In a series of articles and two excellent books, author Lisa Cron makes a compelling argument, based on recent research in neuroscience, that there is something wired into the human brain that makes it receptive to good storytelling.
“Story is how we make sense of the world,” she says. (To read an introduction to her way of thinking, read this article)
There’s something about a story well told, something about a world well-realized, that makes us see our own world with clearer eyes.
Many of us know the Grimm tales, the standards of a Western education. But not so many have read the weird and wonderful fairy tales of the Slavs. They are often dark, sometimes morbid, and not always happily-ever-after. But they have some of the most colorful characters you’ll ever meet.
A hag who travels in a flying pestle. An immortal villain who keeps dying… and always comes back to life again. Women warriors who put their superhero-boyfriends into their pockets. Literally!
The Cauldron of Story
I grew up with these stories, and they are more than childhood memories for me. They are the backbone of my novels, the “cauldron of story” from which I borrow and to which I come again and again to be filled. If I need to think of a way to start a story, here are four of the strangest ways they start in Russian tales. What about a new monster for my hero to fight? No problem: here are some of the most common obstacles all heroes must overcome in the fairy tales.
So, if you’d like to have a taste of this rich and dangerous world, here’s where you can start:
If you like what you’ve read so far, here’s a guide for you, in case things get really hairy:
Click here to read a preview of my first novel, The Song of the Sirin which is inspired by these rich and varies fairy tales and myths.
If you’d like to read more about Russian fairy tales and myths, click here.