From the Back-List - Explaining the Unreal

Cover art from the Song of Scarabaeus on Pinterest

Here at the Supernatural Underground, we are enjoying another awesome read from our back-list, posted Thursday, July 29, 2010 by the Philip K. Dick and Aurealis Award nominee, Sara Creasy. 

In this post, she talks about the difference between paranormal and SF. 

You can check out Sara Creasy's current work, The Wynter Wild Series on her Website. Join Wynter and her brothers on a heartrending and humorous journey through elementary particles, power chords, and the many meanings of love.

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Explaining the Unreal by Sara Creasy

Goodreads Choice Nominee

As writers and readers, how do we define the difference between the science fiction and paranormal genres? Both are “unreal” (in that they are fictional) and “speculative” (in that they extrapolate from existing ideas). The paranormal by definition breaks the laws of physics, but science fiction often does too (warp speed, anyone?).


I think the difference comes in what each genre needs to explain. For example, classic vampires can’t be exposed to sunlight without terrible consequences. Readers of paranormal fiction know this fact about vampires. If the writer chooses to contradict the convention by having her vampires run around the sunny beaches of Santa Barbara, readers expect a (paranormal) explanation: that old sunlight thing is a myth, the vampire has a magic ring, or this is a tribe of new improved vampires.

On the other hand, readers of science fiction base their expectations on the natural world. If a certain creature explodes into flames in sunlight, which contradicts what we know about the natural world, the writer needs to provide a (natural) explanation: the “vampire” has a medical condition such as a total lack of melanin, or, more exotically, the vamp’s unstable atoms are prone to decay when exposed to photons of a particular wavelength.

As readers we bring a stack of wonderful knowledge with us, drawn from mythology and the real world, saving the writer from having to describe and explain everything. But when a story contradicts that knowledge, often for interesting reasons of course, we want to know why...

 

 

To read the full post, including insightful comments, click here. 

To find out more about what Sara's doing now, visit her Website.

Choose Your Weapon: Spells

 

Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood

Spells as Weapons

In today's issue of Choose Your Weapon, we will consider a category of magic that includes ritual, sacrifice and invocation. In other words, magic spells. Touched on in The Perfect Storm, this form of weapon is as old as sticks, or rocks!

Delving into how magic is hardwired into our brains, Melissa Burkley writes in Psychology Today:

"If there is one thing psychologists can learn from the Harry Potter phenomenon, it is that people love magic." 

Although we associate this form of magic with witchcraft, it was originally used by prehistoric humans who made sacrifices to the powers to ensure a good hunt, calm weather, healthy children and other necessities of survival. Not of a personal nature, these cave-day spells were cast for the good of the clan.

Limited edition The Grimoire of Heaven and Hell by Travis McHenry

As time went on, the clan's shaman--a member of the community with links to the spiritual world (populated by benevolent or malevolent entities)--would use animal guides, divination, medicinal plants, ritual words/prayers and later written spells to heal, promote, protect and ensure the wellbeing of the clan as a whole and specific, usually high-ranking members. They may also cast spells that gave them the upper hand with neighbouring enemies.

Later, as we are all aware, the use of magic spells became outlawed. Practitioners were hunted down, burned alive and their families severely marginalized. But for today's exercise, the takeaway is most people still, even if on an unconscious level, believe in the power of spells, be they thought forms, incantations or ritual magic. 

And you can be sure that the Fantasy genre has tapped into this powerful vein in the human mind.

Fantasy Books with Spells

Across all subgenres, magic spells are alive and well! Consider these titles and how their use of magic fuels the readers' imagination.

General Fantasy Even with the author's controversial exclamations on social media, the Harry Potter Series brought a modernized version of ancient spells, making them familiar to an entire generation of the Western world. For example, we learn the Shield Charm was typically used in duelling along with Stunning Spells, the Impediment Jinx, the Full Body-Bind Curse, and the Dancing Feet Spell. In a way, the idea of 'wizard-craft' (note how the word 'witchcraft' is avoided...hmm) was pulled out of the dark, inqusitioner's dungeon into a normal but consequential everyday life for young Harry Potter.

The much loved David Eddings series, both the Bellgariad and the Mallorean, have characters who weave spells. ... known as the Will and the Word, sorcery is a magic power that lets some individuals manipulate the universe around them.

Anime Girl Alchemist Wallpaper

Anime Fullmetal Alchemist is a strong example of spells in Anime. "...Edward Elric practices magic in the form of alchemy. Unlike most of Amestris, Edward can transmute things without using a transmutation circle. While this power is derived because he performed one of the greatest taboos known, his skill is nevertheless impressive.

Blood Like Magic Duology

Young Adult   My Favorite to date YA contemporary spell crafting is in the Blood Like Magic series by Lissell Sambury. She's a wonderful writer who combines her Trinidadian-Canadian background into a perfect weave of 'black girl magic' we can all relate to.

