A Touch of Magic
By Lisabet Sarai
In the last year or so, I've started to experiment with paranormal romance. I've written two novels (Serpent's Kiss and Necessary Madness) that featured supernatural beings or magical powers, as well as a BDSM ghost story (Rendezvous) and a couple of vampire tales. Naturally, in order to guide me in this new genre, I've also been reading paranormal books.
I've found that there's a big difference between my work and that of most of my paranormal colleagues. My paranormal stories are very firmly grounded in the real world. I don't invent underground societies or rival magical races. I haven't, so far, created any fantasy kingdoms populated by beings who with super powers. All my characters are normal humans who just happen to be afflicted with paranormal capabilities.
Serpent's Kiss is set in rural Guatemala. The heroine is a physician running basic clinic in a remote, poverty-stricken village more or less ignored by the central government. The hero is a handsome peasant who discovers that he is the shape-shifting reincarnation of a Mayan god. Scenes of magic and wonder alternate with the routine of Elena's work and the trials of the villagers.
Necessary Mad
ness has an urban setting, complete with tenements and homeless shelters. Kyle is a young man driven nearly insane by his true visions of the future. His lover Rob is a gruff, honest city cop, closeted and lonely, with psychic abilities he's not even aware of. The action of the story plays out in neighborhood diners, highway rest areas and the locked ward of the state psychiatric hospital―not in the jeweled castles of dark emperors or the barren plains of mythical kingdoms.
Sometimes I ask myself whether my tendency to firmly root my paranormals in everyday reality is a weakness. Is this a sign that I lack the imagination to create a parallel universe? I don't think so. The fact is, I prefer to read stories in which the element s of magic are constrained. The problem with magical worlds is that, too frequently, there are no laws. The powers wielded by the characters are so great that they can twist the plot in all sorts of implausible directions. Mortal wounds can heal. The dead can be resurrected. Space and time melt away. It's all too easy.
I'd rather have a fairly simple premise involving a limited set of powers. Then I enjoy seeing how these powers interact with the forces of nature and man. I have the same preferences in the science fiction that I read. One of my favorite scifi authors is Kate Wilhem. She begins with a single, simple idea―an immortality serum, or an encounter with a cloud of space dust that alters the properties of water―and then goes on to explore the societal and individual implications.
I do worry sometimes that readers won't share my preferences. I can see the appeal of an escapist romance that includes Big Magic―apocalyptic struggles between good and evil, cliff-hanging climaxes resolved by the invocation of irresistible power. These stories are like big budget movies, full of amazing special effects. My books are more like indie films, where less is more.
Maybe my stories won't appeal to the average paranormal romance reader (if such a person exists). I guess I'm seeking readers who are looking for something different―a realistic story with believable, sympathetic characters―and just a touch of magic.
BIO: Lisabet Sarai has published six erotic novels, including the BDSM romance classic Raw Silk, two short story collections and dozens of individual tales. She also edits the single-author charity series "Coming Together Presents" and reviews erotica for Erotica Readers and Writers Association and Erotica Revealed. Visit Lisabet online at Lisabet's Fantasy Factory (http://www.lisabetsarai.com) and Beyond Romance (http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com).
Buy Link for Necessary Madness: http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?P_ID=655
10 comments:
Hi Lisabet,
I don't think you're alone in grounding paranormal stories in reality. Many M/M writers, for example, do this. I have several different series set in real places and in current times but with heavy paranormal storylines. My Phantom Lover series for example takes place in Hawaii, Samoa and Scotland...which are all real places. I have a Waikiki Vampire series set (obvioulsy)in Waikiki and one of the books was set in Vietnam.
I have several paranormal books with DJ Manly that are again set in reality.
I think you'll find you are not alone in this. However, Guatemala sounds AMAZING and I look forward to reading your story.
Thanks for sharing your perspective here!
Great post. I always just thought of that type of writing as a realistic style. As a reader and a writer, I prefer a realistic style myself. The books sound fabulous.
hi
well the book to me sound good and i think it wil do good and my best
to you for more to come i love the
paranormal and any type of ghost sotorys
Lisabet, I wouldn't anguish about it. I happen to agree that setting something solidly in today's time can be an asset. Your books sound great, and just the sort of thing that I would like to read.
Hello, AJ,
I'd love to read your book set in Vietnam. I've spent quite a bit of time in SE Asia--so many stories to be told there!
Hi, Cornelia,
Thanks for the vote of confidence. I just worry sometimes whether my books are a sufficient escape to keep readers happy.
Warmly,
Lisabet
Greetings Desi,
Well, any information you'd like on my books can be found at:
http://www.lisabetsarai.com/books.html
I've got excerpts from everything up there.
All the best,
Lisabet
Hello, Katie,
Thanks for taking time to comment. I don't exactly anguish about it... well maybe I do sometimes! I'm relatively new to the romance genre and sometimes I wonder whether I just don't "get it".
Warmly,
Lisabet
I think there's room in paranormal romance for more than world building, world building being, of course, great too. But imagination means different interpretations of genre. I thought both books sound awesome, Serpent's Kiss particularly intrigued me. I've also grounded my paranormal stories in 'reality' so I can relate very much to your post Lisabet.
Lisabet, so great to see you over here at Midnight Seductions! I share your preferences in paranormal writing - contemporary characters in this real world, with unusual powers or abilities. Time travel, shamanic journeys, ghosts and goddesses are some of my favorites. And I too spent some time in southeast Asia, though I haven't yet set a book there. I love the sound of the Guatamalan story - sounds a little shamanic, actually!
Adriana
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