Guest Essayist - A Nine Year Old on Dragons

This is my last blog in my dragon/ serpent people series. This is an essay written a few years ago by my nine year old. He did research and drew diagrams, but since the source was mostly Wikipedia and the diagrams weren't terribly clear I won't include them. I am including this essay here to demonstrate how deeply rooted dragons are embedded into the imagination of humans. He was so excited to try to "prove" that dragons could be real, it was the easiest writing assignment to get him to complete up to that point. [Hint to teachers : kids have am easier time writing if they are excited about their subject matter.]

Mythic Humanoids – Serpent People and Dragons – Part 3 (Survey of Dragons and dragon literature)

Here's Part 3 (Survey of Dragons and dragon literature) of my blog on serpent people and dragons. For Part 1 (Research Deluge) and Part 2 (Symbolism)

There are many ways to organize the numerous varieties of dragons.

Categorizing dragons by :

1. Color [like shoes in a closet or crayons in a box, not based on mythological research.]
2. Sea serpent v flier
3. Old v New
4. North v South
5. East vs West [Does respect for dragons affect the interpretation of their myths?]

Mythic Humanoids – Serpent People and Dragon Shape Shifters – Part 2 (Symbolism)

Like fire that later came to be associated with serpent people's spin off dragons, depending on the people group the myths came from, serpent people could be good and helpful or cunning and evil. In some cultures they were both. For example, in ancient Egypt, Apepi, a giant serpent demon attacked Ra, the sun, while Mehen, another giant serpent coiled around the sun at night to protect him. Regardless of whether they are good  or evil, both serpents and dragons are usually associated with underwater or underground worlds, often with the roots of cosmic trees. (Niddhogg - Norse, Mictlan - Aztec, Veles – Slavic)

Mythic Humanoids – Serpent People and Dragon Shape Shifters – Part 1(Research Deluge)

I have been doing a lot of research on dragons to discover what dragons are like in my fantasy world. I've been amazed at the wealth of fiction books written about dragons. Clearly, dragons captivate and spur the imagination of many. More than I ever realized.

Mythic Peoples - The Fates

Three supernatural and prophetic woman that decide the fate of humans and Gods alike. [I have been describing species of mythic humanoids. This may not seem like a species, but a set of three individual goddesses, but I maintain that it is not.]

Groups of Fates in different cultures are :

1. 
   

Movie (DVD) Review : Rise of the Guardians 2012

Yes, I'm 2 ½ years behind the times. I just got around to seeing Rise of the Guardians for the first time. I saw it on DVD and loved it. I was sad to have missed it in the theater on the big screen in 3D. I bet it was a visual feast. There was so much going on our little screen that we couldn't take it all in.

I was familiar with the book versions of this story, The Guardians of Childhood Series, by William Joyce: Nicholas St. North and the Battle of the Nightmare King, E. Aster Bunnymund and the Warrior Eggs at the Earth's Core, Toothiana: Queen of the Tooth Fairy Armies, and Sandman and the War of Dreams. This was a creative series using iconic heroes from early childhood but giving them an alternate ego with a historical feel.

Mother Nature – Mythic Persons #1

My Lady Yggdrasil

Until now I've been focusing on mythological species of humanoids or mythic peoples. This is my first mythic persons post. The myth or personification of Mother Nature has been on my mind lately as I continue to try to define this blog and my brand as an author. Also, depending on whether you look at nature goddesses/ personifications as separate entities or conflate them into different names for the same entity, they are so prevalent that they are practically a population of their own. 

Djinn and Demons part 3 - Controlling Djinn

In my last posts, I wrote about the Djinn, after first explaining the difference between medieval demons and ancient Greek and Middle Eastern demons.Now I'll write about the most useful folklore surrounding Djinn for a fantasy writer, the control of these powerful Mythological Humanoids.

Last post, I mentioned that when free, the Djinn live in Kaf, a mythical range of emerald mountains that encircles the Earth, but these physically variable creatures could be trapped and controlled by magic and called to the service of humans. This is where the folklore become highly applicable to authors and story ready.

Djinn and Demons part 2

There's still snow on the ground here and I'm still writing about the warm desert and the mythological species of humanoids that live there, the Djinn or Jinn (singular Jinni.) The popular terms for these humanoids is genie.

As I mentioned in the last post Djinn and Demons - Part 1 I am designing several humanoid races for my YA fantasy series similar to elves and other mythological humanoids. The Djinn folklore is intriguing to me.

Mythological Species of Humanoids # 36 – Djinn and # 37 – Demons – Part 1

During these snowy winter months in the northeastern U.S. my thoughts turn to the opposite climate - hot dry

deserts - and the mythological species of humanoids that live there, the Djinn or Jinn (singular Jinni.) The popular terms for these humanoids is genie.

Since I am designing several humanoid races for my YA fantasy series similar to elves, fairies, dwarves, goblins, trolls, werewolves, vampires and mermaids, I need to research as many mythological humanoids as I can. The Djinn, a favorite humanoid of Arabic and Muslim cultures, are a great source of ideas.

