Fantasy/Humour

[BGB]

Can't help noticing that this is not really a popular topic - where has it gone? Is it dead?

 

[j d worthington]

Hmmm. I'm not quite sure where you're coming from on this... If about topics on this site, there are certainly discussions enough of Terry Pratchett, to name one strong example of humor in fantasy. There's also Tom Holt with his witty take on mythological and legendary subjects; and several other contemporary writers are noted here as well. And there's no shortage of appreciation for writers past, such as L. Sprague de Camp, Erick Frank Russell, Asimov (who wrote a fair amount of humorous sff), etc., as well.

And, if you're commenting on the lack of such in publishing, well... I think the above comments (not to mention the popularity of Gregory Maguire's Wicked and other novels) indicates that humor in the field is as alive and well as ever. Of course, humor in sf especially has proved notoriously difficult to do, as it has the extra burden of both conveying a truly imaginative worldbuilding skill while at the same time parodying or otherwise providing humorous comment on not only contemporary life and attitudes, but the very milieu the writer is creating... all without spoiling the illusion he or she is weaving.

At any rate, good topic for discussion... I'd be interested in hearing what people have to say on this one.

 

[BGB]

What I would like to know is - are there any young aspiring authors tackling this genre, or has the obvious difficulty in getting their work published stopped them from trying?

 

[j d worthington]

Ah, now, there I can't tell you. For a while now, I've only been marginally aware of the more recent writers, concentrating on filling in gaps in my reading of classic pieces and older literature. But I'm sure someone on the boards could help you with that one; and I'll be keeping an eye out myself, as this has my curiosity up...

 

[GOLLUM]

HMMM...not sure, I'm not a big fan of comedic fantasy.

Obviously JD has mentioned some but I'll include Sprague and Pratt - The Complete Enchanter series and Fritz Leiber's - Books of Lankmahr (part humour/part serious). You're right though, these are older works.

I too shall watch with interest for anyone who can post about more recent or new authors in this area...

 

[MJRevell]

Well, a trilogy i have just finished reading - the Bartimaeus trilogy, by Jonathan Stroud - is laced with humour.

I myself am working on a project that (i think) requires humour. For instance, if the material is quite dark, it may need to be dipped in a little comedy to make it more approachable, or what have you - especially when dealing with a young market, as i am.

 

[BGB]

May I ask you what your project is about?

 

[Joel007]

Rob Grant's Colony was entertaining fantasy/humour, and even better was Incompetence (i was rolling with laughter even the 3rd time through)
Terry Pratchett, Jasper Fforde, and others that i can vaguely remember but can't name at the moment :s

Is there a list of this genre somewhere?

 

[MJRevell]

BGB -- basically i am dealing with a few horror conventions and trying to add a light-hearted edge to it.

Also, i forgot Tom Holt; he definitely deals with humour in his novels, although some of them may not be fantasy.

 

[BGB]

BGB -- basically i am dealing with a few horror conventions and trying to add a light-hearted edge to it.

Also, i forgot Tom Holt; he definitely deals with humour in his novels, although some of them may not be fantasy.

Hi - A lighthearted edge in horror is a very sharp edge if you can do it. And Tom Holt, one of a kind - but still, people have a problem pinning down the exact 'genre' of this humour thing.

 

[Werthead]

David Lee Stone's The Illmoor Chronicles has gotten excellent reviews. I think there are five or six books available, I believe out of sixteen planned. Unfortunately, I haven't read them yet.

Robert Rankin is a brilliantly funny writer. More whimsical than Pratchett with cool pop culture references (one of his primary characters is a fan of cheesy Arnold Schwarznegger movies and constantly wishes he had a "minigun like Blaine had in Predator" or a "plasma rifle in the 60GW range," when trouble breaks out). His best books to start with are Armageddon: The Musical (in which Elvis Presley teams up with a travelling time sprout named Barry - stay with me here - to halt an alien invasion of Earth!) or the slightly less insane The Book of Ultimate Truths.

 

[David Lee Stone]

Cheer, Wert - nice of you to include me. Personally, I love Christopher Moore (Practical Demonkeeping still the best, I think).

Others I never miss include Rob Grant, Terry Pratchett and Tom Holt. James Bibby was very funny, and Douglas Adams - well, there are no words for how much he is missed.

It's a pity Doug Naylor doesn't write more on his own, and Rob Rankin is a bit hit and miss for me...but there you have it.

 

[Pyan]

Robert Asprin turns out a lot of humour, if that's the right word for the M.Y.T.H. stuff - still, I did rather like the Phule series.

I'm amazed Harry Harrison hasn't been mentioned: I've literally had to put some of his stuff down and go and make a cup of tea while my ribs recovered.
The Stainless Steel Rat series used to be one of my favourites, and the Bill books are still on my archive shelf.

 

[Nikitta]

A lot of fantasy and sicence fiction stories have a good deal of humour included without belonging to the category SFF comedy, but you still get some good laughs from them.

To mention just one example, I got some good laughs from Cat's Cradle (Kurt Vonnegut), but I wouldn't call it comedy for that.

If you see it that way, then there's plenty of SFF with humour.

 

[Tau Zero]

I just bought and placed on my to-read stack Wen Spencer's "Tinker." It appears to be a humorous fantasy. I've never even heard of this author before buying this book.

 

[Riselka]

Rob Grant's Colony was entertaining fantasy/humour, and even better was Incompetence (i was rolling with laughter even the 3rd time through)

I just finished reading "Incompetence" the other day. Talk about hilarious!

I especially loved the news report on the big shoot-out with the French cabinet minister. I don't think I've ever laughed that hard reading a book before in my life.

Haven't read "Colony" yet - haven't been able to find it anywhere. Guess I'll have to special order it.

I see he's got a new one out called "Fat" that sounds pretty good.

 

[BloodNguts]

Well, a trilogy i have just finished reading - the Bartimaeus trilogy, by Jonathan Stroud - is laced with humour.

I myself am working on a project that (i think) requires humour. For instance, if the material is quite dark, it may need to be dipped in a little comedy to make it more approachable, or what have you - especially when dealing with a young market, as i am.

I loved Bartimaeus. I usually like things a bit darker but he is an interesting character. The Audio book has a good narrator btw.

 

[Who's Wee Dug]

I am a big fan of humorus Fantasy and SF from old favorites to newer ones in the last decade or two,Robert Rankin,A.Harman,Gerber with the potter parodies, ARR Roberts,R.Asprin,Bob Shaw,Spike Milligan,Craig S. Gardener,
E.Freisner.and so many more.

 

[Pyan]

A lot of Larry Niven's work is humorous - try his parody, The Flying Sorcerers, and some of the Known Space stories.

 

[Joel007]

I just finished reading "Incompetence" the other day. Talk about hilarious!

I especially loved the news report on the big shoot-out with the French cabinet minister. I don't think I've ever laughed that hard reading a book before in my life.

Haven't read "Colony" yet - haven't been able to find it anywhere. Guess I'll have to special order it.

I see he's got a new one out called "Fat" that sounds pretty good.

FAT is more a character study than an adventure (like the other 2 books) but I still loved it and found it very funny (although I don't know if there'll ever be a book to rival Incompetence). Waterstone usually keep Colony in stock, I saw it in Bournemouth yesterday and in Northampton today