Alan Garner, the English author and folklorist, turns 92 today.

Amongst his most recognised works are the 'Alderley Edge' trilogy (The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, 1960, The Moon of Gomrath, 1963, Boneland, 2012) and The Owl Service (1967) which won the annual Carnegie Medal from the Library Association, recognising the year's best children's book by a British author. It was later adapted into a successful TV series in 1969.

'Conciousness is on the move. Something is at work in the world: a general recognition of the crisis of the spirit, of the banal and shoddy, in human affairs. It is universal and it must be met'

Hey everyone!

I'm a 21-year-old from China, and I'm really passionate about folklore. I'm also an aspiring filmmaker and screenwriter.

I'm not sure how familiar you guys are with Chinese folklore, but I feel like there's a whole world of fascinating and sometimes genuinely unsettling stories that rarely make it into the movies and games people see internationally.

I've always been especially interested in traditional Chinese ghost stories, supernatural legends, and mysterious local beliefs that have been passed down for generations.

For example, different regions of China have their own legends, rituals, and spiritual traditions. Some involve Taoist or Buddhist practices, while others revolve around local folk practitioners, such as spirit mediums who perform rituals to communicate with spirits, or traditional diviners who use rice in their practices.

What fascinates me is that these stories aren't just about ghosts or supernatural phenomena. They're often deeply connected to local history, cultural traditions, religious beliefs, and human nature.

Some are genuinely creepy. Others are tragic, mysterious, or filled with questions that don't have easy answers.

I've always wanted to turn stories like these into films.

But as a young creator who's still learning, I often feel that my screenwriting skills and stories have a lot of room for improvement.

So recently, I had an idea.

What if I started writing original stories inspired by Chinese folklore, translated them into English, and shared them with international readers as e-books? Would anyone actually be interested in reading them?

And I wouldn't want to simply translate traditional Chinese ghost stories into English.

I'm also a huge fan of mystery and detective fiction, so what I'd really love to explore is the combination of traditional Chinese folklore with mystery, suspense, and clever plot twists.

Imagine a strange incident that everyone believes was caused by an ancient curse, a forbidden ritual, or some supernatural force.

But behind it, there might be an elaborate trick, complicated human relationships, or a completely unexpected truth.

Or perhaps an old folk custom that initially seems bizarre or meaningless turns out to be the key to solving the entire mystery.

I feel like combining these elements could lead to some really interesting stories.

However, I'm genuinely curious about how people from different cultural backgrounds would react to them.

Would these unfamiliar traditions make the stories more intriguing? Or would they make the stories harder to follow?

So I'd really love to hear your thoughts:

- Would you be interested in reading horror or mystery novels based on traditional Chinese folklore and supernatural legends?

- Would the addition of carefully constructed mysteries, clever tricks, and unexpected twists make you more interested?

- If you knew absolutely nothing about Chinese folklore, would you prefer the author to explain the cultural background as the story unfolds, or would you rather discover and figure things out on your own?

I haven't published anything like this yet. Right now, I'm just seriously exploring the idea and trying to figure out what direction I want to take as a creator.

I'd genuinely appreciate hearing your opinions, even if this isn't something you'd personally be interested in reading.

Who knows? Your comments might actually help a young creator from China figure out where to take his stories next.

Thanks for reading!

Hi everyone!

I'm an illustrator from Mexico City, and for the past couple of years I've been fascinated by a question: How do we bring mythology into contemporary life without reducing it to decoration?

It started when I began exploring Mesoamerican cosmology, particularly the imagery preserved in ancient codices and the rich mythological traditions of the Nahua and Mexica peoples.

One thing that fascinated me was how interconnected everything seemed to be. Time wasn't simply a sequence of days. Directions weren't just points on a compass. Calendrical signs, deities, natural forces, and mythological narratives formed parts of much larger systems of meaning.

The more I studied, the more I wondered whether I could translate some of those ideas into an object people might actually interact with.

So I did something a little strange: I started designing a deck of playing cards. 😅

I called it El Quinto Sol (The Fifth Sun).

Instead of simply illustrating cards with mythological characters, I tried to build a small cosmological structure into the deck itself. Each suit corresponds to one of the four cosmic directions in my interpretation, the court cards feature mythological beings, and the numbered cards incorporate elements inspired by the 260-day ritual calendar.

The artwork draws on historical sources, including the Codex Borgia, alongside scholarly works by researchers such as Miguel León-Portilla and Margarita Martínez del Sobral.

Of course, this is a contemporary artistic reinterpretation, not a reconstruction of an ancient Mesoamerican game. The playing-card correspondences are my own creative decisions.

But that's precisely what interests me.

Mythology has survived, in part, because people have continued telling, interpreting, and engaging with its stories. And I keep wondering what role contemporary artists might play in that process.

I'd love to hear your thoughts: When folklore or mythology is translated into a modern medium, where do you draw the line between meaningful reinterpretation and losing something essential about the original tradition?

Are there any contemporary artworks, games, or stories you feel have managed that balance particularly well?

I'd genuinely love to discover more examples from other cultures, too!

