May 2014 – Leife Shallcross

2014 started with a bit of a bang for me, with three story sales fairly early on. The first of these is about to be published in the latest Peggy Bright Books anthology, Use Only As Directed, edited by Simon Petrie and Edwina Harvey. It will be launched in June at Continuum in Melbourne. (You can see the intriguing cover art by Lewis Morely below)

In it is my latest story, The Blue Djinn’s Wish! I’m excited about it because I love this story and I’m thrilled it’s finally out there in the world. But wait, there’s more! The first review is up, it’s very favourable…and my little tale got a mention.

The Blue Djinn’s Wish by Leife Shallcross was a gentle story of a djinn and a young girl granted the traditional three wishes. However what comes of that is far from traditional – and a terrific riff on an old tale.

This is the my first review ever, and what a lovely one it is. Thank you, Steve Johnson. I’ve now got my e-copy of the book, and am looking forward to reading what the other authors have on offer. I’m in quality company, so my expectations are high!

Revenant: A ghost or returning spirit.

This word has been lifted as-is from French, and means ‘ghost’ in that language. It is related to the French word ‘revenir’, meaning to come back or return.

For me, the sound of this word evokes other other words that give ‘revenant’ a heightened sense of macabre loss. Such as:

Remnant: something incomplete. This makes me think of a ‘revenant’ as a shade, or a scrap of soul torn away.

Reave: an archaic word evoking unnecessary violence in times long past. From the Old English, reafian, to rob, and related to the Old High German, roubon, to rob, and Old Norse, roufa, to break open. (Source: Dictionary.com)

Bereaved: deprived and made desolate by death.

These are my own associations; nothing I read in researching the origins of ‘revenant’ suggests any relationship between this word and any of the others I’ve listed above. In fact, the word ‘revenant’ literally means ‘return’ in French. But, even so, I love words that evoke others. For me, this add layers of meaning and richness to prose.