I came across Daimler’s book while I was researching the Irish Goddess of War and Prophecy, The Morrigan, for the fantasy novel I am writing. As an author, my personal belief is that while a certain amount of creative liberty should be permitted if not at least expected in fiction, I want to be the type of author that honors the beliefs, cultures, and real-world aspects that I include within my fiction.
My novel (and the series to which it belongs) incorporates a variety of folklore and mythology, and as such, I want to stay as true as I can to that source material when appropriate. As I am sure you know, Irish Folklore and stories about the Fair Folk are extremely popular. This means that the internet is abundant with information on the topic. But, would you believe there is a lot more speculative and actually “incorrect” information out there about it?
Having said all that, (I apologize for the tirade) it was important to me to get the details as accurate as possible for my book. Daimler is well-versed in Irish Folklore, and through reading a few of this author’s books, I have been led to other very credible sources of information, including native Irish authors who are still very much connected to the older Irish beliefs and practices. Morgan and those other authors have been invaluable sources of authentic information.
This particular book, as I mentioned above, focuses on The Morrigan, and the many aspects associated with her. One interesting fact is that based on ancient Irish texts (which are few and far between and mostly written by Christian Monks, decades and even centuries later) and oral tradition, the Goddess known as The Morrigan may in fact have been several different Goddesses all referred to as The Morrigan, more as a title, than as a name for an individual.
In my books, The Morrigan will be written as her own sovereign person but I think if I have learned anything from Daimler’s book, it would the importance of knowing where the information you use comes from, even if creative liberty is taken. It’s important to the people and cultures that the author is discussing but also, in my humble opinion, elevates the credibility of the author and maybe even adds something authentic to the fictional story that we are trying to tell.
This book and the more than two dozen other books written by Daimler are short, concise, and well-researched. I highly recommend reading them if you are searching for authentic information on Irish Folklore.
P.S. I am currently reading Daimler’s follow-up book, titled Raven Goddess: Going Deeper with The Morrigan and I can’t wait to tell you all about it.
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