STEAMPUNK YOUR
LIBRARY
Janice Gumerman
janice_gumerman@indep.k12.mo.us
Bingham Middle School
Megan Bright
megan_bright@indep.k12.mo.us
Bridger Middle School
Independence School District
Darling Emma
Handsome Landon
Laila
Happy
What the heck is Steampunk?
• Steampunk is a subgenre of literature and
involves Victorian science fiction. Think
about technological inventions powered
by cogs, wheels and steam. Think steam
powered airships, rockets, submarines,
weapons. One way to think of Steampunk
is “an alternate time line to history.”
• This is not only a subgenre of literature it
is also a subculture of followers who
sometimes adapt the lifestyle and
persona full time or just on weekends for
Steampunk gadgets have come into the real
world. People have “Steampunk’d”
everything from computers, desks,
telephones, cell phones watches and guitars
to cars, motorcycles, and whole houses.
These objects can vary from a grungy look
of a forgotten antique to the shiny
overwrought newness of a Victorian
gentleman’s club. Think brass and copper,
glass and polished wood, engraving and
etching, and details for the sake of details,
called “findings”. So, Steampunk is also a
design aesthetic. Look for Steampunk
objects and ideas on Pinterest and Amazon
and Etsy.
“Steampunk is what happens when goths
discover brown.” – Jess Nevins
This aesthetic carries over into personal
style with both clothing and jewelry being
made in a “Steampunk” style. The clothes
are not exactly Victorian, adding in
technological bits or hints of a more
adventurous life than a typical Victorian
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Steampunk is difficult to categorize and define.
Steampunk has always been first and foremost a literary genre, or at least a subgenre
of science fiction and fantasy that includes social or technological aspects of the 19th
century (the steam) usually with some reimagining of or rebellion against parts of it (the
punk). Unfortunately, it is a poorly defined subgenre, with plenty of disagreement about
what is and is not included. For example, Steampunk stories may:
Take place in the Victorian or Edwardian era but include advanced machines based on
19th century technology.
Include the supernatural and fantasy.
Include the supernatural and forego the technology (e.g. The Anubis Gates by Tim
Powers 1987), one of the works that inspired the term ‘Steampunk’.
Include advanced machines, but take place later than the Victorian period, thereby
assuming that the predomination by electricity and petroleum never happens.
Take place in an another world altogether, but featuring Victorian-like technology.
“It’s sort of Victorian-industrial, but with more whimsy and fewer orphans.” - Caitlin
Kittredge
Steampunked laptops
Most of us are already familiar with
Steampunk although we probably did not
know it. Think 20,000 Leagues Under the
Sea, Journey to the Center of the Earth, To
the Moon and Back, The Time Machine,
Around the World in Eighty Days.
Steampunk followers revere Jules Verne,
H.G. Wells, Edgar Allan Poe, Charles
Dickens and well as Nikolai Tesla.
The term “Steampunk” allegedly originated
in 1987. The term represents “steam”
powered devices and “punk” for an alternate
way of looking at the world. Most of
Steampunk has a British flavor. But there is
also “dustpunk” from the early American
west…think “Wild, Wild West” with Jackie
Chan and Will Smith.
Even Sherlock Holmes has elements of
fantastic devices and inventions and a case
could be made for Holmes as a
Steampunker.
There are probably plenty of other
combinations, but that’s Steampunk as a
genre in a nutshell. Steampunk has also
cross-pollinated its way into other genres, so
there is Steampunk romance, and
Steampunk young adult fiction.
And it isn’t just written fiction anymore.
There are Steampunk games (e.g. Bioshock
II), Steampunk graphic novels (e.g. League
of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Amulet), and
even Steampunk movies (e.g. Sherlock
Holmes) and TV shows (e.g. Warehouse
13). There is even Steampunk music and
Steampunk performance art.
Tesla, Poe, Verne and Dickens
appeal to Steampunkers
Steampunk Authors
Cherie Priest has written a
book called Boneshaker
that would fit well with this
genre. Sequel is
Dreadnought.
• Author Phillip Reeve is
known for his Steampunk
writing. A few novels
include Fever Crumb, Web
of Air, Larklight, Starcross.
• All of the books in the
Series of Unfortunate
Events by Lemony Snicket
are loosely considered
Steampunk. I always
promote these as
Victorian “black” humor.
The “Classic” Steampunk
authors
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No list of Steampunk authors would be complete
without the classic writers:
• Jules Verne
• H.G. Wells (anyone know what the initials stand for??)
• Wouldn’t these writers be surprised and maybe pleased
to know they initiated a new genre of literature?
Graphic Novels
• The Amulet series by Kazu Kibuishi is a
Steampunk series specifically created for
younger readers. Steampunk fans will
particularly find fascinating the flying ship
and the house that can walk.
• Many classics by Verne and Wells are now
in graphic novel format.
More Authors and Titles
Cassandra Clare: Infernal Devices series,
Clockwork Angel, Clockwork Prince,
Mathew Kirby: Clockwork Three
Brian Selznick: Invention of Hugo Cabret; This is
loosely considered Steampunk by some reviewers
but it is based on historical fact.
Scott Westerfeld: Leviathan,
Goliath
Behemoth,
Resources for Steampunk
• The Steampunk Bible by
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Jeff Vandermeer is a great
beginning resource to get started
with Steampunk.
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The subtitle is “An illustrated
guide to the world of imaginary
airships, corsets and goggles,
mad scientists, and strange
literature”. That pretty well covers
Steampunk!!.
• Café Press is a good source for tshirts, posters and other fun stuff.
www.cafepress.com
• Also seach Pinterest, Etsy, and
http://www.amazon.com/The-SteampunkAmazon for fun shirts, jewelry
Bibleposters, and findings.
IllustratedScientists/dp/0810989581/ref=sr_1_
sc_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1332776248&sr=8-1spell
Reader Beware
• One word of warning to readers and
selectors of Steampunk:
• MOST of the literary selections available
are aimed at adult readers. There is a
considerable amount of eroticism contained
in Steampunk adult literature and
illustrations. I have made some big
blunders in purchasing that have quickly
been sent on to greener pastures.
THE END!
• Thanks for sharing this Steampunk
presentation with us today. It has been lots
of fun preparing it!!
• Pick up an annotated bibliography
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on the way out.
• Watch for this presentation on the
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MASL website and share with
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colleagues.