For fans of epic and high fantasy, the idea that there will nearly always be musician or bard character will come as no surprise. While not often the main character, no band of unlikely misfits is complete without a character who turns up for every quest toting a guitar, lyre, harp or trombone. Such characters are disguised a little better in Sci-fi but they are still very much present - Gurney Halleck anyone? This week Jules and Madeleine take a look at exactly why the bard character is so ubiquitous. What is the purpose of the musician archetype and how does it feed into story telling? And just how strong is the relationship between music and politics? Taking examples from a wide range of myths, legends and other literary and films sources, the dragons set off to find out.
Title music: 'Ecstacy' by Smilin Cynic
Episode 253: The Good Neighbours - Festive Faeries and Winter Elves
Episode 252: Why is There Never a Happy Ending? - and Other Questions Writers Get Asked
Episode 251 To Queer or not to Queer - Including LGBTQ+ Characters in Speculative Fiction
Episode 250: The Usual Suspects - Cast Calling for your Novel
Episode 249 - The Goddess' Chariot - Myths and Folktales of the Moon
Episode 248: All the Feels - Emotion and Characterisation in Speculative Fiction
Episode 247: Sweet, Awkward and Tongue-tied - The Unromantic Hero in Speculative Fiction
Episode 246 - Casting Long Shadows - How Horror Influences Other Genres
Episode 245: Old Gods & Ancient Stones - What Folk Horror has to say to a Modern Audience
Ep 244 - Of Fates and Phantoms - The Anatomy of the Ghost Story
Episode 243: The Mother of Science Fiction - The Life of Mary Shelley
Episode 242 - Chairs, Dolls & Diamonds - Cursed Objects in Fact and Fiction
Episode 241 - Vampires, Incubae and Goblin Kings - The Daemon Lover in Myth and Speculative Fiction
Episode 240: Paging Dr Love - What the Romance Genre can Teach Us about Writing
Episode 239: Unpopular Opinion Time (part 2) - The Dragon's Hot Takes on Speculative Issues
Episode 238: Unpopular Opinion Time (part 1) - The Dragons' Hot Takes on Speculative Issues
Episode 237: Sowing Prejudice - Accuracy and Research in Writing
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 236: News from the Word Mines - What No-one tells Newbies about Writing and Publishing
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 235: The Alchemy of Forever - Immortality in Speculative Fiction
Dissecting Dragons: Episode 234: The Power Behind the Throne - the Hidden Voices of Political Change in Speculative Fiction
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Lit Society: Books and Drama
Ex Libris
Write The Book: Conversations on Craft
The Count of Monte Cristo
Frankenstein
Fresh Air
Myths and Legends