I saw a tweet this morning before going into the office and randomly throughout the day it seemed to come back up to the front of my mind. It was something that I would normally just have shaken my head at in disappointment. Today for some reason it sat and festered until it just popped. The comment made me genuinely angry at the ignorance of some people. Let me explain

Every day Joe Abercrombie has been tweeting a portion of a one star review. These are generally just people who dislike his book, whether it is the plot, their expectations, or any aspect of the work (sometimes they are even directed at the author). They usually seem to be unevenly over the top. Today he tweeted one that was simply misrepresenting the entire genre and it gave me a stronger reaction than it should have.

The idea that fantasy should be only “mythic worlds” and “heroes” etc. is just simply wrong, and the notion that fantasy has to fit this person’s narrow mold is absurd. Take Neil Gaiman for example. Neverwhere, American Gods, The Ocean at the End of the Lane. I love these books and I feel they are great representations of fantasy. The same can be heard from numerous other Fantasy lovers. Why is this important? The aforementioned stories take place here, on the Earth. They are set in familiar places, London, various states in the US, and the town Gaiman grew up in. Fantasy’s only requirement is that it is by definition fantastical. This is where Urban fantasy comes in. To be truthful, I dislike the phrasing of category because it has come to signify vampires and such. That is one thing we are not lacking. True urban fantasy though, such as Gaiman’s work, or historical fiction such as the Temeraire series by Naomi Novik or the Milkweed Triptych by Ian Tregallis, can be fantastical without inventing a new world. As one of Abercrombie’s followers said, some people expect all fantasy to have elves and dragons. If that were the case, this genre would have gotten state long ago.

I am the first to admit that I really appreciate good world building, however a story cannot survive on that alone. Allow me to point out the most obvious issue here. This was from an Amazon review of The Blade Itself by Mr. Abercrombie. That book is exactly what I would call epic fantasy. Wizard? Check. Warrior? Check. Dragon? No dragon? I guess it can’t be fantasy then. The comment is ludicrous to me.

Please do not get me wrong, I  am not trying to change someone’s mind to like a book that they do not. Hate the book for all I care. I may disagree with you, but your opinion is your own. I am not advocating the need for everyone to write a glowing review. That is entirely unrealistic. Make it a scathing list of everything you felt was wrong, but make it based on real reasons. There are classic which are loved by many that I think are just boring or thoughtless. No two people have the same tastes and that is wonderful. It gives us an amazing variety. The only things I ask are not to fault something  for an arbitrary rule that you made up an nobody else agreed to, and do not try to restrict a genre or an author.

What makes fantasy so great is that is it different. There is a reason that a large number of blockbuster movies are inspired by Fantasy book (as well as SciFi and comics). It is the difference not only from the real world that makes them interesting, but their difference from each other that keeps which keeps them fresh.

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