Children's and Young Adult Literature Commons^™

Dark Moon Shallow Sea (The Gods Of Night And Day Series, Vol. 1) By David R. Slayton, Phillip Fitzsimmons

Faculty Articles & Research

Book review of Dark Moon Shallow Sea (The Gods of Night and Day Series, vol 1) by author David R. Slayton. Book review by Phillip Fitzsimmons.

Online Midsummer Seminar (Oms #2) "Fantasy Goes To Hell", The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

FANTASY GOES TO HELL was originally intended to be our 2023 Midwinter Seminar, but our plans for an in-person Mythcon in 2023 fell through, and the topic proved to be so popular it strained the resources we had available for a seminar. Hence we proposed that we expand the seminar into what we have previously called a “Halfling Mythcon”—a virtual Mythcon taking the place of an in-person one.

FANTASY GOES TO HELL will run in parallel with general virtual conference tracks devoted to other topics in Mythopoeic Fantasy, such as presentations by award nominees and traditional after-hours programming. The 2023 …

Adam Binder Series (White Trash Warlock, Trailer Park Trickster, & Deadbeat Druid) By David R. Slayton, Phillip Fitzsimmons

Faculty Articles & Research

Book review of the Adam Binder Series by David R. Slayton. Book review by Phillip Fitzsimmons.

Mythcon 52 - The Mythic, The Fantastic, And The Alien, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

To work toward being stewards of a more sustainable world, the Mythcon 52 Organizing Committee has chosen to promote digital materials and print only a few hard copy versions of our program book that will be for sale during the conference. Paper, ink, printing press machinery, and other resources involved in producing materials we can hold in our hands damage the world around us. As much as we love physical items for their representations of experiences, our Mythcon 52 organizers think many of the authors we love and admire would appreciate our desire to reduce our environmental impact on the …

Online Midwinter Seminar (Oms) #1 Report, Ben Dressler

Student Research

A report on the Mythopoeic Society's first annual Online Midwinter Seminar (OMS) by Ben Dressler.

Online Midwinter Seminar (Oms) #1 Report, Victoria Gaydosik

Faculty Articles & Research

A report on the Mythopoeic Society's first annual Online Midwinter Seminar (OMS) by Victoria Gaydosik.

Online Midwinter Seminar (Oms) #1 Report, Phillip Fitzsimmons

Faculty Articles & Research

A report on the Mythopoeic Society's first annual Online Midwinter Seminar (OMS) by Phillip Fitzsimmons.

The Flight Of The Wild Gander By Joseph Campbell, Phillip Fitzsimmons

Faculty Articles & Research

The Flight of the Wild Gander: Explorations in the Mythological Dimension - Selected Essays, 1944-1968 is a 2018 addition to The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell series. This volume of essays begins with a history of the Grimm brothers and fairy tales, moves on to the author’s ideas on the role of society to the development of mythologies, and ends with the secularization of the sacred. This book would go nicely with his The Mythic Dimension: Selected Essays 1959–1987, a 2017 reissue of the volume, also for The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell series. Both books develop similar themes …

The Saga Of The Volsungs: With The Saga Of Ragnar Lothbrok, Translated By Jackson Crawford, Phillip Fitzsimmons

Faculty Articles & Research

The Saga of the Volsungs: With the Saga of Ragnar Lothbrok is a treat. Both compositions in the volume contain larger than life heroes and heroines who engage in adventures and who fight for the survival and wealth of their clans. They are also consumed--generation after generation--by the blood-feud and by the compulsion to fulfill, to the letter-of-the-word, their unwise vows, and executing them to their last logical and bitter consequences. The stories consist of heart wrenching episodes of treachery, violence, incest, and infanticide. But, both sagas can grow on a reader. They are also tales about an action-oriented people …

Mythcon 51 - A Virtual “Halfling” Mythcon, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Nothing “halfling” about it in the end, this year we are presenting fifty papers, panels, roundtables, and alternative programming for your Mythopoeic enjoyment. 2020 was a rough year for literally the whole world, and not just because we had to reschedule Mythcon 51. Many of us found ourselves turning to our favorite books for solace, not just academic interest, in the past year. We never could have expected to be hosting Mythcon 51 virtually, but already I’m thrilled about the silver linings that a virtual conference brings:

• Greater international attendance, with presenters and attendees from all over the world!
• Reduced …

Book Review: An Encouraging Thought: The Christian Worldview In The Writings Of J.R.R. Tolkien By Donald T. Williams, Phillip Fitzsimmons

Faculty Articles & Research

Donald T. Williams begins his book An Encouraging Thought: The Christian Worldview in the Writings of J.R.R. Tolkien with the sentence, “I first read The Lord of the Rings in the summer of 1968, the summer between my junior and senior years of high school.” (p. 8 Kindle) This autobiographical fact launches the slim volume that shares Williams’s early discoveries that J.R.R. Tolkien was a Christian whose Christian worldview is expressed throughout The Hobbit, The Lord of the Rings, and “On Fairy-Stories.”

