Flintlock Fantasy

In the past recent years, the sub-genre of “Flintlock Fantasy” (also labeled Gunpowder Fantasy and Muskets and Magic—a take off Sword and Sorcery) has been growing and gaining popularity. Some may describe this sub-genre in a few ways, since it derives from Historical Fantasy, but could be very much Epic Fantasy, depending on the world setting, and the foundation of magic and/or fantastical creatures.

First of all, Flintlock Fantasy is fantasy that has moved out of the typical Medieval European setting that we’re all accustomed to in the fantasy genre, and into a more industrialized period (like the 18^TH and 19^TH century). Magic, gods and other fantastical creatures still exist, but we get to see guns and cannons (gunpowder) used in the setting. This makes for a different type of world than the usual fantasy novel, because warfare has changed completely. In addition, this description of Flintlock Fantasy takes place in a secondary world, which is the norm in the epic fantasy genre.

Examples are as follows… Brent Weeks’ Lightbringer series is a wonderful example of good “Flintlock Fantasy”, complete with a unique magic system (involving colors) and muskets. Chris Evans’ Iron Elves series is a series I have not gotten a hold of yet, but it falls into this same category. A debut author that has been getting really good reviews with his new release is Brian McClellan, author of Promise of Blood (book one in The Powder Mage Trilogy). He created a magic system in his world where there are people called Powder Mages who have the ability to manipulate gunpowder as their magic ability; all set in a world of other kinds of magic users and gods. Another new author coming on the scene as having a Flintlock Fantasy book released this year is Django Wexler, author of The Thousand Names (first in The Shadow Campaigns series). I’m looking forward to reading both Mr. McClellan and Mr. Wexler’s books.

Just to mention a few more authors; Bradley P. Beaulieu’s The Lays of Anuskaya series may fall in this sub-genre as well. Col Buchanan’s Heart of the World books have gunpowder and airships; not to be mistaken for steampunk, despite the airships. Margaret Weis & Robert Krammes’ Dragon Brigade series had their characters fighting with pistols and muskets, mixed with dragons, floating land masses and airships. Even the notorious Brandon Sanderson did a cool spin by writing a Mistborn novel set 300 years after his successful epic fantasy, The Mistborn Trilogy. The novel is called The Alloy of Law; and Mr. Sanderson shows his world of Scadrial as industrialized, with a late 19^TH century-ish kind of setting, with revolvers, railroads, electric lighting, and the building of a skyscraper.

Another look at describing the Flintlock Fantasy sub-genre could fall in the style of The Pirates of the Caribbean, or the pulp-fiction classic of the late 1920’s and 1930’s, Solomon Kane, created by Robert E. Howard (who gave us Conan the Barbarian). These two examples are set in our world, around the 17^TH and 18^TH century, but they have magic, fantastical creatures, along with the use of flintlock pistols, muskets, rapiers and dirks.

Books that may get confused with the Flintlock Fantasy sub-genre can be Andre Norton and Rosemary Edghill’s Carolus Rex series. These books take place in the Napoleonic Era, with elements of magic, faeries and machinations; but they seem to be more of a work of historical fantasy / alternate history. I would say the same of Naomi Novik’s Temeraire novels, which also take place in the Napoleonic Era. These books are basically Alternate History with dragons. Michael A. Stackpole’s The Crown Colonies novels take place in the late 18^TH century, giving us an alternate history of our world, complete with fantastical creatures, magic, and zombie soldiers. Last, but not at all least, is D.B. Jackson’s The Thieftaker Chronicles, set in Boston in the late 18^TH century, which could be described a little more akin to Urban Fantasy, just not set in contemporary times.

I personally embrace the definition of Flintlock Fantasy as epic fantasy that has been industrialized. The use of gunpowder in fantasy-like stories is nothing new—as mentioned above with Solomon Kane. And video games and indie writers have given the use of flintlock weapons in a fantasy setting a fun spin for a while now. But seeing Epic Fantasy evolve into something fresh and not overdone is exciting. As this sub-genre grows, it's going to be great to see how each writer develops their worlds using this element. Just like Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance has gotten out of control these past few years, I’d like to see Flintlock Fantasy begin to take up the shelves, continuing the great diversity of our beloved genre.

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Originality in Fantasy



Fantasy readers continue in pursuit of their favorite types of fantasy fiction; whether they be the typical sword and sorcery, quest fantasy, or dark fantasy. But many fantasy fans are growing weary of what seems to be the same old method in fantasy novels recycled over and over again.

