The Inspiration Behind the Fantasy in THE WELL OF TEARS: Stradey Woods

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47North, Arthurian Legend, celtic legend, Celtic Lore, Celtic mythology, Coffee & Writing, enchanted forest, fantasy fiction, George Meredith, Gwyn ap Nudd, historical fiction, Hywel ap Cadell, mystic origins, Roberta Trahan, Stradey Woods, The Dream Stewards, The Well of Tears, The Wild Hunt, The Woods of Westermain, Wales

Thousand eyeballs under hoods

Have you by the hair.

Enter these enchanted woods,

You who dare.

 

~ George Meredith, The Woods of Westermain (1883)

I can imagine no more mysterious and mystical a place. Is it any wonder that so many tales of magical quests and dark adventure take place in these secretive, shadow-shrouded stands of ancient majesty? From fairy tale to fright-fest to full-fledged fantasy, the most dangerous evils tend to lurk in the misty, mossy, dense and dank depths of a forest.

When the world of The Dream Stewards began to take shape in my mind, at the heart of it was always an enchanted forest. I wanted to draw inspiration from reality wherever possible in order to ground my fantasy adventure with historically accurate roots. My research led me to a local historian who knew of just the place.

Located between what is now the town of Llanelli and Burry Port still stands a forest of ancient origins called Stradey Woods. At the bottom of the woods is a very old village called Pwll, named for a sacred pool that once existed there. Even today the woods are purported to be haunted, and often veiled with a white, misty fog – all of which adds to its unique mystery.

And as if that coincidence wasn’t magical enough, legend has it that Gwyn ap Nudd, the Welsh god of the Underworld and the Wild Hunt, had a palace deep in the heart of the woods. There are also stories of an underground tunnel that ran all the way to Glastonbury Tor, another haunt of Gwyn ap Nudd. And this is how Stradey Woods and its fantastical history became the inspiration for The White Woods, the home of The Dream Stewards.

Here is a glimpse into this magical place, by photographer Mike Richards:

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Many, many thanks to local resident and writer Lynne Lewis of Cornwall, who graciously lent me her knowledge of the history, geography, legend, and lore of the land. A fellow lover of the past, Lynne studied history and art at the University of London, and has authored many historical stories. Most recently, she completed a novel based on the life and career of Hans Holbein, court painter to King Henry VIII, entitled, “Dance of Death.”

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For the Love of Lore: Why I Write Fantasy

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47North, Amazon, Arthurian Legend, author marketing, Coffee & Writing, fantasy fiction, Grimm's Fairy Tales, historical fiction, Mary Stewart, Merlin, Novel Writing, Roberta Trahan, The Well of Tears, Writing, writing life

It’s one of the questions always asked of authors – why do you write (insert genre here)?  Every writer has a unique backstory – a collection of singular and often profound experiences that have informed and inspired them.  For me, it all started with fables and fairy tales.

The summer of 1977, I traveled with my parents to rural western Montana on the occasion of my great-grandmother’s death.  We stayed for nearly a week to help clean out the ancient farmhouse that had been the Davis family home for nearly 50 years. It was a somber time, and the adults, eager to keep the kids busy while they tended to the needs of the moment, assigned us all tasks.

Naturally, I volunteered to clear out the bookcases in the sitting room. Books had long been a source of solace for me, and I was so very sad. Sifting through these treasured relics from Granny’s long and well-lived life was a way for me to feel connected to her and still process the reality that she was gone. Better still, I was told I could keep as many books as I liked – since the whole lot was to be donated to the local community service center.  My mother, the minimalist, limited “as many as I liked” to “a few” – and so I resolved to choose carefully.

In those many bittersweet hours, I sifted through hundreds of volumes of literature, periodicals, school primers, grammar books, historical biographies, and who knows what all else. Many of these books were well over a hundred years old, which both astonished and intrigued me. I had never seen such old editions of any book, let alone the classic titles I recognized. 

When all was said and done, I had some tough choices to make – in the end, I came home with a first edition of Bernadin’s Paul Et Virginie in the original French, circa 1787 (I had never seen a book printed in a foreign language before); early printings of Thackeray’s Vanity Fair and the children’s classic The Little Lame Prince; and the best of the bunch – a very early English translation of Grimm’s Fairy Tales.

The book was pretty worn (as you can see from the photos) and missing the title page,   but I was over the moon. I was initially captivated by this collection of what were called “household tales” because I recognized the titles of some of the fables as childhood stories I knew – or thought I knew. I quickly discovered that these were grittier and much more provocative versions of what I had always thought were Golden Book originals. Being a moody and maudlin tweenager at the time, this suited me just fine.

