Have you ever thought about delving into Urban Fantasy? What is Urban Fantasy anyway? It is a subset of fantasy usually contemporary or futuristic in nature and takes place in an Urban setting (i.e. Metropolis, New York City or London or you get the picture). Some of the more well known Urban Fantasies began their early life as comic books like Superman (Note Superman: The Man of the Steel a sequel to Superman Returns begins production this year). And then there is the Batman comics featuring the Caped Crusader as the Dark Knight with his faithful sidekick Robin.

But back to my point, typically the protagonists in Urban Fantasy are Superheroes but who's to say that's the only way to portray them. Note the Transformers, they are Robots from another planet. Not to mention there is the YA or Young Adult and middle reader's market which features Urban Fantasy for kids that have been successful in their own right in films such as Sky High and Zoom.

So when you sit down to write your next fantasy novel why not put a mask and cape on your hero and drop him in the middle of downtown Cincinnati and see what happens next! And by the way don't forget the love interest you Romance writers out there!

The main difference between Beowulf and Superman is that Superman hides his identity and does not boast about his accomplishments while Beowulf will retell his heroic deeds at every chance he gets. There are also differences between the two at different stages of Beowulf's life; such as, at the beginning of Beowulf's life, he was very confident in himself and believed he could accomplish everything; though, he did manage to accomplish anything he decided to do. On the other hand, Superman did not taunt his enemies and would use all he had in all of his fights.

However, through all the differences, there are similarities between Beowulf and Superman. They both come to the rescue of those in need. Both Beowulf and Superman have super-human abilities, such as super-strength. Both of them were just with their powers and did not abuse them. Finally, neither of them married.

In these ways Beowulf and Superman are similar and different. The differences can mainly be attributed to the time periods they lived in. The similarities are attributed to the main idea of a super-hero that has been preserved through centuries of cultures and over miles of ocean.