Wattpad brings you a guest post from Candace Osmond, author of our latest featured story, Iron & Wine:
As a child, I lived in a small community with no other kids my own age. But that was okay by me. The enchanting landscape of the Maritimes is a magical backdrop for an imaginative child to dream up creatures and such to occupy her time. I played by the ocean’s edge where, most days, I could have sworn I saw mermaids weave through the waves. The strange and thick forests provided hours of entertainment as I discovered small burrows, hollowed trees and moss covered caves for me to explore.
The native folklore and myths that already made its way around only fuelled my imagination. I remember my Nan getting me ready to go berry picking with her on the hills. She would give me crackers or bread rolls to put in my pockets for a snack but would then kid around and tell me not to drop any or the pixies will follow us. Or, the time she gave me an old dirty nickel with a hole drilled in it, insisting that I’ll never get lost in the woods if I had it. And I’ll never forget the time I had accidentally worn my socks inside out. Nan said, “Oh, don’t worry about that my dear, that’ll keep the little fellas away.” I had no idea what she meant back then, but now I really do think that she believed a little in the folklore that came down through our families from England and Ireland. I mean, with scenery like this, how could one NOT believe…just a little?
Some other lore and myths from the Maritimes are stories of sea people, or mermaids, who would lure children and farm animals to the shore out of boredom or curiosity, resulting in the child or animal drowning.
There were even stories of men and women, gone missing for days, just show up suddenly one morning covered in sweat and dirt, their clothes tattered. They would swear up and down that they had only stopped for a moment to speak to someone on the roadside. The myth is that the Fair Folk would lead you astray into the hillside or forest to fairyland where they would keep you until they were bored of playing.
Or, if you leave out a saucer of milk on your door step, garden sprites will come and make your garden flourish.
Growing up in a world filled with magic and myths how could I write a story about anything else? The answer is clear in my writing. I love folklore, and in my books I’ve mixed them both with modern day real life.
Read Candace Osmond’s Iron & Wine on Wattpad!
Iron & Wine is an Urban Fantasy set in a world full of hidden magical places and secret societies cloaked by modern day. In the first instalment of the Iron World Series, young artist Avery Quinn reluctantly leaves behind her quiet and comfortable home in the country and moves to the city with her best friend Julie Ryan. With the expectation that college will be the most exciting part of her life, Avery hopes that her little world remains quiet and simple. But after a troublesome blue sprite looking for help appears in her bedroom one night, her boss turns out to be a three hundred year old vampire, and her best friend accidentally reveals herself as an orphaned pixie, school quickly becomes the least of her worries. Every aspect of Avery’s life explodes with mythical beings and legendary creatures who all play a very important role in her existence. Some are friends, some are guardians, while others quickly become life threatening and deadly enemies. Avery must learn to juggle living in both her world and theirs, but in this magical tale of strange love, strong bonds and scary beings; what once was nothing more than mere fairy tales told to her by her Aunt Tess are now a scary reality and Avery has somehow landed deep in the middle with little or no way out except death or worse…the loss of her humanity.