But first things first, let’s figure out what this subgenre is all about.

What is Dystopian Fiction?

Dystopian fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction that explores imagined worlds where society is characterized by oppression, suffering, and often a bleak or nightmarish future. These narratives are often used for cautionary tales, critiquing contemporary social, political, or technological trends. Some authors also use this as a tool for warning of the potential consequences if those trends continue unchecked. Sounds like something you might want to do with your work in progress? We’re off to a society that is set in the near future, dealing with something that is already a problem in our world today. If you think about one of your favourite dystopian fiction, you would probably be able to figure out how this might be unfolding in that tale.

If you want to give your work in progress a great structure and make sure your target audience instantly connects with the tale, it is often wise to include the key elements found in the other works like yours. 

Why To Include Key Elements?

Readers come to a book with certain expectations. This is based on its genre and subgenre. Meeting these expectations can make their literary adventure more enjoyable and satisfying. As an author, it is your responsibility to deliver what you promised. So, if you are promising a dystopian land where water is a luxury, that is what they will be excited to read. You can only stretch so much trust your readers have put into you. It is also great to make sure your narrative effectively conveys the themes of the particular subgenre. In Dystopian Fiction’s case, these themes revolve around technology, individual freedom, and ethics.

If you want to make sure your readers instantly connect with the tale unfolding in your novel, it might be a good idea to include these key elements often seen in Dystopian Fiction.

Elements of Dystopian Fiction

An Oppressive Regime

Such worlds are often governed by authoritarian governments or powerhouses that exercise significant control over every aspect of citizens’ lives. How they might do it? Well, that is up to your imagination. It can range from state-of-art surveillance, propaganda, censorship, or simply brute force. All of this is done to maintain their power.

Lack of Hope

Dystopian stories tend to lean more towards a pessimistic nature. This is not to say that your characters should be insufferable, always cribbing about what is going around them. Rather it means that the characters are faced with insurmountable odds and limited hope for a better future.

Advanced Technology

Dystopian societies often possess advanced technology, what it is used for depends on how you want your story to unfold. Remember, technology can both empower and oppress in these settings. This can also have either nature taking the world back by force or a complete environment decay where resources are scarce. 

A Rebellion

One of the most recognizable elements of Dystopian narratives is that it frequently involves characters or groups who resist the oppressive regime. They either often seek to overthrow it or simply survive within it. These resistance efforts are a central element of the story.

Continuing our journey into the realms of subgenres in speculative fiction, our sails shall be next set to navigate the territories of Utopian narratives. Do you think I missed any key elements of Dystopia narrative? Let me know in the comments!

Until next time! 

Disha Walia is a lifelong storyteller and an enthusiastic writer and editor in love with the idea of exploring the creative world of words. While making her space in the world of non-fiction and fiction alike, Disha loves to spend even her free time daydreaming about what next to write. Connect with her on www.quillinary.com. You can also follow her on Instagram and Twitter.

The post Unlocking the Recipe for Dystopian Fiction appeared first on DIY MFA.

Marissa is a writer and artist who hails from Washington State and now lives in New York with a kindly journalist and their two cats. The World Gives Way is her first novel.

In this episode Marissa and I discuss:

• How current and recent events influenced the dystopian future of her novel.
• The unique point of view shifts she writes at the beginning of The World Gives Way.
• Why empathy, human connection, and hope get readers to follow the journey.

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

About Marissa Levien

Marissa is a writer and artist who hails from Washington State and now lives in New York with a kindly journalist and their two cats. The World Gives Way is her first novel.

You can find her on her website or follow her on Twitter and Instagram.

The World Gives Way

In fifty years, Myrra will be free.

Until then, she’s a contract worker. Ever since she was five, her life and labor have belonged to the highest bidder on her contract—butchers, laundries, and now the powerful, secretive Carlyles.

But when one night finds the Carlyles dead, Myrra is suddenly free a lot sooner than she anticipated—and at a cost she never could have imagined. Burdened with the Carlyles’ orphaned daughter and the terrible secret they died to escape, she runs. With time running out, Myrra must come face to face with the truth about her world—and embrace what’s left before it’s too late.

If you decide to check out the book, we hope you’ll do so via this Amazon affiliate link, where if you choose to purchase via the link DIY MFA gets a referral fee at no cost to you. As always, thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

Link to Episode 373

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Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!

The post Episode 373: Hook and Tether: How to Draw Readers In and Keep Them Grounded in the Story – Interview with Marissa Levien appeared first on DIY MFA.