I find the overlap between the role the Djinn fill in Middle Eastern mythology intriguingly similar to the role filled by elves in Northern European mythology.

Cryptozoology and Mythological Humanoids # 35 - Yetis and Sasquatches

With snow covering our ground and rooftops and icy winds blowing whenever we step outside I'm not surprised Yetis and Sasquatches capture my imagination and attention for research.

What are the legends of the Yeti and Sasquatch based on?

Native American Fairies

There are a number of names for small fairy folk in the Native American mythologies. They have similarities with the small folk of other countries, actually a remarkable number of similarities. But they are not a homogeneous group by any stretch of the imagination.

 They can have personalities anywhere from brownie types to cannibals. And the appearances are not the same either. Sizes can be from four feet

Mythological Species of Humanoid # 34 - Duende - Native American Fairy?

Duende are Latin and South American fairies. I mistook that description as Native American when I began my research. But duende are part of the Spanish heritage of Latin America not Native American part. Though there were probably echos of a similar creature among Native Americans that provided fertile ground for the expansion of the myth among Spanish and Portuguese speaking people in Latin and South America.

The word duende comes from the Portuguese word “dono” which means “owner.” This comes from the Latin word “domus” which means “house.” Sounds like a house dwelling brownie type again. But not necessarily.

Mythological Humanoids - #32 Trolls and #33 Gnomes

Trolls

As mentioned in the last post, trolls have some overlap with goblins: nocturnal habits, inhuman strength, bestiality and hairiness, hunger and the desire to eat humans, and the tendency to turn to stone in sunlight (Tolkein made this trait exclusive to trolls, but folklore is less precise). For this post, I'll focus on the differences between goblins and trolls (and gnomes.)

Mythological Species # 30 – Goblins and #31 - Brownies

The nights are coming earlier and the dark loving creatures are more and more on my mind. The elves and fairies, creatures of twilight, came stealing along the hedgerows and at forest edges, but now there are the creatures of darkness. Creature of the pitch black mines and the midnight hours. Among the most famous denizens of the night are the more treacherous counterparts to elves, the goblins and their ilk.

There are many names for goblins and goblin-like creatures: Hobs, hobgoblins, orcs, bogie men, boggarts (boggles, bogles), bodach (Highlands), brownies, spriggans, Fenoderee (Isle of Man), redcaps (Scottish) – said to redye the caps in human blood - brags, gremlins, Puck, phookas (Irish), Pwca (Welsh), bwca (Welsh) Trows (Shetland Islands), trous (Scandinavia), knolls, knockers (Cornish and Devon), Coblynau/Koblernigh (Welsh), Kobolds (German), wichtlein (Southern Germany), dwarfs/duergar (Scandinavia, Germany, North England), Pixie/Pisgie/piskie/pigsey/puggie/(Cornwall), Will o' the Wisps.

Mythological Species #29 – Ghosts

One of the most popular Halloween ghouls are ghosts. Ghost stories are so abundant around camp fires, at sleep overs, in the movies and on TV, that I expected to claim that they had a universal presence among the cultures of the world, to find an abundance of information about them and then move right on to the different presentations they made. [WRONG!]

My first go-to reference book, The Dictionary of Celtic Mythology (MacKillop, Oxford, ISBN 0-19-869157-2), stated that the word "ghost" is a foreign word to the Celtic language, borrowed from another

Autumn and Mythological Humanoid #27 – Zombies

Seasonal Mythology – Autumnal Equinox had just passed and the post from the Vernal Equinox has some important thoughts about the balance of day and night and the opening of the gates to the other world, that I won't reiterate here.

This time starting with the Autumnal Equinox until the cross quarter day of Samhein, called Halloween in the US or All Hallow's Eve, is a time of beautiful change in the natural world.

Year End Blog Review

School is back in for just about everyone, now. Stores are pulling school supplies sales displays and installing Halloween displays.

I love this time of year! I know the change in routine can be tough, but the quickening of the mind and the easing of the heat is exhilarating!

To teachers and students - once you get over the hump of getting back into the groove, the new possibilities for the year are exciting. Think of all the good things that could be starting this year.

Water - Part 4 – Mythologized Humans - Pirates (and Shipboard Stories)

Why do you think that there are so many stories about ships and pirates?

My guess is that ship stories have a nice contained little world with occasional interludes of ports, islands, meetings other ships or foul weather; perfect for the imagination to grab ahold of and run with.

The authority structure on board a ship is simple to describe, absolute by necessity and frequently overthrown. Mutiny sits easy in the rebellious hearts of most humans. On board a ship, the writer can spend less effort on setting and make things straight forward, more black and white for the reader.

Water - Part 2 - People of the water (Mythological Species of Humanoids #25 - Merpeople)

As one travels from the forests through marshes, dunes and the shore line to the ocean, the land changes dramatically until it is not land at all. This dramatic shift in life forms and even the earth' composition is  mysterious and emotionally moving. The sea itself is unearthly; its creatures foreign and strange. To stand at the edge of the sea stirs the soul and the imagination. It opens us up to emotions we don't feel in other places. Is it any wonder that mythologies from around the world have peopled it with so much variety?