I'm also looking forward to a new book by Sarah Beth Durst. She is always engaging, creative and insightful, no matter what 'age' she is writing for. This is next on my TBR:

A new release from Sarah Beth Durst!

Perfect for fans of Travis Baldree and TJ Klune, The Spellshop by Sarah Beth Durst is a cosy fantasy tale full of stolen spellbooks, unexpected friendships, sweet jams and even sweeter romance.

'Sarah Beth Durst is the hidden gem of the fantasy world' — Book Riot

Every home needs a little magic . . .

Kiela has always had trouble dealing with people, and as librarian at the Great Library of Alyssium, she hasn’t had to... until now?

Urban Fantasy Books 

Why not try this anthology to see which author you love the most? Many of my favourites are here.

"...magic spells, witchcraft, wizardry, fairies, devilry, and more. Urban living, at least in fantasy fiction, is full of both magical wonder and dark enchantment. Street kids may have supernatural beings to protect them or have such powers themselves. Brujeria may be part of your way of life. Crimes can be caused (and solved) with occult arts and even a losing sports team's ""curse"" can be lifted with wizardry. And be careful of what cab you call - it might take you on a journey beyond belief! Some of the best stories of urban enchantment from the last few years gathered in one volume full of hex appeal and arcane arts..."

Magic City

Film and Gaming with Magic Spells

Films - Wheel Of Time, The Witcher,  Shadow and Bone, Wu Assassin

Gaming - Diablo, Elder Scrolls, Witcher, Path of Exile, Baldur's Gate, Magika, Divinity, Magic the Gathering... so many more I have yet to play.

What are your favourite spellcasters in the Fantasy genre? 

I'd love to hear about them.

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Choose Your Weapon Series 2024

Poison

The Perfect Storm

The Sword

Firearms

Ranged

Spells

Unarmed

Curses

Time Travel

Invisibility

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About Kim Falconer

Kim Falconer, currently writing as AK Wilder, has released Crown of Bones, a YA Epic Fantasy with Curse of Shadows as book 2 in the series. Currently, she is working on the third book, out in 2024.

Kim can be found on  AKWilder Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

Throw the bones, read your horoscopes or Raise Your Phantom on the AKWilder.com site

From The Backlist: "Reasons Why You Never Want to Make an Author Mad*" by Karina Cooper

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We love our awesome Supernatural Underground backlist -- and this post by Karina Cooper, now writing as KC Alexander, is a lot of fun. Enjoy!

Reasons Why You Never Want to Make an Author Mad*

KC Alexander

by Karina Cooper

Come on, you've seen us. We're all very lovely people, us authors. We smile at the cameras, sign books, hug fans, and so on. Surely, making an author mad must be akin to swatting at a dust bunny, right? I mean, what are we going to do? Cry into our keyboards?

Well. Sort of.

See, yesterday I found myself in the middle of a task that I do actually need for this current run of books I'm plotting. And as I scrolled through pages and pages of data, I thought to myself, Karina, it's a damn good thing your profession is what it is.

Because how else am I to explain why my internet history is full of information on modern day torture techniques?

That's right. Let's talk about reason number one: We know how make you scream. We've researched it down to the last details—certainly not for ourselves, oh, no, but what out characters know, we know. And if we're carrying around a character who is an inquisitor, or a character who was tortured, or worse, we know.

Would we use it? Oh, of course not, officer! We'd never use this information for evil. We're entertainers, not in the business of making the things we know actually happen. Right?

Heh. Heh heh. Right.

Reason number two to avoid making us angry? We know how to hide the body. We've thoroughly researched it. Currents, erosion, garbage truck route details, you name it, we know it. We're a little obsessive when it comes to details, you might have noticed. After all, how else can we guarantee that the extra we offed in chapter 4 doesn't come to light until chapter 15?

The devil is, in fact, in the details.

And speaking of details, let's talk about reason number three: we know things about weapons even the movies get wrong. In that obsession with details, we'll travel all over the information highway to get the facts. Which means we know what kind of weapons a SEAL carries, we know which weapons jam underwater and which can fire in below freezing temperatures. We know which bullets will turn your brain into so much pink mist and which will leave a neat little exit wound, and which sniper rifle will make this easy.

We know about ninja stars, and the different kinds of knives. We know which guns have suppressors and which can be made to have suppressors, and that the potato suppressor doesn't actually work.

Oh, and I certainly don't mean we'd use these tidbits of terminal information on you! I mean characters, of course! We know how to kill characters. As I said, we're in the habit of making up stories, not in shaping reality. Rest easy, dear reader.

Unless, of course, you'd like to make us mad...?

Which brings us to reason number four: Odds are, we have fans in the police department. No joke! If it's not the boys in blue who love us, it's the women. Or the wives. Regardless of who or how, the reality is, we have people who would love to give us alibis.

