Reading Diary B: Chinese Fairy Tales

Reading Diary B: Chinese Fairy Tales

I was most interested in reading about the foxes in this unit. There were two stories in particular that caught my attention. (I mean, foxes and wolves are closely related so I had to be interested)

Fire-Fox: I enjoyed the story of the fire-fox. I knew a little bit about the creature from Naruto, but besides that I had no context for what was going to happen. I like that although the fox was angry, he allowed the man to keep and use his powers for a while. It's easy to write characters that see black and white rather than the grey in-between. The fox left the man better off than he found him, even though the man stole from him. It had a happy ending, which I always prefer.

Nine-Tailed Fox
Source: Wikipedia

The Talking Silver Foxes: The character of the fox is very interesting to read about. I like that they are sly and like to play tricks on humans. The foxes in this story weren't treated very kindly. They were killed for the tricks they played. I like the idea of animals interacting with humans more than they normally do. The foxes in this story could talk like men, which I think would be an interesting storyline to explore. The ending was sad because the fox-spirit decided not to show itself anymore, but I liked the story overall and found it entertaining.

Reading Diary A: Chinese Fairy Tales

Reading A: Chinese Fairy Tales

Through my different readings I've decided that I prefer reading different cultures' fairy tales. I've read American Indian and Persian tales and I decided to continue the trend with Chinese fairy tales this week.

The Lady Of The Moon: I really like the author's description of the moon castle. It was an interesting place to explore. I like the idea of the moon being some type of alternate reality. It was kind of like heaven because it was so other-worldly and foreign.

I also liked the beginning of the story where it described the hero, Hou I. According to the story, he is the reason we only have one sun now. He shot down the other eight. As I've said before, I like stories that explain why the world operates the way it does today.

The Cassia Tree
Source: The Chinese Fairy Book

Why Dog And Cat Are Enemies: The title of this story immediately drew me in. I have wondered why cats are dogs don't get along and I hoped to gain a little bit of knowledge from this story. I was honestly not surprised that it was the cat's fault that the two are enemies today. The writer of the story captured the nature of both animals in their characters and provided an entertaining reason as to why cats and dogs are enemies. I think that the way the author also included the mouse into the story was very clever. It added an extra dynamic and made me laugh.

Thoughts About Comments

I think the most helpful comments that I get are on my storytelling posts. It's good to hear that people like my stories, but more specifically what they liked about my story. That way I can focus on providing that in future stories.

A lot of people were impressed/intimidated by the fact that I'm writing a novel this semester. It was helpful for me to take a step back and realize what a massive project I'm starting. Being around writers all the time, it's easy to forget what I'm doing is a pretty undertaking.

It would be helpful if more people gave critical comments so I could know what I need to improve in my writing. Besides that I have liked reading and learning from the comments that people have posted on my blog. I think that a good comment on storytelling posts is equal parts encouraging and critical. If all you do in a comment is encourage, then you're really doing the storyteller a disservice because it gives them nothing to improve upon in their next story.

I think that my comments on other people's blogs have been going well. I'm used to editing for my writing classes and this is another extension of that. I like reading people's stories and giving them feedback.

Extra Reading Diary: American Indian Fairy Tales

Extra Reading: American Indian Fairy Tales

I decided to read the Native American fairy tales this week because some of the characters in my book are based off of Native American culture. Since werewolves are pack creatures, Native American tribes were the perfect society to model them after. I thought that having my werewolves have a rich history that readers could relate too would enhance the authenticity of my story. I also thought I could get some plot ideas from these Native American fairy tales.

(Native American Camp
Source: Wikipedia Commons)

The Boy Who Snared The Sun:

This is the story that really stood out to me in the unit. I really enjoy reading stories that have an oral tradition element to them. The story teller, Iagoo was really able to catch my attention with his story. I also liked how Morning Glory and her brother, Eagle Feather, would interrupt and ask question during the story telling. It provided more detail for readers. The story also incorporates my favorite legend/tale element: when they use stories to explain the way the world operates today. I liked the reimagined Adam and Eve of the story. I also like when stories describe animals with certain inherent qualities. My favorite in this story was the coyote, who was smart enough to convince the dormouse to sacrifice himself to save the sun. It's interesting to see how many of the same story elements appear in all different cultures.

Story source: American Indian Fairy Tales by W.T. Larned, with illustrations by John Rae (1921).

