Reality Outstrips Fiction in the Trump Era

Eight years ago, authors asked what fiction would look like after Donald Trump's rise. The answer is now clear: it struggles to keep up. A literary question from 2016 has been answered by events. The term "Trumpian magical realism" was coined to describe a political reality so unusual it felt like fiction. Now, many observers note that actual news cycles and political events have surpassed what novelists might invent. The result is a cultural moment where reality seems more fanciful than any story.