Today I’m one of the participants in SF Signal’s Mind Meld, which is about monarchies in fantasy. The question we’re responding to is:

Q: Why are kingdoms with monarchs the default political setup in many secondary fantasy world novels? What are the advantages and disadvantages of such political structures? What are some exceptions to this?

It’s a pretty interesting question to consider, especially since I decided my initial response to it was only a piece of the puzzle. There are some pretty good points made about why this is often the case, and there is quite a fantastic lineup of authors who have something to say on the subject. Author guests include Daniel Abraham, Jim C. Hines, Martha Wells, and Sherwood Smith (an author I now must read more by after reading her recent novel Banner of the Damned).