A Lot of Capitals Ends up Being quite Shouty.
   

Fantasy readers are used to new vocabulary. What they need is clarity, not constant signalling that a word is special.

When capitalising made-up words does make sense

Capital letters are useful when they indicate something that’s clearly defined or unique within the world.

Common examples include:

• Named organisations
• Official titles when used with names
• Specific places
• Historical events
• Cultural or ethnic groups

For instance:

• the Council of Nine
• High Marshal Ren
• the Ashen Desert
• the War of Broken Crowns
• the Valeri

These follow the same patterns already used in everyday English.

If your world has a king, that’s lower-case.

If it’s King Ardan, that’s capitalised.

Your invented terminology should behave the same way.

Capitalising made-up words in fantasy and science fiction: A simple rule

When deciding whether to capitalise an invented word, ask yourself three quick questions:

1. Is this a specific, unique thing rather than a general concept?
2. Would the English equivalent normally be capitalised?
3. Will capitalisation help readers understand the hierarchy of my world?

If the answer to those questions is no, leave the word lower-case.

Your readers don’t need capital letters to know your world is important. The story will convince them of that far more effectively.

And ironically, the fewer capital letters you use, the more powerful the remaining ones become.

In fantasy writing, restraint often makes your worldbuilding feel more real – not less.

Still confused about capitalising made-up words in fantasy and science fiction novels? Please get in touch – I’d be delighted to help.

The post Capitalising Made-Up Words in Fantasy and Sci-Fi Writing appeared first on MandaWaller.

If you’re a novelist looking to bring your story to life, it’s important for you to learn about playing with narrative distance. Playing with narrative distance may sound like an abstract term, but actually you can just think of it as a camera lens that zooms in and out, allowing you to reveal your imagined world from both a closeup and a pulled back perspective.

What is narrative distance?

Narrative distance is the space between your readers and your characters. In some moments, you’ll want your readers to be right next to (or even in the shoes of) your characters, letting them see what they are seeing, hear what they are hearing, smell what they are smelling, and even give them access to what your characters are thinking. At other times, you might pull back and look at the bigger picture, giving your reader a wider sense of the world around them, or a sense of distance from a situation.

The best part? By learning how to play with this narrative distance, you can enhance your storytelling and control the emotional tone of your scenes.

Zooming In: Getting Close to Your Character

When you zoom in on your character, you’re getting so close that you can feel their emotions, sense the world around them, and even hear the thoughts racing through their mind. This deep connection allows your reader to become immersed in the character’s inner world, creating intimacy and empathy, and ensuring your readers are really invested, and really engaged.

So, how do you pull off this technique? Here are a couple of ways:

1. Focus on Sensory Details:

Describe what the character is experiencing through their senses. What are they touching, seeing, smelling, or hearing? When you zoom in, these details will feel more immediate and personal. Take care not to use filter words like heard, saw, observed, realised, felt. The example I always give is this:
He heard a dog bark – this is telling your readers that your character can hear a dog bark.
A dog barked – this is showing your readers that a dog is barking, and lets them hear it for themselves.

2. Use Deep Point of View/Free Indirect Speech

Instead of narrating events from a distance, let the character’s voice dominate. Free indirect speech (FIS) lets your character’s thoughts flow directly onto the page, blending the point of view character’s thoughts with the narrative.

For example:
He wondered whether it was going to rain or snow, and couldn’t work out what was going on with the weather. This is telling us that the character is wondering what is going on. This is distant – it’s being described to us.
“What is going on with the weather?” he wondered. “Is it going to rain? Or snow?” This is closer, showing us what he is thinking, using direct thought.
What on earth was going on with the weather? Was it going to rain? Or snow? This is really up close – you are inside the character’s head, experiencing his inner dialogue.

This makes readers feel like they’re experiencing everything right alongside your character, in real time.

Zooming Out: Creating a Broader View

When you zoom out, you shift your focus away from your character’s personal experience and move it to the world around them. This technique is great for providing context or setting the scene, or moving things on quickly using a summary of events. You can reveal the landscape, describe a bustling city street, or show how your character fits into a bigger picture. By pulling back, you allow your readers to see how everything connects.

Here are some methods to zoom out effectively:

1. Shift to a Larger Scope

Instead of focusing on the character’s immediate emotions, show the setting, the environment, or the larger conflict at play. This gives the reader a bird’s-eye view of what’s happening.

2. Multiple Points of View

If you’re writing in third person, switching to a different character’s perspective can offer a more detached view of the situation. You might show how your main character’s actions fit into the greater plot, or how others are reacting to the same event.