Reading Diary A: Folklore of the Holy Land: Moslem, Christian, and Jewish

Reading A: Folklore of the Holy Land: Moslem, Christian and Jewish

I chose this unit because I think it's interesting how the stories of these three religions weave together. There are similar stories from each tradition, but they are slightly different. It's kind of like how we read these stories and create a new story for our storytelling assignments. 

David: Before I read this story I knew story of David (Daûd) and Bathsheba from the Bible. However, this story went into a lot more and a lot less detail. It described David a lot more and gave life to his character. But Bathsheba is not even mentioned in this story, only her husband. I think it would be interesting to see the story from Bathsheba's POV. I might do that for my story this week. 

Dome of the Rock
Source: Wikipedia Commons

Solomon: Before I read this unit all I really knew about Solomon is that he was a very wise king. Solomon, or Suleymân in this text, still retains his wise nature. But it what I hadn't read before was that he kept watch over evil spirits and that when he died they were released into the world. I think that could be an interesting story concept to follow. It was only a nugget of the story, not really the main plot, but I think I might follow it.

I thought it was interesting to read about Bible characters that I already knew and see how they were presented in different stories. It seemed to me that while there were some differences, none of the differences were very major. The stories still retained their meaning and the characters were basically the same. 

Storytelling for Week 4: Nash the Half-Boy

Once upon a time there was a King with no heir. This made him depressed, and finally one day he made plans to kill himself. He wandered out alone into the desert. On his third day alone, he was near death when he saw a man walking towards him.

(Man Alone In Desert, by Choaib Chikhaoui
Source: Wikipedia Commons)

The strange man approached him and asked, "Why are you all alone my King?"

The King told the man his troubles and lamented that he had no heirs.

"How many wives do you have?"

"Four," the King answered.

The man then pulled four apples from his bag and said, "Give these to your wives to eat. They will surely become pregnant." 

The King was encouraged by the man's words and his strength returned to him. He went back to his castle and gave his wives the fruit. Three of them ate the entire fruit, but the fourth ate only half of hers and sat the rest on her window ledge to eat later, but by the time she returned it was night. The moonlight shown upon the apple and it had become rotten, but she ate it anyway.

As the strange man had said, all of the wives became pregnant. One had a beautiful daughter and the other two had handsome sons. However, the fourth wife was cursed with a half-child. She named him Nash which means wolf, for he was part man, part wolf. The King was disgusted with the half-child and drove him and his mother from his presence.

Years passed and one day a demon set his sights on the King's daughter. She was out in the garden alone when the demon suddenly appeared and carried her off to his cave in the mountains. The King was furious when he heard the news. He gathered his fiercest army and put it under his eldest son's control, who marched them straight for the demon's lair.

The demon saw the army coming and asked the King's daughter, "What do you see?"

She answered:
"I see many men.

All with sword in hand."

"Ah, victory is ours," said the demon, "man's sword has no effect on me."

Then the demon emerged from his cave and attacked the eldest son. The prince was easily overtaken. The demon grabbed him and locked him away in his cave. The army fled with their leader gone and reported the news to the King.

The King gathered a second army and put his second son in charge. He marched towards the demon's lair, just as his brother had done. When the army approached the cave the demon asked the Princess, "What do you see?"

She answered:
"I see many men.

All with sword in hand."

"Ah, victory is ours," said the demon, "man's sword has no effect on me."

He struck the young prince just like his brother and locked him up in the cave. The army fled once again and brought the news to the King.

Now Nash knew his father would never give him an army, so he set out to face the mighty demon alone. As he came near the cave the demon again asked the Princess, "What do you see?"

She answered:

"I see one half-man.
And his swords are his hand."

"Ah, defeat is surely ours," the demon cried, "his claws will tear me to pieces."

Nash came to the mouth of the cave, claws on full display. The demon was forced to defend himself, but Nash did not hesitate and he tore into him like a beast. He cut him with his claws and ripped his throat out with his sharp teeth.

Then he set his siblings free and took them home to the King. Then his father loved him for all he had done, and made Nash heir to the throne.


Author's Note:

I chose Persian Tales for my reading this week. I was particularly interested in the story of Nim Tanak, or Half-Boy, which is what I based my story on. The tale was about a boy who was born with only half of a body. His father loved his other siblings, but was disgusted by him.

If you haven't noticed already, I'm quite interested in werewolves. I thought it would be an interesting dynamic if the "half-boy" was actually half human and half wolf, rather than just half of a boy. I also liked the character of the Div (demon) in the original story.