 I spent several weeks obsessing over this book – partly because I was enthralled by the darkly romantic window into the past, and partly because I wanted to know “the story behind the story”.  I knew that mythology and folk lore were allegorical and that cautionary tales were based on real fears and events, and this appealed to me on every level.

That summer I read every book on mythology I could find in the local library (which wasn’t many), and then the librarian turned me on to the fantasy fiction genre. She introduced me to Mary Stewart’s iconic Merlin series (The Crystal Cave and The Hollow Hills) – my first encounter with the real Arthurian legend, and the amazing world a masterful novelist could create by blending fact, fiction, and fantasy. I have been in love ever since.

Why do I write fantasy? The easy way out would be to say that I write fantasies because those are the stories that come to me. This happens to be true, but it only scratches the surface –the full answer is much more complicated than that. The genre calls to me intellectually, emotionally, instinctively, and spiritually.

I would have to say that underpinning those early inspirational reading experiences is the neuropsychology that is hard-wired into my DNA. I have a pathological need to understand the foundations of the human experience, as well as what could be called a clinical compulsion for research. I am also completely seduced by the “in-between” spaces in our histories and cultures which defy explanation, and the misty veil at the edges of our existence that hints at something beyond what we can comprehend.

This is where the magic lives, and sometimes, so do I.

Marketing Mondays — My Own Personal Purgatory

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47North, Author Branding, author marketing, Beyond Novel, Blogging, Coffee & Writing, publishing, Roberta Trahan, Shorebird Media, The Well of Tears

I really shouldn’t complain. After all, I did it to myself. Months ago, when I was trying to figure out how I could possibly market the debut of one novel while writing the next, I devised “Marketing Mondays”.  I set aside an entire day to focus on things like blog posts, Facebook fan page and website updates, Triberr re-posts, and gathering the data my publicist needs for the book launch. Not to mention developing my own mailing list and brainstorming ideas for contests and other release-party related ideas.  Made perfect sense, really. In fact, I had been recommending the exact same strategy to clients for years.

What WAS I thinking?!! Gads, how I now fear Mondays. It all starts with a prickling sensation on the back of my neck every Sunday evening, as I glance at the planner to get a feel for the week ahead. Not even an extra cup of my favorite honey-vanilla chamomile tea can ward off the dark dreams that follow. And then dawn breaks and there is dread coiled in the pit of my stomach. By the time I’ve poured the first mug of coffee, my palms are already perspiring.

Who knew this would be so HARD? So many tasks and so few hours in the day. And as you all already know, I often fail to get to it all. But week after week I chip away at the monolithic ‘to do’ list with a toothpick and hope to do better than I did the week before. Because every little bit counts. It really does.

I’d like to share today’s coup de gras — a little design my friend and colleague Jeanie James at Shorebird Media designed for me. Remember our talk about author branding? Well, one idea is to create a personal logo –>

Awen a Bendithion is a Welsh phrase that I have adopted as my personal salutation, shared with me by a fellow writer years ago. I’ll tell you what it means one of these days :).

This lovely artwork speaks to my family heritage and embodies my personal totem creature, the hummingbird. It’s job is to uniquely represent me and my author identity. You’ll be seeing it a lot soon — on my blog, facebook fan page, and promotional materials. Have you thought about creating something that speaks for you?

As fugly as Marketing Monday is, it serves its purpose. Today I got more accomplished than I expected, but still not as much as I had hoped. Next week I’m going to try not to set myself up for disappointment – I just can’t take the constant feelings of failure and self-loathing. Here’s my plan for future Marketing Mondays — maybe it will help you, too:

Set Attainable Goals – one of my biggest stumbling blocks is the never ending ‘to do’ list. When I take it as a whole, it is insurmountable and since there are always things left to be done no matter how hard I try, I always end up feeling like I fell short. A better practice is to bite off small pieces — focus on a few selected tasks that can realistically be accomplished in the time you have available.

Mix it Up – of course the most time sensitive task is the one that ought to get done first, but it is stressful to constantly be managing your priorities by catering to chaos. A helpful time management tool is to keep yourself working ahead of the curve by adding at least one or two items to your list that isn’t hanging precariously on a deadline.

