Beginning of the Essay for Karen

All right, Karen, here's the rough start. We'll try conversational at first, rather than formal essay, because this is a blog and because I don't have a formal introduction or conclusion, just an opinionated thesis. ;)

Topic: Use of Mythology in Fiction (and what elements of mythology actually count)

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My general thesis is that there's a lot more to mythology than monsters, and in fact, monsters are such a small part of mythology that it's a shame how many people consider them the whole of it. Don't get me wrong, I love a good dragon tale. (The Book Dragon is my very favorite, and I'd love to find it again.) But just because a book has dragons doesn't mean it's using legends or mythology as a background. And even if the books, like the Harry Potter series, use legends as the background for how mythical creatures act, if that's not a major part of the tale, then the mythology is just an aside. For some stories, that's absolutely how it should be. For others, like Wicked Lovely and the "Percy Jackson" books, the mythology is so integral to the tale that the stories are seeped in it. Both are valid techniques, and both are completely enjoyable.

But if you want to talk about using mythology, it's the latter category that gets the gold star.

Plug-o-clock (to steal a phrase from Rich Burlew)

Just a few new releases to note:

* The Fox, which I mentioned yesterday, by Sherwood Smith (sartorias), came out on August 7th. I only just recently got a hold of it (last week), hence my delay in mentioning it. It is thus far brilliant; I expect to have it finished over the weekend. If you haven't yet read Inda (the book to which The Fox is a sequel), and you're a serious fantasy reader, put it on your to-read list, and move it up to the top as quickly as possible.

* Common Shiner's new CD, Viennas, is now available on CD Baby for less than $10 including shipping. You can get it here.

* Tiffany L. Trent (tltrent)'s new novel, In the Serpent's Coils is out in the world. I just picked up my copy last night.

* Jeff Duntemann (jeff_duntemann) has released a new novelette as an e-book via Lulu. He's selling it for just a dollar, and you can buy it here. This is Jeff's only fantasy work, according to his recent lj post; he's written several science fiction stories, including the novella "Drumlin Boiler," which was nominated for an Asimov's Readers Choice award in 2002, and the novel The Cunning Blood.