It’s been established that I’m going to be working on a magical-steampunk sort of setting for NaNo. And I’m really excited– I love the style, the ideas, the flavor I’ve got in mind…
… But it occurs to me now that I don’t read much steampunk.
In fact, the only steampunk that I’m really familiar with are in webcomics. Namely, Girl Genius (great, fun comic, though its creators use the term ‘Gaslamp Fantasy’), and the more serious, violent Freak Angels, which is post-apocalyptic steampunk. The Phoenix Requiem is Victorian-style fantasy, but not at all ‘punk’, so though it’s a great story, I don’t think that it counts (obviously we need more mad science). Some of the Final Fantasy games also fall into this category, though loosely.
So. In an effort to delve a little more into the genre, does anyone know any really good steampunk novels that they’d like to recommend? Plot and humor-wise, Girl Genius is very suited to my tastes. I know my plans bastardize the genre a little as I also have a magic system.
tales of a fantasy scribbler 
steampunk fantasy
my mind runs rings like crazy
i’m intrigued and dumb
Happy Upcoming Nanoing, fellow Nanoer!
Thanks.
May All Beings Be Happy.
I’ll use the definition someone on a forum came up with…
“Steampunk is psuedo-Victorian science fantasy. Wondrous devices of gears, pistons, and levers powered by steam abound. It’s usually urban dystopian (picture London in 1890). It’s like space opera and cyberpunk had a baby that traveled back in time to be written by Jules Verne.”
And a magic steampunk fantasy is like that, but… well, with magic.
Look up James Blaylock. You might also want to look at Tim Power’s books like “The Anubis Gates” and “The Stress of Her Regard,” both of which are Victorian fantasies next door to steampunk, even though they aren’t quite in the category.
Have you checked out Perdido Street Station by China Mieville? It’s typically considered a New Weird novel, but it contains a lot of steampunk elements: steam-driven technology, magic, and renegade scientists in a sprawling urban setting.
Not yet, though I’ve heard China Mieville mentioned more than a few times. I’ll have to look into him.
You might want to look up The Difference Engine by Gibson and Sterling, they apparently started the Steampunk movement. Also check out Filippo’s Steampunk Trilogy. Or the Steampunk Magazine…
I’ll keep them in mind! Thanks! Right now I’m working my way through ‘Perdido Street Station’ and ‘Boneshaker’. Certainly different.
As a computer person, the title ‘The Difference Engine’ is hilarious. I wonder what they did to Charles Babbage, or if they just took the name.