Elizabeth Hopkinson's Hidden Grove

  Warning: contains spoilers for the books and film. This year’s theme at Swanwick Writers’ Summer School is “Back to the Movies”. I’ve decided to go as a character from one of my favourite films ever: Howl’s Moving Castle . For that reason (as if I needed a reason!) I’ve been re-watching the film and re-reading the sequels, Castle in the Air and House of Many Ways . And as with the moving castle itself, there is always more to discover. Here are some of them. The Magician’s Cape  I’ve been reading this Swedish fairy tale by Anna Wahlenberg as part of my ongoing quest for asexual fairy tales. I think it could well qualify! But I couldn’t help noticing the similarities to Howl’s Moving Castle. The titular magician has a castle high on a mountain, in front of which “he conjured a wonderful garden where magnificent flowers glowed… There the magician would lie on a velvet couch under the branches watching beautiful young girls dance on the lawn, and sing and play the guitar.” Furt...

 I got this list of questions from watching Jen Campbell’s YouTube channel (although someone else created the list). I think it’s mainly aimed at YouTubers, but I’ve adapted it to my own purposes, because it looked like fun.  A selection of books. Best book you’ve read in 2022 so far. How can I possibly choose? I’ve bought a lot of folklore books this year, mostly second-hand, which are all great. A very beautiful, illustrated book of Fairies and Elves . Likewise, an illustrated book of Celtic Pilgrimages. I enjoyed Storyland by Amy Jeffs, which is new this year. I loved The Last Firefox by Lee Newbury.  Best sequel you’ve read. Dark Tides by Philippa Gregory, which is the sequel to Tidelands. I listened to the audiobook version. New releases you haven’t read but want to. So many. The Embroidered Book by Kate Heartfield. Pandora by Susan Stokes-Chapman. The Clockwork Girl by Anna Mazzola. To name but three.  Most anticipated releases for the second half of the year....

As writers, we are asked lots of questions. Most are some variation on: Are you still writing? How's the writing going? Are you writing anything at the moment? We writers can feel pretty frustrated by these questions as, for us, they are the equivalent of asking a plumber: "Done any plumbing lately?" Or asking a specialist doctor: "How's the gynaecology going?" However, we know you mean well and are interested in our work. So, in answer to your questions, I thought I'd bring you up to date with my three main projects. Asexual Fairy Tales This is a book of retold and original fairy tales I've been working on with my daughter, Anna, who has done the beautiful illustrations. It's all written, and I'll be launching a crowdfunding campaign to fund it on Kickstarter. (You pledge money to help fund it, you get a signed book and/or other goodies). I'm doing it this way as I believe it's the best way to connect the book with it'...

It's almost 2018, and here I am with my Christmas/birthday book haul. Possibly the best ever. I thought I'd post this now, at the threshold to a new year and revisit it later when I've read all the books in the pile, so you can hear my verdict on them. So, here's the list: To the Bright Edge of the World by Eowyn Ivey, author of The Snow Child.  Strange things happen when a husband goes to explore the interior of Alaska and his wife is left behind. At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald, author of my beloved Phantastes . Classic Victorian fantasy about a boy and a cab horse. The Paper Magician by Charlie N Homberg. First in a series about a student magician. The Iron Age by Arja Kajermo. A fairy-tale memoir of Finland and Sweden. Recently mentioned by booktuber Jen Campbell. The Less than Perfect Legend of Donna Creosote by Dan Micklethwaite, one of my fellow Fogotten & Fantastical authors. A modern fairytale of the inner city. The Travellin...

Looking back on the year that's almost gone, I've been struck by just how many anthologies my short stories have appeared in this year.  In fact, it's been a bumper crop! I'd like to celebrate with a festive roundup of all my anthology appearances of 2016 (including the title of the short story featured in each). And I've even put up some links, so if you need some last minute Christmas presents, or even somewhere to spend your Christmas money, you know where to look!  https://twitter.com/UnstapledPress/media Venn Unstapled Press, March 2016 "The Ice Queen and the Mer-King" http://18thwall.com/product/those-who-live-long-forgotten-ii/ Those Who Live Long Forgotten II 18th Wall Productions, March 2016 "Claire de le Lune" The Forgotten and the Fantastical 2  Mother's Milk Books, March 2016 "Reve/Revival" Incandescence Transcendent Oloris Publishing, September 2016 "The Spirit of the Underground...

