It’s Halloween Weekend! Charlotte is away for the weekend and I spent most of yesterday doing spooky things. Taking pictures of a local Stately Home which had been decked out in all it’s Halloween glory followed by a Ghost Tour in the evening. Granted, it wasn’t as spooky as could be, but it was a good evening of Ghostly Storytelling with a dose of Victorian Melodrama Theatre. But that’s part of the fun of Halloween, it’s the storytelling and the mix of legends that have, over time, become ingrained however subtly into our society without us even realising it.
This is a large part of the world that we’ve created. There are stories and mythologies and magic that has infiltrated this world in the same way that it infiltrates any other. And just like every other good story, there are heroes, heroines and villains, using the magic and power of the world and the stories of old to help them along the way. Ours is a medieval world, stepped in magic and myth, turning a lot of things on its head. Ours is the untypical fairy-tale, where there are wicked stepchildren and good Necromancers.
Yes, you heard right ‘good’ Necromancers which isn’t something that’s often heard of – especially not at this time of year. Halloween is traditionally the time for all things dead and spooky to come out and lurk around the corner. Things that go bump in the night and creatures that are out to devour others limb from limb – we’ve got that covered as well. But, we also have those who would use their powers of Necromancy for good. Those who use it to help the dead, to keep them at bay or at times stop the living from using and abusing those from beyond the grave.
Of course, we have balance and to counteract that we do have our Necromancers who are out to harness the power of the dead for their own means. Those who aren’t going to conform to the rules of our world’s magic and will do what they can to ensure that they have the ‘ultimate power’. It sounds cliche, I know but it is the best way to put it without getting into the nitty gritty of our world and giving away all our spoilers. There definitely wouldn’t be any fun in that for us!
But this time of year is brilliant for us as writers of all things magical. Long lost legends come out of the woodwork and myths that we have long since forgotten are somehow brought back to the forefront. Whether it’s an article online or the simple telling of tales between people, sometimes to scare and at other times to educate. We love and crave stories, whether they be stories of romance and heroic actions or stories that scare us – particularly the latter. There again, there’s little point in telling a story about a dark, dark room in a dark, dark house where skeletons and werewolves and vampires lurk if you’re not going to deliver the scare factor!
So I’ll be carrying on my weekend by delving into the myths and legends and horror stories – good and bad – to see what strikes. Stories of heroic halloween heroes, heroines and villains that will both enthrall and scare me. And I can guarantee that if I can find some good ones, I’ll be watching the shadows in the house tonight – and probably sleeping with the light on!
Charlotte and Clara 