epoes

Epoes is a term used in some pockets of literary studies to refer to a body or class of epic poems distinguished by collaborative authorship, digital mediation, or transmedia presentation. The term is not widely established in mainstream scholarship, and its exact sense varies among writers.

Origin and usage: The word appears in a small subset of articles and conference papers from the early 21st century onward, particularly in digital humanities and multimedia poetry discussions. It is often presented as a plural or category that groups works which extend the traditional epic form across platforms such as websites, interactive installations, or multimedia narratives rather than in a single printed volume.

Characteristics: Epoes typically feature long-form or sequence-based narratives drawn from mythic or heroic materials, though some instances foreground contemporary or speculative settings. They commonly employ multimodal elements—text, image, audio, video, and interactivity—and may invite reader participation or audience collaboration. The projects are frequently serialized or distributed across multiple media environments, with authorship that is collective or iterative rather than the work of a single writer.

Scope and reception: Because the term is not standardized, several scholars prefer to describe such works as digital epic poetry or multimedia epics without using 'epoes.' When used, 'epoes' helps to signal a broader conception of epic that transcends print formats and traditional canon, but it remains a niche label.

See also: epic poetry; epos; digital poetry; multimedia art; transmedia storytelling.