Hosts & Guests

Clare
Clare Moore is a PhD student at the University Glasgow researching disability in Tolkien’s fiction.

Rory
(they/them) is a plant scientist, folk musician, Tolkien nerd, and ethnobotanist (of both real and fantasy plants). Chronically curious and constantly tangential by nature!

Alicia
(she/they) A queer Tolkien scholar and Zelda nerd interested in adaptation, audience reception, and biography.

Grace
(she/her) An acquirer of books, a queer-rights activist, serves as as the Subscriptions Steward of the Mythopoeic Society, and is a Professional Nerd (okay, technically it’s an unpaid internship).

Leah
(she/her) Just another weird Tolkien geek living in the Grey Havens (also known as Seattle WA) with two rabbits and far too few books.
About This Episode
Returning guest Rory and friend-of-the-pod Clare join us to talk about the recently-published special issue of the Journal of Tolkien Research that they co-edited on Asexual and Aromantic readings of Tolkien’s works. They share what it was like to work on this groundbreaking piece of scholarship (including how it was partially brought about by Rory’s first appearance on Queer Lodgings!), some of the great articles included in the issue, and some of the response they’ve received to its publication.
Related Episodes
Episode 29 – The Carpenter Biography: A Response
Episode 29 The Carpenter Biography: A Response Hosts & Guests(she/they) A queer Tolkien scholar and Zelda nerd interested in adaptation, audience reception, and biography. (she/her) An acquirer of books, a queer-rights activist, serves as as the Subscriptions...
Episode 28 – Writing a Book Chapter! (or “Why We Didn’t Record Much in 2025”)
Learn more about the process of academic publishing as Leah and Grace recount their first times writing for academic publishing, guided by Alicia’s experience. Thank you for sticking with us! We have so much more in store for you.
Episode 27 – The Redemption of Lobelia Sackville-Baggins: Petty Thief to Folk Hero
Is Lobelia Sackville-Baggins actually the villain she’s made out to be in “The Hobbit” and “Fellowship”, or simply a victim of narrative bias? Plus JIRT’s “mommy issues” and a contrast of Lobelia as an ‘Aunt’ archetype with biographical information about Tolkien’s own family.


