Fay Sampson (born 10 June 1935) is a British writer of

speculative fiction Speculative fiction is an umbrella term, umbrella genre of fiction that encompasses all the subgenres that depart from Realism (arts), realism, or strictly imitating everyday reality, instead presenting fantastical, supernatural, futuristic, or ...

, predominantly known for the '' Daughter of Tintagel'', ''Pangur Ban'', and ''Sorcerer'' fiction series.

Biography

Sampson earned a degree in mathematics in 1956 from the University College of the South West of England, now the

University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of ...

. She taught at two English high schools, one in

Mytholmroyd Mytholmroyd ( ) is a large village in the Calderdale district of West Yorkshire, England, east of Hebden Bridge. It lies in the Upper Calder Valley, east of Burnley and west of Halifax. There are than 21 listed buildings in the village. T ...

(1957–1958), and the other in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

(1959–1960). She and her husband lived for a time in

Rhodesia Rhodesia ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970, was an unrecognised state, unrecognised state in Southern Africa that existed from 1965 to 1979. Rhodesia served as the ''de facto'' Succession of states, successor state to the ...

, where she ran a college library in

Serenje Serenje is a town in Serenje District, Central Province, Zambia, lying just off the Great North Road and TAZARA Railway. Serenje has a railway station on the TAZARA railway. Serenje is approximately 191 km from Kapiri Mposhi on the Great ...

from 1962 to 1964. After Rhodesia's independence and transition to

Zambia Zambia, officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa. It is typically referred to being in South-Central Africa or Southern Africa. It is bor ...

, she moved back to Devon, and began writing children's novels.

Writings

Sampson has written the ''Pangur Bán'' stories, a series beginning with ''Pangur Ban, the White Cat'' (1983). The ''Pangur Bán'' books are a series of Celtic fantasy novels set in medieval Ireland, and aimed at children. The ''Pangur Bán'' novels are based on the Old Irish poem, ''

Pangur Bán "" is an Old Irish poem written in about the 9th century at or near Reichenau Abbey, in what is now Germany, by an Irish monk about his cat. , 'White Pangur', is the cat's name, possibly meaning 'a fuller'. Although the poem is anonymous, it ...

''. The ''Pangur Bán'' novels also feature talking animals,

mermaid In folklore, a mermaid is an aquatic creature with the head and upper body of a female human and the tail of a fish. Mermaids appear in the folklore of many cultures worldwide, including Europe, Latin America, Asia, and Africa. Mermaids are ...

s and

magicians Magician or The Magician may refer to: Performers * A practitioner of magic (supernatural) * A practitioner of magic (illusion) * Magician (fantasy), a character in a fictional fantasy context Entertainment Books * ''The Magician'', an 18th-ce ...

.Barrett, David V. "Sampson, Fay (Elizabeth)", in ''St. James Guide To Fantasy Writers'', ed.

David Pringle David Pringle (born 1 March 1950) is a Scottish science fiction editor and critic. Pringle served as the editor of '' Foundation'', an academic journal, from 1980 to 1986, during which time he became one of the prime movers of the collective whi ...

, London, St. James Press, 1996, , (pp. 512-3) Sampson then produced the Daughter of Tintagel series of

Arthurian According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a leader of the post-Ro ...

historical fantasy novels based on

Morgan le Fay Morgan le Fay (; Welsh language, Welsh and Cornish language, Cornish: Morgen; with ''le Fay'' being garbled French language, French ''la Fée'', thus meaning 'Morgan the Fairy'), alternatively known as Morgan , Morgain /e Morgant Mor ...

. This series began with ''Wise Woman's Telling'' (1989) and describes the life of Morgan through the eyes of people who encounter her. Sampson's ''Star Dancer'' (1993) is a singleton fantasy novel based on the Sumerian myth of

Inanna Inanna is the List of Mesopotamian deities, ancient Mesopotamian goddess of war, love, and fertility. She is also associated with political power, divine law, sensuality, and procreation. Originally worshipped in Sumer, she was known by the Akk ...

and

Ereshkigal In Mesopotamian mythology, Ereshkigal (Sumerian language, Sumerian: 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒆠𒃲 REŠ.KI.GAL, lit. "Queen of the Great Earth") was the goddess of Kur, the land of the dead or underworld in Sumerian religion, Sumerian mythology. In la ...

Select bibliography

''Daughter of Tintagel''

* ''Wise Woman's Telling'' (1989) * ''White Nun's Telling'' (1989) * ''Black Smith's Telling'' (1990) * ''Taliesin's Telling'' (1991) * ''Herself'' (1992)

Pangur Ban

* ''Pangur Ban, the White Cat'' (1983) * ''Finnglas of the Horses'' (1985) * ''Finnglas and the Stones of Choosing'' (1986) * ''Shape Shifter - The Naming of Pangur Ban'' (1988) * ''The Serpent of Senargad'' (1989) * ''The White Horse Is Running'' (1990)

''Sorcerer''

* ''The Sorcerer's Trap'' (2005) * ''The Sorcerer's Daughter'' (2007)

Standalone novels

* ''F.67'' (1975) * ''The Watch on Patterick Fell'' (1978) * ''The Chains of Sleep'' (1981) * ''Star Dancer'' (1993) * ''Them'' (2003)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sampson, Fay Living people 1935 births Alumni of the University of Exeter Writers from Plymouth, Devon English science fiction writers English fantasy writers British women science fiction and fantasy writers Writers of modern Arthurian fiction