Sword and Soul

[ysabetwordsmith]

filkferengi tipped me to the genre of "sword and soul," which is sword and sorcery style fantasy with black characters, usually inspired by African lore.  It spans fiction, art, and other media.  I'm happy to find that this subgenre has a name!  I've always enjoyed it, along with other African-inspired speculative fiction.  Among my early favorites were the

Comments

[judifilksign]

My favorite antagonists in novels and stories are those who have their own good reasons for doing what they do other than just being a monster inside, with justifications that are consistent with their core beliefs, and not just for story convenience.

Yes...

[ysabetwordsmith]

Mine too. It makes the conflict more convincing. Similarly, I like it in romances when the characters have genuine differences, not "misunderstandings" that can be handwaved away. I want to see them actually work through problems together.

Over in the Aether Dancer project, someone pitched a villain who is honorable, just doesn't mind using violence in pursuit of his goals. I'll probably pimp him when the voting starts on Monday. I really want to see this guy in action.

[marina_bonomi]

Thank you for this, I've loved Dossouye from the start and I'm always looking for African-inspired speculative fiction.

By the way, it was funny to go over to Wadagu's facebook page and be greeted by my husband's 'Spellfilching': http://thaldir.deviantart.com/gallery/?offset=24#/d2wj8e7

You're welcome!

[ysabetwordsmith]

>>Thank you for this, I've loved Dossouye from the start and I'm always looking for African-inspired speculative fiction.<<

Yay! I keep an eye out for ethnic-inspired speculative fiction because I like the variety. I'm on a few different feeds for that sort of thing, so periodically I find goodies.

>>By the way, it was funny to go over to Wadagu's facebook page and be greeted by my husband's 'Spellfilching':<<

I love that picture. Your husband is one of the few artists I know of with a strong knack for using unconventional angles that work instead of just looking awkward. meeksp is another. haikujaguar can do it well, but doesn't do it as often.

[neo_prodigy]

thank you so much for this.

You're welcome!

[ysabetwordsmith]

I enjoy spreading the word about good fiction. It's especially convenient when someone coins a name for a batch of stories that have something in common, thus making it easier to discuss them and find more.