“When I examine myself and my methods of thought, I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than any talent for abstract, positive thinking.”
– Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

When Albert Einstein was asked how to develop intelligence in young people, he answered: “Read fairy tales. Then read more fairy tales.”

Sometimes Fiction writing gets looked down on by other more “relevant” vocations and modes of thought. Even within fiction, fairy tales and fantasy and similar styles of writing are looked down upon by other, more “relevant” forms of fiction. Fiction about characters and situations that are “realistic” and “relevant” and “deep.”

But when these folk say “relevant” what they really mean is “timely” and that can turn into an ugly sort of bug…the flippant and currant disease that’s infected literary thought for the current week.

But fantasy, good fantasy (folklore, mythology, fairy tales, etc.) has a way of being relevant forever. Sometimes, a thing need not be factual to be true – sometimes, a thing can hold facts and still be false.

“Fairy tales are more than true: not because
they tell us that dragons exist, but because
they tell us that dragons can be beaten.”
-G.K. Chesterton

And as a final note…Wil is promoting the possible start of a writer’s forum, at Eureka, on his blog. So I thought I’d sound out the call too. Interested?