Wet Wet Wet: Kim Fielding on kelpies, nymphs, kappas and “Bone Dry”
I’m delighted to welcome Kim Fielding here today, to talk about one of her new releases, Bone Dry, and the (deliciously ironic!) influence of mythological creatures associated with water. Kim’s also offering some prizes in Rafflecopter giveaways, so be sure to give them a go. Links are at the foot of the page. Over now to Kim:
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Hi! I’m Kim Fielding, here today to discuss water spirits.
Water spirits pop up in many cultures around the world. In part, I think this is because water is so essential to life. But I also think it’s because water is full of surprises; you never know quite what might appear from beneath the surface. At the farm owned by my brother and sister-in-law—which serves as partial inspiration for the farm in my Bones series—I’ve more than once been surprised when an otter suddenly appeared in the creek. When I’ve been near or on the ocean, I’ve been astonished and delighted by dolphins, whales, otters, sea lions and seals, and once even an octopus!
If a 50-foot mammal can surface suddenly, literally out of the blue, why not a mercreature, a kelpie, a nymph, or a kappa? Or a neck.
Neck names vary. They’re also called nixies, nocks, fossegrim, or Strömkarlen. The legends vary as well, but essentially these are water creatures. Some of them shape-shift. Many of them play musical instruments. Some are malevolent, lur
ing unwary humans to their deaths, but others are benign. Some have even been known to fall in love with humans, although the spirits suffer if they’re away from water too long—which probably makes relationships difficult!
Water sprites were often depicted as very beautiful creatures, like the one in this 1884 painting by Ernst Josephson. Yet they were sometimes also thought to be sad because they were lonely—and because they didn’t possess souls.
In my newest Bones novel, Bone Dry, I got to play with water spirit mythologies. I took a few creative licenses with the old tales, but I really hope you’ll enjoy the results!
Bone Dry is one my five (!) new releases. To celebrate, I’m doing a Fieldingpalooza blog tour, complete with prizes. I hope you’ll come join me! Details are on my website.
Kim’s new releases:
Bone Dry—book 3 in the Bones series—releases October 10—available now for preorder!
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Brute—French translation!—available now !
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Standby—in the Stranded anthology—releases October 10—available now for preorder!
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The Dance—in the Bones anthology (Gothika vol. 2)—releases October 27—available now for preorder!
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The Festivus Miracle—releases November 1—all proceeds go to Doctors Without Borders—available now for preorder!
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Contests!
Win a copy of “The Pillar” in a Rafflecopter giveaway
Win a $20 gift certificate with Dreamspinner Press in a Rafflecopter giveaway
Win a Bone-themed goody bag full of surprises in a Rafflecopter giveaway
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For more details on Kim’s books, as well as some free stories, visit her at http://kfieldingwrites.com/ . You can also follow her in Twitter @KFieldingWrites and Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/KFieldingWrites
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