What is Fantasy? ~guest post by Jane Toombs

We're pleased to have author Jane Toombs here with us again at the Speculative Salon. She offers an interesting post that answers the question--What is fantasy? Enjoy her post and also, please, check out her latest fantasy release, Taken In. 

                                              What Is Fantasy?

The dictionary describes it as: “The creative imagination; unrestrained fancy.   Also  literary or dramatic fiction characterized by  highly fanciful or supernatural elements. Illusion; hallucination.”

    Ah, supernatural.  In other words, paranormal.  That’s the sub-genre of fantasy I usually tend to write. How each author approaches fantasy tends to be different.  Take werewolves for example.

   Some authors apparently feel that since wolves run in packs,  therefore their man-wolf or woman-wolf also has a pack. That’s certainly one way to present them.  But I don’t feel that way.  This being is not only a wolf but a man.  Men do not need to run in packs so my werewolves tend to be loners.

    Sometimes my shifters aren’t any species of animal, they’re simply a beast when they shift. This is true of my MOONRUNNER  TRILOGY--beasts that can stand erect, but can also run on all fours. After all, since it’s my “creative imagination” I can do anything I chose to do as long as I keep to my own guidelines of what such a creature can do or not do.

    When I wrote my chapter of  The  Guide To Writing Paranormal  Novels, Volume 1, I mention this.  My chapter is Dropped Eyes And Unattached Tentacles, where I also go into what bothers me as a reader--having a character, whether paranormal or not doing something impossible--like a human dropping his eyes or a creature flinging off a tentacle to capture prey.  While humans cannot literally drop their eyes, an imaginary creature can certainly fling off a tentacle if necessary, but as a reader I need to be prepared to know this, even if the prey has no idea it can do Though octopi, as far as I know, cannot detach tentacles, imaginary creatures can do anything the author sets them up to do.

   I agree that in a story, it might be the character does not know what an imaginary creature’s abilities are, so the reader finds out along with the character. That’s fair enough.

   I call many of my stories Paranormal Suspense Romances, because that’s what they are. I always try to keep the reader aware of what any shifters I write about can do. But in some cases, like my DARKNESS OF DRAGONS TRILOGY, some of the characters don’t even know they’re capable of shifting, so the reader has to find out when they do.   

  Fairy tales, whether or not they’re meant to illustrate a point, are also fantasies. In many cases about cultures which no longer exist. I write those, too, in my UNDERWORLD SERIES about gates between Earth and other worlds.

   My latest trilogy, DAGON HOUSE, has the first book out now--Taken In.  And this one is about ghosts.  Whether or not they do exist, they still fall into the fantasy genre.  I personally have never seen or felt a ghost, but I know others who believe they have.  I never disbelieve what others tell me they’ve felt because I guess I sort of like to believe they could exist.    

   

BLURB for Taken In:

 

Gail Sarandon flees New York City after seeing the murder of a man she knows--with both the hit man and Jason Tregarth, a Special Agent following her trail. Jason finds her first, but the hit man arrives before he can get her to safety. Gail with him, Jason manages to elude the hit man, only to crash on a lonely mountain road, totaling the car. He's injured, but Gail’s able to get him to the only shelter around--Dagon House. She believes they're safe, but she's wrong...

All of my books are featured on my web page along with buy links. www.JaneToombs.com

Shoes For Every Genre

When I read Melanie's post yesterday, I instantly thought of a recent article that put a smile on my face. We've talked about being drawn to certain fairy tales and stepping into the shoes of our favorite childhood heroines, but these days we can go even further. Especially if your favorite princess is Cinderella, because thanks to designers like Marc Jacobs and Christian Louboutin, you can walk in her shoes any time you want.

Of course, if you're on a budget, you might want to check out the Glass Slipper Collection from DSW instead. They're all quite lovely, and it got me thinking how much their shoes can do a great job of helping heroines from almost any speculative genre stand out.

Sci-Fi Diva

Steampunk Girl

Fantasy Fairy

Lady Death

I could do this all day (really, I love me some shoes). A woman's shoes say a lot about her personality, and the same goes for characters of any gender or genre. Wear some special shoes today, be the heroine of your own story and really strut your stuff!

Cheers!

Ella

What's your story?

