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I spoke with Hadas Elber-Aviram about British urban fantasy. This is the video version of a previously posted podcast.
Books, audio interviews, author, academic, videos, Bloomsbury, fantasy, literature, literary studies,
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Hadas Elber-Aviram has loved fantasy since she was small and studied as a graduate student. She recently released a book about British fantasy writers and their use of London in their fiction. We spoke about the book and British fantasy. Fairy Tales of London: British Urban Fantasy, 1840 to the Present (Bloomsbury Academic, 2021)
0:37 – Hadas talks about why she started studying fantasy.
2:23 – Hadas talks about why she compared rural and urban fantasy authors.
5:07 – Hadas talks about where these fantasy authors lived.
6:24 – Hadas talks about why London was so disliked.
7:47 – Hadas talks about the positive aspects of London that authors wrote about.
9:24 – Hadas talks about the authors she covers in the book and what she discusses about each.
14:41 – Hadas talks about how many rural writers existed post WWII.
16:43 – Hadas talks about Tolkien’s attitudes.
18:24 – Hadas talks urban writers’ approaches to the urban.
20:09 – Hadas talks about looking at London in a fantastic way.
23:24 – Hadas contrasts the physical aspect of London versus the people who lived there.
26:14 – Hadas talks more about London Architecture and how it’s made fantastic.
28:34 – Hadas discusses the use of London and other cities in fantasy before 1840.
31:07 – Hadas talks about magical spots in London.
34:38 – Hadas talks about her research methods.
37:41 – Hadas goes into detail about an HG Wells story.
40:12 – Hadas talks about reading stories where they are located and about urban fantasy as a tour guide.
41:55 – Hadas talks about enjoying walking through London.
45:21 – Hadas talks about not including J.G. Bollard.
46:18 – Hadas talks about the tragedy of Mervyn Peake.
50:17 – Hadas talks about the label urban fantasy.
52:07 – We discuss the journey in Dracula and then “cozy catastrophes”.
58:40 – Hadas can be found at the University of Notre Dame, London.
https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/fairy-tales-of-london-9781350110687/
For more “Full Contact Nerd” please follow me at crisalvarez.com, on Facebook at CrisAlvarezFCN, on youtube at Cris Alvarez on twitter @CrisAlvarezFCN, on Instagram @crisalvarezscifi, and on Apple Podcasts / Google Podcasts / Stitcher / Spotify for the podcast. Please see historyrabbithole.com for a list of my dozen or so blogs and podcasts. You’re sure to find something you like.
Guests: Hadas Elber-Aviram
Host: Cris Alvarez
Tags: Books, audio interviews, author, academic, podcast, Bloomsbury, fantasy, literature, literary studies,
Check the book out here https://amzn.to/3wdpdeu
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Subscribe: Apple Podcasts | RSS
Check the book out here https://amzn.to/3997wTw
David Arnold spent many years as a freelance musician before turning to writing. He has completed his fourth novel, a post-apocalyptic survival novel. We spoke about the novel, what makes sci-fi, and the process of writing. The Electric Kingdom (Viking Books, 2021)
0:29 – David talks about why he wrote this novel.
3:15 – David talks about the book’s connection with his son’s birth.
4:36 – David talks about the details of the book.
7:05 – David talks about the undefinable nature of his book where it may or may not have fantastic elements.
9:11 – David and I discuss Andrei Tarkovsky.
11:22 – David talks about the research he did for the book.
15:14 – David talks about the settings of his books.
16:48 – David talks about having been a Nashville musician and loving Christopher Nolan movies.
20:54 – David talks about the plague in his book and Covid. He also talks about health issues he had to deal with while writing the book.
24:07 – David talks about reflecting life experiences in his writing.
26:04 – David talks about the musical feel of the book.
28:04 – David talks about writing songs.
29:31 – David talks about the book being categorized as being for young adults.
34:00 – David talks about the editing of his book.
36:09 – David talks about his writing process.
38:22 – David talks about reading his own work out loud.
39:54 – David talks about editing his work and creating and editing his music.
42:47 – David talks about how his writing has changed over time.
44:32 – David talks about his enjoyment of writing.
47:11 – David talks about the jobs he has had including pre-school teacher.
48:53 – David talks about how his writing was impacted by picture books.
50:55 – David talks about the size of the book’s draft.
53:36 – David talks about being obsessed with Jurassic Park.
56:57 – David talks about how his book was published.
57:51 – David can be found at davidarnoldbooks.com and on instagram @iamdavidarnold.
https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/624806/the-electric-kingdom-by-david-arnold/
https://www.instagram.com/iamdavidarnold/
For more “Full Contact Nerd” please follow me at crisalvarez.com, on Facebook at CrisAlvarezFCN, on youtube at Cris Alvarez on twitter @CrisAlvarezFCN, on Instagram @crisalvarezscifi, and on Apple Podcasts / Google Podcasts / Stitcher / Spotify for the podcast. Please see historyrabbithole.com for a list of my dozen or so blogs and podcasts. You’re sure to find something you like.
Guests: David Arnold
Host: Cris Alvarez
Tags: Books, audio interviews, author, podcast, Viking Books, science fiction,
Check the book out here https://amzn.to/3997wTw
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.