Fantasy Literature

Sailing to the West: The Fall of Arthur, Beowulf, and Tol Eressea (Keynote Lecture for Oxonmoot 2017)

The last few years have seen the publication of two of Tolkien’s works that scholars and serious fans have known about for a very long time: Tolkien’s unfinished alliterative poem The Fall of Arthur[i] and Tolkien’s prose translation of Beowulf…

By Dimitra Fimi | 23rd September 2018 | Beowulf, Celtic Myth, Fantasy Literature, Myth and Folklore, The Fall of Arthur, Tolkien | No Comments |
Read more

Celtic Myth in Contemporary Children’s Fantasy in the 2018 Mythopoeic Awards Finalists!

I have just found out that my latest monograph, Celtic Myth in Contemporary Children’s Fantasy (Palgrave Macmillan, 2017), has been shortlisted for the Mythopoeic Scholarship Award in Myth and Fantasy Studies! The Mythopoeic Awards are divided into four categories, two for fiction, and…

By Dimitra Fimi | 26th May 2018 | Alan Garner, Awards, Books, Celtic Myth, Children's Fantasy, Children's Literature, Fantasy Literature, Folklore, Henry Neff, Irish myth and folklore, Lloyd Alexander, Myth and Folklore, Welsh myth an folklore, Worldbuilding | No Comments |
Read more

Forthcoming talks and lectures: Glasgow, Kalamazoo, Essex, Oxford and North Wales

The next few months are going to be a bit hectic! If you are attending any of the conferences or events below, don’t hesitate to come and say hello! 26-27 April – Keynote for GIFCon (Glasgow International Fantasy Conversations) 2018: ‘In the…

By Dimitra Fimi | 23rd April 2018 | Academic Teaching, Books, Celtic Myth, Children's Fantasy, Conferences, Fantasy Literature, Folklore, Irish myth and folklore, Literature Wales, Myth and Folklore, Public Lecture, Tolkien, Welsh myth an folklore | No Comments |
Read more

Alan Garner’s The Owl Service has its 50th anniversary today!

One of the books I’ve worked with very closely during the last few years is Alan Garner’s The Owl Service. Garner’s creative re-use of the tale of Lleu, Blodeuwedd, and Gronw from the Welsh Mabinogion made it a prime candidate…

By Dimitra Fimi | 21st August 2017 | Academic Teaching, Alan Garner, Books, Celtic Myth, Children's Fantasy, Children's Literature, Fantasy Literature, Myth and Folklore, Welsh myth an folklore | No Comments |
Read more

Beren and Lúthien: Some First Thoughts (and radio interview)

J.R.R. Tolkien’s Beren and Lúthien, edited by Christopher Tolkien, was published yesterday. The book is an attempt by Christopher Tolkien to extract one of the most beautiful, moving, and personal stories of his father’s ‘legendarium’ into a standalone book, allowing the…

By Dimitra Fimi | 2nd June 2017 | Books, Fantasy Literature, Folklore, Interviews, Media, Myth and Folklore, Tolkien, Worldbuilding | No Comments |
Read more

How Social Media Has Helped my Research (or, the kindness of strangers!)

This is a title I never thought I’d write! But, having finished another book (submitted exactly a year ago today!) I’m in that reflective mood again, thinking back to some important moments and turning points. Researching and writing a monograph…

By Dimitra Fimi | 1st May 2017 | Books, Celtic Myth, Children's Fantasy, Children's Literature, Fantasy Literature, Interviews, Irish myth and folklore, Lloyd Alexander, Media, Welsh myth an folklore | No Comments |
Read more

Literary Tourism: Wales, Land of Legends

Literature Wales (http://www.literaturewales.org/) launched today their new literary tourism website: Land of Legends – http://www.landoflegends.wales/. This was a project funded by Visit Wales (http://www.visitwales.com/) and I was delighted to have been one of the consultants on literary connections of specific…

By Dimitra Fimi | 12th April 2017 | Celtic Myth, Children's Fantasy, Children's Literature, Fantasy Literature, Folklore, Literature Wales, Media, Myth and Folklore, Welsh myth an folklore | No Comments |
Read more