I chose the desert picture because I thought it would give readers a good mental image while reading the story. It also demonstrates the isolation the King was feeling when he wandered off alone.

I tried to follow the original story telling techniques, which I really liked. I especially like the rule of three, which is when the story is told three times with minor variations. In this case it would be the three different brothers, with the last one succeeding. I also modernized the language and changed some of the terms to make it easier to read.

Persian Tales, translated by D.L.R. Lorimer and E.O. Lorimer and illustrated by Hilda Roberts (1919)

Read Diary A: Persian Tales

Reading A: Persian Tales

My roommate is Persian so I thought it would be interesting to learn more about his culture. The introduction of the unit also mentioned that there would be werewolves involved, so I was immediately intrigued.

The Wolf-Aunt: I was interested in the story to begin with because it featured a female werewolf. They don't feature in many stories so I was happy to find this one. My favorite part of the story is that it's used to explain why wives don't like their husband's sisters. I also think it's cool that werewolves can be found in so many cultures. It creates variety and an interesting catalogue of the werewolf.

(Wolf, photo by Arturo de Frias Marques)

Nim Tanak, or Half-Boy: I liked this story because it involved magic and demons. I'm planning on using the Devil in my storybook so it was interesting to see the way in which a demon might operate. I was interested by the idea of a half-boy. If I hadn't seen the picture I would have thought he was a dwarf, but he was literally half of a man (split down the middle!). I also liked the trope where something happens three times and it is solved on the third time. It does a good job of engaging the audience and building suspense for the conclusion of the story. 

I also liked that the stories in this half of the unit started and ended with the same lines. It brought continuity the stories. 

Famous Last Words: Week 3

This past week I finished up all the prep to begin my novel. I had to turn in a 1-page plot summary, a 10+ page "talking document," and 35-40 scenes from my novel.

The "talking document" is a discussion about my characters, their backstory, and scenes that I want to create. Essentially it can be anything. Its purpose is for me to get my ideas out of my mind and into a permanent place. It also allows my professor to see what I'm aiming for and help guide me there.

My 35-40 scenes was the most difficult assignment. It was hard to plan that far ahead, but I know that it's going to help me in the long run. When I read a book I'm always amazed at how clever the plots are. I want my book to have a few twists and turns that readers won't be expecting (maybe a character death or two!). I'm sure the plot will change a little bit as I write it, but I finally have all the major plot points planned out. And I'm pleased with the way my story shaped up.

I'm struggling to come up with character names that I actually like. Right now I just have filler names because I couldn't decide. I think character names are very important. They are the first thing your readers learn about your character and if the name sucks then it can be difficult for people to engage with the character. At the same time I know it's not the most important thing. Harry isn't an original or exciting name, but J.K. Rowling was able to craft him into a character that people love.

I'm thinking about creating a storyboard in my room with pictures of my characters and major plot points. I think it will help bring my characters to life and it's another way for me to brainstorm ideas.

On Wednesday I have the first 4,000 words of my novel due. I'm excited to finally start writing, but it's also intimidating. I'll keep you guys updated as I get further into the writing process!

Styles

Topic:

My topic is going to be Werewolves Through The Ages: Ancient and Modern. My goal is to incorporate an origin story, a story set in Ancient Greece, and a modern story. There are many stories of werewolves from all different time periods so I don't think it'll be difficult for me to find inspiration. My criteria for the stories that I'm looking for are that they incorporate werewolves and have a time-specific setting.     

(The Werewolf Delusion
by Ian Woodward)

Bibliography:

The Book of Were-Wolves, by Sabine Baring-Gould (1865). This book provides a lot of material for me to work with. 

Herodotus, with an English translation by A. D. Godley. Harvard University Press. (1920). This is a short passage from Ancient Greek literature. It tells of a tribe of people that would all turn into wolves once a year. I like the setting and concept of the story.

Possible Styles:

Bedtime Story: I think it'd be interesting to see a werewolf mother telling her son the history of werewolves for a bedtime story. It would start with an origin story, then maybe an ancient love story and finally a modern story. It would be cool if I could keep it a secret that the mother and son were werewolves until the very end. The style would be the mother telling her son these stories orally so I would focus on emphasizing imagery. This will give readers a strong mental image of the stories.

Characters from different periods: This style would involve different characters from different time periods. I would emphasize each time period setting to distinguish each story. The werewolf theme would be the main thing connecting all of the stories.  Ancient Greece and the Victorian Era are two settings that I'd like to write within.

