It's 'Victorian Science
Fiction'... but what else can it be?
How do we create a Steampunk world and how do we recreate
ourselves? I don't want to prescribe a way to do or be things to
anyone because change comes from within. We are drawn to things that
speak to us. I don't want to be one of those people who says you have
to dress this way, think this way. I think everyone has to come to it
from their own direction.
What follows is merely my opinions, which I am happy to discuss
with others in the hope of a greater understanding and growth of
Steampunk.
Creating another world
Steampunk is wonderful, but it is just dressing up, right? Wrong!
It doesn't just have to be another persona, an outfit we take off! We
can transform our world! We may not all be able to afford to Steampunk
our house, but we can make our lives a little more like the one of
our dreams! It may be as simple as wearing a piece of Steampunk
jewellery or Victorian inspired item every day, or using a few
charming anachronistic Victorian words, or raising your hat and
bowing to people in the street
There was an article in
SteamPunk Magazine that interested me very much. It discussed how creating
Steampunk worlds can actually help us see the way to a better world,
if it is done the right way. We can't expect the change the world
outright, but perhaps we can create a place outside of ourselves
where manners, creativity and imagination can reign triumphant. The
more we work at it, the more conventions, meet-ups and 'craft
togethers' we can have with like minded people, the more people we
can introduce to the sense of community and imagination within
Steampunk.
Think about what you want to be. Do you want to be charming and well
mannered? Do you want to be the catalyst of a stylistic revolution or
help create a new way of thinking and living? Do you want to write
new worlds, or make clothes that show who you really are? It is all
there in Steampunk.
Steampunk is the escapism that fantasy has been for years, but the
difference is that with such an encompassing culture it can become a
cultural revolution. It could become a spirit of the times, a revolt
against the crushing normality of our era. All around the world,
Steampunks are using that thing with supposedly alienates us-
technology, the internet, to connect with each other. We are
anachronistic par excellence, loving the old steam powered
technology, but finding ways to use the new ones to our advantage.
We don’t want to go back to the past, we
want a better present!
Steampunk people do not necessarily yearn for the past, we know
there were many bad aspects to the past such as sexism and racism,
and we don't want to relive those! We want to take the elements we
love- fancier clothes, nice manners, etc. and set them in our own
imaginary world. It is a very creative subculture! But can we make this world a reality?
Branching out
When someone makes something wonderful and then I hear someone say
(or write online) 'that's nice... but it's not Steampunk!' I cringe.
We need to admire creativity in all its forms. We shouldn't have to
have a narrow identity where we can only like things that are
Steampunk. One of the great things about Steampunk is the creativity
and openness of it.
Steampunk is taking inspiration from everywhere. I have seen
Steampunk Faery outfits, Steampunk R2D2s, everything can be
Steampunked! There shouldn't be too many rules, we shouldn't
criticise people for being 'not Steampunk enough'.
Perhaps the biggest danger we actually face is making TOO MANY
rules, we must take inspiration from everywhere, stylistically we are
not just Victorian we are Punk and New Romantic and Goth, Steampunk
literature is there, but we mustn’t fall into the trap of only
worshipping things with cogs. There are books now that just throw a
few cogs in there just to relate to a Steampunk audience and that is
not a good sign. we have to be more open. embrace Steamgoth with its
depictions of darkness and monsters, but not ask for it to be too
filled with machinery, embrace urban fantasy, depictions of other
glittering worlds. be inspired by rockstars and dandies.
Some of the people who inspire me most are the authors who
generally don't write Steampunk, Sarah and Jenn Diemer (although they
did do one great Steampunk short story collection), Francesca Lia
Block, Ray Bradbury, Neil Gaiman, writers who see the world in
different ways, but, in a short story, bring us completely into their
world.
If we label ourselves too much, pigeon-hole ourselves too much, we
are doing ourselves, and Steampunk, a disservice. we must branch out,
keep things wide, keep things fresh and buzzing with new and
different ideas.
The point of Steampunk is that it is anachronistic. We can listen
to other music, read other books, and put them all into our
Steampunk. We can have an alternate Victorian future with a post-punk
soundtrack and dandy aliens dancing in Victorian dance halls.
After all, Steampunk is about mining the past for the bits we
liked, but throwing away the bits we hate. No gender inequality and
racism, thank you very much, but beautiful clothes, lovely manners,
and the alternate technology and magic envisioned by the Science
Fiction and horror writers of the Victorian era.
