Movies by Tim Burton, he's a genius. They have a darker theme, and are refreshingly bizarre. I enjoy all of his works, and whatever that genre may be, I like it. I want to know what genre that is, dark fantasy perhaps? Well, I think that stories that have that same... feel (I'll call it that way) would be original and great. However, I think that the dark fantasy subgenre focuses more on the combination of horror with fantasy, but what I'm looking for is more of a combination of fantasy with... With awing bizarreness (does that word exists?) You know... Dark forests with the mischievous and not-so-good and darker fairies, ghosts talkings in pubs and scarecrows pursuing crows. Those who have played the PS3 video-game Folklore should know what kind of thing I'm looking for. If you don't, watch a video in youtube or something. Help, I want to know what this genre is, and maybe I'll give it a shot.
I'd call it 'weird' fantasy, or maybe 'surreal' fantasy, or 'slipstream'...or heck, 'bizzare' fantasy. In my personal conversations, I call it 'surreal', but I might be confusing the genre with a more mainstream one.
I find it's a bit broad to ask what genre Tim Burton-esque things fall under. I agree, his eccentric approach is staggering. But when comparing Sweeny Todd and Edward Scissorhands with Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with Big Fish, it gets difficult. I find he's very versatile in that sense, and that his work pertains to a certain genre/culture/type/vision, but differs with each work. That may not have made sense. But in the more general overview (at least as what he's viewed as) that really depends on what it is. Big Fish would be dark, but generally pertain more to fantasy. In that view, I'm pretty sure you would have to call (most of his works) fanatsy. But there are those sub-genres, such as "Pirate-Adventure" might be. "Dark-Fantasy", "Horror-Fantasy", "Bizzarro" - but that also depends on your story. You should write your story and incorporate those Burton-type things (try not to intrude too much though, because I love his work a bit like that too!) then come back and name your genre, you don't always necessarily have to know it when you start, as long as you know your audience.
Well... Yeah. Marloy's right, but I decided to call it surreal fantasy too. So... Anyone got any tips on writing surreal fantasy?
Start keeping a dream journal. Dreams are the very definition of surreality, and if you start paying attention to your dreams, you can start making the connections between wildly disparate ideas is really the mark of surreality.
Pay attention to the mistakes in your perceptions. Sure, you didn't REALLY see that guy walk through a wall, but...
Find other books in the genre you are targeting, and study them. Find the publishers of books in that genre, and check their websites for submission guidelines - some will tell you exactly what they are looking for in submissions.
