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Pennsylania’s Squonk

In populating my fictional town of Locke’s Falls, a haven for supernatural beings, I’ve been trying to flesh out the normal gambit of creatures (werewolves and other were-creatures, vampires, elves) with some more unusual or less commonly used creatures. As the town is set in Pennsylvania, I want to include some local cryptids. In that end, may I present the Squonk.

The majestic Squonk can be found in the northern Hemlock forests of Pennsylvania, such as in the Pocono mountain range. It has been described thus:

The squonk is of a very retiring disposition, generally traveling about at twilight and dusk. Because of its misfitting skin, which is covered with warts and moles, it is always unhappy … Hunters who are good at tracking are able to follow a squonk by its tear-stained trail, for the animal weeps constantly. When cornered and escape seems impossible, or when surprised and frightened, it may even dissolve itself in tears.

— William T. Cox, “The Squonk”, Fearsome Creatures of the Lumberwoods (1910)

The Squonk even has its on taxonomy, Lacrimacorpus dissolvens. It’s more recently been described as a tusked pig, covered in warts with cauliflower ear and loose skin. However sad the description may seem, the squonk is well loved in parts of Pennsylvania. Johnstown, PA has a Squonkapalooza festival every year.

In the world of Locke’s Falls, the squonk can occasionally be found wandering the forests surrounding the town. They travel alone or in small family groups. Their diet is mostly scrub, ferns, and other vegetation found of the forest floor, but they are known to get into the occasional farmer’s field. The squonk is only hunted when it becomes a problem to farmers. It has no natural predators as the squonk dissolves into a puddle of tears when surprised, cornered, or injured, and that’s just not a useful expenditure of time for predatory animals. There has been no evidence of anyone catching a squonk alive and no one knows what they might taste like. In general, the squonk is left alone to live its life free of human interference.

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AJ Sherwood – Fated Mates and How to Seduce Them

The latest in Sherwood’s Fated Mates series, this paranormal romance follows the vampire Andre as he tries to seduce the guy he is attached, Ian. For those unfamiliar with this series, the world features fated mates, humans who are so compatible with vampires that they feel no pain (and in fact feel quite a bit of pleasure) when a vampire feeds from them and can be partially turned to have extended life. They are the perfect partners for vampires, and therefore highly sought after. Though it is best to read the series in order, these books can stand alone.

Fated Mates and How to Seduce Them is a low angst, fluffy romance that features soulmates, love at first site, stubborn to lovers, vampire romance. It features Sherwood’s typical brand of humor that makes her books so enjoyable. The book has spicy sex scenes and sweet romantic scenes.

Like a cat, Andre had taken one look at him and said “mine” and refused to let go.

I would definitely recommend this whole series. The books are one of my go to comfort reads when I want something humorous with low stakes.

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Mary Calmes – House of Maedoc

I recently read Mary Calmes’s House of Maedoc series: His Consort, His Prince, and His Realm. The series follows Jason, a human, as he is thrust into the world of the supernatural. In His Consort, Jason encounters vampyr while helping to save a man that looks like a teenager but is actually a high ranking member of the vampyr Prince’s court. This encounter leads to Jason meeting Prince Varic, his mate. Set mainly in New Orleans, Calmes paints a rich picture of the French Quarter. Her worldbuilding is excellent as she introduces the reader to the world of vampyrs, the political rivalries among the New Orleans vampyrs, and the larger realm of the vampyr monarchy.

His Prince, continues to expand the world by introducing the reader to the vampyr court and the larger world of the vampyrs. It features the twists and turns of court intrigue while Jason, Varic, and their friends try to find who is conspiring to get Jason out of the way. His Realm explores the wider world that the court controls as well as a self-contained realm in Greenland.

Overall, the series was engaging and the worldbuilding is fantastic. I was really drawn into the world as I learned about it alongside Jason. The second book introduces a lot of characters and I had a bit of trouble keeping who’s who separated. I ended up drawing a family tree to visualize it, which is going to stay tucked away in the book for my next read, which is bound to happen. I would definitely read this series again.