Today I have the pleasure of speaking with Dr. Sally Parry, the Executive Director of the Sinclair Lewis Society. She earned her PhD in American Literature (as well as 19th Century British Fiction and Medieval Literature) from Fordham University in NYC and wrote her dissertation on Sinclair Lewis (Sinclair Lewis: The Darkening Vision of His Later Novels). She is currently the Associate Dean for Academic Programs and Student Affairs at Illinois State University.

In this interview, we’re going to talk about Sinclair Lewis’ novel It Can’t Happen Here. Originally published in 1935 as a response to the rise of Hitler and Mussolini in Europe, It Can’t Happen Here has renewed relevance in the wake of Donald Trump’s campaign and election.

In fact, sales numbers for this title have gone through the roof, with mass market sales up 2,611% over last year, and eBook sales have jumped 1,528%. Not only that, this book has gotten a lot of buzz in the media in the past year, and this momentum doesn’t appear to be slowing down.

I’m excited to speak with Dr. Sally Parry about this book and the role that literature plays in politics and activism.

In this episode Sally and I discuss:

• Literature and activism
• Author intentions versus audience perceptions
• The social responsibilities of writers

Plus, her #1 tip for writers.

It Can’t Happen Here

It Can’t Happen Here (affiliate link) is a cautionary tale about the fragility of democracy, and it is an alarming, eerily timeless look at how fascism could take hold in America.  Written during the Great Depression, when the country was largely oblivious to Hitler’s aggression, it juxtaposes sharp political satire with the chillingly realistic rise of a president who becomes a dictator to save the nation from welfare cheats, sex, crime, and a liberal press.

As with most books we feature on this site, the above is an Amazon affiliate link. This means if you choose to purchase via this link, DIY MFA will get a small commission at no cost to you. Thank you for supporting DIY MFA!

Recent media coverage:

• Salon.com, It really can happen here: The novel that foreshadowed Donald Trump’s authoritarian appeal (Sept. 2015)
• TIME, The Book People Are Saying Predicted Donald Trump’s Rise, as Reviewed in 1935 (Nov. 2016)
• The New Yorker, Getting Close to Fascism with Sinclair Lewis’s “It Can’t Happen Here” (Oct. 2016)
• Money, Sinclair Lewis Novel “It Can’t Happen Here” Sells Out Online (Nov. 2016)
• Salon.com, Books old and new in 2016 got boost from Trump candidacy (Dec. 2016)
• The Huffington Post, Books for Our Times: “It Can’t Happen Here,” by Sinclair Lewis (a Novel) (Nov. 2016)
• The Washington Post, How does Donald Trump stack up against American literature’s fictional dictators? Pretty well, actually. (June 2016)
• Houston Chronicle, The novel and play that predicted Donald Trump’s rise (April 2016)

About Sinclair Lewis

The Sinclair Lewis Society was formed to encourage study of, critical attention to, and general interest in the work, career, and legacy of Sinclair Lewis. The Society works to facilitate a broader discussion of his writing among scholars, critics, teachers, students, book collectors, and readers everywhere.

Members of the Sinclair Lewis Society receive the bi-annual Sinclair Lewis Society Newsletter. We encourage scholarship concerning Sinclair Lewis, and we have provided a bibliography of primary and secondary sources concerning Lewis on our scholarly works page, as well as transcripts from an exclusive interview with Richard Lingeman, author of Sinclair Lewis: Rebel from Main Street. We also meet every few years in Sauk Centre, Minnesota, Lewis’ hometown, for conferences and usually in connection with the annual Sinclair Lewis Days.

Harry Sinclair Lewis (1885–1951) was born in Sauk Centre, Minnesota. His childhood and early youth were spent in the Midwest, and later he attended Yale University, where he was editor of the literary magazine. After graduating in 1907, he worked as a reporter and in editorial positions at various newspapers, magazines, and publishing houses from the East Coast to California. He was able to give this work up after a few of his stories had appeared in magazines and his first novel, Our Mr. Wrenn (1914), had been published. Main Street (1920) was his first really successful novel, and his reputation was secured by the publication of Babbitt (1922). Lewis was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for Arrowsmith (1925) but refused to accept the honor, saying the prize was meant to go to a novel that celebrated the wholesomeness of American life, something his books did not do. He did accept, however, when in 1930 he became the first American writer to receive the Nobel Prize for Literature. During the last part of his life, he spent a great deal of time in Europe and continued to write both novels and plays. In 1950, after completing his last novel, World So Wide (1951), he intended to take an extended tour but became ill and was forced to settle in Rome, where he spent some months working on his poems before dying.

