I've just been re-reading The Power of Myth, by Joseph Campbell and Bill Moyers. I thought I'd mention it here as a potential research tool for Fantasy writers. A fascinating book in its own right, and if you're creating a fantasy world with its own lore, I think it is a great help in terms of understanding myth and ritual, which is useful when you are creating your own myths.
Absolutely. I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Joseph Campbell's other major work, The Hero With A Thousand Faces, also has some very, very useful bits on creating a work of fantasy that draws people in - but be warned, Campbell's style of writing is unique and if you're not paying careful attention whilst reading it, you'll get lost pretty quickly!
his books are classics and contain a great wealth of inspiration for writers of any genre, imo... the boxed set of video tapes of his 'power of myth' lectures is also well worth acquiring... they're so rife with great stuff that you have to watch them over and over again, to be sure you haven't missed anything...
