A is for Athena I’m doing folklore and book review posts to reach and please a larger audience. Previous years have shown select interest in both and to minimise blogging throughout the year, I’m focusing my efforts on April. If you’d rather check out my book review for today, go here. Athena is the Greek …
I first read about Telkhines in one of Rick Riordan’s books — I think it was one where Percy Jackson was the lead. Anyhow, here’s the folklore about these creatures from Greek mythology. Folklore The Magus by Francis Barrett [London, 1801] Moreover, the ancient theologians of the Greeks reckon up six demons, which they call Telchines, others Alastores; which …
C is for Circe This year I’m taking a break from Faerie and doing an A to Z of my TBR (to be read) list instead. Each letter will have books starting with that letter on my list, a book I’ve read and reviewed (with the review!) and one of my books matching the letter …
Sea Nymphs embody all that’s good about the sea. There’s something magical about them. Being so different from mermaids in general gives them an even greater ethereal quality. Folklore Fictitious and Symbolic Creatures in Art by John Vinycomb [1909] Amphitrite, his [Poseidon] wife, one of the Nereids in ancient art, is represented as a slim …
X is for X-Factor. No matter the name or how you spell it, the Fates are everywhere and in every culture. Folklore The Poetic Edda “Norns are figures of fate who may be present at a child’s birth, prophesying his future, as in the First Poem of Helgi Hundingsbani. As determiners of fate, the norns are …
S is for Sirens. Mermaids are alive and well in every corner of the world. Mermaid definition (by Ronel)A familiar figure in folklore from around the world, this half-woman, half-fish creature is usually depicted as being a beautiful woman from the waist up and a glistening fish from the waist down. For the most part, …
F is for Furies. Vengeful goddesses who destroy the wicked… Sounds awesome! Folklore The Hymns of Orpheus, Translated by Thomas Taylor [1792] TO THE FURIES The FUMIGATION from AROMATICS. VOCIFEROUS Bacchanalian Furies, hear!Ye, I invoke, dread pow’rs, whom all revere;Nightly, profound, in secret who retire,Tisiphone, Alecto, and Megara dire:Deep in a cavern merg’d, involv’d in …
Last week we looked at what I write: Dark Fantasy. This week we’re looking at what features in my writing. Once upon a time I wrote about what folklore is and why folklore is important. I wrote about how we embrace it in our Disney movies and young adult novels – disguised as fairy tales. …
Honestly, I have no idea what the difference between a raven and a crow is. To me, they are beautiful black birds. According to the Collins English dictionary: crow n 1 any large gregarious songbird of the genus Corvus, esp C. corone (the carrion crow) of Europe and Asia: family Corvidae. Other species are the …
The image of the winged horse has been iconic in fiction of all kinds since forever. Some have mixed it with the image of the unicorn (see more below). Some have turned the winged horse into a subspecies of mythical creature. But the original winged horse, feathers and all, comes from Greek Mythology. (We’ll look …
