Fantasy and Science Fiction Discussion Forum YA fantasy

A J Allan	YA fantasy 16 Years Ago Hey, I know hardly anybody's here yet, but what the heck, I thought I'd get this thread started anyway. The past, say, maybe 10 years have shown a definite increase of YA (young adult) fantasy. What are we to make of this: is fantasy beginning to be looked down upon by the elders of this generation as 'immature'? Does it have anything to do with the many fantasy RPGs out there that millions of kids are playing? Just thought I'd throw that out there for people to chew on. Cheers,
Emily	[no subject] 16 Years Ago I think that the reason for all this YA fiction is that young adults are much easier to write for. The older fantasy readers, who were raised on Lewis and Tolkien, love the complex fantasy worlds brought forth by them, the masters. Not everyone is a master, and not everyone can create a living, breathing world as Tolkien did with Middle Earth, so they went for a less mature mindset, that of the young adults. Now I personally love some of the young adult fiction. I also love Tolkien and Lovecraftian work. It's just a very different taste, showing a very different generation.
C.R. Vard	[no subject] 16 Years Ago I don't think it has anything to do with complexity because if you look at a book like "Johnathan Strange and Mr. Norrel," it paints a beautiful image of the world, enhanced by the footnotes. I think it has to do with readablity. Who wants to read 25 pages describing a fortress? No one, they want an epic battle at the fortress.
A J Allan	[no subject] 16 Years Ago That's just what I'm getting at... Maybe I just am a weird geek, but I want that 15 page description (as long as it's done right). Where have they gone? Is reading no longer about immersing yourself in a new world? Is it merely action and suspense?
Matt	[no subject] 16 Years Ago I actually haven't noticed this at all. I just pick up books that I like - it has nothing to do with Young Adult or otherwise. If the back cover looks promising, chances are I'll take it to the Librarian to check out. That and a few others. I like to keep myself busy. :)
A J Allan	[no subject] 16 Years Ago Don't get me wrong; I don't think there is anything intrinsically wrong with YA Fantasy (I adore Eoin Colfer). But if YA Fantasy is the best that we (as a culture) can give, we are really missing something. Supposedly, as an adult, one is able to appreciate the beauty of a piece of literature more; and thus you would have to consider [true] adult fantasy (no...not the xxx stuff...) as more perfect than YA Fantasy. SO shouldn't those books be on the best seller lists? Does this culture really consider Harry Potter as a work of literature - the best that the 20th/21st centuries had to offer? Anyways...don't feel obliged to answer...I just like expressing my views...even when its only to a forum with 9 people...
Emily	[no subject] 16 Years Ago I totally agree with you. Like I said in the other thread, I can't stand Harry Potter. I read the books, I watched the movies, but they're not worth all the hype that they've gotten. I'm on my school's newspaper staff, and our Editor-in-Chief was writing an article about 'The Biggest Things in 2007', and she put "Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix coming out in movie theaters" and "The Harry Potter series coming to an end", meaning for that to be taken in a sad way. As if Harry Potter was the biggest thing to happen in 2007. Nobody mentioned how Nancy Pelosi became the first female Speaker of the House, President Bush announcing his plans for the troop surge, or even that Ozzfest 2007 was going to be free. No, it was all about Shrek the Third, Harry Potter, and Pirates of the Caribbean. The little pinhead writing the article had no idea what she was talking about. She had no idea what was big in 2007. The books aren't terrible, but they have no merit. No underlying messages in political or religious means, no special symbolisms... nothing! They're a simple read when you don't want to think. Anyway, I'm going to stop before I get really angry at the world =)
Twilight	Further Discussion 15 Years Ago Personally, I love the stories of Clark Ashton Smith and H. P. Lovecraft most of all, as far as the fantasy genre goes. Some of these classic works include elements of horror or science fiction. But what would young adults make of these writings today? Would some of the archaic language be a problem? Or, would a few of the themes just seem outdated, perhaps?
Emily	[no subject] 15 Years Ago Why hello! I'm afraid I didn't expect any activity in the group, considering there hasn't been for most of the year D= But hey, I'm glad someone posted! I've loved H.P. Lovecraft since my Sophomore year of high school. I accidentally read The Call of Cthulhu on the internet, thanks to a link on one of the other websites that I frequented in that time. Then it turned out that one of my favorite teachers had this huge collection of H.P. Lovecraft stories in book form, so I had access to most of his works. The point is, I had a great time with his work when I myself was a 'young adult' (child, more like). Unfortunately, most 'young adults' of this time period have an intense dislike of reading that is just terrible to hear about. Especially considering that reading/writing is a cornerstone of any culture.
Twilight	[no subject] 15 Years Ago I agree. After all, where would we be without reading and writing? I'm currently re-reading a compilation of stories by Algernon Blackwood. Although quite different to the fiction of Clark Ashton Smith and Lovecraft, it does fall within the fantasy genre. More specifically, I suppose you could call his writings, "weird fiction" or "supernatural literature". Personally, I find Algernon Blackwood's stories less imaginative than anything written by H. P. Lovecraft or Clark Ashton Smith. I don't think that he wrote any poems either. Or am I wrong about that?