There are a lot of complaints about books hanging on to the Tolkien-like setting. When most of us read the Sword of Shannara by Terry Brooks, the similarities to the Fellowship of the Ring was too obvious. When we read the Eye of the World by Robert Jordan, we could sense the same resemblances from the Lord of the Rings in some parts. Peter Orullian’s debut fantasy novel, The Unremembered, is said to have utter likenesses to Robert Jordan’s the Eye of the World.

How many of us have read the farm boy going to fight the great dark lord story? How many have read the story of the orphan seeking revenge for the death of their parents; or the orphan that becomes an assassin or great magician? How about the story about an empire having slave warriors to fight and conquer for them; only the slave warrior becomes the hero against the evil empire? Don’t forget the stories about magic swords; a boy/girl and their dragon(s); or the reluctant hero who was prophesied to save the world. I could go on about the different formulas that we see, not only in the fantasy genre, but in fiction in general.

This is not only an occurrence in books, but in cinema as well. How many romantic comedies have we seen where the male or female character has some kind of secret (or lie), and the love interest finds out about it. The love interest gets upset and never wants to talk to the other again; yet they make up at the end and live happily ever after. And what is it with all the action movies? We know that the main bad guy and the hero are going to fight at the end, and the bad guy is going to get destroyed; can we at least get a surprising twist?

There are a few formulas to storytelling, but hundreds of thousands of stories (if not more), using the same old formulas. Can we say that originality is dead in fiction? Can anything in Fantasy be original anymore? Some say no to the latter. I say yes.

I’m going to use two authors, whose stories I admire, as examples of what originality looks like in fantasy. Now, let me say that I think each book in their series goes on for too long, but they have characters that are interesting enough to keep reading about (even though it seems like they are doing next to nothing sometimes). The two authors are George R.R. Martin (A Song of Ice & Fire books) and Patrick Rothfuss (The Kingkiller Chronicle).

George R.R. Martin has painted a dark and cold world where many dynasties are vying for power over a vast land (Westeros). We experience and learn of the world through the limited third-person point of views of many characters that you grow to love or hate (or a little of both). Though there’s magic in the books it’s subtle and builds up slowly through the series. There are dragons, but they are not set in the story with the same old casting as most books in the genre. Tyrion, probably my favorite character, is a dwarf—not the typical dwarf of fantasy, with the long beards, and living inside the mountains. No, Tyrion is just a normal human, born of “normal” people  with “normal” siblings; however, he was born a dwarf, like in the real world, and he’s a flawed and crafty individual. The books are loaded with political intrigue and battles; unlikely alliances; twists and turns; and disappointments (in regards to the fate or decisions of characters). You will not read Martin’s series and say to yourself, “Hey this looks similar to so-and-so’s book.” Why? Because it’s original. Writers are trying to emulate Martin now, because he has taken the Epic Fantasy genre and changed it into something unpredictable, gritty and realistic (for its period setting). As I stated in a previous post, I personally find the books too dark and graphic in some places, but I cannot deny that Mr. Martin is fantastic at what he does, and has produced an engrossing and epic tale.

Patrick Rothfuss only has two (fat) books out now, but he is definitely one of the giants in modern fantasy fiction today. The reason is because of his exceptional, original storytelling. His story of Kvothe in his Kingkiller Chronicle is interesting and entertaining. Rothfuss gives us a character that tells his own story (in first-person narrative) about his legacy. Kvothe becomes an orphan in the story, due to the death of his parents, and he wants vengeance for their death, but this is not the main plot of the books. Rothfuss tells a whole other type of story through Kvothe, giving us the tale of his life at the university, and his later tales of his adventures outside the university. The books have magic, but the magic system (mostly alchemy) is excellent, in my opinion; giving the readers something more than just the wizard’s staff or the magical object. The magic is a large part of the story, but it is not the drive of the story—the character is. Rothfuss makes it where the readers actually love following Kvothe through his story; and it’s a cool, interesting and fun piece. The books are completely original and memorable.

There are other original good stories out there, but the two authors that I’ve mentioned above are the ones that have stood out to me as being something refreshingly unique in the genre. Let’s not mistake originality with good storytelling. You can have originality, but to the point where it’s too original and does not make for good storytelling. There are writers that spend so much time trying to explain their “original” world instead of letting the story, through the characters, reveal the world to us. There are writers that can take one of the typical formulas described above and tell a great story, with a unique voice of their own, but it wouldn’t classify for originality.

