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34-564: Weaveworld is a 1987 dark fantasy novel by English writer Clive Barker . It is about a magical world that is hidden inside a tapestry, known as the Fugue, to safeguard it from both inquisitive humans and hostile supernatural foes. Two humans become embroiled in the fate of the Fugue, attempting to save it from those who seek to destroy it. The book was nominated in 1988 for the World Fantasy Award for Best Novel . Decades prior to

68-615: A science fiction story titled "The Curious Experience of Thomas Dunbar". She mailed the story to Argosy , then one of the top pulp magazines. The story was accepted and published in the March 1904 issue, under the byline "G. M. Barrows". Although the initials disguised her gender, this appears to be the first instance of an American female author publishing science fiction, and using her real name. That same month, Youth's Companion published her poetry. Once Bennett began to take care of her mother, she decided to return to fiction writing as

102-540: A "dark fairy tale" fantasy film. Guillermo del Toro 's fantasy film Pan's Labyrinth (2006) has been described as a "sort of a dark spin on Alice in Wonderland ". The 2013 fantasy action role-playing game Dragon's Crown contains many elements of dark fantasy, such as werewolves, vampires, zombies, homonculi, and human-monster hybrids. Modern games from Japanese game development and publishing company FromSoftware are lauded as exceptional representations of

136-478: A complete script, but the project has fallen into hiatus and he is no longer involved. In 2001, Barker stated in an interview that a Showtime six-hour mini-series was about to enter a two-year preproduction stage, directed by Queer as Folk director Russell Mulcahy , probably shot in Australia. In 2005, Barker said that the book had been adapted into a mini-series, and later said that the mini-series adaptation

170-545: A conscientious policeman. Cal and Suzanna acquire new allies and abilities in their goal of protecting the Fugue from destruction, venturing into it themselves twice. When Shadwell's actions result in the Fugue's seemingly total obliteration, the surviving Seerkind scatter. In a last desperate attempt to finish them, Shadwell locates and awakens the Scourge, which begins systematically destroying any and all traces of magic it can find. Cal, Suzanna and their remaining allies make

204-426: A dark, often brooding, tone. As a result, dark fantasy cannot be solidly connected to a defining set of tropes . The term itself may refer collectively to tales that are either horror-based or fantasy-based. Some writers also use "dark fantasy" (or " Gothic fantasy ") as an alternative description to "horror", because they feel the latter term is too lurid or vivid. Charles L. Grant is often cited as having coined

238-420: A few gobs of gratuitous nastiness and also some terrific creations". Weaveworld was made into a three-issue comic series in 1991 by Epic Comics . The series were written by Erik Saltzgaber and pencilled by Mike Manley . Clive Barker served as consultant. Novelist and screenwriter Michael Marshall Smith completed a first draft of a script for an eight-hour mini-series in 1995. Smith was later asked to write

272-439: A final stand against Shadwell by using his own tactics against him and convince the Scourge to abandon its cause and leave the planet in peace. In the aftermath, a severely traumatised Cal is cared for by Suzanna whilst their friends adjust to permanent life amongst humanity. Eventually, Cal emerges from his withdrawal with the knowledge of how the Fugue is still alive and can be restored to its full glory. Reviewing Weaveworld in

306-443: A forgotten Aztec city, which is "rediscovered" during World War I . It was the introduction to a 1952 reprint edition of the novel which revealed that "Francis Stevens" was Bennett's pen-name. A year later she published her only science fiction novel, The Heads of Cerberus ( The Thrill Book , 1919). One of the first dystopian novels, the book features a "grey dust from a silver phial" which transports anyone who inhales it to

340-517: A letter to The Argosy called "One of the strangest and most compelling science fantasy novels you will ever read") and the lost world novel The Citadel of Fear . Bennett also wrote an early dystopian novel , The Heads of Cerberus (1919). Gertrude Mabel Barrows was born in Minneapolis in 1884, to Charles and Caroline Barrows ( née Hatch). Her father, a Civil War veteran from Illinois, died in 1892. Gertrude completed school through

374-556: A means of supporting her family. The first story she completed after her return to writing was the novella "The Nightmare", which appeared in All-Story Weekly in 1917. The story is set on an island separated from the rest of the world, on which evolution has taken a different course. "The Nightmare" resembles Edgar Rice Burroughs ' The Land That Time Forgot , itself published a year later. While Bennett had submitted "The Nightmare" under her own name, she had asked to use

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408-425: A new-born daughter to raise, Bennett continued working as a stenographer. When her father died toward the end of World War I, Bennett assumed care for her invalid mother. Virtually all of Bennett's work dates from 1917 to 1920, when she began to write short stories and novels to support the household. She stopped writing when her mother died in 1920; one later work published in 1923 appears to have been written during