I've been taking a Tarot class to add to my writing workbox and it's been opening up interesting channels.  One of those was an image of me entering Winter. No, not the Winter of George RR Martin's world. This winter was a little more interesting. More personal.

It is the Winter of the Snow Queen! Listen, to Sur la Lune...

“Now you must have no more kisses,” she said, “or I should kiss you to death.”

Kay looked at her, and saw that she was so beautiful, he could not imagine a more lovely and intelligent face; she did not now seem to be made of ice, as when he had seen her through his window, and she had nodded to him. In his eyes she was perfect, and she did not feel at all afraid. He told her he could do mental arithmetic, as far as fractions, and that he knew the number of square miles and the number of inhabitants in the country. And she always smiled so that he thought he did not know enough yet, and she looked round the vast expanse as she flew higher and higher with him upon a black cloud, while the storm blew and howled as if it were singing old songs. They flew over woods and lakes, over sea and land; below them roared the wild wind; the wolves howled and the snow crackled; over them flew the black screaming crows, and above all shone the moon, clear and bright,—and so Kay passed through the long winter’s night, and by day he slept at the feet of the Snow Queen.

The Snow Queen is one of the tales I felt drawn to as a kid. I remember sitting in the first foster home watching it on TV.  I wanted to be Kay then.  Since, however I have felt the attraction of other tales and recognized having been drawn to different stories before the Snow Queen.

When I was still living at home and reading the colored Fairy books, I was never the princess waiting to be rescued. I was the prince with the cloak of invisibility doing the rescuing. Eventually.  I was the witch, doing cool stuff instead of bother with princes and princesses, like keeping my stuff for my own use!

I did serve a term as mermaid, but nothing like either the Andersen or the Disney kind.  Just went exploring under the water.

It was recognizing myself as Rapunzel that was most significant in my later years. No one else would recognize me that way though. Unless you were just looking at the tower.  I wanted the tower to be a library and the witch who lived with me there to be my teacher or guide.  Or to just leave me the heck alone so I could get on with my own work.

In my version, I do eventually get "rescued" but only to go on real Adventures. That was about the time I started Aikido, and playing Dungeons and Dragons.

Somewhere in there I identified with the story of the Seven Swans, the one where the sister is silent through all kinds of torment while she knits seven nettle shirts for her brothers.  Not sure when I let go of that one.  Could be when I took up nursing in real life.

Now, though, I am approaching the winter of my life.  I have not been terribly conscious of growing old. let along growing up or older.  There are elements of the story, though, that appeal to me. I know who my Kay is. I know what the frost and ice are.  Now, to discover who Gerda is...

So, what stories have been mirrors of your life?  Characters?  Which ones would you change around to fit how you really are?

Happy Tales!
m

Hot New Fall Television Series

There is now an unfortunate coolness to the air as fall is fast approaching. While I don't particularly enjoy cold weather, which is pretty avoid living in Canada (and no, we don't live in igloos), there is one thing that helps to keep me from a tailspin from summer.

While my summer is filled with a reading list (that I have not quite completed), my fall is filled with new T.V. series. And I am especially excited about three new that I will be adding to my "Must Watch" line up.

Here is the T.V. Guides write up on the shows that I won't be missing:

Arrow
Premieres: Wednesday, Oct 10 at 8/7c
This is not your older brother's Oliver Queen. Stephen Amell stars as Queen, aka the Green Arrow, a wealthy playboy by day and a vigilante crime-fighter by night, in a gritty, brooding retelling of the famed superhero. Queen honed his archery skills on a deserted island for five years after surviving a boating accident that killed his father and girlfriend's sister, with whom he was having an affair. He returns to civilization to take down his dad's enemies to clear his family name (how Revenge-like!). Katie Cassidy co-stars as Queen's girlfriend, Dinah "Laurel" Lance, who may or may not be the Black Canary.
Arrow Trailer

Beauty and the Beast  
Premieres: Thursday, Oct 11 at 9/8c
Kristin Kreuk and Kiwi Jay Ryan star in the titular roles, but don't expect dancing candelabras or even a hairy beast. Ryan's Vincent Keller/beast will have nothing more than a scar on his face, though his actions will get "beastlier," as the producers put it, as the series progresses. The show is a remake of the 1987 procedural starring Linda Hamilton and Ron Perlman. Hamilton sent Kreuk and Ryan notes and photos wishing them good luck.
Beauty and the Beast Trailer

Revolution
Premieres: Monday, September 17 at 10:00/9:00c
Leave it to J.J. Abrams (Lost) and Eric Kripke (Supernatural) to come up with a mythology-heavy drama. Set in a post-apocalyptic future where there is no electricity, the series stars Elizabeth Mitchell, Tracy Spiridakos, Billy Burke and Giancarlo Esposito as a group of people struggling to figure out how the technology vanished and who holds the figurative power among the survivors. We don't think this is what people meant by going green.
Revolution Trailer

Any new fall shows that you are excited to see?

