Epic Fantasy and Setting

Ever since Tolkien published The Lord of the Rings trilogy, the epic fantasy genre has pretty consistently followed the standards he set up. The same general type of races, the same general type of quest plot, the same good struggling against almost incomprehensible evil, and the same sweeping European Medieval-style setting. There are plenty of exceptions out there, but for the most part, those exceptions are not the ones people think of when they think of 'epic fantasy'.

Even in the past, the traditional Medieval Europe setting hasn't really interested me. I was always more interested in Greek and Roman, and Egyptian mythology rather than Norse and, and I've never been very good at getting through the epic fantasy novels, although I love reading epic fantasy. Admittedly this is partially because they are usually door-stoppers and I don't have that kind of patience when it comes to reading, but it's also because of the completely overused and unoriginal European Medieval settings.

And then I started learning more about Korea and China and Japan and the rich history and culture they collectively have. It was love at first sight, for the Eastern part of the world. True, I'm a little bit biased towards Korea, but I still love the history and relationships the three major Asian countries have with it other and how they have influenced each other, the effects of which are still see today. And I started wondering why there weren't more epic fantasies set in this part of the world, when it is so obviously just as epic and sweeping and grand as Medieval Europe.

I still haven't found an exact answer to that, nor have I found an epic fantasy series that is set in this part of the world, not as the 'exotic' part of the setting but as the 'normal' part. Because Asia does pop up, but only as that 'exotic' element meant to give the world a more diverse feeling to it, and meant to show the differences between the main culture and kingdom and the 'other' parts of the world. Tamora Pierce's setting of Tortall is a good example of this.

I want to change this propensity towards Medieval Europe. I want to write an epic fantasy that breaks the mold, one that changes people's idea of what an epic fantasy setting can be. I'm not exactly sure how I'm going to do this, but I'm working on it. And maybe someday my  name will be among the great ones, the ones who defined the genre for what it is. Is that a little too greedy? Well if it is, I don't care, because I want to shoot for the stars.

In the books you read is there a certain setting you're tired of seeing used over and over again? Tell me about it in the comments!

Thanks for reading!