Contemporary fantasy takes the wonder of magic and mythical elements and drops them into the real world—the world we know, with its smartphones, internet buzz, and coffee shops.
It’s fantasy that happens right here, right now, and it feels like it could be happening next door or just around the corner.
Key Elements of Contemporary Fantasy
- Real-World Setting with a Twist: Unlike its urban sibling, contemporary fantasy isn’t tied to cityscapes. It weaves its magic through rural towns, suburban neighborhoods, and indeed cities too. The key is the now—the story could be unfolding in the very era we live in.
- Magic in the Mundane: In contemporary fantasy, the extraordinary hides within the ordinary. A school could be a front for a wizarding academy, or a mundane item might hold fantastic powers. The magic is part of the world’s fabric, experienced and sometimes even taken for granted by the characters living within these stories.
- Blending Genres: Contemporary fantasy loves to mix it up. It isn’t rare to find it dancing through a romance, solving mysteries, or embroiling in political intrigue. It’s a chameleon, adapting elements from various genres to enrich its fantastical roots.
This genre’s beauty lies in its relatability. We recognize the world even as we marvel at its hidden depths.
Origins and Evolution
The seeds of contemporary fantasy are found scattered through literature, sprouting up in moments when the modern era sought the magic of the old worlds. It has grown in parallel with urban fantasy, but with a distinct heart.
It’s less about the gritty city streets and more about infusing the fantastical in everyday settings.
The growth of contemporary fantasy is tied to our desire for escape, for a touch of magic in our everyday lives. It’s been nurtured by writers who see the world through a lens of wonder and share that vision with us.
Influential Authors
In the world of contemporary fantasy, J.K. Rowling stands as a titan with her Harry Potter series—stories that take place in a world just a wand’s flick away from our own. Rowling crafts a parallel world where magic is as real as homework, and dragons are as common as frogs in a biology class.
Then, we turn to authors like Susanna Clarke, whose ‘Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell’ paints magic into the Napoleonic Wars, offering an alternate history where magic is a subtle but influential force.
Lev Grossman’s ‘The Magicians’ is another hallmark, merging the essence of classic fantasy literature with the disenchanted perspective of modernity, examining what it means to find wonder in a world where you’ve grown up too fast.
These authors, among others, carve out a space where the mystical can coexist with the modern, asking us to believe that maybe, just maybe, there’s a bit of magic in our own reality.