R.J. Garside :)

Once, Season Two—Magic as We Know Always Comes With a Price

Many fantasy fans are on the edges of their seats, waiting for the start of season two of the TV series Once Upon A Time. I sure am! So much so, that I poked around for a few hints about what to expect in the coming season. I found tidbits, but even those are enough to make me even more eager for episode one, which premieres on September 30^th.

There are plenty of new cast members slated for episodes.

Julian Morris, a British actor known for his role on Pretty Little Liars, will guest-star as Prince Phillip.

Irish actor, Colin O'Donoghue will play Captain Hook, the Peter Pan villain. Best known to American audiences for a role in Showtime's The Tudors, O'Donoghue will show up for at least one season two episode. Captain Hook that will be a part of Once is said to be a character who is a violent and arrogant pirate when working but a stylish and polite gentleman the rest of the time. Sounds intriguing to me!

Last month, it was reported that True Blood’s Michael Raymond-James had joined the season's recurring cast in an unknown role, described only as "mysterious.” Fans have speculated he may portray Baelfire, Rumpelstiltskin’s long-lost son who fell into a portal from the fairytale world (and presumably to our reality).

As a Lost fan, I’m super excited with the news that former Lost star Jorge Garcia will rumble into Storybrooke as The Giant, of Jack and the Beanstalk fame. I loved his acting on Lost. Not much is known about Garcia’s role or who he’ll end up allying himself with, but it’s rumored he’ll most likely appear in a multi-episode story arc. Garcia will reunite with fellow Lost actress Emilie de Ravin (Belle) – who has been promoted to a series regular this season. It’s no surprise Garcia has been hired, since the creators of Once, Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, wrote all the Hurley-centric episodes of Lost.

 Other newcomers:

Sarah Bolger as Aurora

Jamie Chung as Mulan

Sinqua Walls as Sir Lancelot

Sebastian Stan as The Mad Hatter/Jefferson

And what will the plot be like in season two?  According to the creators, regret and redemption will be a theme for the season.

Things are going to change in the little town where time stood still due to the Evil Queen Regina’s wicked curse. In a Lost-esque nod to the black smoke monster, a wave of thick purple smoke surged through Storybrooke in the season one finale when Emma Swan finally fulfilled her destiny by shattering Regina’s evil curse. Emma’s action restored the resident’s former fairytale identities and started the ball rolling for magic to enter the town.

The first focus will be on the relationship between Emma and Snow White in an episode titled, “Broken,” and will pick up right where the season 1 finale left off—minutes after magic has been released into Storybrooke.

Co-creators Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis commented about the consequences of the first season finale’s events, stating, "Magic as we know always comes with a price and we are introducing it to a world where it has never been before and I think that’s going to have unpredictable results. It’s going to affect everybody this season because that’s what’s more fun." said Kitsis. Concerning what happens when everyone in Storybrooke suddenly regains their memories of the past, Horowitz said, "One of the things that’s interesting to us to explore is this notion that just because the memories have returned does not mean that the past 28 years did not happen. Those memories, the Davids, the Mary Margaret, the Mr. Golds, all those people, who they were existed and what they did actually happened and those are the things that will have to be dealt with." This sounds wonderfully complex to me!

Okay, I’m pumped! And if this doesn’t get you thoroughly amped for the upcoming season of Once Upon a Time, then you may be suffering the effects of a curse and should avoid questionable looking fruit. Are you ready?

