Steampunk?

[spaceman4572]

I think that steampunk style is really cool but I'm not sure how it would work a book. I guess thats because i see it more as visual, and i hate when authors spend too much time describing things. does anyone have any ideas on how to create a steampunk world with words?

[IdiotsRUs]

Read some (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_steampunk_works)to see how it's done?

[Koganei]

I've never actually seen what a Steampunk genre story would be like, but as for characters/speech/setting, take a look at Wildstorm's Steampunk series ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steampunk_(comics) ).
I don't think it'd be that hard to make a steampunk story. Lots of clockwork, lots of mechanics and steam.

[Cybernaught]

Get ahold of a Steampunk anthology or check out DeVorn's threads. It's obviously been done before since people have written steampunk, so I'm not really sure how else to answer your question.

Reading can do wonders.

[dpaterso]

The question deserves a bigger and more detailed answer, but what's coming to me now is: story and characters first; background second.

When it's relevant, bring it to the fore, otherwise focus on character action. The mechanisms and the science driving them are props, not plot. That's my mindset when I write the stuff, anyway!

-Derek

[FennelGiraffe]

List of Ten Steampunk Novels (http://www.sflare.com/archives/ten-steampunk-novels-you-ought-to-read/).

[Liosse de Velishaf]

You can generate a mood without endless description. More than the snazzy retro-futuristic visuals, steam-punk has its own sort of philosophy and set of themes. There are plenty of novel's classed as steampunk that don't contain every single genre trope. And there are many shades as well.

One of my current projects is steampunky, and I've been having similar troubles getting the feeling and imagery right. I'll admit to using a bit of flowery description here and there, but I've found you can use fairly spare prose and still get the right feeling across if you choose your words carefully. A steampunk environment is verrry different from most other environments. (Warning: "The Right Feeling" defines a large category of vague goals and is subject to change without notice.)

[Juliette Wade]

It might be valuable not just to consider the "bells and whistles" as you read your steampunk example books, but also to consider how the authors treat the characters and their point of view. If your main character thinks about all forms of technology in terms of gears and steam, for example, that could say a lot about your world without making you describe everything in detail. Try analyzing these works in terms of the underlying principles that make all the gadgets run, and then think about how those principles would influence the thinking of a resident of that world. That will give you a lot more to work with than just physical description.

[Toothpaste]

lol, yeah see that issue, I get. I am currently writing Steampunk and totally overwhelmed by it! It is especially hard when you are using a friend to help you, and he happens to be so into the actual construction of the inventions, and you are given just so much detail about how something could work, and then you go away and are all, "But I can't possibly write all that considering my POV etc."

Everyone has given excellent advice. First read some Steampunk to see how it is done. And then realise that one detail or two is more than enough to establish the mood. Let the designers worry about it when it becomes a movie. Too many details in a book is just going to confuse your readers.

Good luck! I know how tough it is. I'm still struggling through it, oy.

[delb0y]

I'm currently reading Tim Powers's steampunk classic The Anubis Gate and one of the things that struck me when the protagonist first arrived in Regency London was the lack of description. All it takes is a few well chosen phrases (and there are some beautiful ones) and the brain does the rest. Too much description (as there is - in my humble opinion - in much fantasy) tends to slow the reader down way too much. Get a decent plot going, populate it with great characters, and away you go!

Del

[JamieB]

I'm writing a YA retro-furturistic steampunk and I'm probably breaking any and all rules, but at least it will be a different take on it! I'm going on the premise depaterso stated above, characters and story first and if it's not steampunky enough then I guess that's not what it is after all...it'll be just a YA fantasy at that point and I will still like it a lot!

[jst5150]

The blog Boing Boing (http://www.boingboing.net) generously discusses Steampunk at length in dozens of posts. It also recommends books, films and other collateral that may be helpful to you.

Also, if you search the forum, as I did moments ago, there are detailed Steampunk discussions here.

[Stunted]

I actually read a lot of steampunk, but I never really notice. It's just part of the plot, you know? Like, they have air planes, but women still mostly wear dresses. *shrug*