442-420: A pseudonym if it was published. The magazine's editor chose not to use the pseudonym Bennett suggested (Jean Vail) and instead credited the story to Francis Stevens. When readers responded positively to the story, Bennett chose to continue writing under the name. Over the next few years, Bennett wrote a number of short stories and novellas. Her short story "Friend Island" ( All-Story Weekly , 1918), for example,

476-477: A serial killer would simply be horror. Stableford suggests that the type of horror conveyed by fantasy stories such as William Beckford 's Vathek and Edgar Allan Poe 's The Masque of the Red Death "is more aesthetic than visceral or existential", and that such stories should be considered "dark fantasies" rather than the "supernaturalized thrillers" of conventional horror fiction. Karl Edward Wagner

510-440: A totalitarian Philadelphia of 2118 AD. One of Bennett's most famous novels was Claimed! (Argosy, 1920; reprinted 1966, 2004, 2018), in which a supernatural artifact summons an ancient and powerful god to early 20th century New Jersey . Augustus T. Swift called the novel "One of the strangest and most compelling science fantasy novels you will ever read". Apparently The Thrill Book had accepted more of her stories when it

544-532: Is entirely unknown to the Seerkind, as no-one has survived to describe it. The Fugue, resembling an ordinary, albeit exquisitely woven, carpet is left in the care of a human woman, Mimi Laschenski, who married one of the Seerkind and resides in Liverpool , England. Mimi reaches old age and is hospitalised following a stroke. A young man named Calhoun Mooney, chasing an escaped homing pigeon, accidentally glimpses

578-402: Is in contrast to the traditional horror model, which focuses more on the victims and survivors. In a more general sense, dark fantasy is occasionally used as a synonym for supernatural horror , to distinguish horror stories that contain elements of the supernatural from those that do not. For example, a story about a werewolf or vampire could be described as dark fantasy, while a story about

612-480: Is often credited for creating the term "dark fantasy" when used in a more fantasy-based context. Wagner used it to describe his fiction about the Gothic warrior Kane . Since then, "dark fantasy" has sometimes been applied to sword and sorcery and high fantasy fiction that features anti-heroic or morally ambiguous protagonists. Another good example under this definition of dark fantasy is Michael Moorcock 's saga of

646-685: Is set in a 22nd-century ruled by women. Another story is the novella "Serapion" ( Argosy , 1920), about a man possessed by a supernatural creature. This story has been released in an electronic book entitled Possessed: A Tale of the Demon Serapion , with three other stories by her. Many of her short stories have been collected in The Nightmare and Other Tales of Dark Fantasy (University of Nebraska Press, 2004). In 1918 she published her first, and perhaps best, novel The Citadel of Fear ( Argosy , 1918). This lost world story focuses on

680-425: Is sometimes used for "darker" fiction written by authors best known for other styles of fantasy; Raymond Feist 's Faerie Tale and Charles de Lint 's novels written as Samuel M. Key would fit here. Roald Dahl 's novel The Witches (and its film adaptations) is described as dark fantasy. Dahl's poetic reworking of " Cinderella " (which features in his poetry collection Revolting Rhymes ) sees him upend

714-498: The Toronto Star , Henry Mietkiewicz wrote that "Barker proves to be far more accomplished and self-assured than in any of his previous work... Weaveworld depends upon a relatively intricate narrative structure and a host of finely crafted characters". Dave Langford reviewed Weaveworld for White Dwarf #96, and stated that "'dark fantasy' is today's posh word for 'horror'; Barker's considerable talents in this area lead to

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748-528: The albino swordsman Elric . The fantasy work of H. P. Lovecraft , Clark Ashton Smith and their emulators have been specified as "dark fantasy", since the imaginary worlds they depicted contain many horror elements. Dark fantasy is occasionally used to describe fantasy works by authors whom the public primarily associates with the horror genre. Examples of these are Stephen King 's The Dark Tower series, Peter Straub 's Shadowland and Clive Barker 's Weaveworld . Alternatively, dark fantasy

782-446: The Fugue hidden in the carpet, which profoundly affects him. Simultaneously, Mimi's granddaughter Suzanna Parrish arrives in the city at Mimi's behest. The mystery surrounding Mimi and the full potential of the carpet brings Cal and Suzanna together and quickly into confrontation with the primary antagonists: Immacolata, an exiled and extremely powerful Seerkind bent on revenge; Shadwell, a human salesman with limitless ambition; and Hobart,

