Defining visionary fiction is tough, because the genre means different things to different writers. So in coming up with my own definition, I used a technique often used in psychoanalysis called:
Free association
As a result, I came up with the following words and phrases:
- open door
- entry into the between
- not a place, but an attitude
- openness
- curiosity, questions, seeking, longing
- non-judgment
- freedom
- growth
- uncomfortable, unstable
- beyond rules, tradition, and authority
My next step was to cut and paste until I came up with an original, one-sentence definition.
Here it goes.
Visionary fiction opens the door to the space between, where questions serve as stepping-stones along winding paths that circle back to a starting point, leaving the reader changed.
Although I didn’t incorporate all the words and phrases that sprang to mind during my free association exercise, I like the definition I came up with.
At least for now.
The definition will likely change each time I try to peg down what visionary fiction is.
As always, thanks for stopping by,
