Guest Post: Setting the Stage: Visionary & Metaphysical Fiction
Here’s an excellent article by Karen M. Rider that I reblogged from the Visionary Fiction Alliance Setting the Literary Stage for Visionary & Metaphysical Fiction Rapid-fire change is ongoing in the publishing industry—and it’s not just in the way books are produced, marketed and distributed. Perhaps like no other period in literary history, writers are experimenting with voice, style and format. Such literary exploration arises from both a writer’s creative urge and in response to market trends. This has led to the emergence of new genres and a shift in the way books are marketed and categorized. On physical and digital bookstore shelves, we find books grouped as “alternate historical fiction”, “slipstream” and “paranormal romance.” These categories may arise from official sources (e.g., the Library of Congress), publishers and sometimes from authors and readers. Rarely is there agreement and many books can be placed in more than one category. For example,…
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What is metaphysical fiction?
Metaphysical fiction is a growing, but little-known, genre of stories that explore, or are based on, some form of philosophy or system of thought. Such fiction includes some aspect of the inner, incorporeal, supernatural, spiritual, archetypal or transcendent aspects of human experience and may emphasise an individual’s movement towards self-actualisation. Readers may gain insight into, or be stimulated to reflect on, such things as the nature of existence, the mind, the soul, the psyche, psychology, the spiritual journey and so on. Siddhartha by Herman Hesse is an excellent example of the genre. A modern example is The Way of the Peaceful Warrior. Another excellent, but less well-known example is On the Soul of a Vampire by Krisi Keley. Here are a couple of other definitions. ‘Metaphysical fiction transcends the here & now into a deeper universal spiritual truth, and is characterized by an intangible mysticism that embeds itself in the written word.’ @jordyj6 ”…
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