Since childhood I’ve loved reading fairy tales, folk tales, and mythology. In the course of researching my first three faery novels set in England and Wales, and my upcoming Flight and Flame trilogy set in Cornwall, I came across all kinds of fascinating tidbits of fairy lore! . One of the things that interested me most was the strong connection between British faery lore and Christianity. Modern readers tend to associate fairies with paganism, but many of the 18th-19th century writers who compiled collections of fairy stories and folklore were devout churchgoers and clergy, and the way they wrote down the stories reflects their religious beliefs. In fact, many fairy legends draw on Bible stories and concepts to explain where fairies come from and why they behave as they do. . That’s not to say these folk tales were good theology, because they often featured muddled ideas that were based on tradition and superstition, not the Bible. But they weren’t mocking or opposing Christianity by any means, and in the Victorian and Edwardian eras “fairy stories” were considered perfectly wholesome and even suitable for teaching good morals to children. It wasn’t until the 1960’s and 70’s brought a resurgence of interest in paganism and “New Age” spirituality that fairy stories (and fantasy in general) came to be seen as suspect by conservative Christians. . Since the boom of fairy-inspired children’s, YA and adult fantasy in the 1990’s and 2000’s, modern authors have tended to portray fairies as bloodthirsty, sensual, amoral creatures who are either monstrous, or perilously beautiful, or both. But the odd mixture of homely kindness, mischief and mystery found in many old British folk tales about fairy folk is not so popular anymore. . Which kind of fairies do you prefer to read about? Do you have a favourite book or story about fairies? . . . . . #Fairies #fairy #fantasy #fae #fairytale #faery #faeriesofinstagram #magical #rjandersonwriter #enclaveescape #enclavepublishing #yabooks #IReadYA #yareads #speculativefiction #christianfantasy #fairybooks #flightandflametrilogy #swift #swiftbook https://www.instagram.com/p/B9r_kzJgET9/?igshid=f7p6lrqs09rb
