Thursday, July 26, 2012

Mythology: Guest Post by Sheenah Freitas

Today I have a special guest post from one of my best friends, Sheenah Freitas! Sheenah is the author of Zincian Legend Series and also Musings from Yesteryear. Sheenah and I bonded over anime with our fangirling passion :) And she was surprised that she was able to keep anime out of this guest post about mythology. Oh yes! Before you guys get to the guest post, here is a treat! You guys can download the first three chapters of The Chosen (Zincian Legend #1), just click the beautiful gif below! It is free!


Now without further adieu, a guest post by Sheenah on mythology!
Mythology. A body or collection of myths belonging to a people and addressing their history, deities, ancestors, and heroes. That definition spans every culture. Contrary to popular belief, Greek and Romans aren’t the only people who worshipped a pantheon of gods. With the popularity of Thor and The Avengers, most people are becoming aware of Norse mythology and I sense that we’ll be seeing a plethora of Norse mythological novels sometime in the near future. For thousands of years, people have been fascinated with the gods. Maybe it’s because they’re all powerful. Maybe it’s because despite their power, they suffer from human flaws.
Or maybe it’s because they’re untouchable — forbidden, if you must call it. In the age of science and monotheistic religions it can be hard to imagine that people worshipped many gods at once and believed they controlled elements of our daily lives: the weather, our food supply, even our love lives. We always tell ourselves that our ancestors needed myths to explain how things worked. Or maybe our ancestors knew something that we didn’t. Maybe the world really was a more magical and fantastical world before modern man dismissed it all with science. Science has yet to explain how most cultures (even cultures with no trade with one another) have similar mythologies. Every major ancient culture had a tale about flying serpents (a.k.a. dragons) and mermaids. People have “debunked” mermaids and said that men were mistaking seals for beautiful maidens. But are seals really to blame? Or does mythology hold a truth that we’ve forgotten? A growing trend in YA books is mythology. They mostly tackle Greek myths like Hades and Persephone and mermaid novels are really starting to catch some steam. Through literature and other media we can really explore the what ifs without the scrutiny of science. Artists can have a say on whether or not magic exists. It’s at once refreshing and familiar. Familiar because for the most part, books on mythology are based on gods and monsters the general public are aware of and refreshing because you get another adventure from said gods or monsters or a twist to a classic tale. Myths aren’t dead. They’re timeless. And who knows? Maybe you’ll be visited by a god soon. If you’re looking to add some YA mythology novels to your collection, then there’s some books below that might interest you and help you get started!
The Chosen by Sheenah FreitasSprite by Leigh Michael
Bonded by Mande MatthewsUnchanged by Heather Crews
Sonora by Travis HallEternal Youth by Julia Crane and Nolia McCarty
Become by Ali CrossBetrayal by Mayandree MichelPromises by Amber GarrEternal Vows by Chrissy Peebles


A neek at heart, Sheenah Freitas has a love for the whimsical and magical. She looks to animated Disney movies and Studio Ghibli films for inspiration because of the innovative twists on fairytales, strong story structures, and character studies. When not writing, you might find her in a forest where she's yet to find any enchanted castles.

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