Mythcon 50 - Moving Forward, Looking Back, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Mythcon 50: Moving Forward, Looking Back

To give its far-flung membership a chance to meet, and to present papers orally with audience response, The Mythopoeic Society has been holding conferences since its early days. These began with a one-day Narnia Conference in 1969, and the first annual Mythopoeic Conference was held at the Claremont Colleges (near Los Angeles) in September, 1970. This year’s conference is the third in a series of golden anniversaries for the Society, celebrating our 50th Mythcon.

Mythlore: Preserving The Past And Moving Into The Future, Phillip Fitzsimmons, Janet Brennan Croft, Benjamin Dressler

Faculty Articles & Research

We will show you how to find and read or download articles or whole issues of the journal, as well as show other features of the repository. We will demonstrate how authors submit articles and reviews using the Digital Commons platform, and discuss how author’s accounts can be used for corresponding with the editor and receiving usage reports that show the download frequency and world-wide distribution of readers of published articles.

Mythcon 49 - On The Shoulders Of Giants, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

The Mythopoeic Society has launched into a series of 50th anniversaries: the founding of the Society in 2017, the conception and launch of our scholarly journal Mythlore in 2018, and the establishment of our Mythopoeic Conference in 2019. Our theme is suggested by the ways in which Inklings scholarship has built on such good foundations.

We will celebrate these foundations and fifty years of building "On the Shoulders of Giants" at Mythcon 49.

Book Review: Of Deeper Magic: The Theology Behind The Writings Of C.S. Lewis. By Donald T. Williams., Phillip Fitzsimmons

Faculty Articles & Research

Deeper Magic: The Theology Behind the Writings of C.S. Lewis is both exciting and engaging in its exploration of Christian thought in general and Christian themes in particular, found in the fictional and nonfictional works of C.S. Lewis. This book would sit comfortably on the shelf with other first-rate Evangelical Christian interpretations of the works of individual Inklings, such as Ralph Wood’s The Gospel According to Tolkien: Visions of the Kingdom in Middle-Earth or the works of Matthew Dickerson including his Narnia and the Fields of Arbol: The Environmental Vision of C.S. Lewis. Like the authors of these books, Donald …

Mythcon 48 - All That Is Gold, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Welcome to Mythcon 48, the annual conference of the Mythopoeic Society, and the fiftieth anniversary of its founding! Whether you have been active in the Society since 1967 or this is your first exposure to it, we are delighted to have you join us in Champaign, Illinois, this summer.

Mythcon 47 - Faces Of Mythology: Ancient, Medieval, And Modern, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Inspired by the 60th anniversary of C.S. Lewis's Till We Have Faces and The Last Battle, this year's theme focuses on the mythology that has shaped and "given faces" to so many of our beloved characters, ranging from the myths of the Ancient Greeks to the legends of the Middle Ages and even to the modern mythology of the American Southwest. Similarly, this mythological influence is also evident in the works of many of our favorite mythopoeic authors, from J.R.R. Tolkien to J.K. Rowling, from Ursula K. Le Guin to Alan Garner, and many, many more.

Mythcon 46 - The Arthurian Mythos, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Mythcon 46 will be held at the Hotel Elegante Event and Conference Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. The Hotel Elegante features a full restaurant, a sports bar, and a casual bakery/ coffee shop for drinks and snacks. The entire hotel is non-smoking.

Mythcon 45 - Where Fantasy Fits, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Fantasy literature does not fit comfortably into any scheme. Both old and new, traditional and innovative, popular and elite, mainstream and esoteric, escapist and engaged, high-tech and anti-technology, fantasy defies definitions and transcends categories, dramatizing the incompleteness of our understanding of our own imaginations. At Mythcon 45 we will discuss the place of fantasy in our culture, our institutions, and our hearts.

Mythcon 44 - Green And Growing: The Land And Its Inhabitants In Fantasy, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

How does mythopoeic literature address the relationship between the land and its inhabitants, between the wild and the cultivated? What are their respective moral values, their dangers, and delights? Tangled forests, majestic trees, the ordered fields, the carefully tended gardens; or untamed, wild beauty: each offers a different kind of bounty to those who would live off the land. What role do advocates and protectors of the land play in fantasy literature, particularly as personified in characters such as Yavanna, Radagast, Sam Gamgee, and, of course, Tom Bombadil?