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Kiki Clark – Tempest

Recently I read Tempest by Kiki Clark, the first book in the Silver Oak Pack series. The book is a MM Romance featuring a panther shifter and an eagle shifter. Set in the same universe as her Kincaid pack series, this book continues the story from The Mobster’s Mate (which I loved). Instead of continuing with Quinten’s pack, we visit his brother, Liam’s pack of cat shifters in Silver Oak, Kansas.

The book picks up the threads of mystery that started in Mobster’s Mate, where a group of people are kidnapping shifters to run experiments and force them to fight in a gladiator style arena. It also deals with the uncertainties of Ore, an eagle shifter, suddenly crashing into the life of Cash, a panther shifter and Enforcer of an insular group of cat shifters. As they grow closer the question of if Ore will be allowed to stay with the pack looms.

Overall, it was a fun read. Clark’s writing has excellent in the few books of hers that I have read so far and I will definitely be reading the rest of the series as it comes out.

anthropology Shifters tips What I’m Reading writing

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Writing Fantasy from History

I love fantasy.   I grew up reading books by Mercedes Lackey, Robert Jordan, Tokien, Neil Gaiman, Tamora Pierce, and the list keeps going on.   I watched every movie or television show that came on that had a fantasy setting, and stayed glued to it if the storytelling lived up to my hopes.  Whether it’s sword and sorcery or romance or urban fantasy, I’ll try it.  That’s probably the reason that it’s my favorite genre to write in.  Sure, I love to get into mystery or science fiction as well, but fantasy will always be my first love.

So, when Chuck Wendig posted on his blog, Terrible Minds, about 25 Things You Should Know About Writing Fantasy, I had to take a look to see what made the list.  It’s a rather thorough list from someone who claims not to write fantasy.  If you are a hardcore fantasy fan like me, or an aspiring fantasy writer, then you should definitely hop over and read the full list.  Go ahead, I’ll wait.

Okay, now that you’ve read the list (or not, I won’t judge), I want to touch on one of the points that I think is the most important:

4. BREAK REALITY WITH YOUR MAGIC HAMMER, REARRANGE THE RESULTANT SHARDS

Reality also offers up awesomeness in the form of data. You may think, “Well, I can’t research a fantasy world because it doesn’t exist, dummy” but again — root fantasy in the real. Look to actual events. Look to history. Look to culture and religion. Mine truth for fiction. Some cultures (Asian in particular) have a practice where friends and family and villagers help pay for each other’s funerals. Right there, you can take that, tweak it, use it. Drama lives there. What if the village won’t pay for someone’s funeral? Why? What’s the stigma? Why the exile? Adherence to dark magic? Broken oath? Cranky centaur bastard child?

YES! In college and graduate school I loved studying other languages and cultures.  No, this wasn’t just because I’m a geek.  It was because it gave me ideas.  Ideas that had the potential to become stories.  Anthropology is great for aspiring writers because it not only exposes you to other cultures, but it explains the hows and whys of human behavior.  Why did the Aztec and the Mayans build their cities the way they did?  What were their temples like?  What kind of adventures could a young warrior have?

As Wendig points out, a large body of fantasy literature is based on the society of Medieval Europe.  The social hierarchies, mundane troubles, and land disputes that are classic points in fantasy are borrowed straight from reality, and not just in historical fiction novels.  But, that doesn’t mean that your story has to be based in Europe.  What about borrowing a culture from Asia or South America?  What about going further back in time to the Greeks and Romans or setting your story in a tribal society?  What about blending two or more of these cultures or using both?  What happens when the two come into conflict?

I love to write about cultural contact.  It provides great opportunities for character interaction, comedy, drama and, of course, conflict.  I’m not alone in this either.  If you’re familiar with the Wheel of Time series by the late Robert Jordan, then you know exactly what I’m talking about.  (And he also provides a great example of borrowing from other cultures with the Seanchan and the Aiel.)  Epic fantasy is full of wars and battles between two opposing countries and their cultures.

So, the next time you sit down to read a fantasy book, take a moment to think about where the author may have gotten inspiration for the culture, and where you can get the same inspiration for your writing.