Fantasy vs. Reality

I’ve heard a lot of people say that the books they have been reading aren’t realistic enough for them. I’m trying to work out what they mean by that. Do they mean the plot is too far-fetched? Or they can’t relate to the characters? The setting is too extraordinary? I think they mean they just don’t believe in the story.

For me, books have always been an escape. When I think my life is pretty boring and mundane, I can always read a book to be in a much more exciting (or otherwise) world away from my own. I agree that some books can be unrealistic. For instance, I don’t wish to read anything that is absolutely absurd about donkeys ruling the world in a giant banana shaped pirate ship while keeping humans as their dancing slaves (that kind of unrealistic, I get!). 

But the whole point of books is simply ‘imagination.’ Writers share their imagination with readers, and you either like what they’ve invented, or you don’t. I think there is a side to everyone that wants to believe in things that we know don’t possibly exist. Ghosts. Fairies. Vampires. Hobbits. Angels. Demons. We watch films and we know it’s all only special effects, but we believe in it for that moment we are there, chewing on popcorn as the surround-sounds vibrate on the cinema floor, we are in the film. And no matter how ridiculous things get – it’s all real. 

Certain things can seem unrealistic to certain people. For someone, donkeys ruling the world in a giant banana shaped pirate ship while keeping humans as their dancing slaves may seem plausible (although, I’m pretty sure no one does). Yet, I don’t think extraordinary things should be a bad thing. They add a bit of life and uniqueness to the novel – quirkiness even. 

However, I do think that different genres need different levels of ‘real-ism’. I read a lot of YA contemporary novels which deal with ‘real’ problems that happen to ordinary people in the world. I also read a lot of fantasy novels that need to be ‘make believe’, otherwise they wouldn’t be ‘fantasy’. That doesn’t mean to say that all YA contemporary novels are ‘real’ and also doesn’t mean all fantasy novels are far-fetched and improbable to one’s imagination. 

When I read a book, I forget about everything else. My life doesn’t consist of much drama, but even so, reading means I am not in my own reality. I am in a fantasy world, because after all, books are all fantasy really. As much as it pains me to say it, they are not real. Books are not real! The setting may be a real place in the world. But the plot and the characters can be made up and left to roam in it and do what the writer pleases.

But books CAN be real. If you want them to be real, they can be. The amount of times I’ve been reading a book and imagined myself as the main character and experienced what she’s been going through while she’s going through it, is ridiculous. But it’s fun. Books are supposed to be read and enjoyed. You should laugh at them and cry at them. You should believe them, no matter if it is about those donkeys ruling the world (which I’m actually starting to like the sound of now – maybe it will catch on?). 

I am writing a YA novel at the moment which is more 'realistic' than 'fantasy'. But just because it deals with 'real' issues, doesn't mean that it isn't fantastical to me. I am in my own little bubble that I don't want to pop when I am writing it. I daydream about my characters and what they are doing. It is all make-believe - it is a story, but we all love stories right?

Yeah, okay, some books are ‘unrealistic’, but does that make them bad? Is that a problem? I don’t think so. I think that’s what can make them pretty amazing sometimes.

Let me know what you think in the comments. Fantasy or reality? Or both?

Lauren :)