Happy St. Patrick's Day!

Today I am deviating from my regular blog to wish you all a HAPPY ST. PATRICK'S DAY.




Being Irish, I could not let the day pass and not talk about the myths of Ireland.

So, let see now. I think we will start with the Leprechaun:      

Leprechauns are the most well-known elves of Ireland, they live in the large grassy hills, wild areas and in the forests. The leprechaun is an ugly little creature with pointed ears and is about two to three feet tall. Not like the pictures we use to portray them.  They avoid contact with humans or any other leprechauns or fairies. He lives alone and puts all of his energy into his passion of shoemaking, as he is well known as a fairy shoemaker. Because they are a kind of faerie, leprechauns are often invisible. Most of the time a leprechaun can  be found with a shoe in one hand and a hammer in the other,  he also is quite fond of a smoke from his tobacco filled foul smelling clay pipe which is never too far away from his reach.

The name leprechaun may have derived from the Irish leath brogan-meaning shoemaker. The ancient origins of what we know today as the leprechaun was a Cletic god named Lugh, pronounced "Luck". Lugh was the great Sun God of the Irish and Celts, patron of Arts and Crafts, leader of the Tuatha de Danann.

Due to the leprechaun’s thrifty nature, they are trusted to guard faerie treasures and hide their pots of gold very carefully. 

According to legend, If caught by a mortal, he will promise great wealth if allowed to go free. He carries two leather pouches. In one, there is a silver shilling, a magical coin that returns to the purse each time it is paid out. In the other, he carries a gold coin that he uses to try and bribe his way out of difficult situations. This coin usually turns to leaves or ashes once the leprechaun has parted with it. However, you must never take your eye off him, for he can vanish in an instant. 

 

How about that pot of gold?

If you see a rainbow and you find it’s end you will find the faerie pot of gold. Of course that only applies to those who live in Ireland.

Another symbol of the Irish and St Patrick’s Day is the Shamrock:   

The Shamrock is believed to bring good luck. It was originally known as the seamrog, or summer plant, in the Irish language.

The ancient Druids in Ireland revered the plant for the secret meaning in its three leaves. The Christian belief is the shamrock represents the Holy Trinity. This powerful symbol will never cease to symbolize Ireland, and the purity and commitment by Saint Patrick to spreading the word of God throughout the country.

Three is Ireland's magic number. Hence the Shamrock. Crone, Mother and Virgin. Love, Valour and Wit. Faith, Hope and Charity. Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Numbers played an important role in Celtic symbolism.

Often, the Shamrock is confused with the four-leaf clover, which also is prevalent in Irish lore: but they are not the same, although some say the forth leaf is for luck.

Lastly, I will leave you with the Banshee:

The word Banshee comes for Bean-Sidhe, meaning woman of the faerie or faerie mounds. She was appointed to forewarn members of certain ancient Irish families of their time of death. According to tradition, the banshee can only cry for five major Irish families: the O'Neills, the O'Briens, the O'Connors, the O'Gradys and the Kavanaghs. Others say it was the families whose names began with O, Mac or Mc.

Another kind of Vampire?

Are they vampires or demons, neither or both? 

That depends on who is talking about them. So what are they?

They are the incorporeal sexual energy feeders know as Incubi and Succubi. 

The term succubus is believed to have its origins from the later Latin word succuba meaning prostitute, which in turn comes from Medieval Latin sub cubaire meaning ‘that which lies beneath’. The incubus from Latin – ‘that which lies above’. Some sources claim the succubus and incubus are on in the same and can change for at will to prey on their victims. 

In medieval lore, a succubus was a female demon that would lay with men to steal their seed. This was the explanation given for night arousal and wet dreams. Then the incubus, the male demon would pass along the stolen seed to unknowing women. A viable excuse used by unwed women or women cheating on their husbands, who turned up pregnant. 

As the legend states, they come to you in your dream-state and drain you of energy using sexual dreams. However, they have been known to enter the wake realm tempting mortals through lust. In either case if the encounter last for too long, the victim usually dies. 

In later stories, especially in contemporary horror writing, both are given hypnotic powers that would give them the ability to command and compel members of the opposite sex. 

So on those mornings you wake up wondering why you are so tired even though you got plenty of sleep, maybe you had an unwanted visitor. 

Could your neighbor be an energy vampire?

Stop by Friday when Danica Avert tells us about Piper.

Dragon on the Line Between Love and Death

Today my guest blogger is fellow East Texas author, Don Martinez.

Thanks Don for taking the time to give us a little insight on Ariel.

          

 

            So the question is presented to me, what inspires my dragon creation?  There’s a lot of elements which went into her, but I think a lot of her genesis comes from people around me, my own experiences, and a deep-seated urge to screw with everything you “normally” associate with dragons.

            Allow me to back up a bit.  My dragon is now the star of her own book, Dinétah Dragon, which details her entire life story.  Unusual for a dragon to have a memoir, I know, but the key to my dragon is that she hasn’t always been a dragon.  Or a fantasy character.

            All right, backing up one more. Let me introduce you to Ariel Vibria, my dragon.

            Ariel is a dragon with a bit of an unusual element, in that she’s a woman who grows into a dragon.  She came originally as a character I created as a teenager, when I was into superhero comics and thought up a character that would grow into a dragon as her power, kind of like the Hulk.  To make this character deeper, I created my dragon as female, in particular a teenage girl.  (Imagine the kind of social issues that kind of power would cause a girl in high school!)

 

            Fast-forward a few years.  It’s September 12, 2001.  Inspired by the news coverage of the infamous terror attacks, I got inspired to write a screenplay, which would involve fantasy characters in the CIA.  My dragon character came back, demanding that she be included in the story: I obliged her, mainly because she would create an interesting dynamic with another character, a paladin knight.

I made them lovers.  There’s a twist.

Eventually, she evolved into how she exists today in Dinétah Dragon.  She’s depressive, she’s been through hell and heaven (sometimes all at once), she’s tragic and inspirational all at once. And, not least of her qualities, she’s a helluva lot of fun to write.

One of my initial rules on any kind of fantasy character is that any kind of power they hold must come with a heavy price: otherwise, everybody would want to have the powers.  In Ariel’s case, it turns her into what she deems a freak, leaving her with green scaly flesh, fins, and one red eye all the time.  When she’s agitated, or in danger, she grows into a full-size dragon and becomes a real tough customer.

Another rule I have is that they must have a realistic personality.  Ariel is no different: she’s shy, she’s withdrawn, she’s been emotionally isolated her whole life.  Her mental condition is kind of fragile, so much so that she’s been suicidal at times.  She’s also capable of a lot of love, and gains the opportunity to show that love.

Another rule I have for my fantasy characters is that they need to be plausible.  I know, that sounds pretty odd when you’re talking dragons, but it’s a hard-and-fast rule I insist on.  Ariel’s dragon veers a bit into biology, because I wanted her to have a first-hand experience in how dragon biology works … an explanation for where her wings go when she flies (sucked into her back), where the fire she breathes comes from (not necessarily breathed as much as vomited), and so on.  There also had to be some way for her to become a dragon, for her to actually have the dragon merge with her, and while I never really came up with a scientific explanation I think it works: keeps a little bit of wonder in my fantasy if some things go unexplained, after all.

There are times when Ariel is my wife, strong and independent.  There are times when Ariel is a teenage me, insecure and shy. There are times when Ariel is a complete speculation.  These qualities wind up combining into the complex character Ariel is.  She’s a lot more than your traditional dragons; more than a beast and more than a woman.

Dinétah Dragon 

 

 The Advance Guard: 

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Stop by Wednesday, we will be taking a look at another type of vampire.