Fantasy

Vampires Don't Have to Be Horrible

How Guillermo del Toro’s Cronos (1992) subverted the bloodsucking genre

Feb 20 •

Fantastic Beasts and How to Write Them

Some Jurassic examples of great monster-writing

Jan 28 •

Make Camelot Weird Again

How David Lowery's The Green Knight (2021) brings strange new meaning to an antique fantasy text. And, yes, it’s a Christmas movie. Fight me.

Dec 13, 2024 •

The Furry Folk Horror of Watership Down (1978)

How the animated adaptation of Richard Adams’s novel terrified a generation and builds a non-human epic fantasy that casts a 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' may be a classic, but does anyone still care? Writers and creators of fantasy, neglect this book at your…

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 •

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 •

Postcards from the Edge of Somewhere: An Interview with Fantasy Author John French

The award-winning author, scriptwriter and games designer talks craft, getting published and staying focused, as well as revealing his new creator-owned…

Mar 22, 2023 •

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