Welcome to a very special Creator’s Roulette! I started book blogging around the same time Alex established his Spells and Spaceships blog. I interviewed him about book blogging in the SFF niche back in February 2020 and it is with much pleasure that I have him on this series again, four years later. Alex has been the organizer of Norsevember for some years now and I wanted to learn from him about this annual reading endeavour.
The Saga of Norsevember
A guest post by Alex, Spells and Spaceships Blog
#Norsevember began in 2020 as a simple pledge to read Norse inspired books for a full month. This was prompted by a growing interest in the mythology personally and the increasing number of fantasy books with Norse inspired characters or settings.
Being a history graduate and someone who wanted to indulge my creative side, I quickly developed this simple idea into a month long event in which I’d align with weekly themes, interview authors and historians, publish informative content and even host some giveaways. For the first Norsevember, I spent hours designing personalised longboat graphics for people taking part in the event, based on their specifications. I also bought giveaway prizes from my own pocket and a number of generous authors gave away books too.
The event took off during a time when the world was in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and people were spending more time online. Twitter algorithms also seemed to get the content to the people who wanted it and there was a much bigger buzz on the app. As a result, there was what felt like a huge amount of participation and focus on the event. I worked out at the time that I must have spent over 60 hours on it in total. I wince at the thought in hindsight!
It takes a lot of dedication to set up and run an event of that scale and my piece of advice to anyone looking to do the same would be to make sure you’re committed but most of all really interested in the subject matter. It’s going to be a chore to research topics you’re not interested in or to think of interview questions if you don’t care what the answers are going to be. I’m sure people could monetize an event in some way, but I did it all for free (I don’t make any money from blog traffic either) and I really enjoyed it because I love Norse Mythology, Viking history and the discussions around it.
The evolution of Norsevember
Well, it was originally just going to be a one time thing. After the event finished, I was mentally exhausted but it was a great experience. Then people began speaking about Norsevember as a yearly event and as time went on, I knew I wanted to do it again – there was lots more to talk about and more books to read.
Several people expressed an interest in being involved on a more official capacity and to contribute to the Norsevember schedule I had created. I had a team of engaged people who created a number of posts and we hit Norsevember in 2021 with a bang. It took a lot of coordination and planning, more so than year 1 but I didn’t have to create as many posts. Those posts we did create though had to be on the next level. What do I mean by this? Well for it’s introductory year, it was easy to create posts looking at the very basics of mythology. I’d created posts introducing the Norse Gods, talking about longboats and what weapons the Vikings used. When that had all been covered, we needed to step it up in year 2.
Norsevember evolved to include posts that were a little more in depth; for example humour in mythology, misconceptions about Vikings, neopaganism and diversity in the Viking age. I even joined the Gifts of the Wyrd podcast for 3 episodes on Norsevember which was a new and unique experience. I was really nervous which showed clearly to me when I listened back recently and cringed a little, as I’n a lot more confident now speaking publicly.
My son being only a few months old during the first Norsevember made it easy to steal time to create; a year later when he was 18 months old though was a whole different story, and it was a real challenge! Despite the help and the experience of already completing one month the year previous, I ended Norsevember 2021 really drained. There’d been what felt like a lot of expectation and I’d put a lot of pressure on myself to deliver. As a result, and with the novelty dying off for some, I was so busy at work and as a parent that November 2022 came and went without an official Norsevember schedule.
People still used the Norsevember hashtag and I believe I did make a couple of posts, but it wasn’t really an official thing. In one way I regret the break in continuity, but having a break was the right thing to do at the time. What did interest me though is how many people had came to accept Norsevember as this permanent fixture within the community. I saw lots of people tweeting about it who didn’t follow me, and so likely had no idea where this idea had originated from or that I even existed. I have no problem with that at all, it just made me realise then that the event had now become bigger than me and would continue with or without me and likely will continue to do so.
It feels strange to have created something that I now see spoken about completely apart from anything I’m involved in and it’s really nice to have had that impact and have started something that continues to bring fun and an interest in history and mythology to people.
Top 5 Norse related books
I’ve read a number of Norse related books since the beginning of the first #Norsevember and Kriti asked me to name my top 5.
1. The Hanged God Trilogy by Thilde Kold Holdt | Goodreads
I’ve included this as a trilogy because otherwise I’d only have room for 2 other authors in my top 5! Also, I can never really choose which my favourite is of the trilogy.
Northern Wrath feels very much a historical fiction with some fantasy elements and a smaller hint of mythology. Shackled Fates, book 2, introduces some of the Norse Gods as characters in the book and the mythological elements take up a much bigger chunk of the story. Then Slaughtered Gods, the final book… Well, perhaps the book title gives you a clue…
The trilogy is incredibly epic, grand and inventive. There is a real magic feel to it but also a gritty and dark realism!
