One of the many wonderful things about being a book lover is the ability to lose one's self in a "comfort read." Whether that means a light and fluffy story to take our mind off troubled times, a bleak and dreary story to remind us that the present isn't all that bad, or something in between, there's a comforting book out there for everyone.

So what exactly is a comfort read? And what books do we think fit that description?

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Travis interviews editor Jared Shurin about his latest anthology, The Best of British Fantasy 2019. The anthology series is dedicated to featuring the finest fantastical, speculative, mythic, magical and weird fiction to come from the United Kingdom each year.

The two of them talk about the art of reviewing, common publishing misconceptions, and what exactly being an anthology editor means. They may also mention some good old-fashioned Kansas City.

Jared Shurin has edited or co-edited over two dozen anthologies of original fiction, including The Djinn Falls in Love, The Lowest Heaven, The Book of the Dead, and The Outcast Hours. He is the co-founder and editor of the award-winning pop culture website Pornokitsch and the not-for-profit publishing house Jurassic London. He has been a finalist for the World Fantasy, Shirley Jackson, Locus and Hugo Awards, and he has twice won the British Fantasy Award.

Find Jared online as @straycarnivore on Twitter, or check out the Best of British Fantasy Website.

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The many varied and fantastic worlds in which speculative fiction stories are set are one of the primary draws of the genre. Fans often rave about the decades J.R.R. Tolkien spent building Middle Earth or debate the rules of their favorite story's magic system. But what exactly goes into worldbuilding, and how can it be done well?

Authors Tasha Suri and K.S. Villoso share their insights into worldbuilding, drawing from their own storytelling and the books they love. We discuss conveying worldbuilding through a character's point of view, macro- vs micro-worldbuilding, and one of the most important questions of all... where to start?

Find Tasha Suri on Twitter, Instagram, or her official website. If magical dance, unlikely marriages, or a Bollywood film aesthetic appeal to you, her books are a delight.

Find K.S. Villoso on Twitter, Instagram, or her official website. If you like incredible characters, classic adventure, and emotional gut punches, you're in for a treat with her books.

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The phrase "Don't Judge a Book by Its Cover" rarely applies toward actual books. Most of us have seen a cover in a bookstore or online and immediately wanted to know more. After all, that's the point of book covers!

But what exactly goes into designing covers? Artist Felix Ortiz and author Michael R. Fletcher share their thoughts on what makes cover art effective and the different approaches traditional and independent publishing take in designing covers. They also walk us through the cover design process from start to finish, diving into the logistical, financial, and artistic nuts and bolts we rarely hear discussed.

Find Felix Ortiz's art online at his ArtStation page.

Find Michael R. Fletcher on Twitter, Facebook, or his official website. If you like your fantasy dark and gritty and hard to put down, check out one of his books:

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This week, Travis is joined by Craig from The Legendarium for a two-parter episode on fantasy entry points. In this episode, they talk about which books they'd recommend as entry points into the genre, discussing books that could work for someone completely new to fantasy as well as books that could reignite a love for genre fiction.

Read the article we posted online on this same subject, Our Gateways Into Fantasy, to see the results of a massive online survey for what fantasy readers recommend to others as entry points.

Should we recommend classics as entry points? How much should recommendations be tailored to each individual? And is there such thing as a fantasy canon? Let us know what you think by commenting in Discord or on Twitter.

If you missed part 1, check out episode 288: Fantasy Entry Points over on The Legendarium, which aired on March 20, 2020. In that episode, we reminisce about our own entry points into fantasy, both as young readers and again as adults.

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Travis interviews audio drama creator Chris Magilton about Among the Stars and Bones, a science fiction story following a team of xenoarchaelogists as they examine the ruins of an alien civilization. They talk about the difference between audiobooks and audio dramas, the role of artificial intelligence in real and imagined societies, and the challenges that come with producing a complex work of audio fiction.

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That new book you've been excited about for months just released, but by the time you've finished all three of your current reads... everyone you know has already read it! Is it too late for you? Will there be anyone left to discuss it with? Have you... missed out?

The Fantasy Inn crew discusses the various ways they experience Book FOMO, how buddy reading can help prevent burnout, and the books they've been reading recently.

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This week, Travis traded tomes with Daniel Greene: prominent BookTuber, Wheel of Time aficionado, and connoisseur of all things fantasy.

Daniel suggested Kings of the Wyld by Nicholas Eames. Travis proposed The Last Sun by K.D. Edwards. They each read both books and share their thoughts with each other.

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Travis interviews fantasy author K.S. Villoso about her latest book, The Wolf of Oren-Yaro. They talk about the power of family, the difference between writing craft and excellent storytelling, and writing Watership Down fanfiction.

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In one of our longest episodes yet, Sara, Jenia, and Travis still only scratch the surface of fantasy romance. What's the difference between romance and Romance? Which fantasy romances do we love? And how can fanfiction fix canon romances? We don't pretend to have all the answers, but we do have some rather strong opinions.

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Detailed show notes can be found at https://thefantasyinn.com