Thursday Doors to Enchantment — the North-country of Dead of Winter

Posted on by Teagan Riordain Geneviene

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Doors to Enchantment

Hallgeir Hallr, Borgund Stave Church, Wikipedia. Tomfoolery by Teagan
Hallgeir and Hallr, Borgund Stave Church, Wikipedia. Tomfoolery by Teagan

Welcome to my sanctuary.  Spring is on the way in the Land of Enchantment, but Winter will be on my mind for weeks to come as I finish the final two installments of “Dead of Winter.”  In response to the Thursday Doors challenge, hosted by Dan Antion, I’ve looked for doors that remind me of places in my epic fantasy series.

Stavkirken, Borgund, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, København by Martinus Rørbye 1833 Wikipedia
Painting by Martinus Rørbye 1833 Wikipedia

I created half a globe-ful of countries and cultures for Dead of Winter.  The one that is farthest north in Emlyn’s wide world is Floke Torsten. That’s the homeland of Hallgeir and his ancestors Hallr and Haldis. I derived the country’s name from the Norse Floke (guardian of the people) and Torsten (the stone of Thor).  The people of Floke Torsten look like a more elegant — and better-groomed spin on the Vikings of our history. 

Drawing of Borgund stave church by G. A. Bull
Drawing of Borgund Stave Church by G. A. Bull, Wikipedia

Hallr, High King of the North, Master of the Frozen Lands, Lord of the White Marches, built a stronghold into the side of a barren mountain. He called it High Terminus. It would look like a stone version of this image of Borgund Stave Church, in Borgund, Lærdal, Norway, which was built in the 12th century. I’m sure there are doors in those shadows…

Imagine the interior of High Terminus carved in stone, with colorful banners hanging from the rafters high above the throne.  In the photo below, you see an interior shot of Borgund Stave Church with arched doorways.  It also shows supporting columns and “Saint Andrew’s crosses“ plus the gallery arches above.

Interior of Stave Church Borgund Wikipedia
Interior of Stave Church, Wikipedia

A Snippet from Midway Through the Journeys

Carved out of the mountain itself, the great castle, High Terminus, reared above the treacherous slope.  As the first of all nightwalkers gazed up at the stark beauty of the structure, his curtain of black hair fell back from the chiseled features of his face.  Arawn had come to this place many times, in attempt to find the high king.  Those fruitless endeavors did not discourage him.  Eventually he knew he would find the long dead monarch at the place of past glory.

Arawn’s sharp eyes detected movement at one of the narrow windows.  The landscape around him blurred, and in the blink of an eye he was within the castle.  His leer took in the echoing throne room.  Banners from every northern kingdom and tribe hung from the heights of the ceiling, their once bright colors dull in the ghostly realm.  The slightest sound would echo in the long high-ceilinged room.  However, a thick carpet silenced the gold heels of Arawn’s boots as he strode toward the dais.

The elaborate chamber was empty except for the tall man who reclined on the throne.  He was lean, but it was the sinewy kind of thinness that belied wiry strength.  The fur vest he wore revealed the defined muscles of his arms.  There was no spare flesh on the man to soften the angular face.  Pale blonde hair was held back by a gold circlet on his brow.  The crown bore the image of a broad undulating snake.  The gold shone faintly in the half-light.  His eyes were the blue of a winter sky.  Those eyes, hard and cold, stabbed Arawn’s, as if the king would possess his mind and thoughts.

♦♦♦

Svein Harkestad, Wikipedia
Photo credit Svein Harkestad, Wikipedia

I didn’t find any images of actual doors that I had permission to use, but I loved all the arched doorways.  Thanks for taking this fantasy tour with me.  During an armchair tour, the imagination can get a great workout.  I hope you’ll stop and leave a friendly comment.  Hugs on the wing!

2022 Thursday Doors badge by Teagan R. Geneviene

♦♦♦

Meanwhile, “Dead of Winter: Journey 12, Goddesses” is available. I’m hard at work on the penultimate installment of the series, “Journey 13, the Harbor.”

Dead of Winter, Journey 12 Goddesses book and cover by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene

Thanks for spending part of your day here. I’m grateful to everyone who is reading this story. If you aren’t already, I hope you’ll be part of the extraordinary, layered world of these Journeys. 

I love to hear from you, so friendly comments are encouraged. Hugs on the wing!

