#mythological fiction

[hayatheauthor]

Writing Classic Mythical Creatures With A Unique Twist—A Blog Series

Guess who's back with a new blog series! Honestly, I've always been one of those people who geek out over mythologies and folklore, which means my mind is an enclave of random facts about mythological creatures all the boring people couldn't care less for.

Luckily for you and me, we're exactly the kind of people who would love to know about what vampires looked like millennia ago or why witches are well--witches.

If you're interested in reading more, scroll down to the blog links to keep up with my series on Writing Classic Mythical Creatures With A Unique Twist.

Topic One: Vampires

The Blog: How To Write Vampires With An Original Twist

A Deeper Historical Analysis (TW: pictures of mythological vampires included! If you're looking for the Salvatore brothers or Cullens, keep scrolling)

A Breakdown On Unique Features You Can Add To Your Vampires (with pictures! PS: I'm no artist so these are AI generated)

Topic Two: Witches

My personal favourite! Check back here for active links from 10th April!

Topic Three: Mermaids

They're terrifying than what Disney made them out to be, I'll tell you that! Check back here for active links from 15th April!

Topic Four: Werewolves

Check back here for active links from 20th April!

Topic Five: Elves

Check back here for active links from 25th April!

Topic Six: Fairies

Check back here for active links from 30th April!

#hayatheauthor #haya sameer #haya's book blog #haya blogs #blog masterlist #writing community #writing tools #writer things #writing advice #writer community #writing mythology #mythology and folklore #mythological creature #mythological books #mythological fiction #writing techniques #writing prompt #writing stuff #creative writing #ya writing advice #writing tips and tricks #writer tools #writers of tumblr #writer blog #writers block #writers on tumblr #writerscommunity #writer stuff #author help #author advice

[riviuus]

sometimes i dont think i am an ares kid

but then that pure unfiltered rage just shows up and stays a while and i am reminded again

and its not just rage, its distruction that fills you and insecurity but also pride and you just really want to hit an ignorant person in the face

p.s. for all my fellow cabin 5 members, metal music is really relaxing in those moments and helps you rationalize yourself

#percy jackson #cabin 5 #ares kid #child of ares #percy jackon and the olympians #yes i kin clarisse #clarrise la rue #mythological fiction

[demonkidpliz]

Sorry about the lazy title. Tumblr is obsessed with Abhimanyu and Uttara so naturally I had to write about them.

#abhimanyu #uttara #krishna #rukmini #subhadra #arjun #mahabharat #starbharat #bhagvat puran #hindu mythology #mythological fiction #siwt #krishna x rukmini #pradyumna #rukmavati #charumati

[edenfenixblogs]

Thoughts on Natalie Haynes? Ancient Historical Fiction and Medieval Historical Fic Lit Recs?

This isn’t a hate post but it does talk about stuff I haven’t liked in some Natalie Haynes books. Idk if she has a huge following or not, so I hope I’m not incurring the wrath of a fandom here.

I wanted to like A Thousand Ships so much. I really did. But I actually hated it. Especially Penelope’s chapters. A chance to get insight into her whole life while Odysseus was away, and all we got was letters to Odysseus that mostly recounted stuff we already knew from the Odyssey. Like, yes. It is valuable to know how her feelings toward him evolved over the time he was away. But we know she was smart and beautiful and talented. That she raised their son herself. That she managed to keep suitors at bay for nearly two full decades while still maintaining power.

Every time I would read one of her chapters I was so annoyed that we didn’t get insight into anything we didn’t know already about her. There was such a great opportunity to really explore her daily realities and inner life and instead all her chapters were just her being hopeful or bitter about a man. And given that the book is supposed to highlight the stories of the women at the periphery of these classics, it felt like such a missed opportunity. Also, her writing style meandered a little too much for me.

So, with that in mind, are her other books any better? She write about subjects I’m interested in through a lens I would supposedly enjoy, but if they’re all like A Thousand Ships I really don’t want to waste my time. Maybe it was just that particular book that wasn’t for me, though.

