Immortyl Revolution: Anne Marie Lutz on Magic in Fantasy/Nine Halloween Book Giveaways!

Yesterday, I posted a review of Anne Marie Lutz's new fantasy novel, Color Mage. Today, Anne Marie writes about different forms of magic in fantasy.

Don't forget to check out the giveaways! At the end of the post are the links all Halloween prizes. Please leave a comment for Anne Marie to be entered to win one of five ebook copies of my short stories, Annals of the Immortyls.

All giveaways end on 10/31/12 at 11 p.m. EST and will be chosen by random drawing, except for B.K. Walker's Gift Basket, which is a Rafflecopter giveaway (details at that post).

Denise, thanks for inviting me to do this post! October is the perfect time to blog about magic.

October is the best month of the year. The weather is incredible, but things are changing. I'm always reminded of time passing, and it almost seems as if doors are open that are not usually there. So it's a good time to think of other worlds, other realities, and magic.

Fantasy fiction is almost defined by magic. There are fantasies without magic, but they are rare. I thought I'd try to categorize some of the kinds of fantasy magic for this post.

Individual ability. We are all very familiar with this. From Harry Potter to the Black Magician books by Trudi Canavan to even my own novel – fantasy abounds with the idea of a person who finds he or she can do things most of humanity cannot. Sometimes the talent comes fully developed; sometimes it needs to be honed through further study. Either way, the novel frequently explores the coming of age of the new magician, or conflict in the society these people are part of.

Magical objects. The healing elixir of the Narnia books. The Arthurian sword in the stone. The One Ring of Lord of the Rings. More recently, Harry Potter's invisibility cloak or the mirrors in Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell. By acquiring such a magical object, the protagonist – or her enemy – can gain great power. Sometimes the object is so powerful that using it carries great risks.

Magical creatures. In this type of magic, otherworldly creatures exist. They may be able to use magical spells or not, but they are themselves not of our reality. This includes everything from vampires and werewolves from modern urban fantasy, to the elves of Tolkien, the monsters of ancient legends and the dragons of Robin Hobb.

Place magic. The magic is a characteristic of a specific place – even another world that people from our reality can step into, and they have to deal with the laws or realities of the magical place. Narnia is such a place. So is Fionavar, from the novels by Guy Gavriel Kay. The concept exists even in legends of elves living under enchanted hills, where time passes differently than it does in the outside world. There is enchantment as well as danger in such places.

Gods. Magic exists, but is unique to the gods. The origin of this is in our own ancient myths. Every culture has them. In modern fantasy, some novels – such as Jennifer Fallon's Demon Child trilogy – have gods that really exist and influence their worlds.

Thanks, Anne Marie, for sharing your insight with us today! Here is a little information on Anne Marie and Color Mage.

Anne Marie Lutz

Bio: Anne Marie Lutz has always loved reading and writing, especially in the genres of science fiction and fantasy. She holds a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism degree and an MBA, both from the Ohio State University. She has worked as an office manager, an operations analyst and more recently at home raising her children. Anne Marie was raised in the Youngstown area, and now lives in Central Ohio. She belongs to the North Columbus Fantasy/Sci Fi Writers' Group. Color Mage is her first novel.

Book Blurb: Color Mage- by Anne Marie Lutz

Lord Callo, bastard son of the King's sister, leaves his holdings in the midst of the contempt of his friends. He joins Healer Kirian as she flees for her life from the anger of a Collared Lord. Together they journey to Ha'las -- an enemy island ruled by the feared and despised psychic mages known as ku'an.

There, Callo learns of his true heritage -- and finds that great power is his birthright. All he has to do is sacrifice everything he has ever stood for.

Can he keep Kirian safe in a land where women are kept hidden and restricted? Can he even protect her from his own dangerous magery? And why are the Kings of two nations seeking him to further their own political ends?

Publisher: Loconeal Publishing, LLC (September 11, 2012)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0985081783

ISBN-13: 978-0985081782