Fantasy & Faith, by Dona Watson » Magazines/Periodicals

The True Spirit of Fantasy Fiction

Dona Watson — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 15:00:04 +0000

When you think of fantasy fiction, what comes to mind? The first place my mind goes is down the list of my favorite authors and books such as Robert Jordan’s Wheel of Time series, pretty much anything by Brandon Sanderson, Stephen Lawhead’s Paradise Wars books, Sharon Hinck’s Sword of Lyric trilogy, R.A. Salvatore’s Saga of the First King series…oh, the list could go on and on. I have way too many favorites to list here.

By Vassil (Own work) Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

The second place my mind goes is to the spirit behind fantasy — that special thing that draws me into these fantastical worlds of swords, horses, chivalry, good versus evil. That last one is the clincher for me. Good versus evil. I think that’s the one thing that keeps me coming back.

You see, my faith in God runs deep and what is Christianity based on? Good versus evil. The redeeming power of God in the face of an adversary who seeks to destroy mankind. I love to hear stories of good conquering evil, of hope to be found in dark, oppressive lands, or battles that can be fought — and won — in the face of ultimate evil.

I see fantasy fiction as an illustration of the unseen spiritual wars that influence all of our lives, wars that we become involved in all the time. To me, the good forces found in fantasy fiction provide a light. They remind us that there is good, that there is a God, the true champion of the human race. I believe that if we follow the true spirit behind this light, we will eventually find our way to the feet of God.

I recently received an email from one of my blog followers with a link to an article he and his brother (James Lang and Anthony Lang) wrote for Notre Dame Magazine. The article, entitled Flights of Fancy, explores the perceived good and bad of fantasy fiction. Does it enlighten or corrupt mankind? What do you think?

I found the article to be an interesting discussion of themes that I hold dear to my heart and, I’m the first to admit, the Lang brothers have expressed their thoughts on this topic much more elegantly than I ever could have. As such, I want to provide you a link and I encourage you to check it out.

Flights of Fancy
BY JAMES M. LANG ’91 AND ANTHONY F. LANG JR. ’90
Notre Dame Magazine, Autumn 2011

What about you? What do you love about fantasy fiction? And science fiction too, for that matter. I think the same applies to this genre as well. Leave me a note in the comments section and let’s talk. I’d love to hear what you have to say.

Disclosure of Material Connection: At times, some of the links in my posts are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

ResAliens: Speculative Fiction Quarterly

Dona Watson — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 23:02:40 +0000

What exactly is “spiritually infused speculative fiction”? For one thing, it’s the specialty of ResAliens Press, which publishes a quarterly magazine available in print or PDF format.

I suppose I’m old school, but I definitely prefer to read paper copies of books or magazines, but I won’t deny the benefits of convenience and lower price with electronic copies. (That’s why I read e-books as well as paper.) I worked with print publications for many years and I know how expensive printing costs can be for magazines. It’s inevitable that cost be passed on to consumers (although I didn’t think the print copy of ResAliens to be excessive at $8 per copy). I think it’s pretty cool that now one can order an e-copy of a serial publication online. ResAliens’ e-copy is only $2.

Moving on. I was given the chance to review the latest copy of ResAliens (Issue 5) in PDF. Regarding its claim to print “spiritually infused” stories, editor and publisher Lyn Perry writes:

What does “spiritually infused” mean exactly? Well, it doesn’t necessarily mean that each story is “spiritual” (what some might call, “religious”) or has a certain moral to it. Not that there isn’t a place for specifically religious material. You’ll read what some would term “Christian” fiction within the pages and web pages of ResAliens. But for me, it is a mindset with which I approach almost every song, film, or book. I embrace the arts — and literature in particular — from a spiritual perspective. That is, I come to the story ready to engage the transcendent or eternal message or theme within that work of art.

The ResAliens issue I reviewed (Issue 5) contains seven stories. Here’s a brief run-down and my take on them:

Where the Sun Don’t Shine by Jeff Parish
I never would’ve thought that a story about “butt pirates” could make me laugh. In fact, the story reminded me of Jimmy Newtron humor. It was very unique, imaginative, and funny, but gross all the same. In terms of craft, it was very well written.
Not Your Kind of Heathen by Erin M. Kinch
I’m not a huge fan of the whole vampire craze. I admit I haven’t even read an entire vampire novel so I feel less than qualified to compare one vampire story to another. That said, I can appreciate action and emotional conflict — both of which are present in this story. In addition, I found the spiritual takeaway thought-provoking.
The Noble Experiment by Pat. R. Steiner
This story has a very poetic style of writing with beautiful descriptions. It does a good job of keeping the reader guessing, clear up to the end. It uses an interesting technique of alternating past and present, but it works, nonetheless.
Rockets Over Éireann by Kristen Lee Knapp
I’m not a huge fan of this story but I will say that the author has a creative imagination. Most importantly, the moral takeaway shows me how much we as a people need God.
A Heroine’s Death by Billy Wong
A unique blend of heroic fantasy and the undead, I found this story to be an interesting commentary regarding the staying power of the human spirit. In contrast to Rockets Over Éireann (immediately above), A Heroine’s Death provides a reminder that as humans, we can often accomplish more than we think we can.
Azieran: Lokxenthuul by Christopher Heath
This elves and dwarves story is built on an intriguing concept and contains extremely descriptive prose. This is a dark fairy tale with an ending moral: the soul is strong and the flesh is weak. How true.
Protein by Gustavo Bondoni
I’m not quite sure what to think about this story. I did a little research to find out more about the main character, named Moccus, a Celtic god equated with Mercury and possibly associated with hunting. “Moccus” is a Gaulish word for “pig” or “boar” and the god may have been seen as the protector of boar hunters. That little bit of trivia helped me understand the story a tiny bit. The story’s summary can be found in this quote: “…pigs will eat anything. They are the true omnivores. Humans are a pale comparison.”

The issue also contained an interesting interview with this issue’s cover artist, Jason Zampol.

For all my readers who write short stories, ResAliens is currently taking unpublished submissions. Each quarterly issue comprises about 100 pages containing ten to twelve original stories. The schedule for 2011 is:

1st Quarter, March 2011: SteamPunk/Alternate History
2nd Quarter, June 2011: Sword and Sorcery/Sword and Planet
3rd Quarter, September 2011: SuperHuman/SuperHero
4th Quarter, December 2011: Cyperpunk/Dystopia

Submission details can be found here: ResAliens Submissions

If you’d like to check out the first five issues of ResAliens, you can find them at:
http://www.lulu.com/spotlight/resaliens It’s worth a look.

The publisher’s web site is: ResAliens Web Site

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

“Fantasy & Science Fiction” – December Issue

Dona Watson — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 18:56:22 +0000

Fantasy & Science Fiction is a bimonthly magazine now in its 61st year of publication. The publisher was kind enough to send me the December issue as a review copy and, I must say, when I received the magazine it was not at all what I expected.

Even though the magazine has been around longer than I have, I had never come across it before. I was surprised to see the issue weighed in at more than 250 pages and the content was very good. It contained four novelets, seven short stories, and the usual handful of departments/columns (an editorial, Books of Interest, Films, Coming Attractions, and a quirky little one-page entitled Curiosities).

The writing in the magazine is top-notch. I love highlighting periodicals such as this because, especially in the fantasy/sci-fi genre, they are responsible for giving a leg up to aspiring writers as well as giving readers a taste of other, already published authors who someone might not have run across before.

A subscription to the magazine is a little pricey ($34.97 for one year; $46.97 outside the U.S.), but is large enough that it would be like buying six paperbacks for less than $6 each. In addition, you can purchase copies on the magazine’s website for your smartphone or computer (PDF). According to the website, there is supposedly audio copies available from audible.com but I couldn’t find them. If you love fantasy/sci-fi short stories and novelettes, you’ll probably enjoy the magazine.

Fantasy & Science Fiction is published bimonthly by Spilogale, Inc.
The magazine’s website is: http://www.sfsite.com/fsf/
Further information is available here.

Realms of Fantasy Accepting Submissions

Dona Watson — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 03:22:56 +0000

Realms of Fantasy, the bimonthly publication, announced recently that the door has just been opened to writers and artists for submissions.

The magazine has had quite a year. It was announced in January that the publication would be closing after its April 2009 issue. But then in March, a new announcement revealed that Tir Na Nog Press purchased Realms of Fantasy from Sovereign Media and would keep the magazine alive. They opened a temporary splash page at http://www.realmsoffantasymag.com.

I was lucky to receive a review copy but I’m embarrassed to admit, the issue got lost in my stack of books to be read. Sorry guys. But I found it and here I am.

My first impression of the magazine was that it is beautiful. The artwork is high quality and the publication is printed on nice stock. According to the official description, the magazine covers fantasy, Arthurian sagas, ancient myths, contemporary fantasy, and features fantasy artists, movie reviews, new computer games, board, card, and role-playing games.

However, in terms of content, I found a mixed bag. The game, movie and book reviews were informative, but I found some of the nonfiction articles were just a little odd, particularly an article entitled “Folkroots.” This article was a wandering assessment of “mystic rhythms” that seemed to drift from one religion to another in its attempt to trace the roots of music. Meanwhile, the fiction was comprised of solid speculative works.

I’m not sure how long Realms of Fantasy has been published, but it undoubtedly has a loyal fan base. And the truth remains (as pointed out in an editorial by Fiction Editor Shawn McCarthy), that publications like this have helped to give a leg up to many talented, aspiring writers and artists. In that regard, I wish them the best of luck.