♦♦♦

Dead of Winter — All the Journeys

Universal Purchase Links

Journey 12, Goddesses

Kindle:  relinks.me/B09P5LJY13

Paperback:  relinks.me/B09NTTZ9J8

Journey 11, the Sumelazon Escarpment

Kindle:  relinks.me/B09M7Q19XT

Paperback:  relinks.me/B09M4QWDYK

Journey 10, Pergesca

Kindle:  relinks.me/B09J6TH8TD

Paperback:  relinks.me/B09J7GFWYV

Journey 9, Doors of Attunement

Kindle:  relinks.me/B09F8Y5DML

Paperback:  relinks.me/B09F1BB9RW

Journey 8, The Lost Library

Kindle:  relinks.me/B09C6MPTYT

Paperback:  relinks.me/B09C34XR7P

Journey 7, Revenant Pass

Kindle:  relinks.me/B098MS8P48

Paperback:  relinks.me/B098GV1G5V

Journey 6, The Fluting Fell

Kindle:  relinks.me/B096CPJNSX

Paperback: relinks.me/B096CPJNSX

Journey 5, Llyn Pistyll Falls

Kindle:  relinks.me/B09431TD6G

Paperback:  relinks.me/B0942KC471

Journey 4, The Old Road

Kindle:  relinks.me/B092G5LB7R

Paperback:  relinks.me/B092M51Y88

Journey 3, the Fever Field

Kindle: elinks.me/B08XTNZ9M8 

Paperback:  relinks.me/B08XXY3JXF

Kobo:  Dead of Winter: Journey 3, the Fever Field eBook by Teagan Riordain Geneviene – 1230004609599 | Rakuten Kobo United States

Journey 2, Penllyn

Kindle:  relinks.me/B08VMNSF97

Paperback:  relinks.me/B08VLMR2KD

Kobo:  https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/dead-of-winter-journey-2-penllyn

Journey 1, Forlorn Peak

Kindle:  relinks.me/B08RBBVRGX

Paperback:  relinks.me/B08R7RH4F5

Kobo:  Dead of Winter: Journey 1, Forlorn Peak eBook by Teagan Geneviene – 1230004446033 | Rakuten Kobo United States

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This is a work of fiction.  Characters, names, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, locales, or events is entirely coincidental.

Copyright © 2010 and 2022 by Teagan Ríordáin Geneviene

All rights reserved. 

No part of this work may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission.  Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of the author’s rights.

All images are either the property of the author or provided by free sources, unless stated otherwise.

 

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64 thoughts on “Thursday Doors to Enchantment — the North-country of Dead of Winter”

  1. What a wonderful way to join in Thursday Doors! I have gotten behind in Dead of Winter, partly because other books have gotten in the way. Also, when I don’t want a book, or in this case, series, to end, I tend to slow down. Looking forward to picking back up with book 11.

    Liked by 1 person

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  4. I really love your story and the way you describe as the story continues–I am very sorry that there are only who more installments! ! ! Your descriptive lines about the palace carved out of the mountain and that tall gentleman with those long strong arms and bright eyes makes your story addictive! And the pictures you chose and have included are awesome! ! Thank you! !

    Liked by 1 person

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    1. Thank you kindly, for that and for all your encouragement, Ms. Frances. It really does help. Unexpectedly, Hallr became my favorite character in that story — maybe of all my nearly 400 characters across all my stories. Have a brilliant new week. Hugs on the wing!

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    1. Thanks, Deborah. You have such a wonderful eye for detail. I’m not sure what critter those are, something stylized… Maybe they’re supposed to be dragons. I tried to find out more about the carvings. Here are a couple of interesting links:
      https://norwegianscitechnews.com/2019/04/what-do-the-animals-in-stave-church-ornamentation-signify/

      This one has a closeup of the first door, but it’s TOO close to make out the animals.
      https://unusualplaces.org/standing-the-test-of-time-norways-borgund-stave-church/

      Thanks for reading and commenting. Hugs on the wing.

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  14. I am happy to put some imagery around the Journeys I’ve been reading. Some of these are close to what I have imagined. I love tying various creative endeavors together through the doors that are or might be there. I am also impressed with the research you conduct to fuel your stories. Thanks for sharing this with Thursday Doors – it’s always good to see you. Good luck as you finish this remarkable series.

    Liked by 2 people

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  16. Cool images, Teagan. I use images a lot to get inspiration too. And if I’m not going to post them, the sky’s the limit. They are so many of them and they help a lot with descriptions. Great snippet. I can’t wait to read on to the conclusion. Happy Writing!

    Liked by 1 person

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  23. Reblogged this on Just Olga and commented:
    It’s Thursday Doors again and Teagan Geneviene​ joins Dan Antion​’s challenge offering us some fabulous building and doors and a snippet from the next journey of her serial Dead of Winter.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    1. This place was about as close to Hallr’s royal seat as anything I could find, Denise. Except that it’s wood rather than stone.
      Tahira gets a small feature that I just added to Journey 13. So many non-writing setbacks this year, but I’m still working on it. Stay safe and well. Hugs on the wing!

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  26. Teagan, interesting archway doorways, and your commentary is richly descriptive. Your fantasy tours are great getaways from ordinary drama stories. Enjoyable always! Happy Thursday, my friend. 📚🎶 Christine

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

      1. Teagan, I’ve been thinking about you! I’m focused on getting the final book MS to the proofreader! Got that far, at the expense of little presence on WordPress and your writing. I will catch up, I promise. Big hugs back, Moon Sister. 📚🎶🌵

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