Home > James Blaylock

Blaylock is noted for his distinctive style. He writes in a humorous way: His characters never walk, they clump along, or when someone complains (in a flying machine) that flight is impossible, the other characters agree and show him why he's right!

He was born in Long Beach, California; studied English at California State University, Fullerton , receiving an M.A. in 1974; and lives in Orange, California, teaching creative writing at Chapman University .

He invented the poet William Ashbless along with Tim Powers.

1 Novels

A number of Blaylock's novels can be arranged in groups of three by sharing a common setting, characters or style but all his books stand alone and there are no strict literary trilogies amongst them.

The "Balumnia" Trilogy

Perhaps best described as children's stories for adults.

• The Elfin Ship (1982)
• The Disappearing Dwarf (1983)
• The Stone Giant (1989)

The "St. Ives" Trilogy

• The Digging Leviathan (1984)
• Homunculus (1986)
• Lord Kelvin's Machine (1992)

The "Christian" Trilogy

Present-day fantasy using Christian elements — such as the Holy Grail and the silver coins paid to JudasJudas "Praise", Standard Hebrew Yhuda Tiberian Hebrew Yhuh is the name of several men in late Jewish and New Testament history: Judas Iscariot, betrayer of Jesus Christ Judas Maccabaeus, Jewish revolt leader Judas the Zealot, alternate name of Simon the C — without being in any way "religious".

• The Last Coin (1988)
• The Paper Grail (1991)
• All The Bells On Earth (1995)

The "Ghosts" Trilogy

Present-day Californian ghost stories.

• Night Relics (1994)
• Winter Tides (1997)
• The Rainy Season (1999)

Others

• Land of Dreams (1987)
• Thirteen Phantasms (2000) Short story collection
• The Man in the Moon (2002) Original manuscript of The Elfin Ship
• The Devils in the Details (2003) Short story collaboration with Tim Powers
• In For A Penny (2003) Short story collection

2 External links:

• Website and discussion forum about Blaylock's writing