The Rusalki

I’m chilling in Russia this week for Faerie Friday. Again. Just in case you were wondering, I plan on staying here through next week. And maybe I’ll swing on over to Japan next month, but I’m undecided. I found this great book on the Yokai. If you don’t know what the Yokai are, you’ll just have to come back and find out. J

The Rusalki are the Russian equivalents (sort of) of the Greek Naiad, i.e. hot freshwater nymphs. Okay, they aren’t hot in all the versions of the story, but for the purpose of this exercise, they are. Capisce?

In some versions, the Rusalki wear white shifts and in other, they are completely bare assed. In all stories, they have long, flowing hair. Sometimes green. They spend the winter months submerged in the depths of lakes and rivers and crawl out during the summer months.

You are going to meet one of two ends when you tangle with a Rusalki. Most commonly she uses her siren voice and her laughter to lure young men to the water where she takes them in her embrace and drowns them. The other way is a more ignominious way – she tickles you to death. Yes, I said tickle. They sing, giggle and swing from branches and when they have you in their thrall, they sneak up behind you and tickle you to death. I can just imagine the epitaph: HERE LIKES BORIS, FELLED BY A TERRIBLE TICKLE. It’s a shameful way to die, but it does play into some boyhood fantasies. They only thing that’s missing is topless pillow fights.

By “you” in the above referenced illustrations, I mean young men. She can’t be bothered with women and is very hostile toward the fairer sex. As an aside, I know women like that and they are equally as unlikable as the Rusalki. Just not as deadly.

The Russian villager has a few tricks to keep them away – charms, hanging linen in the trees, garlic, iron and crosses.

Like many faerie creatures, they Rusalki are thought of as the souls of unbaptized children, drowned maidens and unwed mothers. They are considered an unclean force deriving their allure from the devil himself. Most likely, the Rusalki are the remnants of pagan goddesses. They are used to illustrate the contrast between themselves (unclean, devilish) and Christian women (good, chaste.) The Rusalki are spirited, wear their hair flowing freely, take lovers that are not their husbands, and in general behave like naughty (albeit more dangerous) sorority girls.

Not a nice girl, but a fun girl. Okay, fun for just a minute, but fun nonetheless!

Russian Water Devil

Okay, this one is going to be short. I have a cough I can’t get rid of and a book that won’t read itself. And I’ve been screwing around on my computer for two hours and haven’t accomplished anything. Such is the life of me.

Anyway, I decided stay in Russia for this week’s Faerie Friday post, but instead of a forest dwelling creature, we are going to focus on a guy who hangs around bodies of water looking for some sucker to drown, i.e. the Vodianoi, sometimes called vodianoi chert or “water devil.”

Russia is a big country, huge in fact, so the stories of Vodianoi vary from region on region, town to town. Sometimes he lives in the slimy bottoms of ponds and in other stories he lives in a crystal palace. He usually resides somewhere near a mill and he’s known to be a danger to everyone but fisherman and millers. Probably because they know how to treat him. They leave him the proper offerings – tobacco, bread, salt, vodka. You know, the usual.

His appearance also varies from place to place. Sometimes he’s slimy or scaly with green hair and beard. Sometimes he’s old, sometimes he’s young. That usually depends on the cycle of the moon. He’s naked in some stories and half fish in others.

He can be spotted by the water dripping from his coat. His clothing never dries and he leaves puddles everywhere. I find that more amusing than menacing. 

Guardian of the Russian Forest

Working on this week's Faerie Friday post. I swear this desk was clean a few days ago. Honest Buff.

So I took a break from blogging.

My intention had been to take the time to work on a few stories that I was close to completing. I’d like to say I was successful, but that wouldn’t be true. I’m a lot of things, but liar isn’t one of them. Well, mainly I’m not a liar. How does that old Dwight Yoakum song go? “I tell the truth except when I lie.” Something like that.

