Fantasy

Aces of Weird: Cronos (Guillermo del Toro, 1992)

How del Toro’s vampiric debut is the key to his movie career

Feb 20 •

Fantastic Beasts and How to Write Them

Some Jurassic examples of great monster-writing

Jan 28 •

Aces of Weird: The Green Knight (David Lowery, 2021)

This hallucinatory yuletide fantasy baffled audiences on release, yet remains one of the greatest films in Arthurian cinema. And, yes, it’s a Christmas…

Dec 13, 2024 •

Aces of Weird: Watership Down (Martin Rosen, 1978)

Remembered as the kids' movie that terrified a generation, this classic British fantasy still casts a deep, dark and enthralling spell

Nov 11, 2024 •

What Hawk the Slayer Got Right

Defending a sword and sorcery kinda-classic

Oct 25, 2024 •

Lessons From Earthsea

Ursula K. Le Guin’s 'A Wizard of Earthsea' is a classic, no question. But does anyone still care? Writers and creators of fantasy, neglect this book at…

Jul 24, 2024 •

Evolve or Die: Is this the End for Sword and Sorcery?

Can the genre ever move on from Robert E. Howard's Conan? How can writers possibly innovate within this narrow fantasy subgenre? Is the sword and…

Jun 5, 2024 •

Helpless Monsters, Hopeless Writers, and How to Write Horror Comics

Ones from the vaults...

Apr 24, 2024 •

Old Sorcery, New Edge: Q&A with Molly Tanzer

The award-winning author of 'The Diabolist's Library' trilogy on her route to writing, taming research and penning the official resurrection of Jirel of…

Feb 12, 2024 •

Over By Christmas (a short story)

A Weird winter's tale of lost time, lost hearts, and a devil's bargain - published here for the first time anywhere (30-minute read)

Dec 21, 2023

How We Built Black Beth

Resurrecting a British sword and sorcery heroine and what it takes to write a character 'well'

Nov 6, 2023 •

How 'Dungeons & Dragons: Honour Among Thieves' Rolls a 20 for Storytelling

A milestone in fantasy cinema that illustrates exactly why writing about magic requires a true sorcerer’s touch (contains very mild spoilers)

Apr 5, 2023 •

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