Well, it's been a busy few months and very exciting things are happening.
The novel was released and shortly after, I was notified that the folklore collection was honored as a finalist in the International book awards. It is wonderful to see Icelandic stories and heritage being honored in such a way because it raises visibility so that more people will read the folklore and learn about Icelandic heritage. Some stories are similar to other Scandinavian folklore, which makes sense because we all share the same heritage. In the story, Now I Should Laugh, you see a similarity to The Emperor's New Clothes, by Hans Christian Andersen, who was a Danish writer. Independent thinking and resisting crowd mentality is a common cultural position in Scandinavia. Much of the folklore, not only in this book but in the majority of cultures, exists to teach the young about interacting with other and provides lesson about consequences, alternatives, and morals. One of my favorite examples of this is from Drangey Consecrated, which exemplifies the Icelandic attitude of acceptance and efforts for peaceful coexistence among all creatures.
I will always be interested in the Icelandic culture, as my own personal heritage, and will continue to write from that perspective. I recently returned from another trip to Iceland, and I'll be sharing details of that trip in another post. I am committing to posting more frequently to this blog this year and sharing more of my projects, both Icelandic-inspired as well as other works. I am currently working on a series of novels involving cowboys, city girls and how they meet through online dating. I am having so much fun with these new characters and, of course, the required rodeo research. Also to share new work, I will try to post some flash fiction - micro-stories of 500 words or less.
Until next time, have a wonderful day!
