I was recently rereading a particular piece of mine and while I always considered it fantasy, it seems as if it has no fantastic element at all. The only reason it might be considered fantasy is because it is set in another world (perhaps an alternate dimension of our Earth?). It has no magic, no hint of the supernatural, nothing out of the ordinary beyond I built the culture and world, rather than writing something historical.
Is this still considered fantasy? How much of a fantastic element do you have in your own story? What elements make your story fantasy?
How fantastical is your fantasy?
9 posts in this topic.
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It sounds rather like what is called 'speculative' these days - which is a word that can mean any manner of things, from science-fiction, to fantasy, to somewhat indescribable-with-both-or-either-element. ^_^
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Sounds like fantasy to me. Ellen Kushner's Swordspoint has no magic, magical creatures, prophecies etc - it's just set in an unnamed city in another world - but it's still classed as fantasy.
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I tend to look at fantasy as anything differing from the normal, usual, realistic things of our world. Anything that is different from our world, whether it be adding some magic to Earth or creating your own non-magical world I consider fantasy.
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A magical construct uncovers that the imperial magocracy is committing genocide against a race of demons and sets out to stop them. The story includes magical swords, dragons, wizards, demon summoning, naval warfare and far too many sequels.
It's pretty much too fantasy to be fantasy.
But yeah, I've noticed the trend for good speculative fiction to be adopted out of the genre (like 1984, which is usually classed as literary fiction). -
I don't think fantasy needs magic. My fantasy WIP doesn't have any, but it is set in an alternative world with fictional cultures. I think that qualifies it.
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Lets put it this way, Earth does not even in the slightest exist in my story. Technology is completely different, religion and language are miles apart. Even the human-like Sen are different in biology. Astrology, medicine, magic, science and arts. Completely different.
It is also very brutal and quick paced in current form. -
I have a fantasy novel with no magic at all in it. ... I mean, there were spider-people and portal machines, but that wasn't MAGIC, that was genetics and mechanical stuff.
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My whole world is based off magic in a world where if magic was nonexistent all the cultures and most of the cultures and such would be shattered. So pretty dang fantastical.
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