Monthly Archives: September 2018

Off to the UK!

Posted on September 27, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

Next week I am boarding a jet plane for a research trip to the UK. I’ve got a few things on the agenda: Oxford Ah yes, Oxford, city of dreaming spires. It is an imaginatively rich space for me. I … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged A Grief Observed, archival research, Bodleian, Bodleian Library, C.S. Lewis, Cheltenham, Chester, George Sayer, Gloucester, Gloucestershire, J.R.R. Tolkien, Oxford, Oxford C.S. Lewis Society, Surprised by Joy, The Quest of Bleheris, Worcester | 16 Comments

Writing Tips by Stephen King

Posted on September 24, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

I’ve blogged from time to time about the importance of Stephen King‘s On Writing. It is a funny, moving, flawed, and priceless resource for those who dream of having their journal sketches become hardcover books. On Writing is one of the books … Continue reading →

Posted in Memorable Quotes, On Writing | Tagged Danse Macabre, L.M. Montgomery, Lucy Maud Montgomery, Octavia Butler, On Writing, Robert Heinlein, Stephen King, writing | 24 Comments

Happy Hobbit Day! Signum Reading Today

Posted on September 22, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

September 22 is when we celebrate the birthday of Bilbo Baggins and his mythic heir apparent, Frodo. It is a day for hobbitish celebrations, both fantastic and epic. That the “New Hobbit” adventure begins with a birthday party that begins … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | 16 Comments

A Fatal Flaw in Contemporary Writing: Thinking About Identity in Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven (Part 2)

Posted on September 20, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

Earlier this week I put a review up of what I think to be a strong, engaging literary sf book, skillfully written to accomplish two things that many authors could not do. First, Emily St. John Mandel has created in Station Eleven … Continue reading →

Posted in Canadian literature, On Writing, Thoughtful Essays | Tagged Canadian literature, Emily St. John Mandel, epistolary fiction, Science Fiction, speculative fiction, Station Eleven, Trump | 5 Comments

Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven: A Brilliant Apocalypse with an Almost Fatal Flaw (Part 1)

Posted on September 18, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

From Mary Shelley to Margaret Atwood, I have a deep interest in women’s sf and speculative fiction. It is not just a question of perspective and hearing other voices. Rather, it simply that some of my favourite writers are in … Continue reading →

Posted in Canadian literature, On Writing, Reviews | Tagged Canadian literature, Emily St. John Mandel, epistolary fiction, J.K. Rowling, Madeleine L'Engle, Margaret Atwood, Nalo Hopkinson, Octavia Butler, Science Fiction, speculative fiction, Station Eleven, Ursula K. Le Guin | 6 Comments

A Timeline for the Creation of Narnia

Posted on September 13, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

Yesterday I shared some Press Association news about a new C.S. Lewis letter that popped up in a Lewis Facebook discussion groups. It really is a neat letter and a great opportunity to see Lewis’ handwriting when he is writing … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged books, C.S. Lewis, lion the witch and the wardrobe, Narnia, Prince Caspian, Roger Lancelyn Green, The Chronicles of Narnia, The Horse and His Boy, The Last Battle, The LeFay Fragment, The Magician's Nephew, The Silver Chair, Voyage of the Dawn Treader, Walter Hooper, writing | 25 Comments

A New C.S. Lewis Letter with Details About Narnia

Posted on September 12, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

That’s right, Dominic Winter Auctioneers is putting a newly surfaced letter from C.S. Lewis on the auction block. It is a great artifact, as The Daily Mail reports, a generous and light bit of Narnian delight as Lewis answers some questions from schoolchildren … Continue reading →

Posted in Letters, Memorable Quotes | Tagged archive, books, C.S. Lewis, Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, letters, lion the witch and the wardrobe, Narnia, Prince Caspian, Voyage of the Dawn Treader | 40 Comments

Stephen King, Dawn of the Dead, and the Culture of 9/11

Posted on September 11, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

I have talked before how I found Stephen King‘s On Writing in a bargain bin in the street, and how that discovery catapulted me toward a dozen years of constant writing since. The novel I sat down to write after reading … Continue reading →

Posted in Memorable Quotes, Thoughtful Essays | Tagged 9/11, Dawn of the Dead, George Romero, H.P. Lovecraft, Horror, Johnny Cash, Mel Gibson, mythology, On Writing, Sarah Polley, Stephen King, Supernatural Horror in Literature, The Blair Witch Project, The Passion of the Christ, Zack Snyder, zombies | 13 Comments

This Time of Year, This Time of Life

Posted on September 5, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

As a house full of educators and students, normally this week our family is having first first days, second first days, and third first days. My son’s first day of high school was yesterday. He was off to school, nervous … Continue reading →

Posted in Reflections | Tagged academic, archival research, Bodleian, Bodleian Library, C.S. Lewis, Oxford, Oxford C.S. Lewis Society, PhD Research, Planet Narnia, research, spiritual theology, Teaching, University, UPEI | 11 Comments

The Last Letter of J.R.R. Tolkien, on the 45th Anniversary of His Death

Posted on September 3, 2018 by Brenton Dickieson

I have just finished reading The Letters of J.R.R. Tolkien (1982), which is fitting given that this is the 45th anniversary of his death (2 Sep 1973). With help from Christopher Tolkien, noted writer, broadcaster, and biographer Humphrey Carpenter collected the letters … Continue reading →