ABSTRACT
Stories set in elaborate magical lands have transformed into multimedia properties worth truly mind-boggling sums of money, including J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth and C. S. Lewis's Narnia. One line of research has argued the position that paracosms are little more than the unusual imaginings of relatively normal individuals while another has advanced the notion that paracosms are, in themselves, indicators of extraordinary creative ability. This chapter gives a brief comparison of these perspectives on the role of the paracosm with respect to the development of adult imaginary worlds. It provides some background for the empirical studies and theoretical writings that make up the line of research with emphasis given to the conclusions drawn and the limitations of the work. Finally, a new perspective is put forth based not on the qualities of the paracosm itself, but on the characteristics of paracosmists.
