Folk Lore

Hello! Happy Belated St. Patrick’s Day.

Like most people St. Patrick’s Day brings to mind the color green, over drinking, beer, and the Irish. But for me it also brings to mind stories and Irish lore my parents and grandparents shared because of our Irish heritage.

Truthfully Irish folk lore is one of my favorites to turn to for inspiration in my own fantasy creations. (I’ll admit I’m a little biased). This time of year as I dive into my own cultures folklore and explore new ones, it’s always easier to come up with ideas.

Especially when folklores are often used to teach lessons regarding behaviors accepted by a society. They can emphasis key traits or traits valued by society.

Questions I usually ask myself when trying to come up with folklore for a certain group of people in a story:

• What lesson is the folklore trying to teach?
• Are there any sayings that could come from it? Used as proverbs by the society at large.
• Where did the story come from? Is it know or unknown?

Folk lore and legends in fantasy and science fiction can really help create a more complex world while world building.

Honestly where would fantasy be without the classic elves dwarves and dragons? But those creatures have real places in folklores from various cultures as do other creatures.

So with spring well on its way and leprechauns still dancing around it’s the perfect time to spend world building.

What are some of your favorite folklores or legends?