I think a big part of understanding what works in fantasy is to study its history and be aware of who came before us. I recently stumbled across this Brief History of Sword and Sorcery and thought it was very informative an interesting. A Brief History of Sword & Sorcery
I would actually love to take some sort of "History of Fantasy" class or something, where it would be possible to read a selection of books from different eras of fantasy and have discussions about the authors and their techniques as well. I've been thinking about something like this for quite some time actually.
Maybe not now, but maybe in 2015 (maybe sooner if there seemed to be a lot of interest) I'd like to organize something that would combine history, reading, and creative writing together to make sort of an introduction to the heavy-hitters in fantasy combined with a workshop.
Maybe a structure like this:
1. Introduction to an author (for example Tolkien).
2. Discuss his major works and influence on the genre, maybe by reading a handful of essays or articles.
3. Read one of his works.
4. Discuss it.
5. Write your own work based off given themes closely related to Tolkien's work (friendship, sacrifice, etc.)
This would go on for an allotted amount of time, then would shift to a new author.
I'm thinking off the top of my head about authors: Tolkien for sure, maybe even go further back to works like Beowulf. I figure for the first course it could focus on maybe four important works throughout the eras. Then if the class garnered interest, there could be more later on with new authors and studies.
If anyone would be interested in such a thing, what four works would you focus on? Bear in mind, if the first class worked well, there would be more options in the future.
Anyway, just an idea I'm throwing around at the moment. I may just do it for myself for fun. I'm a nerd like that.
I would actually love to take some sort of "History of Fantasy" class or something, where it would be possible to read a selection of books from different eras of fantasy and have discussions about the authors and their techniques as well. I've been thinking about something like this for quite some time actually.
Maybe not now, but maybe in 2015 (maybe sooner if there seemed to be a lot of interest) I'd like to organize something that would combine history, reading, and creative writing together to make sort of an introduction to the heavy-hitters in fantasy combined with a workshop.
Maybe a structure like this:
1. Introduction to an author (for example Tolkien).
2. Discuss his major works and influence on the genre, maybe by reading a handful of essays or articles.
3. Read one of his works.
4. Discuss it.
5. Write your own work based off given themes closely related to Tolkien's work (friendship, sacrifice, etc.)
This would go on for an allotted amount of time, then would shift to a new author.
I'm thinking off the top of my head about authors: Tolkien for sure, maybe even go further back to works like Beowulf. I figure for the first course it could focus on maybe four important works throughout the eras. Then if the class garnered interest, there could be more later on with new authors and studies.
If anyone would be interested in such a thing, what four works would you focus on? Bear in mind, if the first class worked well, there would be more options in the future.
Anyway, just an idea I'm throwing around at the moment. I may just do it for myself for fun. I'm a nerd like that.