Finally, Of Legend and Lore is here!
New life is given to eleven old stories in this second collection of irresistible fairy tale retellings.
Royalty faces magical challenges: a prince uses his powers on a rescue mission and reveals a terrible secret about his people; a king takes drastic measures to save his daughters from a troublesome curse; and a princess befriends an unusual frog.
Mythical creatures can be friend or foe: three brothers face a depressed dragon with a legendary treasure; an ancient crow brings a child’s wishes to life; and one young girl discovers dragons aren’t always the enemy.
Heroes come in all shapes and sizes: a miser is in danger of losing everything one cold night; a struggling mirrorsmith meets an invisible recluse; a boy must relive the fairy tale based on his ancestor’s life; a child is rejected because of his love of drawing cats; and an evil witch is sealed in a glass coffin.
Be transported to new worlds and enjoy fresh twists on old favorites.
The Firestone
My own story, The Firestone, features in this anthology.
When peasant girl Katya finds a secret treasure guarded by dragons, she uses her newfound wealth to reach Lord Korin’s heart, only to discover that his father stands in their way. Can her dragon friends help her find true love, or will Katya lose all that’s dear to her?
My story is based on the well-known Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale, The Tinderbox.
In The Tinderbox, a soldier returning from war gains unlimited treasure from an old witch. The treasure is guarded by three giant dogs with different-sized eyes:
Then he opened the first door. “Ah!” there sat the dog, with the eyes as large as teacups, staring at him. – The Tinderbox
The soldier uses the treasure to wed the princess in a nearby town. In all honesty, the soldier is not a very pleasant character in this tale, and so when I retold it, I had to make sure my main character was likeable.
I started my retelling by thinking….. what if the dogs were dragons?
And so it began. Instead of a soldier, my main character is a poor peasant girl, unloved by her family, disabled in an accident, who comes across a great treasure. All she wants is to catch the eye of the local lord’s son – and this wealth together with her new dragon friends gives her the opportunity to do so.
Throughout the story, I have a theme of fire. It came out naturally, from the dragon’s breathing fire, to Katya’s disability being caused by a fire, to the need for fire to keep them alive, to a magical stone of power which is used to create fire (like a tinderbox).
I’ve always wanted to write about dragons, as they are my favourite fantasy creature, so this is a great way to share my first foray into dragon writing with you all. Be assured, it certainly won’t be the last time I write about dragons!
I’m excited to share this tale, and it’s only one of the eleven great stories in this anthology volume. I can personally vouch for them and say that if you enjoy a fairy tale you will enjoy this new take on old favourites.
Happy reading!