Do you describe fencing techniques in a fantasy novel?
I'm sort of writing a fantasy novel about a girl knight. The thing is that I have no idea about fencing, and no matter how I watch the videos, I have no idea how to explain it. If there are any kids around there who loves to read, would you like to read a fully described fight of just a small summery of what just happened?
Comments
Read Star Wars and harry potter
It depends on how you write it...
I would not flat out say "She fought him using the ____ technique", mainly because the majority of readers probably don't know the ___ technique and would be confused.
I would describe the duels in detail if you want to focus on that, something that describes exactly what they're doing and at the same time perhaps reflects on their character and explains why they fight the way they do.
I know this going to sound ridiculous but a good book to reference would be the book adaption of Star Wars: Revenge of the Sith." The writer goes into amazing detail in how the character's duel in lightsaber combat and it also reflects on their personality. For example, Anakin Skywalker's lightsaber style reflects the anger he is constantly feeling whereas Obi-Wan's technique demonstrates a more experienced, clever fighter. This is of course just a suggestion so you can have a reference...
Hope this helped. Good luck.
No.
First my character don't know how to fence. Second when they are fighting, and brandishing weapons, it's usually whatever they can find around them. (sticks, rocks, hand tools.) Third, I write from within one character's perspective, and since he doesn't know how to fence, he would never think of the proper terms for the moves.
If you want your character to be an expert fencer, you don't watch TV to learn how, you do the research to learn how. Even then, you write the scene as she understands it, not as someone watching would understand it. (Which is why watching TV doesn't teach you how to do it, unless it's "Lessons in Fencing." lol)
I would describe it in detail, but I won't use fencing terms because some of the readers won't understand it. I'll just use general terms.