From time to time, I stumble across websites that I’m certain other fantasy readers (and writers) will enjoy. One of these is The Encyclopedia of Arda, dedicated to everything Tolkien. The site is still in development (after all there’s a lot of material to incorporate), but already it has quite a bit to offer.
As the name suggests, the site offers an encyclopedia encompassing Middle Earth’s people, races, animals, plants, songs, symbols, foods, and more. It also shares maps, genealogies, and illustrations, plus some additional features that are just plain fun, like an interactive calendar that will tell you what any given day of our year is in The Shire Calendar, The Steward’s Reckoning, Reckoning of Rivendell, and others.
Be sure to also check out the FAQ section, where you can find answers to questions such as “Where can I learn to speak Elvish, or find an Elvish dictionary?” and “What types of New World plants were there in Middle-earth, and how did they get there?”
In addition to all the on-site offerings, they have a huge selection of links to other Tolkien sites and info on the web. So whatever you’re looking for, you’re likely to find it in the Encyclopedia or their collection of links.
If you’re a fan of Tolkien’s work, you may want to drop by and spend a little while exploring. Have fun!
JS Lewis, a bestselling fantasy author, signed on to do a YA fantasy series with Thomas Nelson, the first of which will release December 2010. Get 
or the story of Beauty and the Beast, though I find that myth more similar to the tale 
or the intent of sacrificing some other in her stead. Most times, Beauty insists upon surrendering herself to the Beast to save her father’s life, but regardless of her willingness or lack thereof, she ends up as the prisoner of the Beast. By her hand, the curse is broken and the Beast transforms back into his natural form, that of a human (often a prince).
her (Villeneuve’s tale had her as the youngest of six boys and six girls!). In every old tale, she’s beautiful, but modern day adaptations often put a twist on this (as Robin McKinley did in her retelling, 
discernment, unicorns were believed impossible to capture, except by a virgin, whose purity would allure them, often to their deaths. They came to symbolize purity and chivalry, power and royalty and even made their way into heraldry of the time.
few mythical creatures strongly believed to be real, perhaps inspired by other single-horned creatures. Greek historians, convinced of the legitimacy of unicorns, documented them not in mythology, but in natural history, and Julius Caesar, Alexander the Great, and others in ancient history, told of witnessing them. It was not until the Middle Ages that legends concerning the unicorn became common. The unicorn makes a cameo appearance in Grimms tale, 
, chapels, stables, kitchens, wine and oil presses, bedchambers and storage rooms. Derinkuyu’s underground city has vast dimensions, capable of holding up to 50,000 people. Its eight levels (possibly eleven, but only eight explored thus far) may not compare to the Mines of Moria in intricacy of design of beauty, but vaulted ceilings stretching up to ten feet in the chapel, massive round doors of stone—weighing between 400 and 1000 pounds each—and long staircases all reflect skilled craftsmanship.
g with many others in the region, contained everything necessary for thousands of people to live and work for months at a time, serving as refuges from enemies, and in several eras, dwellings for persecuted Christians.