816-411: The book's opening, a magical race known as the Seerkind combined all of their powers to create a secret world known as "the Fugue", a carpet into which they wove their most beloved locations, animals, possessions and themselves as a safe haven. Their aim was to avoid persecution by humans (who call them demons and fairies ) and eradication by a destructive being known as the Scourge. This creature's nature

850-595: The dark fantasy genre, notably the Dark Souls series along with Bloodborne and later Elden Ring . Gertrude Barrows Bennett Gertrude Barrows Bennett (September 18, 1884 – February 2, 1948), known by the pseudonym Francis Stevens , was a pioneering American author of fantasy and science fiction . Bennett wrote a number of fantasies between 1917 and 1923 and has been called "the woman who invented dark fantasy ". Her most famous books include Claimed (which Augustus T. Swift, in

884-425: The eighth grade, then attended night school in hopes of becoming an illustrator (a goal she never achieved). Instead, she began working as a stenographer , a job she held on and off for the rest of her life. In 1909 Barrows married Stewart Bennett, a British journalist and explorer , and moved to Philadelphia . A year later her husband died during a tropical storm while on a treasure hunting expedition. With

918-438: The happy tale. Berserk , a manga and anime franchise by Kentaro Miura that debuted in 1989, is frequently noted as an example of the genre due to its depictions of extreme violence, moral ambiguity, apocalyptic storylines and anti-hero protagonists. Attack on Titan is a dark fantasy for its intense violence and the dystopian world it takes place in. Ridley Scott 's film Legend (1985) has been described as

952-573: The late 'teens, and submitted to Weird Tales when that magazine was just starting up. In the mid-1920s, Bennett placed her daughter in the care of friends and moved to California . Because she was estranged from her daughter, for a number of years researchers believed Bennett died in 1939 – a 1939 letter from her daughter was returned as undeliverable, and her daughter did not hear from Bennett after this date. However, new research, including her death certificate, shows that she died in 1948. Gertrude Mabel Barrows wrote her first short story at age 17,

986-493: The new genre of dark fantasy ". It has been said that Bennett's writings influenced both H. P. Lovecraft and A. Merritt , both of whom "emulated Bennett's earlier style and themes". Lovecraft was even said to have praised Bennett's work. However, there is controversy about whether or not this actually happened and the praise appears to have resulted from letters wrongly attributed to Lovecraft. As for Merritt, for several decades critics and readers believed "Francis Stevens"

1020-653: The term "dark fantasy". Grant defined his brand of dark fantasy as "a type of horror story in which humanity is threatened by forces beyond human understanding". He often used dark fantasy as an alternative to horror , as horror was increasingly associated with more visceral works. Dark fantasy is sometimes also used to describe stories told from a monster 's point of view, or that present a more sympathetic view of supernatural beings usually associated with horror. Anne Rice 's The Vampire Chronicles , Chelsea Quinn Yarbro 's Saint-Germain , and Neil Gaiman 's The Sandman are early examples of this style of dark fantasy. This

1054-728: The term "dark fantasy"—although both authors were describing different styles of fiction. Brian Stableford argues "dark fantasy" can be usefully defined as subgenre of stories that attempt to "incorporate elements of horror fiction" into the standard formulae of fantasy stories. Stableford also suggests that supernatural horror set primarily in the real world is a form of " contemporary fantasy ", whereas supernatural horror set partly or wholly in " secondary worlds " should be described as "dark fantasy". Additionally, other authors, critics, and publishers have adopted dark fantasy to describe various other works. However, these stories rarely share universal similarities beyond supernatural occurrences and

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1088-453: Was a pseudonym of his. This rumor only ended with the 1952 reprinting of Citadel of Fear , which featured a biographical introduction of Bennett by Lloyd Arthur Eshbach . Critic Sam Moskowitz said she was the "greatest woman writer of science fiction in the period between Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley and C.L. Moore ". Because Bennett was the first American woman to have her fantasy and science fiction widely published, she qualifies as

1122-458: Was about to enter production. In September 2015, CW network announced a TV series adaptation of the book, to be written and produced by Warehouse 13 ' s Jack Kenny and produced by Clive Barker. Dark fantasy A strict definition for dark fantasy is difficult to pin down. Gertrude Barrows Bennett has been called "the woman who invented dark fantasy". Both Charles L. Grant and Karl Edward Wagner are credited with having coined

1156-577: Was cancelled in October 1919, only seven months after the first issue. These were never published and became lost. It has been hypothesized that "Sunfire", which appeared in Weird Tales in 1923, was one of these stories that had originally been accepted by Thrill Book ; it was the only 'new' story published by Bennett after 1920, although it was almost certainly written in 1919 or earlier. Bennett has been credited as having "the best claim at creating

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