#AtoZChallenge Theme Reveal

         I will be participating in the April A to Z Blog Challenge once again this year, in which we post for every letter of the alphabet through the month of April.  As has become my usual custom, I’ll be beginning right away in March so as to give myself a few more breaks during the month of April.  So you can either join me now to get in the alphabetic mood for a couple of extra weeks early, or you can wait for April and then come back and read each letter’s post on its officially designated day.  (I’ll put lots of links to direct you easily around.)  Either way, I’m delighted to have you joining.  And as for what you’ll find when you join me…

        This year’s theme is Mythical and Imaginary Places.  

Pack light, but don’t forget your towel: we’ll be visiting strange, mysterious, and magical places throughout time and space.  The distinction I’m making between “mythical” and “imaginary” is that while the latter are straight fiction, the former may be understood by believers in various times and places to be real in either a spiritual or physical sense.  What the two categories have in common is that they won’t be found on a standard map of Earth, and they’re all magical and full of wonders.  Another thing they all have in common is that they tell us as much about ourselves as about their own exotic topography and denizens.  As T.S. Eliot wrote, “the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.”  (Having spent the last two years of A-Z giving you morals, why should I stop now?)  Of course, self-awareness is great, but seeing magical new landscapes is pretty awesome, too, so join me in my alphabetical travels this year!

        And don’t forget to travel around to all my fellow A to Z Bloggers, as well.  You can find the Master List here.  (There are still a few more days to join, too.)

[Picture: Footbridge between worlds, lithograph by J.J. Grandville from Un Autre Monde, 1844 (Image from blacque_jacque);

Sky City, rubber block print by AEGN, 2012 (sold out).]