The Silver Metal Love r, here pictured with another unusual romance, The Ghost Bride. During the colder months - while I was ill, in fact - I read Tanith Lee's The Silver Metal Lover for the first time. It was an emotional read, and it's only now that enough time has passed for me to be able to write about it objectively. Briefly, the book is about a girl called Jane, who falls in love with a robot called Silver.  Silver is basically the perfect man - he's been designed to bring pleasure and happiness to people.  But Jane finds it hard to believe that a robot could genuinely be in love with her.  Meanwhile, Silver's creators have pronounced him "faulty" and want to destroy him. It was only when I went looking for fan art of Silver, that I saw someone had suggested the tale is based on the myth of Persephone.  This got me thinking about other aspects of the story, and realising that the book is actually packed with references to Greek myth (and a little bit to ...

Yesterday, I read this excellent blog post by Liberty Hardy (aka @MissLiberty) on Bookriot, listing 100 strange and unusual novels. http://bookriot.com/2016/04/11/i-got-your-weird-right-here-100-wonderful-strange-and-unusual-novels/ I was rather disappointed that I'd only read three-and-a-bit out of 100 (I'm actually in the middle of one right now!) But then I remembered that I've read plenty of other bizarre books. And enjoyed most of them -I do love a bit of weird! So I thought I'd make my own list in response, beginning with the original four and going on from there. Sadly, I could only come up with 30 at short notice (it's Monday morning!) but it's been fun to reminisce. 30 Weird Books I Have Read 1. Viper Wine by Hermione Eyre I believe Bookriot described this as "if David Bowie wrote historical fiction." 2. The Rabbit Back Literature Society by Pasi Ilmari Jääskeläinen So, this author vanishes in a flurry of snow, and... 3. Brave Story by Miyuki ...

This last weekend, I went to a convention in Derby for fantasy/sci-fi/horror writers, called EdgeLit.  It was the first time I had been to this or any convention - except for the time I went to pick up my James White Award at the 2005 Hugos, which was a flying-visit blur of nerves, Alan Lee, and people in Ming the Merciless cloaks.  This time, I had actually paid  to go.  It turned out to be a very enjoyable day, both inspiring and entertaining. As is often the case with such things, one of the best sessions was one I only decided to go to at the last minute: a panel discussion entitled  Into the Grimdark – Is Darker Fantasy a Trend, or Here to Stay? The discussion began with an attempt to define Grimdark as a sub-genre.  There was some disagreement as to whether George RR Martin ( Game of Thrones etc.) came under this heading.  I think it was generally agreed that Scott Lynch's Locke Lamora books did.  As far ...

I was going through my "inspiration" folder the other day when I came across this little piece I wrote a few years back.  Since many of us are in need of a good laugh to beat the January blues, I thought I would post it now.  This is especially for my writer friends... How not to write fantasy 1.  On no account use your own experiences directly.  However interesting you personally find your scientific records of 121 days hatching a dragon's egg, or the secret memoirs of your affair with a dashing student wizard in 1974, the public are likely to be less forgiving.  Always mix truth with a little fiction.  If in doubt, try inserting the words vinyl flooring, tailbacks expected and celebrity master chef at regular intervals. 2.  Never embark without knowing where you are going.  You may think it fun to leave your hero balancing in the boughs of an iron willow in the Hall of Fifteen Lamps for three months, but he will most likely look on the situation...

I recently read a Top Ten of short stories from The Guardian , and I hadn't read any of them!  So I thought I would post a list of short stories that made a lasting impression on me.  They're all fantasy stories, and 7 is a magic number, so it seemed to fit together well.   Smith of Wootten Major by JRR Tolkien From Tales from the Perilous Realm On a completely different scale from the epic Lord of the Rings , but with the same heart, this is a beautiful story about a boy who swallows a star which enables him to walk in the land of Faery as an adult.  For anyone who has ever felt, like me, that "I'm walking in the wrong land.  My generation doesn't understand". The Kith of the Elf-Folk by Lord Dunsany From Time and the Gods (Fantasy Masterworks) It's very hard to choose just one story by "the master", Lord Dunsany, but this one really does linger. The little Wild Thing of the marshes wishes for a soul when she hears singing in the cathedral, so h...