*heads to Rhapsody to add song to play list*

Anyway, I’m back and I’m heading to Russia for this week’s Faerie Friday post. I’m high on cold medicine so please forgive the occasion forgotten word or sentences that make little to no sense. I’m a bit rusty in the blog post writing arena.

Here goes nothing.

As I stated a few sentences ago, we are traveling to Russia for this week’s Faerie Friday post - the Russian forests to be more specific to where the Leshii dwell.

The Leshii is a natural spirit. Think Green Man with a Russian accent. One of my references says that they are the offspring of human woman and demons. Do what you will with that piece of information.

Each forest, unless it’s a big honking forest, has only one. (Les means forest, apparently.) He doesn’t just guard the forest, but all of the animals that reside there. He lives with his wife, known at the Lesovikha. She is portrayed in a number of a different ways: an ugly bint with big breasts, a woman in white or a pretty naked chick. Their children are called Leshonki.

In most stories, though they vary from location to location, the Leshii isn’t exactly a prize himself. He wears his boots on the wrong feet. He sports both green eyes and a green beard and long, messy hair. He casts no shadow and his eyes glow. He is a shape shifter that can change size and forms.

The Leshii, like many forest dwelling figures of folklore, love to play tricks on unsuspecting peasants. Making forest noises, laughing loudly, or clapping loudly, he liked to cause people to lose their way. Not such a big deal in our modern times, but before the invention of GPS, wandering aimless through a big forest could and would get you killed.

A way to ward off the Leshii is to wear your clothes inside out and to put your shoes on the wrong feet.

Like most of the creatures/figures I write about, there is a lot more to the Leshii, but I must leave that for another post.  

The Next Big Thing

 

Last week Jami Gold tagged me in one of her blog posts for “The Next Big Thing.” I don’t normally participate in these things though I do appreciate the gesture when I’m tagged. I usually don’t have the time (i.e. too lazy) but this is the second half day in a row for me with NYSE being closed so it’s either annoy my husband who is trying to get some work done or work on this. J I took a nap yesterday. Besides, Jami is a super cool lady and I don’t want to let her down. If you don’t already, you should check out her Tuesday and Thursday posts on writing. They are awesome.

So here goes my answers:

 

Ten Interview Questions for the Next Big Thing:

What is your working title of your book?

 

Darkness Peering

The title comes from the poem “The Raven” by Edgar Allan Poe

 

Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortal ever dared to dream before;
But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token…

 

This describes the position the heroine is in at the beginning of the book.

Where did the idea come from for the book?  

 

Regular readers of my blog know that I have a deep love of faerie lore. I’ve always been fascinated by the idea of the changeling – a faerie that has been switched with a human child. I know there are a few YA books that have changelings, but I wanted to write an adult story about a changeling.

What genre does your book fall under?

This story falls under the Urban Fantasy category, but it has a strong Paranormal Romance bent.

 

Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?

 

The main character, Greer, would be played by Emma Stone. Her love interest, Thad, is a little harder to caste. I have a clear picture of him in my head, but no one seems to be good enough to play him. J

What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?

 

A faerie changeling, now all grown up, must discover the truth about herself and the circumstance of her birth in order to stop a lethal threat. Yes, I appreciate this is vague.

 

Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?

 

Not sure. I hope that I’ll be able to find an agent, but this is the book of my heart. I’ll figure out a way to get it published.

How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?

 

I’ve written parts of this novel before I had an understanding of the characters. I have moved all of those pages into a folder titled “JUNK.” I’m starting all over this year for NaNoWriMo. I hope to finish the whole thing in November, but I’m sure it’ll bleed over into December. I tend to write very bare bones 1^st drafts. My guess is 6 to 8 weeks.

What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?

The only changeling stories I know are YA and this is most defiantly not a YA novel!

 

Who or what inspired you to write this book?

 

My love of faerie lore, Russian mythology and an interesting setting – the Stockade neighborhood of Schenectady.

What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?

