Ghosts, Beanstalks and Spinning Yarns

Writing Ramblings
This has been quite a week! With the winter quickly drawing near, it’s definitely getting more difficult to work at night. But those who have seen my tweets in the early morning, would have noticed that I’m getting some writing (and studying) done before work. Not that I’m suddenly getting up earlier, mind you, but starting work later. This gives me at least half an hour of hustling on my writing before leaving for work. In that time I’ve managed to finish the next draft of a WIP in which I’ve used Jack and the Beanstalk for inspiration. I’ve now sent it to a few friends to read and comment on before reworking it and hopefully getting it published. I’ve also finished and sent in another piece for South African publication and holding thumbs it gets accepted.

I’m also busy with a few other shorter pieces which I’ll be working on while the “beanstalk” WIP hangs around in a drawer for a week or two.

Zombies! Ghosts! And other Study Ramblings 
My other focus this year, of course, is also my studies. I have another Great Library Quest planned for this weekend, with a lengthy to-do list (and a proper study music playlist).

I’ve also had such a good laugh this week while working on my essay for later this year. The dry humour of the writer of the Eyrbyggja Saga never fails to crack me up. One part which especially cracked me up is in chapter 54, entitled “More Ghosts”, after a party of men go out fishing and drown.

Their ghosts return to the homestead night after night to sit by the fire:
Thorodd and his men walked across the main room, which had two doors, and into the living room. They ignored the greetings people gave them and sat down at the fire. The people ran out of the living-room, but Thorodd and his men stayed on until the fire began to burn very low, then went away. As long as the funeral feast lasted this continued: every evening the drowned men would come to the fire. It gave people at the feast plenty to talk about, but some of them thought it would stop once the feast was over. 

Quote taken from Eyrbyggja Saga, translated by Hermann Pálsson and Paul Edwards, published by Penguin Classics.

Norsemen Landing in Iceland, by H. A. Guerber