2. The Witch’s Heart by Genevieve Gornichec | Goodreads
The Witch’s Heart is the ideal winter read to cosy up with and escape to Ironwood, a memorable, snowy forest of the Norse giants.
I loved the book because of how intelligently Gornichec weaves the mythology through it and with her protagonist Angrboða, showing that a strong female character can be understanding and tolerant, forgiving and empathetic between the fierce resilience, fighting against a world set against her from the outset.
This is my most treasured book in my collection. The author sent me this book all the way from the US (so I’ve got the beautiful blue and gold US cover, which I don’t imagine many in the UK own), with a personalised message. This was before the book really blew up – I’m seeing it has almost 46,000 ratings on Goodreads now! To put that into perspective, that’s almost 15,000 more ratings than ‘Legend’ by David Gemmell!
3. Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman | Goodreads
This Is the book that made me get into all the Norse stuff! I listened on audio originally and it was a magical experience because Neil himself is the narrator, and he is a master storyteller.
He brings the Norse myths to life in his own way and really makes you feel enchanted while you’re listening. As a result, listening to his audio narration of Norse Mythology felt like such a satisfying experience. I listen to different chapters every Norsevember but often throughout the year too.
4. The Saga of Ádís Rauðfeldr by Siobhán Clark | Goodreads
This is a modern saga by Siobhán Clark that is criminally under-read and under-marketed. It probably isn’t one for every reader, but for those who have a love for Norse mythology and the Sagas, it really does read like a modern saga. There are mysterious characters and magic, violence and love, an atmospheric setting. The author really does capture a whole vibe and it’s hard to explain how without just telling curious readers to find out for themselves!
5. Raven: Blood Eye by Giles Kristian | Goodreads
Blood Eye is the definition of a page turner, about a young man, Osric, who joins a Viking warband. It follows the political and cultural feeling of the time really well and is so action packed, it flies by. The author has done his historical research but he sure does know how to write a compelling story, too!
Norse Exploration Outside of Books
When it comes to video games, I can’t mention anything before recommending God of War and God of War: Ragnarök. These two games are absolutely stunning. The story is beautiful, the setting, the music, the character development. The combat is amazing. Just everything is perfect. Purists may be disappointed because the games give their own take on the mythology and make a lot of deviations but they also capture so much of what many people love about Norse Mythology. Perhaps my favourite two games ever!
There is also Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla which I’d recommend and has a LOT of Viking history. Anyone interested in the period would probably enjoy this game. There are also a number of indie games that pull from the mythology or history but I haven’t played these extensively. Jotun for example is one that comes recommended from others. The strategy game Crusader Kings also allows you to play as Vikings and they’ve done a lot of research into making the experience authentic.
In terms of board games, unfortunately I don’t get much chance to play them so I don’t know any other than Odin’s Ravens. This is a 2 player game my wife and I enjoy playing from time to time. You each play as one of Odin’s 2 ravens and have to travel across the 9 worlds, making it back before your opponent. It’s a game of strategy, cunning and a dose of luck. You can use Loki cards to hinder your opponent or boost yourself depending on the layout of the board. I’d definitely recommend it to anyone, not just fans of Norse mythology.
Movie-wise, The Northman is one of the best Viking films and feels very authentic. In fact, I think they went to great lengths to up the realism. I must point out though that I struggled with how realistic it was in parts! There is a scene where the Vikings lock the small boys of a raised village in a building and set it on fire. Since becoming a father, I find it very difficult to detach myself from scenes like that, especially as it was shot so brutally and looked so realistic – it made me feel so on edge, and not in a good way. So it was sort of an unexpected trigger really. But the film is excellent and I’d still highly recommend it. There are few viking movies that are objectively loved; most are B movies that went straight to DVD.
There are so many good podcasts that it’s hard to name just ones but I usually just filter Spotify by podcasts and type Norse mythology or vikings and there is an absolute treasure trove of great content!
Personal Highlights from Norsevember
It’s difficult to choose which Norsevember posts I enjoyed being involved in the most, but there a couple of highlights I’d love to share!
Read interviews with the Norse scholars Dr Jóhanna Katrín Friðriksdóttir and Marianne Hem Eriksen
For those who don’t know much about Norse Mythology, maybe your readers would like to journey to the 9 worlds of Norse Mythology and learn more about them:
Thank you for hosting me on your website, Kriti! It’s been a while and it’s great to be back.
Thank you for reading this post! Do you read Norse books or is there a mythology or theme you like to explore in your reading? 🙂
Connect with Alex on X, Instagram and his blog, Spells and Spaceships.
Awesome guest post!