''Mythlore'' is a biannual (originally quarterly)

peer-reviewed Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work (peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer review ...

academic journal An academic journal or scholarly journal is a periodical publication in which scholarship relating to a particular academic discipline is published. Academic journals serve as permanent and transparent forums for the presentation, scrutiny, and d ...

founded by

Glen GoodKnight Glen GoodKnight (1941-2010) was the founder of the Mythopoeic Society and the editor of its journal, ''Mythlore'' between 1970 and 1998; in that time the publication grew from being a fan magazine to a peer-reviewed academic journal. He was an exp ...

and published by the

Mythopoeic Society The Mythopoeic Society (MythSoc) is a non-profit organization devoted to the study of mythopoeic literature, particularly the works of J. R. R. Tolkien, Charles Williams, and C. S. Lewis, all members of The Inklings, an informal group of write ...

. Although it publishes articles that explore the

genre Genre () is any form or type of communication in any mode (written, spoken, digital, artistic, etc.) with socially-agreed-upon conventions developed over time. In popular usage, it normally describes a category of literature, music, or other for ...

s of

myth Myth is a folklore genre consisting of Narrative, narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or Origin myth, origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not Objectivity (philosophy), ...

and

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

in general, special attention is given to the three most prominent members of the

Inklings The Inklings were an informal literary discussion group associated with J. R. R. Tolkien and C. S. Lewis at the University of Oxford for nearly two decades between the early 1930s and late 1949. The Inklings were literary enthusiasts who pra ...

J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, ; 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philology, philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was ...

C. S. Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Oxford University (Magdalen College, 1925–1954) and Cambridge Univers ...

, and Charles Williams. The current

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The highest-ranking editor of a publication may also be titled editor, managing ...

is the Tolkien scholar

Janet Brennan Croft Janet Brennan Croft (born 1961) is an American author and editor, best known for writing and editing books and journals on J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth fantasy. She is currently Associate University Librarian for Content Discovery at Univers ...

The Tolkien Society The Tolkien Society is an educational charity and literary society devoted to the study and promotion of the life and works of the author and academic J. R. R. Tolkien. It began informally in 1969, and held its inaugural meeting in 1970. It ho ...

describes ''Mythlore'' as a "refereed scholarly journal".

History

''Mythlore'' appeared in January 1969 under the editorship of Glen H. GoodKnight, founder of the

. Early issues were

fanzines A fanzine (blend word, blend of ''fan (person), fan'' and ''magazine'' or ''-zine'') is a non-professional and non-official publication produced by fan (person), enthusiasts of a particular cultural phenomenon (such as a literary or musical genre) ...

, albeit with a "

sercon In science fiction, sercon is "serious and constructive" criticism, often published as science fiction fanzines. The term was originally coined in the 1950s by Canadian fan Boyd Raeburn as a pejorative to mock those fans who took science fiction, i ...

" ("serious and constructive") bent; for a time it included alternate issues of ''Mythprint''. ''Mythlore'' became a peer-reviewed journal beginning with issue #85 (Winter 1999), under the editorship of Theodore Sherman. Since 2006, it has been edited by

. The full text of ''Mythlore'' from 2002 onward is available in

Expanded Academic ASAP InfoTrac is a family of full-text databases of content from academic journals and general magazines, of which the majority are targeted to the English-speaking North American market. As is typical of online proprietary databases, various forms ...

. ''Mythlore'' is also indexed in the Annual Bibliography of English Language and Literature, the

Modern Language Association The Modern Language Association of America, often referred to as the Modern Language Association (MLA), is widely considered the principal professional association in the United States for scholars of language and literature. The MLA aims to "st ...

International Bibliography, and other sources. An agreement with JSTOR was announced in 2019. A detailed index (with abstracts) to issues 1-100 was published in January 2008 by The Mythopoeic Press. It has been superseded by an electronic index updated twice a year and available for free download from the journal's website. The journal became online open-access in 2017, and dropped its protection of articles less than one year old in 2019; most back issues are now available online through an arrangement with Southwestern Oklahoma State University Library. ''Tolkien Journal'' was an early "sercon" which was absorbed into ''Mythlore''. It was started by New York Tolkien Society founder

Richard Plotz Richard Plotz (commonly known as Dick Plotz) (b. 1948) is the co-founder of the Tolkien Society of America, which in 1972 was merged with the Mythopoeic Society. Plotz is known for his interview with J. R. R. Tolkien in the late 1960s under the ausp ...

in 1965. Dick Plotz stepped down after issue #8 and Ed Meškys took over the society and the journal. In issue #15, Meškys announced the permanent merger of the Tolkien Society of America with the

and of ''Tolkien Journal'' with ''Mythlore''. When GoodKnight became editor with ''Mythlore'' #12, the new subtitle "A Journal of J.R.R. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and Charles Williams Studies" replaced ''Tolkien Journal'' on the table of contents page.

References

External links

Mythopoeic Society ''Mythlore'' pages''Mythlore'' Online Archive at SWOSUFull history of ''Mythlore'' and ''Tolkien Journal,''
with checklist of published issues. {{J. R. R. Tolkien Science fiction and fantasy journals Tolkien studies Mythlore Publications established in 1969 Biannual journals English-language journals

History

See also

References

External links