Continuing their Samhain trail in the run up to 31st October, the dragons are pleased to welcome Phil Breach as a guest on this week's episode. Phil is the author of various pieces of weird fiction, dark fantasy and folk horror, both in prose and verse, which makes him the perfect addition for this week's topic.
Folk Horror has existed as a genre far longer than the phrase used to describe it. It's a nebulous sub-genre without firm boundaries but done correctly, it holds a dark mirror up to society and to our connection, or lack thereof, with the natural world. What are the key components of folk horror? How does it reflect and distort our expectations of community? Why is landscape such a huge influencer? Join the dragons for a lively discussion and stay to hear two of Phil Breach's beautifully atmospheric poems. On the slab this week: The Wicker Man (1973), Phil Rickman's Merrily Watkins series, In the Company of Wolves, Alan Garner's The Owl Service and many more.
Title music: Ecstasy by Smiling Cynic
Episode 370: Running with th Wolves - Werewolves in Folklore and Speculative Fiction Part 2
Episode 369: Running with the Wolves - Werewolves in Folklore and Speculative Fiction Part 1
Episode 368: Help I’ve Written a Book - What to do next when you want to get published
Episode 367: To Like or Not to Like - Writing Likeable Characters in Speculative Fiction
Episode 366: The Deserving and the Undeserving - Avoiding Classism in Speculative Fiction
Episode 365: Amazing Pets and Fantasy Coffee - How to Incorporate Wish Fulfilment Fantasies in Speculative Fiction
Episode 364: There can be only one, no seven - Writing Ensemble Casts in Speculative Fiction
Episode 363: Easter Eggs Accidents or Clever Inclusions - Delving into Disney Fan Theories
Episode 362: The Maiden in the Tower - Tracing the Origins of Rapunzel
Episode 361: The Butler Did it - or Did He - How Who-dunnits Have Shaped Speculative Fiction
Episode 360: Fated Brides & Fatal Spies - the Romantasy Phenomenon
Episode 359: A Great and Mighty Destiny - Legacies and Magical Bloodlines in Speculative Fiction
Episode 358: Wonders and Irritations - 2022 in Review
Episode 357: Gunpowder Crackers and Cancelling Christmas - the Myths Surrounding Common Christmas Practices
Episode 356: Nutcrackers Little Wooden Boys and Bears of Very Little Bear - The Sentient Toy Trope in Speculative Fiction
Episode 355: He’s a Maneater - the Global Invasion of Ogres in Myth & Fiction, part two.
Episode 354: He’s a Maneater - the Global Invasion of Ogres in Myth & Fiction
Episode 353: High Fidelity and Historical Accuracy - Do Adaptations have a Duty to be Accurate
Episode 352: 2022 A Space Oddity - Sci-fi (& Fantasy) Tropes which Don’t Work
Episode 351: Picture This - Enhancing Scenes with the Right Frame in Speculative Fiction
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