Questions about Kailmeyra- #6 What is a Urisk anyway?

As you know, in light of the Release of The Heart of the Ancients coming out on November 11th, I'm answering questions I've gotten over the past year about the Kailmeyra series.

Today's question deals with some of my favorite characters: Rune and the Urisk.

Picture taken from Mystical Mythology site

While the Alfar and Dokkaflar are rooted in Norse mythology, Urisk come from Scotland. Some folklore call the Urisk faeries, others deem them elves. They are described as having the upper body of a man, the lower body of a goat. Some stories tell of feathers along their head and back, others talk of horns on their heads.  They dwell in caves and love the water of the Scottish Highlands. They long for human companionship, but, unfortunately, humans are scared of their appearance and often run away, which forces a Urisk into a lonely existence of solitude.

The Kailmeyra Urisk hold quite a few traits of the traditions of Scottish folklore. They love water, prefer to live in caves, and long for companionship.

Expression through art is extremely important to the Alfar. And so it only made sense to me that the Urisk (another race of elves) would have the same passion. Instead of art though, they love music.

The Kailmeyra Urisk are the same gray color as they mountain (because symbolically mountains represent solitude and the dwelling of God). Their personality is blunt and a bit crass. They don't mince words, but they are fiercely loyal to those they care about. They are also extremely powerful and rely heavily on each other, especially in times of war.

When Rune first popped in my head, I wanted him to have a true Scottish brogue. But after writing a few pages of dialogue, I decided it was too difficult to read. Allowing Rune's voice to carry a distinct quality while not frustrating the reader was difficult. However, once he started developing in my mind, his speech patterns became a gentle rhythm that translated well on the page.

 In The Heart of the Ancients, the Urisk play a huge roll in the story. We get a glimpse into their culture and they soon became some of my favorite characters to write.

Don't forget to enter in the Giveaway going on this month! :-) Win a complete signed Kailmeyra set or a 25 dollar gift certificate! a Rafflecopter giveaway