Soulmates: If I could create two characters that I really like then I think it'd be cool to do a few soul mate stories. No matter what time period these characters are in they are able to find each other in some way. Sometimes they end up together and other times they don't. I like the idea of love being that strong. The werewolf aspect could be a barrier to their union in some of these stories.

Modern Mystery: Stories of people discovering werewolves are always interesting to me. I would connect 3-4 stories through a detective (whether professional or amateur) that is solving a mystery. It could be them solving a crime or discovering that their friend is a werewolf. I would want to make this as realistic as possible. I want readers to feel like the story could actually happen to them.

All of these styles would be written in third-person, because that's the style I feel most comfortable writing in and it's the style I prefer to read.

Essay: Angels

Unit: Noah

This week I read the unit on Noah. I was particularly intrigued by the stories about fallen angels. The Bible doesn't give too much insight about angels, as it's aimed mostly at humans and how we should live life and relate to God. I like the idea of angels interacting with humans.

There is a certain innocence to angels that humans don't have. That's why I find stories about them falling from grace interesting. Most people know that Satan was an angel that fell from grace, but there isn't much else about other angels.

(Michael Casts Out All Of The Fallen Angels
by Gustave Doré)

In The Punishment of The Fallen Angels it talks about two different angels that want to come to Earth. Azazel and Shemhazai both fall in love with human women. One of the angels realizes the error of his ways and repents, but the other carries through with his fall into sin with women. The story humanizes these angels and makes them more relatable.

I also think that on the other end of the spectrum is interesting too. Michael and Gabriel are kind of like the golden boy Archangels. Michael leads the charge in casting out the disobedient angels. In the 2010 movie Legion, Michael comes down to earth to protect a human child that is supposed to be the savior of the world. In this movie Michael disobeys God's command that humankind be destroyed. In the end Michael saves the baby and is honored by God for holding out hope for humans. The idea that angels are fighting on humans behalf is a cool concept.

The dynamic of guardian angels is also intriguing. Some people believe they have their own personal angel that protects them. It is a nice concept and I think it makes for an interesting story. I read a book named Piercing the Darkness where it discusses the battle between angels and demons. They fight for control of certain areas (dominions) and people. I like the idea that there is a spiritual battle going on around us that we can't see. Angels are a part of this supernatural world and I'm fascinated by that.

Story source: The Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg (1909)

Reading Diary A: Noah And The Ark

Reading Diary A: Noah And The Ark

The Tower of Babel (Genesis): I like stories that explain how we operate today. The idea that God prevented man from building a tower to Heaven by confusing their languages is brilliant.

The Punishment of the Fallen Angels: Azazel and Shemhazai are two angels that desired to descend to earth. After God grants them permission, they come to earth and lay with human women and their children are know as Nephilim. They are "[know by the name Nephilim, because, bringing the world to its fall, they themselves fell." I like the idea of an angel falling in love with a human and what type of story that could produce.

(Fall of the Rebel Angels, by Bosch)

The Generation of the Deluge: I like the idea of the Nephilim. Angels and humans interacting is an concept that I'm intrigued by. I also think it's interesting that they used magic and could manipulate the sun and the moon.
I thought that this passage was particularly entertaining: "Suddenly the crowing of a cock was heard, and the demon made off, crying out to the child, "Go and report unto thy mother, if it had not been for the crowing of the cock, I had killed thee!" Whereupon the child retorted, "Go and report unto thy mother, if it had not been for my uncut navel string, I had killed thee!" The idea of a "baby" mouthing-off to a demon is hilarious to me.

Topics

Topic #1: The Werewolf and The Devil
Comments: I am interested in all types of werewolves, but after reading my biblical texts last week I also find the character of the Devil interesting. There are legends that werewolves are men who have sold their souls to the Devil. I think it'd be interesting to explore and combine these topics.

Possible Stories:  I know that were are lots of texts for the Devil so I don't think I'd have any trouble finding information on him. There is less information on the Devil being involved with werewolves, but I found some on Pitt.edu in their electronic folklore site. I'd like to do a story that involved a man making a deal with the Devil. 

Sample Story Comments: When I searched through the Pitt.edu site I found quite a few stories that involved people either making deals with the Devil to become a werewolf or in this story's case, being cursed when given a wolf strap (that transformed them into a wolf).

