"Literary" Space Fantasy?

Ambri · Oct 13, 2010

I think I finally have a workable plot for my space fantasy, and I love the characters. But when I re-read the first few chapters, I realized my voice or tone for this story is more literary than the kind of "blunt" style that seems more typical in most of the space opera-type stories I've read. So I guess my question is, is it possible to write a "literary" space fantasy and still have people be interested in agenting/publishing/reading it, or am I way off in left field somewhere? Does anyone know of any examples of space fantasy or space opera written in a more literary/ less terse style? Would any of you read such a thing, or would it turn you off?

jennontheisland · Oct 13, 2010

Does the main character die in the end or make no progress toward his or her goal?

If it's just a matter of voice, I'm not sure it qualifies as literary as long as the rest of the genre tropes/requirements are satisfied.

dclary · Oct 13, 2010

By "literary" do you mean boring or wordy? Too much purple prose? Sentences the size of battle cruisers?

Maybe a voice and tone edit/rewrite is in the works. Hard to sell a good story if it's unreadable.

J. Koyanagi · Oct 13, 2010

Well-written lyrical (not "purple") prose has a place in any genre. Go for it.

Ambri · Oct 13, 2010

I don't *think* it has too much purple prose or is too wordy, but I know when I'm done (yeesh, if I'm ever done with this one) I'll have to go back with my machete and give it a good trimming.

Maybe I should just say "lyrical" rather than "Literary" 'cause it is definitely NOT one of those pointless stories where people whine about how meaningless their lives are and/or die for no apparent reason.

Maybe I just need to get some duct tape for my little internal muse. Thanks!

Xelebes · Oct 13, 2010

dclary said:
Sentences the size of battle cruisers?

Well, it might serve some purpose if the battle cruiser sentences are used in cruiser battle scenes.

Gray Rose · Oct 13, 2010

Yes, it is possible to write literary genre fiction, be agented, and find readership. However, nothing is guaranteed until you finish your novel, polish it, and start your agent search. It is hard to sell a novel in any genre. Do your best, and good luck.

Strangling or silencing your muse is a good method if you want to produce boredom for yourself and others.

TheIT · Oct 13, 2010

Gray Rose said:
Strangling or silencing your muse is a good method if you want to produce boredom for yourself and others.

Agreed. Use the duct tape on your internal editor until you finish the draft. Once you've got the story down, then you can see what you've got and what needs work.

geardrops · Oct 13, 2010

Literary does not describe prose. It describes the shape of the story. If it's more interested in the human condition than cool tech, and does so in a more intellectual manner, (tl;dr: whether the focus is on internal or external conflict) it might be more on the literary side.

I don't get the constant slapfight between genre and literary. And there is tersely-written literary out there. Ever read Hemingway?

sunandshadow · Oct 13, 2010

Are you familiar with Dan Simmons' Hyperion series? That's what I'd call good literary space fiction. M. A. Foster and Samuel R. Delaney have a literary tone too.

I was trying to think of more examples but the ones I came up with were more on the surreal fantasy side of things. (Starbridge Chronicles and Celestis by Paul Park, Unlimited Dream Company by J. G. Ballard) I'm sure there are more great works of science fiction with go for a literary-flavored narrative style rather than the ubiquitous clear glass style, I'm just not coming up with particular titles at the moment.

Maxx · Oct 13, 2010

sunandshadow said:
Are you familiar with Dan Simmons' Hyperion series? That's what I'd call good literary space fiction. M. A. Foster and Samuel R. Delaney have a literary tone too.

I was trying to think of more examples but the ones I came up with were more on the surreal fantasy side of things. (Starbridge Chronicles and Celestis by Paul Park, Unlimited Dream Company by J. G. Ballard) I'm sure there are more great works of science fiction with go for a literary-flavored narrative style rather than the ubiquitous clear glass style, I'm just not coming up with particular titles at the moment.

Iain Banks' books seem pretty literary to me, in a good way.

sunandshadow · Oct 13, 2010

dempsey said:
Literary does not describe prose. It describes the shape of the story. If it's more interested in the human condition than cool tech, and does so in a more intellectual manner, (tl;dr: whether the focus is on internal or external conflict) it might be more on the literary side.

I don't get the constant slapfight between genre and literary. And there is tersely-written literary out there. Ever read Hemingway?

Well what would you call the style of prose which is widespread and fashionable in the literary genre but rare in every other genre (except surrealism, if you consider that separate). It's a style of prose which uses higher level vocabulary and grammar than normal speech. It prefers allusions to direct references, sometimes being deliberately obfuscating because one of the goals may be to create in the reader a feeling of being confused or overwhelmed by the world. It's a style which often denies sympathy with or insight into characters; it may deliberately choose an abnormal or inhuman main character or may remain distant from all characters. The theme is often dystopic or punk of some variety, exploring either an insane world or a degenerated society.

