Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past PART ONE

I, the lucky lady that I am, received Legend of Zelda: A link to the Past for Christmas.

Oh it is a good one!

I adore Ocarina of Time. It was the first game I ever played all the way through, and I was truly hooked. I have played surprisingly few other Zelda games, mostly due to not having the consoles to play them on, so what a joy it is to play A Link to the Past now!

I am still working through Link to the Past, I have only just arrived at the Mountain Dungeon, but wanted to share some thoughts at a half-wayish* point.

*(I’m not overly sure where I am in the game, I haven’t played it before and don’t care for the inevitable spoilers if I google to find out!)

On that note : Spoilers ahoy! If you haven’t played, and are intending to play this game, do not read this post yet.

There are many things I have enjoyed so far including:

Dated graphics does not mean dated game

I didn’t own the SNES, I went from Sega Megadrive (technically my big sister’s) to the Nintendo 64. So, the graphics look dated and I assumed the game would be a short, clunkier version of Ocarina. HOW WRONG WAS I! The story, your connection to Link, the puzzles and the humour are all on point.

Dungeons

It’s just so satisfying completing a dungeon and receiving an amulet! The format works a treat. I like how element based the designs for dungeons are.

Items

There seem to be a million tools to find that will help you on your quest! I just got the flippers so I can swim. Every time you hit a brick wall there will be an item to help you through it, and the variation from a bow and arrow to a frozen wand (which I am yet to use actually, why do I have that?) is so much fun.

Secrets

I found a secret fairy cave under a bush and was so very pleased with myself! I have seen ‘easter eggs’ and ‘what you may have missed’ videos for games and films on YouTube and my mind simply boggles at how people find all of these things! So when I manage to find secrets in a game, it’s a thrill.

Pink Bunny

I felt like now was a good time to write a blog post about this game because, to my absolute delight, I just turned into a pink bunny. A ruddy PINK BUNNY! Zelda games have such a lovely in-game humour, and Link to the Past is rife with it...

Pay no attention to the average middle-aged man sitting by this sign.

Story

It always comes back to this with me and games. I need a good story, from the main plot to the subtext. Why Link is transformed into a pink bunny, his relationship with Zelda, how some people in the town turn on him and call the guards, the history behind the sword in the woods (more on that below, darn sword!) all gives such texture to the game that I fully immerse myself in its world. Oh happy escapism!

And here are some things I am anticipating:

Sword

I want the sword. I’ve seen the sword, I have translated the inscription on the sign by the sword, I have attempted to take the sword numerous times. Give me the sword!

Amulets

I have two out of three amulets. Having used the mirror to get out of the dark world I know that once I have the third one I will be able to traverse that world as Link. Exciting!

The Past

The game is called A Link to the Past... what happened before the opening of the game I ponder! Ocarina was time travel based as well, it’s interesting that this pre-Ocarina game alludes to a similar plot!

Saving the Day

Why am I playing this game? Because I want to be the hero that saves the day! Bring on the final boss battle!

So there we have it, an overview of my journey in Legend of Zelda: Link to the Past.

I will write a follow up piece when I finish the game!

Fantastical Faffing

Wow this blog lasted a long time didn’t it?

In a completely original I’m-sure-no-one-ever-does-this kind of way, I got excited about writing a blog and lasted a whopping three posts! Goodness me, move over literary greats there is a new lady in town!

There ends my text based tap on the wrist for being bad at blogging.

What have I been up to since 3rd March 2016?

Well I moved out of freelancing and started a full time job. It sounds all very grown up until you find out I’m the Events and Story Manager for a woodland adventure park full of mysterious marshy creatures call Boggles and Twiggles. My days there are metaphorically, and indeed literally, full of glitter.

This seemed to take up all of my brain space in 2016. As 2017 chimed, feeling all settled in at work, I delved back into music and writing...then remembered this little blogging beauty of a past time!

So I am going to jump back in and write a proper post, (after this one explaining why I haven't written a post!)

I recently have had all sorts of fantasy based fun in the form of playing the truly excellent Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past video game, picking up the Anne McCaffrey Dragon series again, and even started reading my very first Terry Brooks Novel, The Sword of Shannara. I also am going to play my debut game of Dungeons and Dragons in the near future! So lots of stuff for me to type about :)

Folk wise music is still my main outlet, and I’m looking forward to performing at Bromsgrove Folk Festival this year with my band Patchwork Skies!

So let’s get cracking on something interesting, a real post is coming very very very (very) very soon!

Toodle-pip!

Emma

Naming Characters: The Discworld

I am currently writing a fantasy fiction story, and have run face first into a wall. This wall is naming my characters. I want to find the delicate balance of names that have depth, meaning... and that do not sound fantastically ridiculous! There have been one or two occasions when reading a book where a name has shaken me out of its suspended reality, and I don't want to make that mistake.

So to help with this I started to look into what made a good name. I personally like ones that:

• If I research them they have interesting back stories.
• That I have not heard of before.
• That sound good when you sound them out.