Bibliography Information:
Sample Story: Der Werwolf
Book Title: Sagen und Erzählungen aus dem Kreise Kolberg-Körlin
Book Author: F. Asmus and O. Knoop
Year: 1898

Also 

Sample Story: Israel and the Enemy

Book Title: The Golden Mountain

Book Author: Meyer Levin

Year: 1865

Topic #2: The Female Werewolf
Comments: I think that the viewpoint and history of female werewolves would be interesting to explore. There are many accounts of men being werewolves, but not nearly as many of women.

Possible Stories: I think it would be interesting to depict the life of a woman as a werewolf. Either her on her own and trying to fit into society or her place in a pack. In my novel I have a pack that is matriarchal rather than patriarchal, which I think could be an interesting concept to explore. 

Sample Story Comments: I like this story because it gives light to what might happen in a female werewolves life. A man traps her as a human, but eventually she frees herself. But not before having two kids with the man. I think this gives a realistic view into the mind of a she-wolf. 

Bibliography Information:
Sample Story: The She-Wolf
Book Title: Sixty Folk-Tales from Exclusively Slavonic Sources
Book Author: A. H. Wratislaw
Year: 1889

Topic #3: Different Types of "Weres"

Comments: I think it's interesting that there are stories of humans not only turning into werewolves, but also other creatures. When I watched Teen Wolf they had humans that turned into lizards and coyotes. 

Possible Stories: I think it'd be interesting to use different animals to represent the different personalities of characters. I also like the idea of a rag-tag pack that is made up of different types of "weres." 

Sample Story Comments: This story is about a girl who turns into a werecat. Like many stories her family believes her transformation to be a curse. The story has a sad ending and never really explores the origin of her affliction, but it's an interesting look at another type of "were." 

Bibliography Information: 

Sample Story: Lusus Naturae

Book Title: Stone Mattress

Book Author: Margaret Atwood

Year: 2014

Topic #4: Werewolves Through The Ages: Ancient and Modern

Comments: Werewolves have evolved throughout history. I think it would be interesting to look as the different ways they are represented. They have moved from a horrible beast to a more romantic representation. 

Possible Stories: I would like to do a stories of different werewolves from different time periods. They would be representative of the way people looked at werewolves during that time. The more modern wolf story would probably be like a Young Adult fiction story. 

Sample Story Comments: In Ovid's Metamorphoses, he describes how King Lycaon is turned into a wolf.

Zeus Turning King Lycaon Into A Wolf
(Engraving by Hendrik Goltzius
Source: Wikipedia Commons)

This is one of the early stories the gave birth to the legend of the werewolf. This story is an example of how I would tell an ancient story of werewolves. My first story would probably involve gods and describe how werewolves came to be. It would be a launching board for the rest of my stories, which would probably take place in medieval and modern times. 

Bibliography Information:

Sample Story: Book I Ln: 199-243

Book Title: Metamorphoses 

Book Author: (Original: Ovid) Translation: A.S. Kline

Year: 2000 (Kline version)

Essay: How Origin Stories Explain Our World

Unit: Adam and Eve

I think creation stories are crucial to understanding a society. Creation stories are a foundation for explaining the way the world operates. I focused on The Creation story of the Bible this week.

The creation and depiction of Lilith and Eve gives insight into how the men of the Bible view women. Lilith was Adam's first wife, made out of the very same dirt as he. But unlike Eve, she was equal to him and would not submit. When she abandoned Adam, God created Eve to replace her. This seems like an obvious sign to women that they need to submit to their husbands to be accepted.

The Punishment especially shows why a lot of things are the way they are today. Eve was punished with harsher childbirth and given an enmity between her and the serpent. She was also told she would now be under man's authority. This explains the patriarchal society that we have lived in for centuries.

Man was also punished. God said to him, "[Your] children [will] wander from land to land; [your] body [will] to exude sweat; [you will] have an evil inclination; in death [your] body [will] be a prey of the worms." These curses show the daily struggle of man and why he has to deal with them.

(Rebuke of Adam and Eve, Domenichino)

In my Storytelling post this week I wrote a creation story for the novel that I'm writing. This provides insight and explanation for the rifts and divides between the different races.

Human are still disgusted by werewolves just as Adam was in the beginning. The fairies are still elusive to man and man is still easily charmed by fairies. Vampires cannot give birth to children and the reasoning behind that is part of their punishment from the creation story. It may very well be for a biological reason, but the creation story is a way for humans to explain what they don't fully understand. My creation story will give my readers greater understanding into the psyche of my characters.