There is nothing like opening a book by an author you’re not familiar with and discovering an original piece of fantasy fiction that was unexpected and different from anything else that you have ever read. It’s like finding gold in a pile of stones, or a diamond in the rough. 

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Star Wars is Fantasy

 

I’m a big Star Wars fan; not to the point of being geeky or fanatical, but just enjoying the Star Wars universe, stories, and characters. It is big, fat epic fiction for all ages and all people. It is a phenomenon in and of itself. Nothing else can compare—not even Star Trek or Lord of the Rings (in my humble opinion).

I think, in general, Star Wars is seen (categorized) as Science Fiction. There has been a debate for years over whether Star Wars is in fact Science Fiction or Fantasy. There’s even a book based on such a debate called, Star Wars on Trial. I’m not going to waste time and brain cells being technical about what makes a story Science Fiction or Fantasy, but I’m just going to speak as the average reader and fan that I am, and just state the obvious.

Now, it’s assumed that since Star Wars takes place in outer space, with spaceships, laser guns, planets, and aliens, it is automatically classified as Science Fiction. A true Sci-Fi fan/expert would tell you that Sci-Fi has to have a degree of plausibility in the make and setup of the world of the story. When you think about it, there is no plausibility in the world of Star Wars. Things are just the way they are in the stories. There’s no grounds for plausibility with the Force (even with the vague explanation of the midi-chlorians). The Lightsaber is scientifically impossible. Spaceships speeding through a galaxy over thousands of light years in a matter of minutes, hours, or days is utter imagining. The hardcore Science Fiction fan would require that such things be scientifically explained, with just an inkling of possibility that such things could happen (like maybe sometime in the future—even if it’s the far future).

Now, George Lucas, the creator of Star Wars, has been on record, stating that Star Wars is more Fantasy than Science Fiction; so that should just put the debate to rest. Think about how the story begins: “A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away…” Just this beginning right here tells you that you are getting into a story that does not even take place in our world, let alone our time. Science Fiction usually takes place in the future (even an alternative future—but still the future). Here, Lucas is starting his story, basically saying, “Once upon a time…” We all know that when someone starts a story with, “Once upon a time,” it’s going to be a made up fairytale, myth or fable. We’re not going to expect feasibility in the telling of such a story. No, we’re going to expect a fantasy-like story, typically consisting of kings, princesses, and knights. Stephen King wrote a booked called, The Eyes of the Dragon, published in 1987, which is told just like an old-fashioned fairytale: “Once, in a kingdom called Delain, there was a king with two sons.” When you hear a story start out like this, you know it’s going to be a tale, not Science Fiction.

What Lucas did differently was that he made his fairytale using a whole other type of setting. He’s using a galaxy as his world; planets as kingdoms; lightsabers as swords, Jedi and Sith as knights and wizards. Spaceships coasting the blackness of space are just a cool spin from the seafaring vessels. The blaster replaces the bow & arrow or crossbow. Speeders replace the horses. Luke Skywalker starts out as the typical farm boy seeking adventure. Yoda and Obi-Wan Kenobi are the wise old wizards. Emperor Palpatine and Darth Vader are the dark lords, or dark wizards, that have put their brutal curse on the land (or galaxy). Princess Leia is the beautiful princess that must be saved (and she can kick butt too). The Force, of course, is magic.

I can go on and on here… Star Wars is nothing more than big, fat Epic Fantasy with a sci-fi-like setting. That’s what makes Star Wars so unique. It’s a thing of its own; never done before. It’s complete entertainment. It’s complete action. It’s complete fantasy.

Another comparison to Star Wars, in regards to advanced technology in Fantasy, is He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, and ThunderCats. There are laser guns, spaceships, and all kinds of stuff in those cartoons, but they are total Fantasy—filled with swords, magic, princes, kings, wizards, dark lords, and on and on. That’s the beauty of the Fantasy genre, there is so much that can be done in it.

In closing, those of us Star Wars fans who actually read the books and see just how deep and epic the Star Wars universe is, we understand that Star Wars stands on it’s own, as an epic tale with a boatload of fantasy elements. Also, let me just note that there are quite a bit of Fantasy authors who have contributed to the mass of Star Wars books. Terry Brooks adapted The Phantom Menace into a book; as well as R.A. Salvatore and Matthew Stover who adapted episodes II and III (they have also written many other Star Wars books). Greg Keyes, Troy Denning, Christie Golden, Paul S. Kemp, Michael A. Stackpole, and Elaine Cunningham, have also authored Star Wars books, just to name a few.

So, Star Wars is Fantasy… Science Fiction is only its nickname.