Now on a fair day in the month of February conversation with a friend turned naturally to the Discworld. Thinking about the 'name game' I was currently playing with my own story, we started to talk about Discworld names. Let's look at some:

Rincewind

Rincewind. Rince. Wind.

Yes that is a strange little number! Now I am not sure about the original intentions behind the name, but once you get to know this hapless wizard his name makes sense. It just...fits. To rince, to wind, is to Rincewind. It doesn't shout too much meaning at you when you first read it, which gives room for the character develop his own definition.

Death

Let's get straight to the point, we are talking about the anthropomorphic manifestation of death. Call a spade a spade.

Esmerelda Weatherwax

Esmerelda is misleading, she is not a natural Esmeralda so the name has to warp to fit her. She is most commonly known as Granny or Mistress Weatherwax. This element of her name gives her gravitas. It gives her age. You simply cannot attach any pre-conceived notions about the rather pretty name Esmerelda to her, which makes you respect her even more!

Moist Von Lipwig

Are you laughing? I laughed. I doff my proverbial cap to Sir Terry Pratchett because this name is brilliant. How can you get away with naming a central protagonist Moist! Pratchett managed to get pages worth of back story into just three words! The bullying Moist would have received at a name like that, the fact no one would expect great things from him, the way you are instantly willing for the story to make this character brilliant to take the joke to greater levels. Well done sir, well done.

So how does Pratchett get away with this naming madness? My friend hit the nail on the head. The Discworld is a fantasy realm so believable, so solid, that his chosen names genuinely 'feel' like they belong there. Pratchett is funny, and he likes to play around with names that either work for or against your own preconceptions. Albert sounds like a nice solid sort of name, Albert is a nice solid sort of character. Susan sounds like a nice solid sort of name. Susan is not at all what she seems.

So after writing this I have realised that what I need to do. I should concentrate on making my little world first, colour it and craft it...and then the names I am using will either fit or turn into different ones! But either way they need to work with the mechanics of the world, instead of matching my sensibilities when not immersed in fiction. I had better get typing!

A thank you to Justyna Mordas for letting me use their Discworld art on this post, check them out on Deviant Art here, username Yenefer: http://yenefer.deviantart.com/

Also I recently played a little round of Mind Master, with the Discworld as my specialist topic! Check it out here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QsU7FeXD20k 

Disclaimer: please excuse my fringe, it appears it wasn't my friend that night!

My next post will be about a highland folk story!

Sabrina: Goddess of the River Severn

The topic of this week's post is Sabrina, the fabled goddess of the River Severn. Now the River Severn is a very important to us Telfordians, if only to confuse generations of children with how to spell the number seven.

When I tell people where I am from I ordinarily get met with one of two responses:

1. "Where's Telford?" which elicits the reply, "It's near Shrewsbury...no?...Wolverhampton?....Okay Birminghamish!"

or

2. "Oh really, I've been to your bridge!"... Yes I am from a town that is known for a bridge, it's a very nice bridge mind (see below!) and I would highly recommend visiting it. And that infamous Iron Bridge crosses the beautiful River Severn.

(I have recently been informed the Ironbridge isn't exactly in Telford, but it is in our borough so we are keeping it!)

I digress. Now from a bit of research I have have found that Sabrina gets her name from a girl called Hafren (Sabrina in Latin). Hafren's mother had a love affair with an early King of England. When eventually cast aside for his mistress the King's wife raised an army in Cornwall to exact her revenge which I believe went something like:

"Darling I'm afraid I'm divorcing you"

"Oh really? Well say that to my ARMY!"

The estranged wife won, and Hafren and her mother were drowned in the river. For a more in depth look at their story try this article.

Sabrina was born by naming the river after Hafren, which then over time sparked stories about a goddess! On Terry Pratchett's Discworld gods exist when we believe in them, which is a nice way of looking at it and comparable to Sabrina's beginning. By giving a female name to the Severn, the consequential anthropomorphic manifestation of the river seems like a natural step.

A lot of sources list Geoffrey of Monmouth as recording the earliest Sabrina origin story, a welsh cleric who also wrote about King Arthur! Another story I found here is that Sabrina is one of three 'sister' rivers trying to get to the sea. How are the river sisters represented? One is very direct and quick in her quest to the sea, one likes a bit of sightseeing but still wants to get to the sea reasonably quickly, and the third, Sabrina, wants to explore the land thoroughly as she travels without short cuts. It's very satisfying when you see three sisters with clear segmented characteristics don't you think? The classic witch trio of the crone, the mother and the maid. The three grecian Fates. I like it! I find this very useful to consider and shall explore further with research as I am currently writing a story about three sisters.

I first encountered Sabrina in The Dingle, in Shrewsbury park (another recommended pit-stop next time you sight-see near my home town). It's a beautiful garden, and hidden away is this statue:

Plaque reads:

Sabrina Fair,

Listen where thou art sitting,

Under the glassie, cool, translucent wave,

In twisted waves of lilies knitting,

The loose train of thy amber-dropping hair;

Listen for dear honors sake,

Goddess of the silver lake,

Listen and save.

