I think there's an unwritten rule of urban fantasy (or written, perhaps, somewhere I haven't seen)...
If it's written, it definitely isn't widely published since neither of us has ever seen it.
...where you have to make it clear very early both whether or not there's legitimately weird shit in this universe, and, if so, whether or not everyone knows about it.
If there is some sort of rule that exists at all, it's less of a "rule" and more of a "guideline" since there are definitely urban/modern fantasy stories that don't follow the rule.
1) There are urban/modern fantasy stories that never clearly state if what has gone on in them was magic. They run along the line between "urban/modern fantasy" and "magical realism" because they leave "What is magic?" an open question.
2) There are urban/modern fantasy stories that never answer the question of "whether or not everyone knows about it[magic]." That's dependent on how the story is structured, and whether or not the author is given to world building.
a) The story can be focused on a limited number of characters, so that whether or not the whole world knows about magic is beside the point. It might it. It might not.
b) Some urban fantasy is not also modern fantasy because, while it has an urban setting, the setting doesn't mirror the real world. It's in a universe with lots of magic that manages to have it's own unique urban sprawl. It doesn't need to spell out that everyone knows about magic because everyone knowing about magic is a clear given of the world.
That "rule" only applies to urban fantasy stories if those stories a) are going to define magic and rely on magic enough that it's being in them needs to be spelled out, and b) the worlds of the stories are close enough to ours and will be explored enough in the stories that they require establishing whether or not the whole of them know about magic.
Also, even in cases where the "rule" does apply, plenty of writers will admit to a) their world having magic, and b) the magic in their world being, or having been, a Big Secret there without ever bothering to define how or why magic is or was ever a Big Secret there. Elliot James wasn't required by some "rule" to include in his prelude, "Whether or not there's legitimately weird shit in this universe, and, if so, whether or not everyone knows about it," much less how magic is a Big Secret in his universe. His spelling out that there is magic in his universe, magic is a Big Secret in his universe, and how magic is a Big Secret in his universe in the prelude was his choice, and I don't think it was a bad choice to make.
That way the reader knows how much disbelief to suspend...
As I've already said some urban fantasy, "leave 'What is magic?' an open question," urban fantasy stories don't automatically tell readers, "how much disbelief to suspend."
...and "oh, they did it with paranormal powers" doesn't just feel like bad writing later.
1) "...they did it with paranormal powers," isn't specific to urban fantasy stories. Given the use of "paranormal" the story in question could be an urban fantasy one, or modern fantasy one, or modern science fiction one, or modern paranormal romance one, or modern dark fantasy one, or an out right modern horror one. It tends to imply a modern setting because if the setting were earlier or later it would probably refer to the powers being specified in some other way, but...
2) I don't believe that a writer who chooses to take their time introducing "paranormal powers" in their story is necessarily a bad writer. I do believe when and how, or even if, they choose to make the presence of "the paranormal" in their story clearly known is a matter of creative choice.
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If it's written, it definitely isn't widely published since neither of us has ever seen it.
...where you have to make it clear very early both whether or not there's legitimately weird shit in this universe, and, if so, whether or not everyone knows about it.
If there is some sort of rule that exists at all, it's less of a "rule" and more of a "guideline" since there are definitely urban/modern fantasy stories that don't follow the rule.
1) There are urban/modern fantasy stories that never clearly state if what has gone on in them was magic. They run along the line between "urban/modern fantasy" and "magical realism" because they leave "What is magic?" an open question.
2) There are urban/modern fantasy stories that never answer the question of "whether or not everyone knows about it[magic]." That's dependent on how the story is structured, and whether or not the author is given to world building.
a) The story can be focused on a limited number of characters, so that whether or not the whole world knows about magic is beside the point. It might it. It might not.
b) Some urban fantasy is not also modern fantasy because, while it has an urban setting, the setting doesn't mirror the real world. It's in a universe with lots of magic that manages to have it's own unique urban sprawl. It doesn't need to spell out that everyone knows about magic because everyone knowing about magic is a clear given of the world.
That "rule" only applies to urban fantasy stories if those stories a) are going to define magic and rely on magic enough that it's being in them needs to be spelled out, and b) the worlds of the stories are close enough to ours and will be explored enough in the stories that they require establishing whether or not the whole of them know about magic.
Also, even in cases where the "rule" does apply, plenty of writers will admit to a) their world having magic, and b) the magic in their world being, or having been, a Big Secret there without ever bothering to define how or why magic is or was ever a Big Secret there. Elliot James wasn't required by some "rule" to include in his prelude, "Whether or not there's legitimately weird shit in this universe, and, if so, whether or not everyone knows about it," much less how magic is a Big Secret in his universe. His spelling out that there is magic in his universe, magic is a Big Secret in his universe, and how magic is a Big Secret in his universe in the prelude was his choice, and I don't think it was a bad choice to make.
That way the reader knows how much disbelief to suspend...
As I've already said some urban fantasy, "leave 'What is magic?' an open question," urban fantasy stories don't automatically tell readers, "how much disbelief to suspend."
...and "oh, they did it with paranormal powers" doesn't just feel like bad writing later.
1) "...they did it with paranormal powers," isn't specific to urban fantasy stories. Given the use of "paranormal" the story in question could be an urban fantasy one, or modern fantasy one, or modern science fiction one, or modern paranormal romance one, or modern dark fantasy one, or an out right modern horror one. It tends to imply a modern setting because if the setting were earlier or later it would probably refer to the powers being specified in some other way, but...
2) I don't believe that a writer who chooses to take their time introducing "paranormal powers" in their story is necessarily a bad writer. I do believe when and how, or even if, they choose to make the presence of "the paranormal" in their story clearly known is a matter of creative choice.
TBC