Wouldn't any of you give me an alibi if I rang you up one day? "Hey, listen, I'll make a character of your choice and thank you in the acknowledgements if you just tell these nice people where I was yesterday. You know, at your house. Watching Friends. And eating cheddar cheese."

Then there's reason number five: You remember school, when there'd be this rumor going around about "that girl" who did this one horribly embarrassing thing, and you knew—just knew—that everyone was talking about you?

Imagine having a character based on you. A character who reveals all your secrets—or makes them up. A character who is murdered in the most grisly way. Or a character who survives, but gets exactly what he or she deserves?

Yeah. In our worlds, baby, we're the gods. And we will talk about you in our godly land of godliness.

You don't want that, do you?

So there you are. Five very good reasons not to piss off your favorite authors. Or even your not so favorite authors. 

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To read the full post, including comments, click here. 

To find out more about what Karina's doing now, visit her on kcalexander.com

The Year of the Villain #6: When The Author Messes With Your Mind

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AKA “When the Hero Is Really A Villain” Part 2

Crossroads series #1

Spoiler Warning: I can’t pen this post without a significant plot spoiler in terms of Kate Elliott’s Crossroads series. So although it’s no longer a new-out series, having been published between 2006 – 2009, if you haven’t read the books yet, but feel you may wish to, this may not be the post for you. However, like most of Kate Elliot’s stories, the Crossroads series is complex and multi-layered, with many protagonists of note, so although the element I’m discussing is important, it’s a very long way from being the whole story. With these considerations in mind, I leave the rest to you. J

Last month, I focused on when the main character in a Fantasy story is as much, if not more, villain than hero, i.e. they may be the main character and/or protagonist, but a hero they are not.

But what if both the reader, and other characters within a story, believe someone to be a hero and champion, only to find out, a very long way down the road, that the opposite is the case? This is what I call the author messing with my mind – and I can think of no better example than Kate Elliott’s Crossroads series: Spirit Gate; Shadow Gate; and Traitor’s Gate.

I also hasten to add that I love it when an author manages to not only surprise me, but pull the wool over my eyes as comprehensively as Kate did with the Crossroads trilogy. J

Crossroads #2

The Crossroads series focuses on The Hundred, where the traditional spirit guardians are under siege and society has descended into civil war. A number of very different characters are caught up in these events, including an exiled prince from a neighboring empire, with his bodyguard of elite warriors, and a young bride, Mai, recently married in a star-crossed meeting of cultures and personalities.

The prince, Anji, and his well-trained and disciplined bodyguard come to play a critical role in resisting the magical corruption besetting The Hundred and stemming the tide of civil war. In doing so, Anji and Mai forge new alliances and establish friendships. They are, their new allies and friends believe, very much on the side of the angels.

As a reader, I believed it, too—although in retrospect, the contrary signs were there from the outset, but the author wove them into the larger story so subtly that I (like the other protagonists) thought this a traditional heroic and romantic tale. Instead, readers eventually discover—along with the characters, some at the cost of love, others of their lives—that it is a tale of ruthless opportunism and ambition. 

Crossroads #3

I can say it no better than two of the other protagonists, when finally seeing Anji for what he has become, and maybe always was. One of these characters is Shai:

“Anji had walked beyond anger. Indeed, Shai thought, he had walked beyond shame. He had walked beyond honor. He knew what he wanted and he knew how to get it; the ghost of another man, a man he might have been, faded behind him.”

The other is Mai, when she finally realizes that Anji has lied to her, too, along with everyone else, and betrayed her trust:

“To think she had mistaken him for the hero of the tale.”

The irony, and the author’s subtlety in creating this villain, lies in a divide between personal and public goods. Anji has “become in all ways but name” the sole ruler of The Hundred. In part, he has done so by effectiveness in war and reestablishing order. He has also done so by lying to and betraying former friends and allies and eliminating potential rivals. To seal his hold on power, Anji also betrays Mai, abandoning their love.

Sequel to Crossroads series

Lies, betrayal, murder – but those who see the restoration of order and law, peace and security, are willing to accept the lies used to justify the betrayals. For many, who have not shared in the revelations and experience of Shai, Mai, and others, Anji remains a hero: the savior of The Hundred.

© Helen Lowe

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About the Author

Helen Lowe is an award-winning novelist, poet, and lover of story. With four books published to date, she is currently completing the final instalment in The Wall Of Night series.
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Helen posts regularly on her “…on Anything, Really” blog, monthly on the Supernatural Underground, and tweets @helenl0we.

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Previous “Year of the Villain” Posts:

January:      Ushering in 2024 -- & the Year of the Villain

February:    The Year of the Villain #1: The Lord of The Rings Pantheon

March: The Year of the Villain #2: Ursula Le Guin & “Earthsea”

April: The Year of the Villain #3: Tigana and Brandin of Ygrath

May: The Year of the Villain #4: Elidor and Formless Evil 

June: The Year of the Villain #5: When the Hero Is Really A Villain