Tuesday, April 15, 2014

A to Z Challenge: M is for Magic

This year, I'm participating in the insane awesome A to Z blogging challenge, which entails posting EVERY SINGLE DAY during the month of April, except for Sundays. Each day's theme corresponds to a different day of the alphabet: 26 days, 26 posts. I'll be blogging each day this month on some aspect of my current work in progress (WIP).

M is for Magic

Nope, not the kind you get in fantasy novels, full of sorcerers and spells and potions; and not even really the kind you find in romance novels, where one look from that person's eyes makes your stomach flutter (although, to be fair, there is certainly some of that kind in the book); but instead the kind that comes and goes without rhyme or reason, in our very own world, here on planet Earth.

I'm talking about magical realism, which is the genre I'm attempting right now in my WIP. It can be hard not to slip into the fantasy sort of magic, but it can also be fun. This is the kind of magic I get to just use whenever I want, however I want, and I don't need to explain a damn thing about how it works, or why, or who can use it, or how. In fact, I'm not supposed to explain it. How often do writers get to say something like that?

I'm still working on how to use it in the text, but I've got a little brainstorming snippet ready for you, to show you what I mean. This is from the modern Australian lifetime, and it's Taylor's POV, referencing another time that Nat came roaring in on her motorcycle, unannounced (standard disclaimers about quality, as always):
All I had to tell me either way was another one of her notes, short and light as always, saying, “See you soon.” 
Well, “soon” was “a lot later”, but she did come back, one bitter cold afternoon. It was one of those winter days when the air freezes and the wind is sharp as a knife, and any part of your body that’s exposed to it ends up turning straight to ice. I didn't believe it until I saw it for myself, and then I never forgot. It was before James was born, so I was about five years old. The cold came on so sudden and unexpected that we didn't have time to get all the sheep inside, and we had to stand at the window and watch while five of our ewes hardened into ice right there in front of us, their bodies slowly turning to sheer crystal. We could see the fence they were standing by right through their translucent bellies. When the cold snap broke a day later, all that was left of them was five sets of hooves sitting in little puddles of water. We saved the hooves, and let the rest of the melted sheep sink into the earth. 
The day Nat came back was one of those days. 

24 comments:

  1. ooohhh that is creepy! turned to ice right away. very intersrting way to show magic realism

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  2. Oh my gosh, this IS creepy! Love it. I could almost feel the cold myself.

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  3. I love this piece, Liz! Was right there and now feel like I'm turning to ice just reading it! Magical realism...that's quite the cool (and unique these days) concept!

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  4. I haven't read any magical realism novels. Sounds so intriguing!

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  5. I'm glad you showcased this piece. I wasn't quite sure how it worked and now I am. This brought Stephen King's Dome to mind (only because of the suddenness of it all). Don't worry, that's a compliment =P

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  6. I haven't tried magical realism yet, but the magic I do write isn't heavy handed. :)

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  7. Yes! This isn't a genre I have ever attempted to write, but I do love it--the creativity and uniqueness of it... Maybe I'll try it one day too.

    True Heroes from A to Z

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  8. That was pretty creepy. I'm turning to ice over here, just reading it. ;)

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  9. I shivered while reading that. Poor sheep.

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  10. I hadn't heard of magical realism before I encountered your blog. Sounds like pretty powerful yet subtle stuff. Extraordinary example. Loved the sheep hooves at the end. Sounds like a baaaad situation for them. :)

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  11. I've heard of magical realism but never really tried to write it. I never wanted to, preferring the magic of high fantasy. I like trying to explain everything. But this little snippet is interesting and I'd like to see more of the story to see how you play everything out.

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  12. I've read my share of high fantasy but find I have difficulty tolerating it any more. The books are so long, and they're usually a series, and I get tired or annoyed or something. But I love magical realism! Sarah Addison Allen's books are a fun example.

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  13. Oh yes... Ray Bradbury was all about magical realism. Think Something Wicked This Way Comes and Dandelion Wine.

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  14. Ooh, translucent sheep. Very clever. Poor, frozen things.

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  15. I'm a little envious about the lack of explanation required. Mostly when I write about magic it's of the fantasy type :)

    I do not envy those sheep though O_o

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  16. Whoa, flash frozen sheep. I wonder if they tried thawing them, they'd be left with liquid sheep :)

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  17. Isn't it fun! That's one of the best things about creating our own worlds--you can make up your own rules! But it's funny that you somehow manage to create a world that requires consistency and realism and such even within those worlds.

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  18. Ah, nothing better than being master of your fabricated universe.

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  19. Your post on Magical realism took me back to my Literature class.

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  20. Interesting and chilling.

    I love magical realism.

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  21. I'm still trying to get a handle on what magical realism is and isn't. Although the Harry Potter books wouldn't fall under that genre, I liked how Rowling made it so that she didn't have to explain why anything worked. It just did.

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  22. Delightfully creepy! :)

    And not having to explain things? I am all about that! LOL

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  23. Huge fan of magical realism here. :) Love this, and the foreshadowing of something otherworldly to come.

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