When the invitation came in to be on program at World Fantasy, I hyperventilated and panicked for a bit. That’s the kind of thing I usually keep on my old livejournal blog, so the post about it is over here. Somebody asked me if I was a god. After making a million phone calls to arrange babysitting so I could go play at godhood, I got to say yes. It looks like I’ll be stepping into that empty spot on the 1914 panel after all.
Here’s the description from the program.
How World War I Changed Fantasy Literature
Time: Thursday, November 6, 2pm-3pm, Nov. 6, Regency F
Panelists: J. T. Glover, Gary K. Wolfe, Sarah Avery
Description: A discussion of how World War I influenced writers from William Hope Hodgson–who died during the war, and seemed to preview some of its horrors in The Night Land–to Tolkien, who served in the war and whose Lord of the Rings bears resemblances to both The Night Land and his experiences during the war. Scholarly works have been published on the effect the war had on C. S. Lewis and the impact on the Narnia series. As well, the shock of the war may have been responsible for pushing both H.G. Wells and the nascent genre of science fiction out of the literary mainstream and forcing it to create its own subculture.
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In other World Fantasy news, the Broad Universe group reading reclassified itself as a party, so it’s not part of the official program. If you’d like to hear five-minute tastes of fiction by 17 different writers, plus bonus chocolate, you’ll be able to find us Broads and our fellow travelers here:
Broad Universe Rapid Fire Reading
Time: Saturday, November 8, 2pm-4pm
Location: Regency Suite 1, Room 1850
Featuring: Danielle Ackley-McPhail, Sarah Avery, Carol Berg, C.D. Covington, Randee Dawn, Julia Dvorin, Sally Wiener Grotta, Elektra Hammond, Laurel Anne Hill, Elaine Isaak/E.C. Ambrose, L. Jagi Lamplighter, Gail Z. Martin, Heather McDougal, Sherry Peters, Sarah Pinsker, Kathy Sullivan, and Jean Marie Ward
Source: Dr Pretentious
