50 Fun Facts About Fantasy

In what year was The Hobbit published?

It was nominated for the Carnegie Medal and won a New York Herald Tribune prize for juvenile fiction.

How many dwarves accompany Bilbo and Gandalf on the quest to the Lonely Mountain?

Thorin's Company sets out to reclaim their treasure from the dragon Smaug.

The Lord of the Rings was published in three volumes for what reason?

Tolkien meant it as one volume paired with The Silmarillion.

Roughly how many copies has The Lord of the Rings sold?

It was written in stages between 1937 and 1949 and translated into at least 38 languages.

Where was J. R. R. Tolkien born?

He later held the Rawlinson and Bosworth chair of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford.

Tolkien and C. S. Lewis were both members of which Oxford literary group?

Lewis was among the friends Tolkien lent The Hobbit manuscript to.

How many novels make up The Chronicles of Narnia?

They were published between 1950 and 1956, illustrated by Pauline Baynes.

Roughly how many copies have the Narnia books sold?

They are available in 47 languages.

A Wizard of Earthsea, the first of Ursula K. Le Guin's Earthsea books, was published in which year?

The Tombs of Atuan and The Farthest Shore followed, and Tehanu came in 1990.

Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time was originally planned as a trilogy; how many volumes did it reach?

Brandon Sanderson co-wrote the last three after Jordan died in 2007.

Who finished The Wheel of Time after Robert Jordan's death?

Jordan died working on what was to be the twelfth and final book.

The 2022 Kickstarter by the author of Mistborn to self-publish four novels raised roughly how much?

185,341 backers made it one of the most successful campaigns ever.

Mistborn and The Stormlight Archive are set in which shared universe?

The Stormlight Archive is planned to run ten novels.

George R. R. Martin began writing A Game of Thrones in 1991; when was it published?

The series has sold over 100 million copies in 47 languages.

A Song of Ice and Fire is set on which two continents?

The world as a whole has no established name.

How many Discworld novels did Terry Pratchett write?

The Colour of Magic came in 1983 and The Shepherd's Crown posthumously in 2015.

The Discworld rests on the backs of four elephants standing on what?

The turtle is Great A'Tuin.

Which comic novel did Pratchett co-write with Neil Gaiman in 1990?

It is an apocalyptic comedy later adapted for TV.

As of 2023, the Harry Potter books had sold more than how many copies, the most of any book series?

Bloomsbury published them in the UK and Scholastic in the US.

Philip Pullman's Northern Lights was published in North America under what title?

It opened the His Dark Materials trilogy in 1995.

Neil Gaiman's The Sandman ran for how many issues from 1989 to 1996?

It was published by DC Comics.

Michael Moorcock's albino anti-hero Elric wields which soul-drinking sword?

The sword is both his greatest asset and his curse.

Robert E. Howard's Conan debuted in which year in the pages of Weird Tales?

He is also known as Conan the Cimmerian.

Who coined the term 'sword and sorcery' in a 1961 fanzine, answering a request from Michael Moorcock?

Moorcock had demanded a name for Howard-style fantasy adventure in the fanzine Amra.

William Goldman's The Princess Bride is framed as an abridgement of a book by which fictional author?

Rob Reiner's 1987 film starred Cary Elwes and Robin Wright.

Dungeons & Dragons was first published in 1974 by which company?

Tactical Studies Rules was founded by Gary Gygax; he and Dave Arneson created the game.

The Return of the King won how many Academy Awards, from as many nominations?

It tied Ben-Hur and Titanic and was the first fantasy film to win Best Picture.

Until 2015 the World Fantasy Award trophy was a bust of which writer?

The awards began at the first World Fantasy Convention in 1975.

N. K. Jemisin's Broken Earth trilogy made her the first author to do what?

She was also the first African-American author to win Best Novel.

Lloyd Alexander's Chronicles of Prydain, drawing on Welsh myth, consists of how many books?

The High King won the Newbery Medal.

Susanna Clarke's debut Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is set in England during which conflict?

It was published in 2004 as an alternative history.

As of 2024, Sarah J. Maas had sold more than how many books?

Her series include Throne of Glass, A Court of Thorns and Roses and Crescent City.

In Fourth Wing, Violet Sorrengail is forced to enter which war college to become a dragon rider?

Rebecca Yarros's book opens the Empyrean series.

What is 'romantasy'?

Publishers created imprints for it after the success of Maas and Yarros.

The Witcher began as a 1986 Sapkowski short story entered in which magazine's competition?

It marked the Polish author's debut.

Hayao Miyazaki's Howl's Moving Castle (2004) is based on a novel by which British author?

Her novel was published in 1986.

Who wrote the music and lyrics for the musical Wicked?

Winnie Holzman wrote the book, based on Gregory Maguire's novel.

The pun-filled Xanth novels are by which author?

The magical land is shaped like Florida.

The Wonderful Wizard of Oz was published in which year?

L. Frank Baum's book spawned a long series and the 1939 film.

Which pioneering Scottish fantasy writer, author of Phantastes, mentored Lewis Carroll?

He influenced both Tolkien and C. S. Lewis.

Lord Dunsany is best known for which 1924 novel?

His first book, The Gods of Pegāna, invented an entire pantheon.

Patrick Rothfuss's The Name of the Wind is subtitled The Kingkiller Chronicle: Day what?

Fans are still waiting for the third day, The Doors of Stone.

Robin Hobb is the pen name of which writer?

Margaret Astrid Lindholm Ogden also writes as Megan Lindholm; her Farseer books begin with Assassin's Apprentice.

The magic system in Mistborn, based on ingesting metals, is called what?

The first era follows a crew trying to overthrow an empire in a world covered by ash.

Neil Gaiman's American Gods was published in which year?

It won both the Hugo and Nebula awards.

Peter Jackson, director of the Lord of the Rings films, is from which country?

He shot the trilogy there and is a visual-effects pioneer.

How many novels is The Stormlight Archive planned to run?

It began with The Way of Kings in 2010.

T. H. White's Arthurian saga The Once and Future King is loosely based on which 1485 work?

Its first part, The Sword in the Stone, features Merlyn, a wizard who lives through time backwards.

In Brian Jacques's Redwall books, which mountain fortress houses the Badger Lords and Long Patrol?

The series ran from 1986 to 2011, and Netflix acquired full adaptation rights in 2021.

Which novel opens Mervyn Peake's Gormenghast series in 1946?

Peake planned to follow Titus through his whole life, but Parkinson's disease cut the series to three novels and a novella.