The Worm Ouroboros

It’s not easy writing a high fantasy classic. Your competition is immense. You’ve got J. R. R. Tolkien, George R. R. Martin, Brandon Sanderson, Ursula K. Le Guin, Terry Pratchett, C. S. Lewis, and so many more it’s impossible to make a dent, even with a long list. But in the top echelons, there’s another name – E. R. Eddison, author of The Worm Ouroboros.


Eddison was different from Tolkien in some important ways, though. For one, Tolkien placed a heavy premium on the linguistic aspects of his created world. His names had meaning, and the overall legendarium is steeped in mythology. In contrast, E. R. Eddison had begun thinking up The Worm Ouroboros while he was a pre-teen child. He imagined some of the story, the characters, and the setting then – and seemed to have kept parts of it. This is especially notable in the names for some of his characters: Lord Spitfire, La Fireez, Fax Fay Faz, Goldry Bluszco, etc.