Types of Fantasy for RPGs - Gaslamp fantasy

[El Borak]

Gaslamp fantasy

Gaslamp fantasy (also known as gaslight fantasy or gaslight romance) is a subgenre of both fantasy and historical fiction. Generally speaking, this particular realm of fantasy employs either a Victorian or Edwardian setting. The gaslamp fantasy genre is not to be confused with steampunk, which is often set in the same historical era but usually has more of a super-science edge and uchronic tone. Gaslamp fantasy also differs from classical Victorian/Edwardian faerie or pure fantasy in the J.R.R. Tolkien or Lewis Carroll style or from historical crime-novels in the Anne Perry or June Thomson style by the supernatural elements, themes, and subjects it features. Many of its tropes, themes, and stock characters derive from Gothic literature—a long-established genre composed of both romantic and horrific traits and motivated by the desire to rouse fear, apprehension, and other intense emotions within the reader—and could be described as an attempt to modernize literary Gothicism.

Writer and artist Kaja Foglio originally coined the term in an effort to distinguish her and husband Phil Foglio's comic series, Girl Genius, from "steampunk". Kaja hoped to suggest the work's distinctive style, a medley of alternate history and Victorian-esque "mad science".

Later on, however, fantasy-fans redirected the term to denote a spin-off genre of Holmesian fantasy or Victorian-based Gothic tales. According to fantasy-fans as a whole, the subgenre consists, namely, of contemporary or modern fantasy pieces set in the Victorian "gaslamp" era. However, the subgenre also includes some works with a pre-Victorian setting (Susanna Clarke's Regency novel Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, for example). More samplings of the genre can be found in publications such as the Gaslight Grimoire anthologies and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen comics.

[El Borak]

The term "gaslamp fantasy" was first coined on April 26, 2006, by webcomic artist Kaja Foglio to differentiate her comic, Girl Genius, from conventional steampunk fiction.

I called it Gaslamp Fantasy because, around the time we were bringing Girl Genius out, there was a comic called Steampunk on the shelves and I didn't want any confusion. Plus, I've never liked the term steampunk much for our work, it's derived from cyberpunk (a term which I think actually fits its genre well) but we have no punk, and we have more than just steam, and using a different name seemed appropriate. I mis-remembered a term that I had come across in the foreword to an H. Rider Haggard book, where the author was talking about Jules Verne, H.G. Wells, Rider Haggard and that sort of pre-pulp adventure material, and came up with "Gaslamp Fantasy." I felt a bit foolish when I discovered that I had made up my own term, but it works and I like it.

— Kaja Foglio, author of Girl Genius
Girl Genius, although science fiction set in nineteenth-century Europe, does not have a firm emphasis on fantastic Industrial Revolution technology. Elements of other types of fiction are featured, including magic and mythical creatures, and the scientific element of it is less prominent. It also includes steampunk takes on contemporary sci-fi biology elements, like clockwork cyborgs, mass-produced Frankenstein-type creatures, and other monsters.

Generally, the term refers to fiction based in a Victorian-style setting, similar to steampunk, but with a broader emphasis on magic. The stories are usually not so focused on machinery of the period (or, often, any machinery at all), take more liberties with the actual time period, and may contain elements of other genres.

Since the term's coining, gaslamp fantasy has been retroactively applied to other fiction written in the Victorian Age, such as the works of Bram Stoker, Jules Verne, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

[Death Even XIII]

Never heard of Gaslamp Fantasy but now I want to find Girl Genius and read it.

[hengest]

Jun 30, 2021 18:53:49 GMT -5 Death Even XIII said:

Never heard of Gaslamp Fantasy but now I want to find Girl Genius and read it.

The whole thing is available online, for free (from the authors), every page of it, starting with this one: www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20021104

[True Black Raven]

Jun 28, 2021 21:57:01 GMT -5 El Borak said:

Gaslamp fantasy

Gaslamp fantasy (also known as gaslight fantasy or gaslight romance) is a subgenre of both fantasy and historical fiction. Generally speaking, this particular realm of fantasy employs either a Victorian or Edwardian setting. The gaslamp fantasy genre is not to be confused with steampunk, which is often set in the same historical era but usually has more of a super-science edge and uchronic tone. Gaslamp fantasy also differs from classical Victorian/Edwardian faerie or pure fantasy in the J.R.R. Tolkien or Lewis Carroll style or from historical crime-novels in the Anne Perry or June Thomson style by the supernatural elements, themes, and subjects it features. Many of its tropes, themes, and stock characters derive from Gothic literature—a long-established genre composed of both romantic and horrific traits and motivated by the desire to rouse fear, apprehension, and other intense emotions within the reader—and could be described as an attempt to modernize literary Gothicism.

