Only the Lonely: Magic(al) Realism

Status
Not open for further replies.

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
Are there other writers of magical realism currently active on AW?

The majority of threads I've found are discussions of how to define it, not the writing of MR.

I know there are those who consider it a subgenre of Fantasy, but we do have this board, and it seems like this would be the best place for discussions of interest, etc.
 

Lance Rocks

Banned
Joined
Aug 10, 2013
Messages
240
Reaction score
21
Location
Newport Beach, CA
I would be pleased to do it if I could - can't really claim to have read it, my apologies. I'm mostly surrealist, with no particular desire to swath my writing in a blanket of realism. Would love to hear more!
 

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
Hi Lance :) I *think* surrealism fits in interstitial, not too certain. Certainly not one I see a lot of here on AW.

From your posts I'm surprised to see you haven't read any, Isabel Allende, Salman Rushdie, Haruki Murakami, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, et al.
 

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
Hi Rich, I remember reading a piece of yours a while back. :)
 

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
Well NOW I'm afraid ;)

Anyone else lurking?
 

Yorkist

Banned
Joined
Feb 10, 2012
Messages
1,974
Reaction score
572
Location
Navigating through the thorns.
I love magical realism. Some books I read, though, I'm not sure whether they go in the MR or fantasy camp. Alice Hoffman? Amy Tan? A couple of books by Lisa See?

ETA: I'm not sure if what I'm working on now is going to go in the magical realism camp or straight-up historical fiction. I am counting on it to tell me as we go along.
 
Last edited:

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
Hi Yorkist!

Alice Hoffman, definitely considered magical realism.

Your current WIP sounds intriguing. :)
 

Yorkist

Banned
Joined
Feb 10, 2012
Messages
1,974
Reaction score
572
Location
Navigating through the thorns.
Yeah, it seems like most Alice Hoffman belongs to MR, but there are a couple of books (Blackbird House, Practical Magic) I just may consider literary fantasy. I dunno. It's hard to tell, since anything with literary airs is automatically removed from the fantasy section. *eyeroll*

And thanks! I dunno about intriguing, but I'm into it.
 

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
I'm not that familiar with fantasy currently being published, so I don't know what draws the line.

Then again, I've read two of Neil Gaiman's books, one felt solidly MR to me, the other didn't, and I think it had more to do with tone than magic/fantasy.

MR does seem to have leeway re how much magic/fantasy is acceptable. I wonder if maybe being an author with an established readership in one genre tips the scales re how subsequent novels are classified. :Shrug:
 

richcapo

Knight Templar
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 8, 2010
Messages
953
Reaction score
49
Location
Fairfax, Virginia
The only Gaiman I'm familiar with is The Sandman (awesome), Mr. Punch (awesome), and American Gods (bleh). If those works are any indication, in my opinion he is not a writer of magical realism -- simply because he puts very little realism into them; largely focuses on the supernatural instead.

I've always seen magical realism as magical REALISM rather than MAGICAL realism if you catch my drift.
 

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
The only Gaiman I'm familiar with is The Sandman (awesome), Mr. Punch (awesome), and American Gods (bleh). If those works are any indication, in my opinion he is not a writer of magical realism -- simply because he puts very little realism into them; largely focuses on the supernatural instead.

I've always seen magical realism as magical REALISM rather than MAGICAL realism if you catch my drift.

I see it the same way, Rich. American Gods is the one Gaiman book I have in common with you, and I felt the same way.
 

brasiliareview

author of Sweet Bread
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Aug 7, 2013
Messages
288
Reaction score
18
Location
California
Website
brasiliareview.org
I agree with you both about Gaiman and which of his stuff is best. I'm rereading The Stone Raft by Jose Saramago. Spain and Portugal break off from the rest of Europe and start floating west. That's the magical part, but the whole thing is largely realistic in that he follows several normal characters and how they react to this one baffling circumstance.
 

Cappy1

Scared and loving it...
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Nov 5, 2012
Messages
122
Reaction score
9
Website
mark-capell.com
I think my latest novel CAFÉ INSOMNIAC falls firmly in the magical realism category. Not that there is such a category on Amazon.
 

