Mythopoeic Press
Books by and about writers of mythopoeic and fantastic literature
Books by and about writers of mythopoeic and fantastic literature
History of the Mythopoeic Press
Compiled by Janet Brennan Croft
A Press associated with the Society was first proposed in the 1970s but did not come to fruition until the late nineties. Diana Pavlac Glyer’s formal proposal for its founding was discussed at the November 1996 Stewards’ Meeting. Glyer was the first Press Steward, and she has been followed in the position by Joan Marie Verba, Scott McLaren, David Oberhelman, and Leslie Donovan.
Prior to 2004, the Mythopoeic Press exclusively produced previously unpublished materials by authors associated with the Inklings, along with additional scholarly materials such as introductions and bibliographies. With the completion of Peter Jackson’s film trilogy, however, MythPress felt it was time to move into the area of original scholarship with the publication of an essay collection on the films. After the success of this project, edited collections on mythopoeic and fantastical topics have become a regular part of the Press’s mission. The first such collection from the Press was Tolkien on Film: Essays on Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings, edited by Janet Brennan Croft and published in 2005.
Since that time, four additional collections have been published: Past Watchful Dragons: Fantasy and Faith in the World of C. S. Lewis, edited by Amy H. Sturgis, preface by Darrell Gwaltney (published 2007); Intersection of Fantasy & Native America: From H. P. Lovecraft to Leslie Marmon Silko, edited by Amy H. Sturgis and David D. Oberhelman (published 2009); Perilous and Fair: Women in the Works and Life of J. R. R. Tolkien, edited by Janet Brennan Croft and Leslie Donovan (published in January, 2015, both in print and electronic formats); and Baptism of Fire: The Birth of the Modern British Fantastic in World War I, edited by Janet Brennan Croft (published in July, 2015, both in print and electronic formats). In addition the MythPress has made available once again the Proceedings of the J.R.R. Tolkien Centenary Conference 1992, edited by Patricia Reynolds and Glen H. GoodKnight and published in 1995 as both Mythlore 80 and Mallorn 33.