This is a really distinct writing style, strongly associated with the literary genre, and I don't think it's inaccurate to call it literary too. But if you object to that, at least provide a good substitute term.

dclary · Oct 13, 2010

I don't think Hemingway would qualify as "literary" fiction.

AceTachyon · Oct 13, 2010

Just write the story. Figure out the "literary" bit when you're in revisions.

And if you want "literary SF," have a look at Ray Bradbury and Harlan Ellison for a start. And I think the New Wave folks of the 60s count in there, IIRC.

J. Koyanagi · Oct 13, 2010

I also recommend Catherynne Valente (How to Become a Mars Overlord or Thirteen Ways of Looking at Space/Time) and Caitlin Kiernan (A is for Alien) for SF that isn't as focused on the tech, and is written in a more lyrical style.

Ambri · Oct 13, 2010

And if you want "literary SF," have a look at Ray Bradbury and Harlan Ellison for a start. And I think the New Wave folks of the 60s count in there, IIRC.

Duh. Of course. I love those guys. I've heard of most of the others folks suggested, above, too. Oh, and thanks, J. Koyanagi, I think "lyrical" is the term I was looking for, rather than literary. Okay, time to go find a gag-ball to use on my inner editor and get cracking

Thanks!

Maxx · Oct 14, 2010

dclary said:
I don't think Hemingway would qualify as "literary" fiction.

He's pretty literary. He's one of the standard big-name, ex-pat, went to Paris, got stylish,
sopped up the atmosphere in Spain, Modernists. You can't get more literary than that.

whistlelock · Oct 14, 2010

dclary said:
I don't think Hemingway would qualify as "literary" fiction.

You're joking, right?

Gray Rose · Oct 14, 2010

J. Koyanagi said:
I also recommend Catherynne Valente (How to Become a Mars Overlord or Thirteen Ways of Looking at Space/Time) and Caitlin Kiernan (A is for Alien) for SF that isn't as focused on the tech, and is written in a more lyrical style.

I second the recommendation of Catherynne Valente. Her writing is superb. And it is definitely both literary and lyrical (she is a wonderful poet, too). Her work is also unabashedly genre.

Just remember that lyrical does not necessarily equal verbose.

Also remember that literary is not a swearword. Some genre writers are anti-literary, so to speak, but many new and established SFF markets are interested in literary genre, and there is some brilliant literary genre work nowadays. Look into Clarkesworld, Lightspeed, Fantasy Magazine, and Beneath Ceaseless Skies for short fiction with literary sensibility.

geardrops · Oct 14, 2010

whistlelock said:
You're joking, right?

I wrote it off as trolling

dclary · Oct 14, 2010

whistlelock said:
You're joking, right?

No, I'm not. I don't see the ultra-terse stylings of Hemingway in the same way I see Faulkner or Tolstoy. Hemingway is *very* readable and accessible -- and to me, that disqualifies it as "literary."

Literary, to me, means more in love with the language of the story, than the story itself.

geardrops · Oct 14, 2010

dclary said:
No, I'm not. I don't see the ultra-terse stylings of Hemingway in the same way I see Faulkner or Tolstoy. Hemingway is *very* readable and accessible -- and to me, that disqualifies it as "literary."

Literary, to me, means more in love with the language of the story, than the story itself.

So basically, if you didn't get it, and/or it used big words, it's literary?

Why do I still feel like this is trolling?

Gray Rose · Oct 14, 2010

dclary said:
No, I'm not. I don't see the ultra-terse stylings of Hemingway in the same way I see Faulkner or Tolstoy. Hemingway is *very* readable and accessible -- and to me, that disqualifies it as "literary."

Literary, to me, means more in love with the language of the story, than the story itself.

So basically if you don't like it, it's literary. If you like it, it's not literary.

dempsey said:
So basically, if you didn't get it, and/or it used big words, it's literary?

Why do I still feel like this is trolling?

Aha.

AceTachyon · Oct 14, 2010

dclary said:
No, I'm not. I don't see the ultra-terse stylings of Hemingway in the same way I see Faulkner or Tolstoy. Hemingway is *very* readable and accessible -- and to me, that disqualifies it as "literary."

Literary, to me, means more in love with the language of the story, than the story itself.

sunandshadow · Oct 14, 2010

dempsey said:
So basically, if you didn't get it, and/or it used big words, it's literary?

Why do I still feel like this is trolling?

Is it trolling if it's a fact and not insulting? I agree with Dclary - Hemmingway is Journalism-style fiction, not literary-style fiction. Nothing wrong with either of those styles.

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