[Gary Wassner]

For all of you who love Epic Fantasy, come talk. Derivative? Bah, humbug. A response to modernity? Perhaps. Pure entertainment? I don't think so.

So what is it that has captured our imaginations and enticed us into these worlds that are so different from our own?

I have my opinions, but I would like to hear some of yours.

[Radthorne]

Why yes, as a matter of fact, I do write epic fantasy... :)

Speaking as both a reader and a writer of it, I travel there because I find inspiration in stories that are uplifting of the human spirit. Although perhaps not as prevalent as in SF, in fantasy one can certainly find downbeat stories and motifs; but I find quite enough of that in the daily paper. As a counterpoint, I prefer to read (and to write) things that demonstrate our innate capacity to "rise to the occasion."

I'm on a panel this weekend at Rustycon having to do with good versus evil, and which one should die at the end of the book. My vote, obviously, would be for good to survive. Not that there isn't a place for books that end the other way, but we all pick and choose what we like. And I like the "good" stuff. :D

My two cents worth on the topic...

[Gary Wassner]

I agree completely, and I have said this in many threads here and on other forums. For me, Epic Fantasy is the medium. As a genre, it is expansive enough to accomodate serious discussions about ethics and meaning, as well as battle scenes, exciting confrontations, magic, and all the other elements that make fantasy fantastic.

Another author mentioned to me recently that when he writes he thinks cinematically. It struck a chord with me, because that is exactly how I approach my writing. But, as with him as well, I also want to stimulate the imagination while provoking the mind of the reader. Epic fantasy allows you to do both. The imagination can go wild. There are very few limitations other than consistency when it comes to what you can write.

I can incorporate verse within my books, while at the same time, I can discuss serious moral issues and not seem as if I am preaching or being pedantic. There are not too many genres that I could write in that truly allow this flexibility and breadth of expression.

[Solaar]

I've been trying for years but always get dragged kicking and screaming back into the world of horror... *ahem*...

When I was trying to write fantasy, it was kind of like what i felt when I read it - pure escapism. Cinematic is a good way to describe it, as you've both said, but I think I really felt immersed in that world when I was writing it.

I could see everything around me and it became so easy to write, the characters coming out at you like they do when you read a really good fantasy novel itself.

But hell, what do I know? :rolleyes: I'm still trying to beat horror!!

Solaar
and his leather cod piece

[Cwass]

You are obviously a very visual person, so fantasy would appeal to you naturally, but horror even more so. Horror seems to stimulate the senses as well as the imagination. The anticipation of pain is more graphic and more easily felt when it's described.

People tend to reveal themselves in the little things they do. Hey, even the few words you chose to describe yourself under your screen name are pretty graphic. They tell everyone something about you.

[Scott Bakker]

Epic fantasy allows you to do both. The imagination can go wild. There are very few limitations other than consistency when it comes to what you can write.

Is this the case, Gary? The predominant criticism I come across - regarding epic fantasy, at least - is that the genre is too constrained. As a fellow writer of epic fantasy, I obviously disagree, but I was wondering what your take on it might be...

[Gary Wassner]

When you say 'too constrained', are you referring to the more esoteric subject matter that might underlie the story itself, or are you referring to the complexity and 'fantastic' nature of the world/characters/storyline?

I may be re-opening a much opened can of worms, and without questioning the categories we use to define fantasy, is that why you feel people may be flocking to authors like Mieville - because he is pushing the limits with his
world-building?

[Scott Bakker]

Well think of the criticisms proponents of the new wierd seem given to. That the conventions characteristic of epic fantasy are burnt out, over-commercialized, inherently conservative, infantile - you know the routine. They would tout authors like Mieville (who I adore, BTW) as authors who truly do let their imaginations run wild, and who are therefore actually more worth a reader's interest and time.

[Gary Wassner]

A matter of taste, I suppose. I read Perdido St. and I did enjoy it, though I thought it would have benefited from a discriminating editor in a number of cases. He does write in an amazingly descriptive fashion, and his characters and worlds are novel and interesting. I got more of a sci/fi feeling from it, and science fiction is not my favorite category to read usually.

When I read some of the criticisms of Epic Fantasy, I realize that I could change some of the words around slightly and post them as reasons why I love it. But everything has to be qualified. It has been over-commercialized. There is a lot of trash out there. But how does that differ from anything else in the arts? Music? You have Britney Spears and then Leonard Cohen, Ashlee Simpson and then Beth Orton. Film? Oceans 12 and then Bad Education. Does the former nullify the quality of the later?

[Solaar]

People tend to reveal themselves in the little things they do. Hey, even the few words you chose to describe yourself under your screen name are pretty graphic. They tell everyone something about you.

Uh, yeah but the words under my screen name actually represent Eastwood's character in the spaghetti western films... :cool: not that I'm NOT good of course!! *ahem*

Yep, agree with you on the fact that pain is probably more imaginable, but surely when writing horror you don't really imagine the 'pain' in the situation? Or is that just me?

I just try to write the tense, nervous stuff - always concentrating on the victim and the way they feel.

I keep meaning to get into this thread more and write something properly but the kids keep running round my ankles, biting!! They are the inspiration for my murky mind... :D

Solaar
grabbing the collars