I very much agree with a lot of what you have written. I absolutely adore the fantasy genre, but I hate 98% percent of it, thinking of it as bloated, predictable, and pretentious writing.

The 2% of fantasy novels that I like are well-written enough for me to still have hope for this genre. I even want to write fantasy someday.

But it is difficult to like fantasy! I won’t even crack a book open if I discover that it is part of a series, saga, cycle, or trilogy. I like works that are self-sufficient and can stand on their own.

If I pick up a fantasy novel in the store and I flip it open, the minute I find a name that I can’t pronounce, or a name so ridiculous that it interrupts the flow of a sentence, I put it back down and don’t even bother with it: you know, dumb stuff like Qho’dighurra or Xantharacomen, etc., etc.

And the maps, I don’t mind as much, but I still think they are largely unnecessary. If I need a map to understand the story, to me that just illustrates that the story is weak. I feel the same way about appendices with glossaries, false histories, and pronounciation guides–if they must exist, then the writing is too flawed to function without such aids.

What ever happened to concise text and solid characterization? :)

Thanks for your post.

Let me know if you’re interested in reading some such and I’ll arrange a copy of my first fantasy to be sent to you.

Yes, I know what I’m likely in for, but I’m game if you are.

KSA!

Happily, while epic fantasy dominated the market for many years, a number of fantasists have now broken away from the Tolkien model, including two that you mention with approval: China Miéville and Tim Powers.

If you like Miéville and Powers, chances are you would also enjoy Daniel Abraham, James Blaylock, Jonathan Carroll, Charles de Lint, Hal Duncan, Jasper Fforde, Jeffrey Ford, Neil Gaiman, Lisa Goldstein, Nalo Hopkinson, Graham Joyce, William Kotzwinkle, Kelly Link, Christopher Moore, James Morrow, Paul Park, Steph Swainston, Jeff VanderMeer, Gene Wolfe, and Zoran Zivkovic. I don’t believe your criticisms apply to any of these writers.