Writer and artist Kaja Foglio originally coined the term in an effort to distinguish her and husband Phil Foglio's comic series, Girl Genius, from "steampunk". Kaja hoped to suggest the work's distinctive style, a medley of alternate history and Victorian-esque "mad science".

Later on, however, fantasy-fans redirected the term to denote a spin-off genre of Holmesian fantasy or Victorian-based Gothic tales. According to fantasy-fans as a whole, the subgenre consists, namely, of contemporary or modern fantasy pieces set in the Victorian "gaslamp" era. However, the subgenre also includes some works with a pre-Victorian setting (Susanna Clarke's Regency novel Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell, for example). More samplings of the genre can be found in publications such as the Gaslight Grimoire anthologies and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen comics.

Not sure I would want to game in this subgenre, it would be more research than I would want to do to get the right atmosphere, but I would love to see some good movies set in the world, those would be a blast to watch.

[hengest]

Jul 5, 2021 11:18:11 GMT -5 True Black Raven said:

Jun 28, 2021 21:57:01 GMT -5 El Borak said:

Gaslamp fantasy

Not sure I would want to game in this subgenre, it would be more research than I would want to do to get the right atmosphere, but I would love to see some good movies set in the world, those would be a blast to watch.

Agree, could be very cool. I doubt we'll see it, though

[mao]

Jul 5, 2021 16:40:38 GMT -5 hengest said:

Jul 5, 2021 11:18:11 GMT -5 True Black Raven said:

Not sure I would want to game in this subgenre, it would be more research than I would want to do to get the right atmosphere, but I would love to see some good movies set in the world, those would be a blast to watch.

Agree, could be very cool. I doubt we'll see it, though

Yea, for gaming no go but for a movie it WILL be awesome

[The Perilous Dreamer]

Jul 18, 2021 3:46:54 GMT -5 mao said:

Jul 5, 2021 16:40:38 GMT -5 hengest said:

Agree, could be very cool. I doubt we'll see it, though

Yea, for gaming no go but for a movie it WILL be awesome

I would not ref this game, but I would play it in and I agree bring on some good movies.

[True Black Raven]

So we are all agreed, we need to produce some movies. Does anyone have any money?

[El Borak]

Jul 24, 2021 23:06:25 GMT -5 True Black Raven said:

So we are all agreed, we need to produce some movies. Does anyone have any money?

If I had that kind of money, my movies would be legend.

[True Black Raven]

Jul 24, 2021 23:14:22 GMT -5 El Borak said:

Jul 24, 2021 23:06:25 GMT -5 True Black Raven said:

So we are all agreed, we need to produce some movies. Does anyone have any money?

If I had that kind of money, my movies would be legend.

Yeah, yeah they would!

[hengest]

There are several people on here whose movies would be legend if they got money to produce a movie and a touch of help getting oriented in how to organize the people. Just look back to the 70s, there were all kinds of things being made, some remembered now and some not, but there were many that weren't quite what you would expect. They were experimental in a way that is all but forgotten. Now you can tell the vast majority of movies made are paint-by-number. When they get something that really speaks to people, they have a super hit (like the Disney film Frozen from the other thread), but that happens by accident and usually the controlled process prevents it. Audiences are hungry for something original, different, and genuine, but the studios just keep trying to imitate something that "worked" although that imitating what works never really works in art. You can learn technique from the past, sure, but if you try to imitate its success you may succeed financially but will always fail artistically.

The guys at Redlettermedia had some review where they talked about this. As I recall, they said the studios want to spend $100 million on something hoping it wil be the next Jurrasic Park. But a lot of them fail and that makes them need each next one they produce to bring in even more. They could make 100 movies for a million dollars each and make ten times their money back, but they don't want to do that.

In other words, I would definitely vote in a national referendum for control of movie-making to be handed over to this forum for twenty years.

[Death Even XIII]

Jul 1, 2021 14:28:01 GMT -5 hengest said:

Jun 30, 2021 18:53:49 GMT -5 Death Even XIII said:

Never heard of Gaslamp Fantasy but now I want to find Girl Genius and read it.

The whole thing is available online, for free (from the authors), every page of it, starting with this one: www.girlgeniusonline.com/comic.php?date=20021104

Never got around to telling you hengest, thanks for the link, that was a great read.