Storytelling for Week 2: History of the Supernatural World

In the beginning the god of Life created earth and sky. He set the planets in motion and filled the earth with every kind of animal. However, He wanted to put someone in charge of his creation so he created the Father of Humankind, Adam. God raised man from the dirt and breathed life into him, but after a time, Adam complained of being lonely in his duties. In an effort to please the god of Life, the other gods and goddesses offered up suitable mates for Adam.

(Creation of Eve, Orvieto cathedral)

The Moon goddess was the first to offer her own mate for the man. She offered up the wolf. The wolf was strong, cunning, and fiercely loyal. However, the wolf could not communicate with the man so the goddess allowed the wolf the ability to change into a human. Thus, the first werewolf was created.

Adam lay with the werewolf because she was beautiful and he was lonely, but in the morning she had returned to her wolf form and he was disgusted. Adam sent her away, but there was already a baby boy growing in her stomach.

After the Moon's failed attempt, the goddess of Earth also offered up her own mate to Adam. She created her offering from the trees. Her creation was imaginative, creative, and powerful. Her creation was able to manipulate the elements around her to harness the energy of earth and perform  magic. She is the mother of all fairies.

Adam lay with the fairy because she was exotic and she performed magic that enchanted him. But after a time the fairy grew tired of Adam and she longed to return to the forest. So one night she slipped away and was never seen by Adam again. But like the werewolf, she too was already carrying one of Adam's children.

Lastly the god of Death decided to offer his own creation to life — the vampire. The vampire matched forms with man and they complimented each other perfectly. However, the vampire was only satisfied by blood. She could not give life. She could only take.

But Adam lay with her and was satisfied. In the middle of the night he awoke to a pain in his neck. The vampire was sucking his blood. Adam threw her off and ordered her away. For attempting to kill Adam the god of Life cursed the vampire to be forever barren. That is why to this day vampires cannot give birth to new life.

When all the other gods had failed, the god of Life took it upon himself to prepared a mate for Adam. He put Adam in a deep sleep and removed one of his ribs. From that rib, He created the first woman, Eve. She was made to compliment Adam in every way.

Adam and Eve were fruitful and multiplied many times over. Where their parents were disgusted and wary of the other races (werewolves, fairies, and vampires), their kids were fascinated. Adam and Eve's children fell in love with the other races and they had children of their own. But that is a story for another time.


Author's Note:

I chose the Adam and Eve unit for my reading this week. This unit interested me because in high school I had a class where we studied the different interpretations of the creation story — mainly whether or not it was literal or allegorical. For my story I drew inspiration from the story of Creation in the Bible and the stories of Eve and Lilith from the Legends of the Jews.

Eve appears in the Bible and is the wife of Adam that most people recognize. But in Jewish folklore, Adam had a first wife named Lilith. For various reasons their union didn't work out. Instead of giving Adam two human wives, I decided to throw supernatural creatures into the picture. Also in the original story there is only one god, whereas I decided to involve multiple deities.

I chose to tell the story like someone would tell a story around a campfire because I wanted it to be read like an oral legend. For the novel that I'm writing I have werewolves and fairies and vampires. I think this story would be interesting to add so the readers have a little bit of history/lore for the world they're reading about.

The Legends of the Jews by Louis Ginzberg (1909).

King James Bible (1611): Genesis 1-2.

Reading Diary B: Adam and Eve

(Garden of Eden, by Jacob Savery)

Reading B of Adam and Eve:

Entering the Cave of Treasures - I like origin stories. I think it is interesting to see where people believe we came from. The fact that moments in the origin story will reflect and explain the time in which we live is a concept that I'd like to emulate. I think I would like to write an origin story about the characters I'm going to be using in my novel, in particular the werewolves.

The Darkness - I like this quote that explains darkness: "'O Adam, so long as the good angel was obedient to Me, a bright light rested on him and on his hosts. But when he transgressed My commandment, I deprived him of that bright nature, and he became dark. And when he was in the heavens, in the realms of light, he knew naught of darkness. But he transgressed, and I made him fall from heaven upon the earth, and it was this darkness that came upon him." It shows that darkness truly is the absence of light. God took Satan's light away when he fell from Heaven. 

I really like this quote too: "Then Adam and Eve wept and sorrowed by reason of God's word to them, that they should not return to the garden until the fulfilment of the days decreed upon them, but mostly because God had told them that He should suffer for their salvation." This quote shows another aspect of Adam and Eve. They feel bad for more than themselves, which makes me respect them more. It also makes them more complex characters. 

These passages have given me ideas for my creation story that I'm going to due on Wednesday.