 Fantasy: September 07, 2005 Issue [#602] |
  Fantasy
This week: Edited by: W.D.Wilcox  
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1. About this Newsletter
2. A Word from our Sponsor
3. Letter from the Editor
4. Editor's Picks
5. A Word from Writing.Com
6. Ask & Answer
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"I am certain of nothing but the holiness of the Heart's affection and the truth of Imagination. What the imagination seizes as Beauty must be truth--whether it existed before or not."
--John Keats
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We are a fat people. We are gorged upon technology, fast food and the easy life. Everything is quick--right now, right here, right there at our fingertips, with little or no effort to attain. We are a fat people.
We are addicted. Each generation becoming more and more dependent upon electronic gadgets: cell phones, satellite hook-ups, direct access. We are addicted.
We are plugged in: to play stations, game boys, computers. A world of answers is available to us in under a second and we expect it to be there. We grow to expect connectivity. We don’t exercise. We don’t work hard, and the next set of advances will have a different effect, but similar in magnitude. We are plugged in.
We evolve. Our limbs shorten and fall off from lack of use. Eventually, we become a jiggling mass of brain-jelly held in an electronic creche. We evolve.
Is this a fantasy world--an imagined place? Could this happen here?
What does a writer do when a novel contains an element that requires a serious suspension of disbelief? How exactly does the writer incorporate that element so that the reader buys into the premise?
The element itself goes a long way toward helping the writer decide the best means for incorporating it.
All storytelling, in some way or another, requires a suspension of disbelief. Writers must convince the reader that the characters are real people, that the events the writer says are happening are events that could happen, that the place where this story occurs is a real place, and these events and these characters are apt to happen and to be in this place.
In a word, details. We convince readers characters are real by giving them attributes typical of many people: Appearances, attitudes, emotions, motivations, and goals; universal emotions (ones we can all understand) and unique traits that single them out as individuals. Three-dimensions: physical, emotional, and spiritual. Then readers have things in common with characters, which means they can relate to them. These common bonds, related through details, assists in making characters and places "real."
We convince readers that events are real by using details, testing them for plausibility and testing the events to assure the reader that they are a natural outgrowth.
Until next time,
billwilcox
Abyss & Apex
The mission of Abyss & Apex is to publish the finest in speculative and imaginative fiction, with special attention to character-driven stories that examine the depths and heights of human motivation. We are looking for stories that leave us gasping, dizzy, and perhaps momentarily changed. Stories with voice and presence--and power.
We want strong fantasy, magic realism, science fiction, and especially those genrebending stories that don't quite seem to fit anywhere. Our tastes span the gamut from classical, Golden-Age SF to modern nontraditional formats. We don't mind experimental styles. We are, however, discriminating. And opinionated.
Length - up to 10,000 words
Payment - .03 cents per word to a max. of $40
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