It's about finding a way to think about things differently. Like
the 1985 song Rock me Amadeus, which envisioned Amadeus Mozart as the
first rock-star. Sure it's not exactly Steampunk, but something we
can draw on for inspiration? Yes? Velvet Goldmine re imagines Oscar
Wilde and his words, a story of Dorian Grey but also the idea of
Oscar Wilde as a 'pop idol.' Anachronistic indeed. 'The curves of
your lips rewrite history.' We can rewrite not just history but the
present and future as well. We can rewrite ourselves.
Community
Steampunk is a subculture that thrives on community. There aren't
a lot of events in Australia yet, but at the ones I have been to,
everyone has been so friendly! They are happy to talk about where
they bought their outfits or what patterns they used, what books and
movies they like, and it is mostly the same online, helpful and
friendly. But we need to make sure this community exists, not just
online, but also in the physical world. There is nothing like really
hanging out with those who have things in common with you! We need to
work to get our groups together and keep them going!
There is a wonderful sense of community, that we are all in this
crazy thing together. When I see people joining facebook groups for
Steampunk or coming to an event where there are other Steampunks they
often say something like, 'finally, I have found others like myself,'
I know for myself, it was like coming home. I love my Goth brothers
and sisters of course, but Steampunk had that which I had always been
searching for. Alternate history, alternate self, the ability to
transform myself. It's hard to define, and a little different for
everyone, but it can be like coming home. I feel like these last few
years I have been more and more who I really am, having picnics,
learning to sew, learning about Steampunk books, movies and music,
and adding all my other inspirations to it, making my own personal
definition of what Steampunk is to me.
Supporting the Community
One of the things we should do is support others efforts,
especially those creatives who want to make new things, we need more
Steampunk web-shows, movies, etc. Keep an eye out for kickstarters
and give them $5 or $10 if you can afford, it, tweet and facebook
updates on it to get others interested. Social media is the friend of
us anachronists, it allows us to meet other anachronists from around
the world, and it allows us to try and get the word out there. We
envision and create our own worlds and we can share them. we can drag
others out of the dull monotony of everyday life, and show them
another world.
The 'Steampunk Bandwagon'
Some people don't want Steampunk to become too mainstream, they
see the idea of everyone 'getting on the Steampunk bandwagon' as a
bad thing, but imagine Steampunk as a cultural movement, a big one
because it has it all, literature, music, fashion, because people
make things themselves and inspire others to do so. We shouldn't try
and keep it small, we should invite everyone who is interested, give
everyone a chance to be part of it! Wouldn't it be wonderful to go
see Steampunk movies at the cinema? And, of course, greater exposure
means that more people who would be interested can find out about it,
and more events for us to attend!
My mottoes for a Steampunk Revolution
In the end, I look to the words of Professor Frank N. Furter,
'don't just dream it, be it.' The words that were scrawled in
lipstick on Oscar Wilde's Tomb- 'the curves of your lips rewrite
history', the words of the song from the Dresden Dolls that stuck in
my head when I was about 18. 'I will join your century but only on a
rare occasion... I am the girl anachronism'. Mottoes, battle cries
for a 'Steampunk revolution'? or only words to inspire my path? Find your own mottoes and inspirations. Let them inspire you!
I leave you with the words of the Abney Park song, 'Steampunk
Revolution'
We've got a steampunk revolution
We're tired of all your so-called evolution
We've darted back to 1886
Don't ask us why; that's how we get our kicks
Out with the new
In with the old
Out with the new
In with the old
Our underworld isn't filled with fear
Just brass and copper, leather scrap, and rusty gear
You can keep your hip-hop techno-pop-rock schleppin-dub
I'm on my way to a coal-powered underground vintage pub
We've got a steampunk revolution
We're tired of all your so-called evolution
We've darted back to 1886
Don't ask us why; that's how we get our kicks
Out with the new
In with the old
Out with the new
In with the old
Your subculture shops at the mall
We build ours with blowtorch, needle, thread, and leather awl
With our antique clock parts we've taken all arts, fine art to
fashion
And now we're spreading worldwide to circle the globe with a
furious passion
We've got a steampunk revolution
We're tired of all your so-called evolution
We've darted back to 1886
Don't ask us why; that's how we get our kicks
We've got a steampunk revolution
We're tired of all your so-called evolution
We've darted back to 1886
Don't ask us why; that's how we get our kicks
Out with the new
In with the old
