The narration of contemporary (neo-)medieval Epic Fantasy is a transmedia one. Novels or novel series are adapted into films, TV series or games (cf. Gelder 2019). They increase the popularity of the original literary product and often attract even more attention than their originals. In addition to the transfer between different media, successful franchises such as Game of Thrones, Lord of the Rings or The Witcher reveal another strategy: They expand their storytelling through prequels, sequels and spin-offs (e. g. House of the Dragon, Rings of Power, The Witcher: Origin). Again, the appropriation and trans­formation of medieval characters, motifs and requisites plays a central role in these productions (Larrington 2019 & 2021) and probably contributes significantly to their fascination. Prequels, sequels and spin-offs offer their own storylines, e. g. with the narration of a mythical past or complicated throne succession. But they are embedded in well-known neomedieval narrative worlds and enrich them by providing them with history and progress. In this way, the knowledge of these familiar narrative worlds (e. g. its geography, socio-political organisation, characters, prehistory) is simultaneously taken up and differentiated.
The workshop aims to explore the nature and the status of prequels, sequels and spin-offs in relation to their neomedieval narrative worlds in Epic Fantasy. The intention is to gain insights into the logics of their transmedia storytelling.