Wednesday, September 19, 2012

The Gods of Norse Mythology



Yesterday I hung out by a fountain with the gods of Norse mythology. I bet you are wondering where I found them and why I decided to look for them in the first place. The answer is research, and what better place to go than the library. Now I confess that after the search engines started dominating the www my trips to the library have not been as frequent. What surprised me was the selection, or should I say lack thereof. You would think that a Norwegian library would have a large selection on the gods, on vikings and on the folklore surrounding them, but I only managed to find a few. It was a warm sunny day so I took the gods with me and sat outside in the beautiful park surrounding the library. I told them about the book I was writing and here is what the gods had to say:

“Nobody seems to read books about us anymore; they would rather go into a dark room that you humans call a movie, and watch these pretend gods making up stories of their own. How could it be that our own stories have so little interest to you humans?” Freya looked at me and waited for an answer but I was rudely interrupted by Loki.

 “I like these human stories on the wall of the movie temple! They make me handsome and even a bit loveable. Everyone knows who I am now and I am finally respected as a force to be dealt with.” Thor did not like Loki’s comment, slammed his hammer on the ground, and bellowed out in a voice that made the other Gods shutter. 

“You… IGNORANT little flea!  If it were not for your constant bag of tricks, no one would pay attention to you! I am the real hero. I only refrain from squashing you off the face of this earth because I find you at times amusing! You are not even my brother!”

Sif looked at the content smile on Thor’s face and sighed before she said, “These movie people would have you betray my love dear husband, and they seem to believe we all come from an alien planet. Not only do they think that, they also believe me to be a warrior. You know how I hate to fight, Freya is much better suited for weapons than I.”

Freya turned towards me and drew a large sword from her belt. “It is true; these humans have forgotten that I am a warrior, as well as a lover. I hope when you finish your book, you will have told the other humans that!” She then kissed her sword and disappeared into the pages beside me, along with the other gods.

These are some of the gods you will get to know better in my series of books called, Gods and Fairytales. A sneak preview from the first book, Secrets of the Ash Tree, is available in the anthology Open Doors which you can buy  HERE.

So have you been to the library lately? Which one of the gods is your favorite?


15 comments:

mooderino said...

I feel like Loki is getting far too much positive press these days.

mood
Moody Writing

Paul Anthony Shortt said...

I've always liked Athena. I grew up more on Greek mythology than Norse, and despite the fact the Greek gods weren't always the nicest bunch, for the most part Athena seemed the most sensible.

Besides, goddess of wisdom and heroic battle, protector of heroes, how can you not like that?

Christina Farley said...

I love mythology! Such and interesting post. My husband and I almost moved to Norway to teach at an international school there. We ended up in Seoul but I'd still love to go to Norway... Someday maybe!

Roland D. Yeomans said...

Of course I love mythology - you can tell that from my books. You might Neil Gaiman's AMERICAN GODS where the old gods are being replaced by modern demigods of technology. Odin is the chief catalyst in this book.

I like mixing my myths, putting Native American ones next to Norse, Celtic, and Greek as in END OF DAYS.

Oh, you also might like Gaiman's MG tale, ODD AND THE GIANTS where Thor, Loki, and Odin are helped by a young Viking boy named Odd. :-)

Anonymous said...

This made me chuckle! I can totally see the gods having this discussion! Well done. BTW I featured you on my blog today. Trying to help promote your upcoming book.

LD Masterson said...

I fear my knowledge of Norse mythology is sadly lacking. I will have to count on your book to enlighten me.

nutschell said...

Man, I love Greek mythology. Actually, i love all kinds of myths, but the story I'm currently working on has to do with Greek goddesses :)

Nutschell
www.thewritingnut.com

Alex J. Cavanaugh said...

I'm sure your telling will be much more accurate.
And what can I say? I like Thor.

Christine Rains said...

Great post! Norse mythology is fascinating. Freya is one of my favorites too.

Mark Koopmans said...

I agree... I don't know much about the Norse god peeps, but I know more, now :)

Fun read and thanks for reminding me about Danielle Steel... how could I ever have forgotten :)

Laughing Ferret said...

of all the different mythologies, Norse gods might be my favorite ones.

I just have more respect for them than most other gods. Greek gods are so painfully petty. Roman is like haggling at an open air bazar, Egyptian don't feel like fully fleshed out characters, but the whole of Norse myth is quite noble. Like Christian/Islam myth, they believe the world is going to end in a big battle of good and evil, but the catch is, they know they will lose. But they fight on anyway, because it is right. They know they shouldn't let Loki in,that he's dangerous, but he's family, they have to do what is right, and Baldur dies because of it. Tyr puts his hand in Fenris' jaw so he can bind the wolf, which is a huge danger to everything- and loses his hand in the process... Odin sacrifices an eye for the benefit of wisdom for good & mankind, and unlike Jesus sacrifice, the hand of Tyr & Odin's eye doesn't grow back in three days- it's permanent, so as sacrifice myths go, that strikes me as more significant. Time and again these gods face a losing battle and stoically do what is right just because it is: I have to respect that. I'm probably more a thinker than fighter, so I'd say Odin is my favorite of the Norse gods- plus he has his two ravens, and that's pretty cool ;) But I also have a soft spot for Ganesha.

Crazy Life of a Writing Mom said...

I love your story in "Open Doors" :) And I really need to go to the library. There's nothing quite like the feel of old books :)

Mina Lobo said...

That Loki line, “I like these human stories on the wall of the movie temple!" made me LOL. And yet, what an eerily accurate way of looking at it...

My fave "god" is Hades. Dionysus amuses me, as well. Also, I can be a bit of a lush. ;-)
Some Dark Romantic

Ciara said...

I'm more familiar with Greek than Norse mythology, but it all sounds so interesting.

mshatch said...

Tough call. I will have to get out my book on Norse Gods and Mythology before answering as I am not as well-versed as I would like to be! Loki is a scoundrel to be sure but without him...?