Candles and Carnival Lights

This piece by Mary Claire Kendall, appearing in today’s forbes.com, is an account of a lecture on F. Scott Fitzgerald by Charles Scribner, whose great-grandfather published The Great Gatsby in 1925, and whose father in the 1950s instigated the renaissance in appreciation of Fitzgerald’s work that continues to this day. Scribner’s lecture, entitled “From Paradise … Continue reading →

What’s Essential to Fantasy?

I have been re-reading J.R.R. Tolkien’s “On Fairy Stories,” and one of the things I have wanted to take away from the essay this time around is a good, clear definition of fantasy literature. What is it that distinguishes a tale of Faerie from other kinds of tales? Tolkien himself in the essay does not … Continue reading →

Finding Faërie

So how does one enter the world of faërie? This site catalogs the various ways that some famous fantasy authors have imagined the transition. I’ve added to it a bit in what follows, but the list doesn’t pretend to be exhaustive even of famous fantasy worlds. But it’s a good place to start. You can … Continue reading →

More From Tolkien on Escapism and Fantasy

In discussing the question of fantasy and escapism on Kindle Boards, someone reminded me of this passage from J.R.R. Tolkien’s “On Fairy Stories.” Most apropos: I have claimed that Escape is one of the main functions of fairy-stories, and since I do not disapprove of them, it is plain that I do not accept the … Continue reading →

Is Fantasy Literature Escapist?

I am contemplating a work of fantasy right now–I have one or two seeds of ideas, but haven’t yet settled on a narrative or even a demographic. But the prospect has me thinking through various questions related to the genre, one of which is whether fantasy literature is escapist. Meghan O’Rourke, writing in Slate at … Continue reading →

New Kingdom of Patria Series Book Trailer

I’m proud to present the new book trailer for my Kingdom of Patria series. I’d love to hear what you think about it–either in the com box here, or over on YouTube.   Continue reading →