I have LOVED all of Pat Barker’s and Madeline Miller’s books. For Pat Barker, I really love her nuanced take on the inner lives of women in Troy/Trojan custody. It’s a truly earnest effort to describe the horrors of the time and the strength of women in a time before feminism was a defined idea. It doesn’t try to apply modern ideas of strength and fragility to the women, and it’s so fascinating and moving. She’s very good at carving out a place for women within the constraints of existing narrative.

For Madeline Miller, I really love how she touched on things we know from ancient sources and, without contradicting them, builds entirely new lore that feels like it fits right in with ancient ideas but still feels remarkably relatable to modern readers.

In terms of translations, I really enjoyed Emily Wilson’s translation of the Odyssey and Stanley Lombardo’s of the Iliad.

I’m also super into medieval (especially British) historical fiction but tend to prefer stuff that is more accurate to historical details we do actually know. I think I’d get kinda pulled out out of the narrative when reading Philippa Gregory books (even though I did enjoy the White Queen/White Princess TV miniseries).

How does Alison Weir compare?

What are people’s thoughts on Claire North? Claire Heywood? Jennifer Saint? Susanna Clarke? Any hidden gems out there for either of these eras of historical fiction/mythological fiction?

I can only check out or buy so many books at a time so I want to avoid getting like 5 on a whim and being meh on all of them.

So, y’all, who are your faves in these genres?

#bookblr #books and reading #ancient historical fiction #historical fiction #mythological fiction #book recs #lit #literature #help #a thousand ships #natalie haynes #pat barker #madeline miller #philippa gregory #alison weir #fiction #Ancient Greece #Trojan war #British history

[foxounderscorecube]

Circe - Madeline Miller

4½ ⭐

My friend, having seen that I read Song of Achilles, recommended this to me so strongly that she went so far as to send me her copy, which was just so lovely of her!! I get it, though - I have now been telling people to read it because, well. You should. It's very good.

I think it'd be most accurate to describe this book as an unconventional coming-of-age story (with stress on the word "unconventional"). It describes Circe's struggle to find her place in the world, being out of place amongst divinity and, despite feeling a kinship with mortals, unable to truly experience the life of humans.

I probably mentioned this in my review of Miller's first book, but there is an unusual charm to the strangely self-conscious nature of her writing. It's so precisely lyrical in a way that can sometimes end up seeming a bit pretentious, but has a warmth to it that keeps it from being so. I am never good at describing these things, but the short version is that it's written very prettily!

Circe is a beautifully written character. She falls for the sort of shit a lot of people do in life when you're sort of working things out - spirals of bitterness in response to traumatic experiences; being an apologist for someone's pretty much irredeemable actions because she loves him; tendencies towards clinginess and vengefulness. Despite the presence of the Minotaur, a pet lion, gods, and magic, she is honestly pretty relatable. I liked her a lot, even if she wasn't always the nicest person ever! She's strong-willed and feels things intensely and is just generally kind of a girlboss, honestly. It's lovely to see her learn how to use her powers and watch how her experiences shape her. By the end of it, it kind of felt like she was my friend, you know?

I'm probably missing SO much in this review because I read this a month ago now - I've been too tired for writing anything much - but I really enjoyed this book a lot!

#read 2023 #reviewed 2023 #mythological fiction #reading #book review #fiction

[andothegoblin]

More reading

#the song of achilles #madeline miller #swordheart #t kingfisher #books #fantasy #historical fiction #mythology #greek mythology #mythological fiction #queer #lgbtqia+ #queer lit

[lilibetbombshell]

#arc review #arc reader #arc reviewer #book review #book reviewer #book blog #book blogger #book influencer #netgalley #berkley publishing #nick medina #indian burial ground #new release tuesday #pub day #publication day #now live #now available #available now #mythological fiction #ownvoices #own voices #supernatural horror #thriller #bookworm #bookish

[booksteacupandreviews]

The Later Adventures of Hanuman by Amit Majmudar - collection of 40 mythical tales