One of the side characters, a cop called “The Face” behind his back, was inspired by a conversation I overheard at the grocery store between two clerks – one clerk was bragging about her nephew and the other thought she was talking about this other guy with the nickname “Face” that is serving time for murder. Interesting shopping trip to say the least.

 

Okay, so I have to tag five folks in this post.

 

Here they are:

 

NinaAlvarez – Fabulous friend, suitemate from college, awesome writer and editor. One of those people who always understands.

 

Rashda/MinaKhan – Super lady who resides in the Lone Star state where she writes about super-hot djinns. I love djinns. Oh, and she knows about food!

 

SuzyIvy – Really cool lady who just happens to be a cop and a writer! Someone I’d like to be like when I grow up.

 

LauraEno – Fun writer and blogger who writes a weekly blog post called “Fantasy Friday.” Anyone who loves mythology and folklore needs to check that out.

 

RobertaJ. Gordon – Awesome gal from Arkansas and author of Gemini Witching.

 

Rules for The Next Big Thing Blog Hop:

1)   Use this format for your post

2)   Answer the ten questions about your current WIP (work in progress)

3)   Tag five other writers/bloggers and add their links so we can hop over and meet them.

Ten Interview Questions for the Next Big Thing:


What is your working title of your book?
Where did the idea come from for the book?
What genre does your book fall under?
Which actors would you choose to play your characters in a movie rendition?
What is the one-sentence synopsis of your book?
Will your book be self-published or represented by an agency?
How long did it take you to write the first draft of your manuscript?
What other books would you compare this story to within your genre?
Who or what inspired you to write this book?
What else about your book might pique the reader’s interest?
Include the link of who tagged you and this explanation for the people you have tagged.

Author Photos

I decided a few months ago that I need to have professional photos taken. I hate, hate, hate getting my picture taken so when it came to picking a photographer, I was really particular. The photographer that photographed my wedding was awesome and she moved back into the area over the summer. Yay for me! You can check her out on Facebook.

Anyway, two weekends ago I met her down in the Stockade section of Schenectady for the shoot. The hour started with sprinkles, followed by huge gusts of wind from the river and finally sun. Both The Dark Man and the novel I am starting next month take place in this very neighborhood.

Here are some of my favorite shots:

St. George's church as a background.

 

 

 

One of my favorite houses on Front Street.

 

 

Very authory. Don't ya think?

 

 

Looking out over the Mohawk. Isle of the Cayugas in the distance.

 

 

Lovely set of gates.

 

 

Riverside Park

 

 

Another house on Front Street.

 

 

St. George and a few grave stones in the background. Most graves were moved to Vale Cemetery.

 

 

Street scene.

 

 

We have a w*nner!!!!

And it is.... Patricia Lynne! 

Patricia Lynne, please email me your address at msbuffy@nycap.rr.com and I'll get the book right out to you!

Thanks to all that participated!

Happy Anniversary and a Give*way!!

Yesterday, Pixies Don’t Have Wing’s 1st anniversary came and went with little fanfare.  To be honest, I almost forgot about it.

I’ve had a blast writing the posts and I hope my readers have enjoyed them as well. 

But I have to do something to celebrate the anniversary.

I mean, it would be so sad not to.

So, I decided to give something away.  

Rules (because there always has to be rules):

You need to leave a comment on this blog post.  Tell me what you like about faeries.  And if you don’t like faeries, tell me what you don’t like about them.  I promise to keep an open mind.  You have until 5:00 pm EST on Sunday (September 9th).  I will post the winner on Monday morning.

You don’t have to like my Facebook page or follow the blog (though both of those things would be great) to enter.  Just a comment.  It’s easy.  I'll pick someone at random.  Most likely I'll ask my husband to pick a number between 1 and whatever.  He's officially banned from entering.

What do you win?

I’ve thought about this for some time (like 10 minutes) and I decided on Brian Froud’s World of Faerie.  If you already have the book, you can still enter.  I’ll just come up with a different prize.

Can’t wait to hear what ya’ll have to say.