3. Use Abstract Descriptions

Rather than describing things from a personal perspective, you can make use of broader, more abstract descriptions. For instance, instead of saying “She was nervous,” you might describe the stormy weather or the sense of unease in the room.

Example showing the difference, using a Romance/Fantasy extract

Firstly, zoomed out:
The evening air was crisp, with a hint of magic that hung in the wind. Tall, dark trees stretched out over the path, their branches almost seeming to whisper in the fading light. The world around her felt both vast and unknown, as if time itself had stopped for just a moment.

And then zoomed in:
The cold air bit at her skin, but it was the magic that sent a shiver down her spine. Her heart raced, maybe from the chill or maybe from the strangeness that lingered in the air – something ancient, something powerful. She reached out, fingertips brushing the rough bark of the nearest tree, and for a brief moment, the whispering winds seemed to speak directly to her.

Why Does Narrative Distance Matter?

Why you should bother with all this shifting of perspective? Using both close and wide narrative distances allows you to control how your reader experiences your story. Close-ups build tension, emotional depth, and connection, while wide shots offer a sense of scale, context, and anticipation.

This is especially important when your novel involves complex emotional journeys (romance; romantasy) or grand, sweeping adventures (fantasy; romantasy; sci-fi). By manipulating narrative distance, you can heighten the emotional stakes in romantic scenes or make the fantasy world feel larger and more immersive.

How to Use Narrative Distance in Your Writing

If you want to play with narrative distance in your fiction, try writing the same scene using both techniques. Start with a zoomed-in, deeply personal moment, and rewrite the scene, giving your readers a bigger perspective by pulling the camera back. This will help you learn how to switch between the two as you write, enhancing the experience for your readers.

Whether you’re writing the first kiss of your romantic fantasy, or the moment your character realises their destiny, changing your narrative distance will help you craft a more dynamic and engaging story.

Final Tip for Playing With Narrative Distance

Don’t be afraid to experiment with these techniques within one scene. You don’t have to stick to one narrative distance throughout a scene or a chapter. The beauty of storytelling is that you can zoom in for those intimate moments and then pull back to reveal the bigger picture. Your readers will thank you for it! If you’d like support with your manuscript please do get in touch.

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But what is romantasy exactly? Is it romance? Is it fantasy? Is it both? (Spoiler: yes!)

The Lovechild of Romance and Fantasy

Romantasy is a genre mash-up of romance and fantasy. It blends the epic world-building and imaginative magic of fantasy with the emotional stakes and relationship connections of romance.

Think of it as the best of both worlds – dragons and desire, kingdoms and kisses, swords and smouldering looks.

In romantasy, neither element plays second fiddle. The romantic arc is just as central as the fantasy plot. That means you’re getting magical adventures and love stories in a one-stop shop. 

Why Is It So Popular Right Now?

Romantasy has been around in various forms for years, but it’s really hit the mainstream in the last few years thanks to platforms like TikTok, Instagram, and Goodreads.

It combines escapism (and who doesn’t love some of that?) with high stakes, delivering entire worlds filled with castles, curses and chosen ones. It’s not just “will they/won’t they?”, it’s “will they complete the quest, reclaim the throne and fall in love?”

It also provides a load of opportunities to reimagine some of the traditional romance tropes.

What Makes a Book Romantasy?

How is romantasy different from a fantasy book with romantic elements, or a romance with fantasy elements? To really fit the label, a story needs to check a few boxes:

1. Balanced Blend of Romance and Fantasy

The romance isn’t just background fluff – it’s central to the plot. Likewise, the fantasy world is rich, immersive, and full of its own rules.

2. Character-Driven Plot

While traditional fantasy leans heavily on external conflict (wars, quests), romantasy also zooms in on relationships and emotional stakes.

3. Emotional Depth

Romantasy tends to elicit intense feelings – longing, betrayal, joy, heartbreak. 

Popular Romantasy Books:

New to the genre and wondering where to start? Here are some of the best-selling reads:

• A Court of Thorns and Roses by Sarah J. Maas – Think Beauty and the Beast meets political fae drama.
• Fourth Wing by Rebecca Yarros – A war college, dragons, and a love interest with secrets.
• Direbound by Sable Sorensen – If you liked Fourth Wing, you’ll love this!

Have you Written a Romantasy?

I specialise in editing books in the romance and fantasy genres, and have added romantasy to this list. If you’ve written a book in any of these genres, and would like to have it edited, please get in touch!

The post What is Romantasy? A Beginner’s Guide to the Genre Everyone’s Talking About appeared first on MandaWaller.