The Later Adventures of Hanuman is imaginative and adventurous collection 40 mythical tales of Hanuman’s Post-Ramayana adventures. The Later Adventures of Hanuman – collection of 40 mythical talesOther book I have read by the same author :Synopsis ReviewBook Links The Later Adventures of Hanuman by Amit Majmudar Publication Date : January 18, 2024 Publisher : Penguin Read Date : March 11,…

View On WordPress

#Amit Majmudar #Book Blog #book blog feature #Book blogger #Book review #book review blog #Books Teacup and Reviews #collection 40 mythical tales #Collection of Stories #Eclectic Book Blog #Hanuman’s Post-Ramayana adventures #Indian Book Blogger #Indian Mythology #Mythological Fiction #Penguin books #The Later Adventures of Hanuman

[booksandlits]

#booksandlits #book tumblr #bookstagram #bookstagrammer #booktube #booktuber #book log #booklover #book recommendations #book review #devdutt pattanaik #mythology #mythological fiction #Instagram

[bookschharming]

#hindu mythology #mythological fiction #book reviewing #book reviewers #book review

[thatdamnokie]

i love you fairy tales i love you folklore i love you myths i love you stories as old as humanity itself i love you oral traditions i love you characters carried through time on my ancestors’ tongues i love you story i’ve seen a million ways and want to see a million more i love you archetypes i love—

#personal #uh tags #fairy tales #folklore #mythology #stories #academia #memes #fiction #narratives

[bikiniarmorbattledamage]

This is truly stiff competition for the worst case of willful false equivalence we've ever seen.

So, for those not aware: Ongoing embarrassment to gamers and the gaming industry, Mark Kern (former lead on FireFall), has been desperately trying to get Gamergate 2 going on X/Twitter... well after others have given up. If you need to get caught up on Mark, I recommend this video by documentary maker and experienced game developer, Dead Domain:

One of the latest fiascos in this mix has been the comparison of responses to character designs from Hades 2 (Aphrodite, left) and Stellar Blade (protagonist Eve, right). The post isn't by Mark, but is part of the general harassment campaign he's trying to lead.

If you're somehow not familiar with Aphrodite, she's the Ancient Greek goddess of love, lust and hot girl shit. It is absolutely perfect characterization for her to show up to a battle (or anything else) nude but for her hair teasingly covering the intimate parts of her body. But the buried lede here is, you don't fight her in Hades and nothing about Hades 2 indicates she'll fight there either, she just likes the aesthetic and has no reason not to indulge.

Stellar Blade will release on 26 April 2024, so we can't really give an informed discussion of her character. But what we do know is the studio head is the illustrator from Blade & Soul, Eve is described as being a member of "the 7th Airborne Squad" engaged in an "operation to reclaim the planet from the Naytiba", and the promotion material promises "an enthralling narrative filled with mature themes, mystery and revelation. Embrace the relentless pace, with no time to pause between moments where critical, story-changing decisions are made."

It's to be compared to games like Nier: Automata, Devil May Cry 5, Jedi: Fallen Order and Sekiro. And the screenshots look like this:

And yeah, unlike Bayonetta she's not supposed to be an unstoppable force of nature (and fashion) who is immune to self-doubt, she's supposed to be the scrappy underdog last survivor of her team.

Weird they gave her a costume that conveys... the opposite of literally everything they're supposed to be trying to tell you about her.

-wincenworks

#stellar blade #hades #hades 2 #aphrodite #character design #costume design #commentary #mark kern #gamergate #dead domain #video games #false equivalence #blade and soul #nier automata #devil may cry #star wars #sekiro #bayonetta #firefall #science fiction #mythology #Greek #image #video #bikini armor battle damage #bikiniarmorbattledamage #babd #Youtube

[demonkidpliz]

Babe, wake up, new story just dropped on balaramerchela. This has around five chapters. The first chapter is now up. New chapter up every Friday. I see you people on my blog reading my new stories. Drop in in the comments and say hi and let me know if you like them!

