| View previous topic :: View next topic |
| Author |
Message |
Violanthe
Webmaster
Joined: 24 Jul 2003
Posts: 5903
|
 Urban/Paranormal Fantasy
Posted: Fri Dec 15, 2006 10:59 am |
 |
|
I've been working on writing some urban fantasy, but I'm not terribly familiar with other entries in the genre. Can anyone recommend some quality urban fantasies? If it's available on audio, that's a plus!
Also, what's the deal with "paranormal" fantasy? I've looked up a few on Amazon, and I can't tell what's precisely "paranormal" about them?
_________________
Violet "Violanthe" Kane
[email protected]
ARWZ.com: A Magazine of Alternative Reality Fiction |
|
| Back to top |
|
 |
pecooper
Active Member
Joined: 05 Apr 2006
Posts: 306
Location: Port Angeles, Washington
|
Posted: Fri Dec 15, 2006 7:28 pm |
|
|
For urban fantasy, you might want to try some of the books of Charles de Lint. A number of his books are set in Ottawa or other modern towns but are undeniably fantasy. You will need to check out the blurbs on the books because he also delves into traditional fantasy.
I can't help you with paranormal fantasy. Isn't fantasy, by definition, about the parnormal? |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Peter
Senior Member
Joined: 21 Apr 2006
Posts: 649
Location: NSW, Australia
|
Posted: Sat Dec 16, 2006 7:04 am |
|
|
Michael Bishop's Who Made Stevie Crye is one that comes to mind. Not so much urban, as "contemporary" though, if that makes sense. It's not set in a true urban place, but in a small community in the American South.
Still qualifies, I think.
Peter |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Mervi
Warlord
Joined: 29 Aug 2006
Posts: 1119
Location: Finland
|
Posted: Sat Dec 16, 2006 7:55 am |
|
|
Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere about mystical underground London.
I've also heard good things about Jonathan Carroll. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Violanthe
Webmaster
Joined: 24 Jul 2003
Posts: 5903
|
Posted: Sat Dec 16, 2006 6:42 pm |
|
|
I'm certainly quite familiar with Neil Gaiman's work.
The other authors you've recommended, how contemporary are they? I'd like to read some stuff that's been published within the last few years so that I can argue the current market appeal for my book.
_________________
Violet "Violanthe" Kane
[email protected]
ARWZ.com: A Magazine of Alternative Reality Fiction |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
pecooper
Active Member
Joined: 05 Apr 2006
Posts: 306
Location: Port Angeles, Washington
|
Posted: Sat Dec 16, 2006 8:23 pm |
|
|
Widdershins by Charles de Lint was published in 2006. I don't know how urban it is, but it is definitely contemporary North America. He has been writing urban fantasy for over a decade now.
I think the other authors mentioned are also fairly contemporary. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Violanthe
Webmaster
Joined: 24 Jul 2003
Posts: 5903
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
pecooper
Active Member
Joined: 05 Apr 2006
Posts: 306
Location: Port Angeles, Washington
|
Posted: Mon Dec 18, 2006 7:21 pm |
|
|
| Violanthe wrote: | | Have any of them published a FIRST novel in the last few years? |
As I said, de Lint has been writing for 10 or 15 years. Neil Gaiman goes back farther and Michael Bishop, farther yet. Jonathan Carroll, I don't know about.
If you are asking for the name of a new author who writes urban fantasy who is also successful, I can't help you. The number of books being published is just too great to keep up with. Anybody else got an answer?
Maybe if you told us just what sort of story elements you are talking about, here, you could help us narrow it down. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Violanthe
Webmaster
Joined: 24 Jul 2003
Posts: 5903
|
Posted: Tue Dec 19, 2006 12:26 am |
|
|
I'm not looking for particular story elements. I'm just looking to know my market. I'm writing an urban fantasy novel at the moment, and so I want to be able to liken my novel to successful books in this genre that have recently sold. I like to be able to include established and recently published authors in my queries. I'm okay on the established end. But I'm looking for urban fantasists on the recently published end in order to get an idea of what the market looks like for new writers (and to show that market in a positive light to prospective agents).
The tricky thing with established writers is that their name, in itself, becomes a marketable commodity. I'm looking for urban fantasy where the name is relatively unknown, and so the story concept and genre overshadow the name as a selling point.
_________________
Violet "Violanthe" Kane
[email protected]
ARWZ.com: A Magazine of Alternative Reality Fiction |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Mervi
Warlord
Joined: 29 Aug 2006
Posts: 1119
Location: Finland
|
Posted: Fri Mar 02, 2007 10:36 am |
|
|
There's been a lot of dicussion about urban fantasy in one of the yahoogroups that I follow (RomanticSF) and these names have come up as quality urban fantasy writers:
Dresden Files by Jim Butcher
Tinker and sequels by Wen Spencer
Tempting Danger and sequels by Eileen Wilks
Retriever novels by Laura Anne Gilman
Weather Warden series by Rachel Caine
Mercy Thompson series by Patricia Briggs
Urban Shaman and sequel by CE Murphy
the Black Dagger Brotherhood
Charlaine Harris - Both Sookie and Harper
Kelley Armstrong -
They're in my to read pile so I haven't read any of them myself yet. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Golophin
Moderator
Joined: 29 Mar 2006
Posts: 238
|
Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 8:34 am |
|
|
| I would reccomend Lilith Saintcrow's ( thats a great name!!) first and second novels Working for the Devil and Dead Man Rising. They're both recent publications. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Shadow_Ferret
Active Member
Joined: 03 Apr 2006
Posts: 318
Location: Milwaukee, WI
|
Posted: Wed Mar 07, 2007 1:48 pm |
|
|
Kim Harrison's Dead Witch Walking is a first novel which came out a few years ago. I think she's since put out 4 or 5 more in the series.
Jim Butcher's first novel Storm Front came out in 2000. I believe he's now on the 8th book in the series.
Kelley Armstrong's Bitten came out in 2000 or so and she's got several more in that series out.
Amazes me how these people can pump out the books and I'm still working on my draft. It's a fast moving genre and I hope I get mine out there before interest cools.
Of course there's Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter series, but that's been out for quite a while. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Epitarc
Regular Member
Joined: 18 Sep 2006
Posts: 124
Location: Over there
|
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 4:41 pm |
|
|
Does it strike anyone else that most of these are women?
Is this considered a "chick lit" genre?
Liked the early Anita Blake books and have read the first of the Dresden-files but other than that this isn't really something I know much about. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Shadow_Ferret
Active Member
Joined: 03 Apr 2006
Posts: 318
Location: Milwaukee, WI
|
Posted: Tue Mar 13, 2007 10:44 pm |
|
|
Chick lit? I guess the women's stuff falls under the category of paranormal romance. That is an extremely hot genre right now.
The Dresden Files debuted several weeks ago on Sci-Fi and now Tanya Huff's series about Vicki Nelson, a PI who teams up with a vampire, just debuted as Blood Ties on Lifetime Sunday evening.
But yeah, I'm not aware of how many men write in this genre other than Jim Butcher. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Mervi
Warlord
Joined: 29 Aug 2006
Posts: 1119
Location: Finland
|
Posted: Sun Mar 18, 2007 9:43 am |
|
|
| Epitarc wrote: |
Is this considered a "chick lit" genre?
|
It depends on what you mean by chick lit. |
|
| Back to top |
|
|
Violanthe
Webmaster
Joined: 24 Jul 2003
Posts: 5903
|
|
| Back to top |
|
|
|
