I was taught that an epic has a particular form and structure.

• (usually hero’s) narrative, typically long form and 3rd person
• invocation of the muse
• early presentation of an overarching theme
• beginning in the middle of the action
• litany of heroes/deeds
• descent into the underworld
• supernatural influence
• stock phrases or images (eg “grey eyed Athena”)

So, any type of long form story that follows those conventions qualifies for me. Illiad, Odyssey, Gilgamesh, Song of Roland, Beowulf, etc. A lot of this overlaps with Joseph Campbell’s work in my head.

Lord of the Rings and Star Wars are two modern works that jump out at me. I recently read Circe by Madelline Miller and Piranesi by Susanna Clarke, which both felt very epic to me as well.

Epic doesn’t necessarily indicate how well something is written or how large the scale is to me. It’s more like taxonomy… does it have the characteristics that would identify it as such? Does it look like an epic and sound like an epic?