Tolkien’s Influence on D&D artwork – John D. Rateliff article

John D. Rateliff is a terrific writer, editor, and independent scholar. For many years, he worked with the Tolkien manuscripts at Marquette University in Milwaukee, and writes extensively on Tolkien and the Inklings. I have been following Mr. Rateliff’s musings on Mr. Tolkien for some time. In addition, I currently reside in Milwaukee. Thanks to the quarantine, I haven’t had …

World-building, fantasy, and how to plot – Interview with Christopher Paolini

The Inheritance Cycle series was marvelous. This is, naturally, no surprise. The author, Christopher Paolini, was heavily inspired by Ursula K. LeGuin, J.R.R. Tolkien and other favorites. He built a lovely world, and deserves much credit. Anyway, here’s an interview with Mr. Christopher Paolini on the fantastic HELLO FUTURE ME YouTube channel. A very brief biography of Christopher Paolini: Christopher …

Alice Hoffman interview on BookBub

Interview with Alice Hoffman, such an incredible writer… Ah, 1995. I was about 28 years old and living in New York City when I first heard about Alice Hoffman. The city was changing every day, and I was too. Let’s face it, those last few years before 30 are like dog years. I remember walking through the East Village seeing …