Warning : Rant!
For the last 18 months, my staple reading (other than my textbooks and other mandatory material) has mostly been in the realm of Fantasy. Note that I say Fantasy and not Fantasy and Science Fiction.
This is an old rant of mine, but here we go again. These are two separate genres and for the love of God, classify and separate them!
Now, a lot of people will argue that these two cannot really be separated. I disagree. Where the author provides a rational explanation of the advances that s/he is describing, take it as science fiction. Consider Asimov’s Robot series. No one in their right mind will ever classify it as fantasy. Similarly, where the author talks about magic, elves and orcs. it is fantasy. Simple.
Of course, there are people who are party poopers. They blend in science fiction with some amount of magical background to create a hybrid novel that makes me want to pull my hair out.
Let me keep this simple - here are fantasy books according to me
1) Time and place : Keep it in any setting you like. Alternate earth, a whole new universe, even in your back yard. But please, please do not set the book in modern times. It just takes away from the atmosphere.
2) Weapons : This sort of ties in to the previous point. The most complex weapon known should be a trebuchet/catapult. Nothing kills fantasy more than having the protagonist blast people with a phaser(TM). Use swords, not guns.
3) Magic : Here’s the rub. I’m a person who likes a little magic in my fantasy novels. I really like novel explanations - like the one in the Runelord series. Give the magic in the series a little background. Does it come from the Gods, is an inherent trait in people or something that can be learnt. The magic system contributes a lot to the plot. Of course, there are novels which are so skewered towards the magic that the plot loses it’s place. That is not fun.
4) Plot : This is a newish trend, and one I am beginning to hate. Politics in fantasy. Most novels that come out these days are stories of politics and intrigue told under a thin film of fantasy. For example The Second Sons Trilogy by Jennifer Fallon. What happened to the good old days of prophecy and the coming of a hero?
5) Characters : This to a certain extent ties in to the point above - give us heroes! The last few novels I read (let me not name them here) have forgettable protagonists. They come and go. Give me characters like Druss the Legend, Waylander and Skilganon (all by David Gemmell) and I’ll be a fan for life! This applies even more for series. If I don’t care for the protagonists in the first part - why will I read the remaning parts?
Yes, I know this is a rant. There are a lot of books that give me what I need to read. And I do know that I have a very restrictive set of ideas here. I am not against politics in plots. When done well (think Robert Jordan), it definitely enhances the feel of the story. Grey heroes are good - not everyone has to be perfect. But does it hurt to keep fantasy as fantasy - and not muck up it up with Science fiction?
Let me leave you with an example. Janny Wurts is an author I like. I’ve been reading her Wars of Light and Shadow series and I think it’s really good. On my last trip to the library, I picked up the Cycle of Fire Trilogy. It started off great and I was hooked reading about sorcerers who control the elements themselves. There was magic, intrigue, drama, quests - boy was I having fun.
Then this happened.
“Snared by the magic of the Vaere, she fell dreamlessly asleep as many another mortal had before her. Presently an alien vibration invaded the clearing. A circular track sliced through the turf where she lay. Blue light spilled through the gap, jarringly bright against the rough dark of the oaks. Slowly, hydraulic machinery beneath lowered the platform of soil where Taen slept. A specialized array of robots bundled her limp form into the silvery ovoid of a life support capsule which had once furnished the flight deck of an interstellar probe ship…..
…Busy as metallic insects, servo mechanisms completed cable hookup with the capsule
…For the electronic intelligence known as the Vaere never disclosed itself to men”
Need I say more? This jarred me out of the book - and I have not managed to go on. It’s been returned to the library to be read by one braver than me.
Until next time - en garde!
. But this time, I had a secret weapon during the flight. My camera.