Delegate – many hands make light work, isn’t that what they say? Hire help, if you can. I use the lovely ladies at Beyond Novel because, frankly, this book is just too important to me to leave up to my own limited efforts. Knowing when to hand the work off is an important and powerful step toward achieving your marketing goals.

Well, that wraps up another Marketing Monday for me. I’m off in search of dark chocolate and caffeine — I earned it!

Wake up & Smell the Coffee!

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Coffee & Writing, Inspiration, Novel Writing, Poetry, Roberta Trahan, Writing

For me, the first of October marks the turn of the seasons. I’m a little strange, I guess, because I look forward to autumn and spring the way most people look forward to the summer months. The anticipation begins long before the first leaf turns, and by the time the date arrives I am almost giddy. My coffee even tastes better this morning!

I realized the other day that every novel I’ve written is set at the onset of autumn and resolves with the arrival of spring. This was not at all intentional, and must be a reflection of my own seasonal rhythms, perhaps some subconscious testament to my feelings about the cycle of life, death, and rebirth. Intersting how these personal ideals and philosophies weave themselves so subtlely into the fabric of the story.

This little poem says it best, at least for me:
https://robertatrahan.wordpress.com/2008/09/06/ode-to-autumn/

Auld Lang Syne

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Coffee & Writing, Coffee Quote, Happy New Year, Inspiration, Roberta Trahan, The Writing Life, Writing

Five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes, how do you measure, measure a year? In daylights, in sunsets, in midnights, in cups of coffee. In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife. In five hundred twenty-five thousand six hundred minutes, how do you measure, a year in the life?

—excerpted from “Seasons of Love” (soundtrack for the motion picture RENT), lyrics by Jonathan D Larson)

Coffee Trivia of the Month–December 2010

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Coffee, Coffee & Writing, Coffee Quote, Roberta Trahan, Writing tips

Coffee and Healing

(excerpted and compiled from “Coffee Cantata! by Jan Stoltman)

Coffee has been lauded as a potent medicinal since the earliest ages. Over the centuries it has been prescribed for the treatment of an astounding variety of maladies, from kidney stones and gout, to small pox, measles, and a wide range of circulatory and digestive disorders.

A medical encyclopedia compiled by Rhazes, a follower of Galen and Hippocrates, referred to the coffee  bean (bunchum), which supports the belief that the healing properties of coffee were understood and in use well over 1000 years ago. Similar references appear in the writings of Avicenna (AD 908-1037).

In Europe, coffee beans were originally only of value to botanists. Before long, however, they became a staple in apothecary shops, as a vital component in treatments offered by 17th century herbalists, chemists and even housewives.

Today, the caffeine in coffee is a well-known stimulant and has been shown to increase mental functioning and even memory – when used in moderation.  Overuse can reduce concentration and cause nervousness or jitters. The caveat being, of course, that too much of anything good can lead to affliction.

Coffee Trivia of the Month — November 2010

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Coffee & Writing, Coffee Quote, Roberta Trahan, Writing, writing life

Coffee House History

In most countries, coffee houses initially were considered the territory of men. Women were either banned or severely discouraged from going into these dens of political, financial and/or religious discussion. The exception was Holland, where from the 17th century, women were as much a part of the coffee house scene as men. It’s a good thing for American women that the enlightened Dutch founded New York and brought their concept of coffee houses to the New World. Perhaps the early American coffee houses were not only a hotbed for the upcoming revolution, but also the first step toward the future emancipation of American women

Coffee Trivia of the Month — October

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Coffee, Coffee & Writing, Roberta Trahan

I’ve run out of interesting and unique coffee quotes so am moving on to interesting and unique coffee related anecdotes and trivia.

Coffee Recipe From the book  ‘Kitchen Directory and American Housewife’ (1844): Use a tablespoonful ground to a pint of boiling water. Boil in tin pot twenty to twenty-five minutes. If boiled longer it will not taste fresh and lively. Let stand four or five minutes to settle, pour off grounds into a coffee pot or urn. Put fish skin or isinglass size of a nine-pence in pot when put on to boil or else the white and shell of half an egg to a couple of quarts of coffee.

I dare you to try it!

Coffee Quote of the Moment

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Coffee, Coffee & Writing, Coffee Quote, Roberta Trahan

You know you made the coffee too strong when it sticks to your teeth.  –Roberta Trahan

Coffee Quote of the Month–November 2009

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Coffee & Writing, Coffee Quote, Roberta Trahan, writing life

No coffee can be good in the mouth that does not first send a sweet offering of odor to the nostrils.    –– Henry Ward Beecher