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
I agree with you both about Gaiman and which of his stuff is best. I'm rereading The Stone Raft by Jose Saramago. Spain and Portugal break off from the rest of Europe and start floating west. That's the magical part, but the whole thing is largely realistic in that he follows several normal characters and how they react to this one baffling circumstance.

Hi brasiliareview, I haven't read The Stone Raft, but it sounds excellent :)

I think my latest novel CAFÉ INSOMNIAC falls firmly in the magical realism category. Not that there is such a category on Amazon.

I don't think we'd find a MR shelf in any of the brick and mortar stores either, but it is definitely a specific sub (sub sub?) genre.
 

Yorkist

Banned
Joined
Feb 10, 2012
Messages
1,974
Reaction score
572
Location
Navigating through the thorns.
Ap123, I would highly recommend Sandman, especially if you can get it from a library since buying all the volumes is quite an investment.

Looks like this baby of mine is going to be magical realism after all. I'd been looking for a couple of weeks for inspiration on how to make it magical realism or slightly fantasy-esque without going over very tired ground (it's set in ancient Greece), and I finally found it today during a cave tour, of all things, when the park ranger described an early 19th century earthquake that left the Mississippi River running backwards for several hours, accompanied by the smell of sulphur and of sinkholes opening up in the middle of the river. How... apocalyptic must that have been for the residents. And since I am writing about a time in which very little exists in the historical record, I can totally steal that and co-opt it. Woot. It's just a little grain right now, but at least it's a clue.
 

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
Ap123, I would highly recommend Sandman, especially if you can get it from a library since buying all the volumes is quite an investment.

Looks like this baby of mine is going to be magical realism after all. I'd been looking for a couple of weeks for inspiration on how to make it magical realism or slightly fantasy-esque without going over very tired ground (it's set in ancient Greece), and I finally found it today during a cave tour, of all things, when the park ranger described an early 19th century earthquake that left the Mississippi River running backwards for several hours, accompanied by the smell of sulphur and of sinkholes opening up in the middle of the river. How... apocalyptic must that have been for the residents. And since I am writing about a time in which very little exists in the historical record, I can totally steal that and co-opt it. Woot. It's just a little grain right now, but at least it's a clue.

That sounds amazing, Yorkist--so glad you found your inspiration :)

And I will look into Sandman, thanks!
 

ap123

Twitching
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 4, 2007
Messages
5,648
Reaction score
1,732
Location
In the 212
I am not a magical realism writer, in that most of my stuff doesn't fall under that genre, but I do occasionally write some stories in that vein.

Interesting reading this thread.

I'd say Gaiman has only one or two things I would put solidly under MR. Most of it is more literary fantasy.

At times it seems like the distinctions are slight, and if anything's certain it's that MR isn't easily defined, but the distinctions are there. Last night I reread the thread on MR for the umpteenth time, and I always have the same response. At first it's fascinating, and I think yes! I am writing MR, then I think oh wait, maybe not, and by the time I'm done I'm confused and convinced I'm not writing anything that has a market anywhere ;)

One thing I find myself tripping on as I write has to do with the amount of magical/mystical events (persons). There seems to be such leeway with this when I read books accepted as MR that I question myself constantly--too much, not enough?
 

gingerwoman

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Jun 27, 2007
Messages
2,548
Reaction score
228
I've read a number of Angela Cater books. I loved them and thought one day I would write magic realism. But so far I write paranormal erotic romance.
 

richcapo

Knight Templar
Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 8, 2010
Messages
953
Reaction score
49
Location
Fairfax, Virginia
At times it seems like the distinctions are slight, and if anything's certain it's that MR isn't easily defined, but the distinctions are there.
This definition works best for me: Literary fiction with a little magic and a lot of realism -- magical REALISM in other words.
 

JustSarah

Super Member
Registered
Joined
Dec 6, 2012
Messages
1,980
Reaction score
35
Website
about.me
I wouldn't describe what I do as magic realism. (At least not exactly, as I understand the definition.)
 
Status
Not open for further replies.