Tag: medievalism

At Troy University’s “Conference on Domestic Cats in Literature” (11-12 June 2021), I presented some of my ideas on cats in the works of J.R.R. Tolkien.

In various pieces of fan fiction #KingAlfred, a mysterious creature makes its appearance: the wyrm. Intrigued by this secretive being, I was inspired to research its earlier appearances. During Old English Fun Time Online, I shared my findings in a short presentation, and it seemed nice to me to further process my rambling/braindump ehm… ‘research notes’ into a blog post. So, for Paulo and other people that have asked me about it: here are some of my thoughts on the mysterious wyrm! 🙂 All comments & suggestions are very welcome, as always. Since the publication of this blog post, I have incorporated my research on the wyrm in two scholarly publications. Please follow the links below to read them. The unaltered original blogpost follows underneath. [2022 update] …

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In order to practice my English and to introduce you to one of my favourite books: Hasse Simonsdochter (1983), by Thea Beckman. In this romanticised version of the story about Jan van Schaffelaar (c. 1445 – 1482), the Dutch cavalry officer saves Hasse Simonsdochter (the main character) when she is attacked by a couple of cattle-drivers who pass the Kampereiland. Van Schaffelaar is said to have killed one of the drovers and was sentenced to death by the people of Kampen. But then, something happens… 😉

A new category for this blog, to practice my English and to introduce you to one of my favourite books: Hasse Simonsdochter (1983), by Thea Beckman. In this romanticised version of the story about Jan van Schaffelaar (c. 1445 – 1482), the Dutch cavalry officer saves Hasse Simonsdochter (the main character) when she is attacked by a couple of cattle-drivers who pass the Kampereiland. Van Schaffelaar is said to have killed one of the drovers and was sentenced to death by the people of Kampen. Hasse Simonsdochter, however, banishes him, which forces them to marry each other.

In the depths of the internet, there are many hidden treasures to be found. One of them is this Polish medieval mashup by Nvilia, an example of what I call “parent fiction” – fan fiction written by adults for children. With the help of my Polish teacher Sławomir, I managed to craft an English translation. Enjoy! 😉