I am aware I am supposed to put this in a discussion thread and I'm sorry as I can't find one and I'm very new to this reddit page. But if I may ask how could I also start folklore in my own town irl instead of just writing stories to paper which I love doing too. Sorry if this was a dumb question.

I recently read about a bronze scorpion supposedly buried in ancient Antioch to keep real scorpions away. It made me curious whether other cultures had similar traditions?

Hello all, my name is Miguel, I'm from Portugal but currently live in Ireland, I am a writer and journalist, and I am obsessed with folklore and mythology so I have decided to compile a list of local legends and myths from all around the world, starting with my home region in Portugal. Maybe they're real, maybe they're not... My world is full of magic and wonder, full of mystery and horror, so I invite you to join me, at your own risk...

Hello everyone,

I'm introducing OpenClassics on behalf of our small team: https://www.openclassics.org

Our aim is to keep classic tales alive and encourage people to read them, drawing on established literary editions and beautiful illustrations by great artists.

We trace sources, check texts and modernize the language while preserving each story's voice. The original remains accessible, and readers can see which passages have changed. Historical illustrations and quizzes with sourced answers accompany the tales.

We've established small branches in the United States, Europe and China. Our team brings together skills in documentary research, translation, education, image processing and web development. Modernization involves intralingual translation: reformulating a text within the same language for a new audience. Philology helps us compare the sources.

To give you an idea, during revision, one question keeps coming up: is a passage difficult because its language has aged, or is that difficulty part of the storytelling?

Please feel free to suggest a noteworthy edition, point out a passage that could be improved, or help us write the quiz questions found at the end of each tale.

Thank you very much!

​

Yakshagana is a traditional theatre form from Karnataka, India, combining storytelling, music, dance, dialogue, elaborate costumes and distinctive makeup.Performances such as this keep ancient epics alive as part of a continuing oral and folk tradition.

I was wondering if anyone knew a good book or maybe even a personal story regarding the Kelpie or the Each Uisge. I've read all the books at my local library, but they have left me desperate for more stories!

I dont necessarily know if that the proper terminology, mortuary folklore...or death folklore? Did or do beliefs about improper buria;s causing restless spirits, death omens, and supernatural grave guardians function as a form of social control beyond just religious notion?

For example, many cultures have traditions saying that the dead must receive the proper burial rites or follow specific funerary customs, otherwise the deceased might become a restless, unhappy, or dangerous spirit. Did these become norms because they helped reinforce obedience to religious authorities and the institutions that controlled burial practices? Were these beliefs deliberately invented for those purposes?

Most large groups didnt develop independently and a social order amongst many groups would be needed to maintain discipline, what better way to indoctrinate people to follow your orders and way of thinking than to tell them they have to listen to you and do these specific rituals or else their beloved son's soul will become a restless shade that will visit you in the night?

The Church Grimm, an animal spirit said to protect churchyards from thieves. Could stories like these also have acted as deterrents against grave robbing, trespassing, or theft from churches, tombs, and burial sites, especially those associated with wealthy elites? In that sense, is most death/mortuary folklore just functioning as a kind of spiritual/religious/ supernatural social control. Help regulate the poor and unruly masses under the watchful eye of the ever present wealthy elite?

So this is not a new thing i’m sure but why do people when a game or movie etc releases a w*ndigo character people get mad over it (i know that part usually based on the design) but why do they mention the name in arguments or discussions when i thought a big part of it is not to speak of it’s name? It’s something i have seen alott in arguments like this even people who believe in it and i’m just curious why people do this T_T isn’t that just making it worse?

This is a folklore from Uttarakhand about our Kuldevta Kaliveer. This story is told by elders in our village

I'm obsessed with ghosts and would like some advice on where to start exploring this topic in more depth. I'm also obsessed with visual art, so I wanted to mention that I have a huge board on Pinterest and have saved a lot of boards created by other people. Could you recommend some of your favorite boards? Maybe you have favorite artists or photographers who work with ghost-themed art? I’d love to add their work to my board. And in general, I’d like to ask for recommendations for books, websites, TV shows, videos, movies, media, and anything else related to ghosts, so I can learn something new and find artistic inspiration. I think I’d like to know more unique details rather than pop culture clichés. I’m autistic and this is my hyperfixation, so I have a lot of questions ^_^
Plus, I just love expanding my ghost collection, so I’m looking forward to your precious recommendations

Hi!

Had the best news in the fact I've been accepted onto a post grad in Creative Writing (UK)

I want to focus on folklore as it's something that absolutely fascinates me.

I would love all the recommendations on books, both academic and not, on everything and anything folklore.

I also just found this sub today so really looking forward to hanging out here more.

Thanks!

I’m looking for help finding the best books on folklore creatures and tales from various regions.
Ideally, I’d like books that stay true to the oldest forms of the stories and, if I’m lucky, provide some historical and cultural context as well.

I figure I won’t find a single book that compiles all of that--especially for all the regions I’d like covered--so I’m happy to build a collection from a list of titles.

Regions I'd like to cover:

- North America
- Central America
- UK
- Eastern Europe
- Africa

Thanks in advance!

I have dress up as one but I'm not sure if its actually a dead pregnant woman or a dead unborn baby. I'm from PH