#mahabharat #starbharat #bhagvat puran #krishna #rukmini #draupadi #krishna x rukmini #hindu mythology #mythological fiction #siwt

[eelhound]

"I think Homer outwits most writers who have written on the War [fantasy archetype], by not taking sides.

The Trojan war is not and you cannot make it be the War of Good vs. Evil. It’s just a war, a wasteful, useless, needless, stupid, protracted, cruel mess full of individual acts of courage, cowardice, nobility, betrayal, limb-hacking-off, and disembowelment. Homer was a Greek and might have been partial to the Greek side, but he had a sense of justice or balance that seems characteristically Greek — maybe his people learned a good deal of it from him? His impartiality is far from dispassionate; the story is a torrent of passionate actions, generous, despicable, magnificent, trivial. But it is unprejudiced. It isn’t Satan vs. Angels. It isn’t Holy Warriors vs. Infidels. It isn’t hobbits vs. orcs. It’s just people vs. people.

Of course you can take sides, and almost everybody does. I try not to, but it’s no use; I just like the Trojans better than the Greeks. But Homer truly doesn’t take sides, and so he permits the story to be tragic. By tragedy, mind and soul are grieved, enlarged, and exalted.

Whether war itself can rise to tragedy, can enlarge and exalt the soul, I leave to those who have been more immediately part of a war than I have. I think some believe that it can, and might say that the opportunity for heroism and tragedy justifies war. I don’t know; all I know is what a poem about a war can do. In any case, war is something human beings do and show no signs of stopping doing, and so it may be less important to condemn it or to justify it than to be able to perceive it as tragic.

But once you take sides, you have lost that ability.

Is it our dominant religion that makes us want war to be between the good guys and the bad guys?

In the War of Good vs. Evil there can be divine or supernal justice but not human tragedy. It is by definition, technically, comic (as in The Divine Comedy): the good guys win. It has a happy ending. If the bad guys beat the good guys, unhappy ending, that’s mere reversal, flip side of the same coin. The author is not impartial. Dystopia is not tragedy.

Milton, a Christian, had to take sides, and couldn’t avoid comedy. He could approach tragedy only by making Evil, in the person of Lucifer, grand, heroic, and even sympathetic — which is faking it. He faked it very well.

Maybe it’s not only Christian habits of thought but the difficulty we all have in growing up that makes us insist justice must favor the good.

After all, 'Let the best man win' doesn’t mean the good man will win. It means, 'This will be a fair fight, no prejudice, no interference — so the best fighter will win it.' If the treacherous bully fairly defeats the nice guy, the treacherous bully is declared champion. This is justice. But it’s the kind of justice that children can’t bear. They rage against it. It’s not fair!

But if children never learn to bear it, they can’t go on to learn that a victory or a defeat in battle, or in any competition other than a purely moral one (whatever that might be), has nothing to do with who is morally better.

Might does not make right — right?

Therefore right does not make might. Right?

But we want it to. 'My strength is as the strength of ten because my heart is pure.'

If we insist that in the real world the ultimate victor must be the good guy, we’ve sacrificed right to might. (That’s what History does after most wars, when it applauds the victors for their superior virtue as well as their superior firepower.) If we falsify the terms of the competition, handicapping it, so that the good guys may lose the battle but always win the war, we’ve left the real world, we’re in fantasy land — wishful thinking country.

Homer didn’t do wishful thinking.

Homer’s Achilles is a disobedient officer, a sulky, self-pitying teenager who gets his nose out of joint and won’t fight for his own side. A sign that Achilles might grow up someday, if given time, is his love for his friend Patroclus. But his big snit is over a girl he was given to rape but has to give back to his superior officer, which to me rather dims the love story. To me Achilles is not a good guy. But he is a good warrior, a great fighter — even better than the Trojan prime warrior, Hector. Hector is a good guy on any terms — kind husband, kind father, responsible on all counts — a mensch. But right does not make might. Achilles kills him.