It was delightful walking around The Dingle and finding this hidden bit of mythology. Through time Sabrina has transformed from a drowned girl into a beautiful deity that can be beseeched for help. The way I read the poem, in light of Sabrina's origin, is that the writer is calling upon Sabrina to stir from her new-found comfort underwater and to direct attention once more to the surface, perhaps to save others from the very fate that befell her.

It's been great to find out more about Sabrina, do you have any stories about this goddess to add? Have you found her hidden away somewhere like The Dingle? Let's discuss below, or with me on twitter @EMinipop!

Photography Credits: Mark Thomas. See more of his excellent photos here.

Thank you for reading. Next week's post will be about fantasy and folklore character names!

Review: Norwich Ghost Walks

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For my first proper content post I am doing a light review of Norwich Ghost Walks. I attended last December, on one of their Christmas Specials.

The walks, which according to my informants are a regular staple for Norwich, are 90 minutes with pit stops by interesting landmarks. On a regular tour we would hear historical ghost stories from Norwich itself, but on this night, as it had a festive spin, we heard some from around the UK.

The Man in Black, our orator for the evening, delivers the stories in a clear, unaffected manner with help from some surprising assistants along the way (some of whom were quite surprised to be an assistant!)

The first thing to strike me was how refreshing it was to hear some good old fashioned storytelling. There's something satisfying about simply listening to a person tell you a tale (albeit ghost stories in this case!) I am going to be on the look out for some more storytelling based events in Norwich. Like with poetry there is a magic when stories are heard, not just read.

When deciding to move here I found a city with its own castle, cobbled streets and the occasional country flair to be very appealing. The atmosphere of this place lends itself to the tours very nicely. Now if I had known that I would be starting this Blog back in December I would have taken more pictures (note to self to get snapping on future outings!) So here we are with my lone piece of photographic evidence, one of the stops called Cow Tower.

I love a well lit building, uplighting genuinely does wonders. Here we were told about drunken monks, not at all as moral as their calling would have you believe, and the death of a poor young victim who stepped out in front of the wrong men fuelled by the wrong drink. It was a horrible story, resulting in an un-quiet spirit who haunts a river bank with her cries.

There were a number of stories (I want to say 6), but the most spine-chilling for me was told under the boughs of a long limbed tree. The wind had picked up as we heard, in detail, about a public hanging that did not go as smoothly as planned. We stood under a roof of gnarled wood as The Man in Black painted a picture; the silhouette of a hung man swinging from a tree on a lightening lit night. It completely sold me on this live experience. My friend helped the ambience along by a well timed tap on my shoulder; I was officially spooked!

So in conclusion I would recommend Norwich Ghost Walks! This live promenade performance made for a unique night, capped off with some delicious mulled wine. It kicked off a lovely evening of further stories and reminiscing between friends.This style of storytelling would be an interesting avenue to explore with even more story based sources of inspiration, perhaps even some light hearted options for a pleasant twist.

If you are interested in Norwich Ghost Walks check them out here!

Next week I will be sharing some research on Sabrina and the River Severn, a story from my home-county of Shropshire!

Introducing Fantastical Folk

Good day to you, and welcome to Fantastical Folk!

On this blog I will be sharing an exploration into the world of folklore and fantasy. Writing, performance, and music are the primary media that I will be looking at.

"Why?" I hear you cry!

Firstly I love fantasy and folklore, ruddy love the stuff. And after spending many a delightful eve pouring over books of the fantasy persuasion, and more recently folklore, I have finally caved and decided to indulge in some thorough research. Dragons, magic, battles, fantastical worlds...I love them. Robert Jordan's The Wheel of Time (wow), Anne McCaffrey and her dragons (I want one please and thank you), Pratchett's Discworld (no comment even needed).I could write masses on my favourites, and with this new blog I most probably will, but let's keep it short and sweet for now!

Secondly, I am hoping to start some positive and interesting discussions about folklore and fantasy work! How does this storytelling work in the modern age? Is it just pure magical escapism or do these genres hold genuine social resonance in their roots?

And thirdly, shockingly, and completely originally….I am a writer. Primarily of plays, secretly of fiction, and also of songs. My research of late has taken me down a particularly folklorish path and I have stumbled upon the pitfall that faces everyone who says "I'm going to take a year out of projects to write"... a lack of focus. As many of you creative types out there can empathise with I am finding myself twiddling my thumbs a lot more than tapping my fingers on the keyboard. Therefore I will commit to sharing a post once a week creating a much needed kick to get a shuffle on with my independent work.

Well, there's a brief summary! My first official post will be out this weekend and is a review of a Ghost Walk I went on in my new home town of Norwich.

Over and out

Emma

Disclaimer: I have spent the majority of today figuring out how to blog in the first place, bear with me as I learn the ways of the craft!