Mythcon 43 - Across The Continents: Myths And Legends From Europe And Asia Meet And Mingle, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Elements from non-Western/nonsEuropean fantasy traditions have a growing presence in modern fantasy literature, either intact or blended with Western themes and images. Mythcon 43 will explore the roots of this cross-pollination, and how it continues to unfold and enrich mythopoeic literature.

Mythcon 42 - Monsters, Marvels, And Minstrels: The Rise Of Modern Medievalism, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

For the first time in its history, Mythcon will be held in New Mexico, whose state motto, fittingly, is "The Land of Enchantment." New Mexico is a state full of rich cultural traditions and fascinating mythologies. From Native American mythic figures such as Kokopelli and Spider Woman, to Hispanic folktales about La Llorona and El Cucui, as well as to conspiracy stories about Roswell aliens and Chupacabra, our desert landscapes are populated with an astoundingly fertile array of fantastical creatures and supernatural beings. The mythologies, folklore, and oral legends of New Mexico provide living traditions that inspire us to contemplate …

Mythcon 41 - War In Heaven, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Conference theme - War in Heaven

From the great epic poems of ancient Greece and ancient India to the Book of Revelation and the Poetic Edda; from John Milton and William Blake to J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams; from Philip Pullman to Neil Gaiman and beyond, theomachy (conflict amongst and against the gods) has been a perennial theme in mythology and mythopoeic literature. Moreover, the conference year of 2010 marks our theme with special significance as the 80th anniversary of the publication of Charles Williams's novel War in Heaven. We hope to encourage new conversation on Williams, too …

Mythcon 40 - Sailing The Seas Of Imagination, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Welcome to the 40th Annual Mythopoeic Conference

As I returned home from Mythcon 38 in Berkeley two years ago, I thought about how the Society had not had a Southern California Mythcon for several years. It seemed important to me that for this special anniversary conference that we return to the territory where the Society began. One thing led to another, and I ended up volunteering to chair this conference.

Mythcon 39 - The Valkyrie And The Goddess: The Warrior Woman In Fantasy, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Mythcon 39

August 15-18, 2008 - Central Connecticut State University, New Britain, Connecticut

The Valkyrie and the Goddess: The Warrior Woman in Fantasy

Marjorie Burns, Sharan Newman, guests of honor

Mythcon 38 - Becoming Adept: The Journey To Mastery, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Program book for Mythcon 38, held at Clark Kerr Campus in Berkeley, California in 2007.

Mythcon 37 - The Map & The Territory: Maps And Landscapes In Fantasy, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Held in Norman, OK (Aug 4-7, 2006), this conference focused on the maps and landscapes in fantasy. It includes a track on Native American Fantasy/Native Americans in Fantasy.

50 Years Of The Lord Of The Rings - Mythcon 36, The Tolkien Society, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

This is the program book for Mythcon 36, held in conjunction with The Tolkien Society.

"The Mythopoeic Society have organised a stream of papers and several events at Tolkien 2005. They have produced a booklet for all attendees, which you should find in the bag you were given when you registered. The booklet doubles as both the Mythcon 36 Program Book (Tolkien 2005 incorporates Mythcon 36) and as a special double issue of Mythprint, the monthly bulletin of the Mythopoeic Society. It includes extra details of the Mythopoeic Society events. Other features include some memories of past Mythcons, including the …

Tolkien 2005: The Ring Goes Ever On, The Tolkien Society

Mythcon Souvenirs

The idea to organise an event to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the publication of The Lord of the Rings was mooted several years ago. I can remember it being discussed at The Plough & Harrow hotel, the location for the 1998 annual general meeting. We felt that this event should be held in Birmingham and subsequently, Trevor Reynolds and myself visited both Aston and Birmingham Universities. Aston was chosen due to the fact that it was more centrally placed for attendees to get to and far more compact that the Birmingham campus. In time the 2005 organising committee started …

Mythcon 35 - Bridges To Other Worlds: Thirty-Five Years Of Mythopoeic Scholarship, The Mythopoeic Society

Mythcon Programs

Mythcon 35's theme focuses on both the Pursuit of mythopoeic scholarship over the past 35 years, and on the image of the bridge in fantasy literature: bridges between fantasy and other literature; influence of fantasy on mainstream art forms; between artists, literary forms, or between text and reader. The work and interests of our Guests of Honor, the Inklings (especially Tolkien, Lewis, and Williams), and other fantasy authors are, of course, always topics at a Mythcon.