~ ~ ~ Marsha A. Moore is a writer of fantasy romance. The magic of art and nature spark life into her writing. Read her ENCHANTED BOOKSTORE LEGENDS for adventurous epic fantasy romance: Book One, SEEKING A SCRIBE, and Book Two, HERITAGE AVENGED. She has also authored the Ciel's Legacy series, with fast action mermaid/pirate storylines: TEARS ON A TRANQUIL LAKE and TORTUGA TREASURE.  For a FREE ebook download, read her historic fantasy, LE CIRQUE DE MAGIE, available at Amazon and Smashwords.

Drool-Worthy New Urban Fantasy

After spending the last several weeks deep in the first round of revisions for my own urban fantasy novel, it's time to come up for air and some well-deserved reading time. I'm practically salivating over the scores of amazing new UF hitting the shelves this month; it's going to be very difficult choosing what to start first.

Of course many of the titles are the continuation of some great series, including new installments in J.R. Ward's The Fallen Angels series, another October Day story by Seanan McGuire, and a third Vampire Empire novel from Clay and Susan Griffith (yay!).

I'm also keen to check out a few anthologies. Ghosts: Recent Hauntings features works by some of my favorite authors like, Neil Gaiman, Elizabeth Hand, and Tim Powers. There's a neat collection that focuses on school-time mayhem called An Apple for the Creature (cute, right?), with contributions by Ilona Andrews and Mike Carey, among others.

Even more exciting are all the brand new series debuting in September. It's not hard to see how things are trending in the genre these days. There are at least as many zombie stories as vampire ones. Werewolves are more rare, although what few I saw look very promising. Gorgoyles and ancient gods are on the rise, along with some fresh and unique creatures to keep fans on their toes.

Here are my picks to look out for:

Full Blooded, Jessica McClain #1 by Amanda Carlson - Here we have another story about the troubles of being one of the only female werewolves in existence. I’m not sure why they’re always so rare, but I do like reading about them. There’s a novella available as a prequel to the series, and the second book is scheduled to release in April of next year.

The Dirty Streets of Heaven, Bobby Dollar #1 by Tad Williams - I was a huge fan of Mr. Williams as a kid, but I’ve drifted away from classic fantasy over the years. So I was thrilled when I started hearing about his dip into the UF pool. The series revolves around a wise-cracking angel, and should be a nice addition to that vein of Heaven & Hell type of stories.

In a Fix by Linda Grimes - This title looks very original and centers on a character who is an aura adaptor, something I’ve never heard of before and which really intrigues me. I was lucky enough to receive a galley of this one, so I hope to review it later this month. Did I mention there are Vikings?

Earth to Hell: Journey to Wudang, Book One by Kylie Chan- Technically, this trilogy is a continuation of the author's previous Dark Heavens books, but since I haven't read those yet, I'm treating this like a new series. I'm always on the lookout for UF that takes place in foreign cities, and this tale of Chinese gods and Demon Kings in Hong Kong looks fabulous.

This Case is Gonna Kill Me by Phillipa Bornikova - This one gets bonus points for reminding me of that dastardly law firm from the show Angel, Wolfram & Hart.

Dark Light of Day: A Noon Onyx Novel by Jill Archer - This one is kind of hard to pin down since the blurb reads more like a straight-up fantasy, but with mentions of Lucifer, Armageddon, and a mystical Greek river. Whatever, it sounds magically delicious.

There are even a couple of YA titles that caught my eye this month, particularly Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst with its exotic desert locale, trickster gods and sand-wolves. Another standout is The City’s Son by Tom Pollock, who recently wrote a wonderful article about urban fantasy over at The Book Smugglers.

Hot damn, these all look so good! This doesn’t even cover half the titles out this month, but it’ll be enough to keep me busy for a long time. What new releases are you most looking forward to? Or, if you have a book coming out soon, tell us about it.

Cheers!
Ella

Are ghosts real? ~guest post by Juli D. Revezzo

We're happy to present a new speculative fiction author today, Juli D. Revezzo. She's here talking about whether or not ghosts are real. In her new book, The Artist's Inheritance, the main character must face that question in a very interesting set of experiences. Welcome, Juli!

 

Are ghosts real?

One of the questions that faces Caitlin, my main character in my new novel The Artist’s Inheritance, and its following stories is that of ghosts and where lie the lines between the worlds of the living, and the dead.

Had you asked me this question several years ago, I’d say I was a skeptic about such things. Though my brother loved Ghost Hunters and such television paranormal “reality” shows, I never bought it.

