This is a subject I find extremely interesting, and a lot of my novel is trying to educate others on the true origins of creatures we may have forgotten. Similar to the Hogfather by Terry Pratchett, which explains that Santa Claus goes back much further than Saint Nicholas, many of the standard fantasy races like elves and orcs go back much further than Tolkein, and indeed Tolkein changed a lot of them from how they used to be. So here I shall cover some standard races from my fantasy setting, many of which will actually be introduced in next week's blog.
Elves: Probably the most prominent race that springs to mind when you think of fantasy literature, elves weren't always the androgynous homoerotic species that Tolkein made them out to be. In fact, in the original Germanic myth they were magical divine creatures, and in Norse mythology there were two distinct types of elf- the light and dark elves, which were drastically different from each other, in fact light elves were associated with gods and the dark elves were described as similar to dwarves; considerably different from the modern view of the only difference being skin colour and moral alignment. When Norse religion went out of fashion, elves became associated with fairies and in the 19th century they returned to being beautiful magical humans. This is also the point where Americans started the Christmas elf image, but that's a different matter. As you'll see in my stories, my elves base themselves off of the Tolkein image, but it's possible they'll take on aspects of their shadier origins.
Fairies: a generic term that covers many fantasy creatures, much like dragons (don't even get me started...), fairies are most commonly associated with pixies. In modern folklore, fairies are considered 'nice' creatures, in images that frequently include flowers and butterflies and mischievous pranks. This image couldn't be further from the truth. The true origins of fairies are shrouded in mystery, but theories have included them being a manifestation of ghosts, a species equivalent to humans and angels, lesser angels, or straight out demons. Those that are familiar with the dark side of fairies will mostly know the changeling stories, of how a fairy may abduct a human child and leave a fairy one in it's place, but fairies are also described as malevolent yet elegant humanoids, much like the elves in the Discworld series (which in real terms are a hybrid between elves and the old style of fairy). Some say they will only cause harm if you disturb their territory, others say you should always have protection against them if you're anywhere near them, usually cold iron or certain types of flower, or even obscure practices like wearing your clothes inside out. In my novel, they're not as outright evil as they are in this world, more acting as pests- like mere insects.
Vampires: I'll make this short, because thanks to Twilight there's no shortage of outraged blogs about how stupid vampires are now. Suffice to say, those that say vampires should be more like Dracula are effectively Twi-hards from 100 years ago. Sure, vampires don't sparkle in sunlight- but neither do they live in castles and steal girls to be their brides. In actuality, the modern view of zombies is much more accurate to how vampires should be, the difference being that vampires would be less decomposed and slightly more bloated than they were in life, and generally weren't too much of a threat- some poltergeist activity, some killings of animals and rarely humans. Like I say, anything else about vampires is going to be covered elsewhere- but if you want to know more let me know. In my world, vampires are as much legend as they are in real life- but sightings are increasing, and they're much more animalistic than Dracula or Edward.
Angels: I don't have much to say about angels, other than what do you think when you think of angels? Well you're wrong, at no point in the Bible are angels ever described as having wings- you're thinking of Cherubim and Seraphim, and they generally had four wings or more and were sheaved in fire. In fact, the angels could just be ordinary men, the name only meaning 'messenger' which could refer to human prophets, it was just artistic license that caused them to become winged men- although as beings of incorruptible goodness they pretty much fit the bill (even Lucifer had good intentions). In my book, the hybrid forms of some birds could be considered 'angels' but that doesn't make them angelic.
Currently I don't have any plans for dwarves, though I am considering them, and I'm still researching some of the non-european creatures I can make use of such as Rakshasas and Nagas, but they'll have to wait for another time.
Next week- the conclusion to my trilogy of creation myths, internet connectivity allowing (there may be problems).
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