Link to Episode 134

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If you liked this episode…

Head over to iTunes, leave a review, and subscribe so you’ll be first to know when new episodes are available. Also, if you know anyone who might enjoy this podcast, please share!

Until next week, keep writing and keep being awesome!

The post Episode 134: Literature as a Reflection of Society – Interview with Dr. Sally Parry appeared first on DIY MFA.

Five YA Dystopians for Your Hunger Games Hangover

The Giver

By: Lois Lowry

Full disclosure: I haven’t seen the movie adaptation of The Giver. But from the previews, it looked like a bit of a Hunger Games/Divergent ripoff with a boy and vague hints of Taylor Swift. Perhaps that was just the marketing guys. The truth is, this book couldn’t be more different.

The hero is twelve year old Jonas, a boy who has come of age in a futuristic society. He is chosen as The Receiver. He’ll be tasked with receiving, remembering and experiencing all the painful memories of the human race, memories it’s rejected in order that it might know peace. No war. No hate. No violence or tragedy. But no love, either. They don’t even see in color. Experiencing Jonas experiencing all this, and growing to question the society, its practices and his own family, is the stuff great stories are made of.

Uglies

By: Scott Westerfield

Imagine a future where, at age sixteen, you underwent surgery that made you tall, thin, and beautiful. You got to live in a spectacular, high tech city with fireworks and parties every night. You got to eat whatever you want and never gain weight. And it’s all ripped from you.

That’s what happens to sixteen year old Tally in this pre-Hunger Games dystopian. She’s an ‘ugly’ who has to find the secret colony of runaways who are avoiding undergoing the surgery, if she wants to undergo it herself. Along the way she hoverboards on broken roller coasters, learns to survive in the wilderness and learns some things about her city that aren’t so pretty. If you’re looking for a fast paced story with a compelling heroine, a dash of romance and a lot of scary parallels to our own society to contemplate on your commute, Uglies delivers, along with two sequels and a companion novel.

Under the Never Sky

By: Veronica Rossi

Under the Never Sky: this was a post-hunger games dystopian with an interesting twist. After radioactive clouds made the surface uninhabitable, the human race retreated into pods, where they live in virtual reality and know no hardship. The other half was left outside, to the harsh wilderness, where they were forced to live under primitive conditions, and developed strange powers from the aether in the sky.

In a classic boy-meets-girl, boy-and-girl-loathe each other setup, Under the Never Sky tells the story of Perry, an outsider, and Aria, a dweller, exiled from her pod home for a crime she didn’t commit, who are forced to work together and undertake a journey, Aria to reunite with her mother in another pod, and Perry to save his nephew, who’s been kidnapped. Love, adventure and great writing abound. The novel is told in alternating chapters from Perry and Aria’s perspectives. There are two sequels and two novellas, completing the saga.

Matched

By: Allie Condie

Matched features more of a utopian than a dystopian world. Everything in The Society is perfect. At age seventeen, boys and girls are matched with their ideal mate. If all goes well (as it usually does), they marry at twenty one. When Cassia is matched with her best friend, Xander, she sees this as perfect. He’s handsome, clever and has been her friend all her life. But just for a moment, another face flashes on the screen, instead of Xander’s. It’s another boy she knows, the mysterious, quiet Ky. Cassia will be forced to choose between a life of perfection and a life of passion. For those who wanted more from the love triangle in The Hunger Games along with your action and adventure, Matched is a perfect . . . match. See what I did there? Ignoring my corny pun, this is another great YA dystopian and there are two sequels already complete.

The Selection

By: Kiera Cass

If the carnage of The Hunger Games left you feeling like you just wanted to curl up and watch light reality TV, you might just love The Selection. Set in a dystopian America called Illea, with strict laws, a monarchy and caste system, The Selection follows America Singer, a girl from a middle caste who is chosen as one of twenty four girls to compete–not to the death–but for the hand of the crown prince Maxon. The problem? America is in love with a boy back home, a boy who has broken her heart, but now wants her back, and has followed her to the castle. Glittering ball gowns, romance and glamour, The Selection is a lighter dystopian that plays on our love of fairy tales and happily ever after. There’s two sequels and a new novel–The Heir–coming out soon.

So there you have it! Five books to read if you loved The Hunger Games and haven’t quite had your fill of YA dystopia yet. There’s many more books the genre has to offer, and something to tide you over until Mockingjay: Part Two. 

There’s a lot of YA Dystopians out there — what did I miss? Let me know in the comments or on Twitter, using the hashtag #5OnFri!

The post #5OnFri: Five Books to Kill Your Post-Mockingjay Depression appeared first on DIY MFA.