The famous Helen plays a quite small part in The Iliad. Because I know that she’ll come through the whole war with not a hair in her blond blow-dry out of place, I see her as opportunistic, immoral, emotionally about as deep as a cookie sheet. But if I believed that the good guys win, that the reward goes to the virtuous, I’d have to see her as an innocent beauty wronged by Fate and saved by the Greeks.

And people do see her that way. Homer lets us each make our own Helen; and so she is immortal.

I don’t know if such nobility of mind (in the sense of the impartial 'noble' gases) is possible to a modern writer of fantasy. Since we have worked so hard to separate History from Fiction, our fantasies are dire warnings, or mere nightmares, or else they are wish fulfillments."

- Ursula K. Le Guin, from No Time to Spare, 2013.

#ursula k. le guin #homer #quote #quotations #the iliad #trojan war #storytelling #fantasy #fiction writing #war #conflict #tragedy #john milton #paradise lost #greek mythology

[greekmythcomix]

You Are Odysseus

So

I’m a teacher of Classical Civilisation that has taught the Odyssey for over a decade and studied pretty much every myth and story with Odysseus in it.. I think

and I’m writing an Interactive Fiction (choose your own path) version of the Odyssey, inspired by the Homeric phrase “he turned his great heart this way and that”, where you are Odysseus, allowing you to follow his decisions or make your own

and it already has 400 sections to it - written to emulate modern translations of the Odyssey, including the literary features of simile, formula, epithet, and the rest - and 21 different ways to die, and quite a lot of period and theme-appropriate alternatives

(and if I get time, the option to be Telemachus or Penelope, although that might have to wait because it’s already a monster)

and I’ve tested what I’ve made so far on my pupils, other Classics teachers, and some of the leading (and best-read) Greek Mythology podcasters and YouTubers, all of whom have universally loved it (yay!)

(EDIT: Oops and I presented on it at the Classical Association conference last year)

I’m trying to finish it this summer, but need a bit of encouragement to do so

EDIT: and I forgot to say that ideally I’m planning on it being a beautiful BOOK with an old-fashioned cover and lots of ribbons to mark your place ❤️ (ex-bookseller ofc)

so, please let me know if you’d like to know more!

(EDIT: or sign up here go get notified directly when it’s ready: https://ljenkinsonbrown.wordpress.com/you-are-odysseus-signup/ )

#odyssey #greek mythology #greek myth #tagamemnon #greek myth retellings #homer #interactive story #interactive fiction #classics #classical literature #classical civilisation #odysseus #writing #gamebook

[yournextbimbogf]

“Just take out all your stress on me kay?” Were the last words you said before you were in this position.

So here you were, bending in ungodly ways, panting, your eyes rolling back and drool slipping out of your lips. He strikes your ass yet again as he’s pounding you into oblivion.

“Fuckin’ ugh baby you feel so good, thank you again for letting me have at it with this pussy. How’d you know i was all stressed?” he groans out in pleasure. Your ass is now sore and thighs are tingling. The amount of creampies he gave you definitely made you fuzzy all over.

“Open up” he barks out. He puts his thick thumb into your mouth and lets you suck on it, of course he’s still pounding you almost balls deep. It was hypnotizing the way his cock goes in and out of your cream-filled pussy. Before this he had you on your knees playing with his balls and sucking his hung cock. He grabs you by your skull and pushes your head further into his cock as he watches you gag and choke on him, fat tears are rolling down your face and your lips are all swollen. Don’t worry though. He praises you the whole way so he doesn’t seem half as rude.

After sex he definitely lets you play and feed treats to Cerberus 🖤!

#tumblr fyp #fypツ #smut #fanfiction #yournextbimbogfwriting #blurb #rough kink #fiction #hades! Miguel #greek mythology #greek myth au #greek mytholagy! au #hades and persephone #hades x persephone #persephone! reader #please consider reblogging #spiderman 2099 #miguel ohara #miguel o’hara smut #miguel o’hara x reader #reblogging is appreciated #across the spiderverse #the avengers #Miguel blurb #hades! miguel blurb