On the other hand….Has it had an influence on imagination? Definitely! Can you look at that flickering light bulb and not wonder? Have you not heard a voice occasionally say your name? Mom and Dad used to say that was God checking up on you… what if it’s a ghost?

Have you ever seen anything out of the corner of your eye only to turn your head and find nothing? What about that noise outside? Is it really the creak of a tree branch? Is it a good ghost, or one that needs its butt kicked? If the latter, Caitlin can probably help you out. I’ll ask… “Hey Cait?”

She’s busy now, I’ll have to leave your message for her.

At any rate, we know books and movies have been made of such things and it was to these that I turned when my ghost (excuse the pun) made his first appearance in The Artist’s Inheritance. I wanted a nice, sweet, helpful ghost, though. Casper comes to mind, but a little older and … well, to misquote Tevya, from Fiddler on the Roof: “For a man that’s been dead for 150 years, he looks very good.” J Yes, there can be some good ghosts, so I’ve read. And even when they’re not good, ghosts make for some interesting stories, don’t they? Have you read these pieces? They’ve all influenced The Artist Inheritance:

The classic ghost tales:

The Rime of the Ancient Mariner by Coleridge

Cristobelle by Coleridge

The Turn of the Screw. By Henry James

The works of MR James

Leonore by Edgar Allan Poe

Hamlet by Shakespeare

And other such gothic tales

More recent texts:

Lucid by Debra Glass

Haunted by Debra Glass

Your Magic Touch by Kathy Carmichael

Cold Mountain, to some extent

The Brenda Strange Mysteries by Patty G. Henderson

The Witching Hour by Anne Rice

Movies:

The Ghost and Mrs. Muir

The Time of their Lives

Sixth Sense (though I warn you, if you are easily creeped out, avoid this one)

Fight Club

Fiddler on the Roof

And of course Ghost Hunters on the History Channel, if you have cable is a popular title.

You know, really, my jury’s still a little out. What do you think? Are the books, and the so-called “True life experiences” based on—for lack of a better word—reality, or just good for a story? Cait and I aren’t sure where we stand, but we know we don’t discount that shiver going down our collective backs!

Either way it makes for good fiction. Want to learn a little more about my Cait and her spirit-filled family?

Blurb:

Settling into their new home in Gulf Breeze, Florida, Caitlin finds strange changes coming over her husband Trevor. He seems obsessed with a beautiful chair he’s carving.

When the nightmares deepen and ghosts begin lurking—she knows something’s not right, and not just her newfound precognitive abilities. It’s the damned chair, she’s sure. Could it be just what it seems: a mundane piece of furniture? If so, why is it attracting dark forces—the forces she suspects drove Trevor’s siblings to insanity and suicide?

Before the same happens to Trevor, Caitlin must convince him to sell his art. But armed with only a handful of allies, and little experience of the supernatural, she must proceed with caution against the hellish forces besieging her family. If she succeeds, she will break the ancestral curse. If she fails, she may lose forever the one thing she cares about most: her beloved Trevor.

The Artist’s Inheritance is coming soon in paperback to Createspace; meanwhile, the Kindle book is available now at Amazon:

http://tinyurl.com/d2bb5la

and it’s also in various formats at Smashwords:

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/220457

Author Bio:

Juli D. Revezzo has long been in love with writing, a love built by devouring everything from the Arthurian legends, to the works of Michael Moorcock, and the classics and has a soft spot for classic the “Goths” of the 19th century, in love of which she received a Bachelor’s degree in literature from the University of South Florida. Her short fiction has been published in Dark Things II: Cat Crimes, The Scribing Ibis, Eternal Haunted Summer, Twisted Dreams Magazine and Luna Station Quarterly. She also has an article and book review or two out there. But her heart lies in the storytelling. She is a member of the Romance Writers of America, the Tampa Area Romance Authors, and the special interest RWA chapter Fantasy, Futuristic and Paranormal. The Artist’s Inheritance is her first novel.

Juli D. Revezzo’s site links:

http://julidrevezzo.com

on twitter: http://twitter.com/juliannewrites

on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/JD-Revezzo/233193150037011

on google+: https://plus.google.com/u/0/111476709039805267272/posts

On Good reads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5782712.Juli_D_Revezzo

Thanks for having me here today!