EDMOND — European fairy lore combines with the Native American tradition of Little People in a book set in the Oklahoma suburbs.
“When sprites and humans collide, the results are not always pretty,” said former Edmond Memorial High School teacher Brandi Barnett as she introduces her first book, “Glamour.”
“While growing up in Eastern Oklahoma, I was introduced to the various cultures there,” Barnett said. “Since then, they’ve continued to fascinate me.”
Barnett grew up in the Creek Nation Capital of Okmulgee and her extended family all lived in the Cherokee Nation Capital of Tahlequah.
“In both cities, the cultures mingled, but the presence of a sovereign nation is very much a part of the community,” Barnett said. “My love of Shakespeare’s whimsy introduced me to his culture’s fascination with its own Little People — most often known as fairies.”
As Barnett meshed Shakespeare’s fairy stories with the Creek and Cherokee stories of their Little People, she said the more she realized that almost every culture has some tie to a belief in Little People.
“This led me to play with the idea of the actual existence of a smaller creature and if they may still exist or if evolution or man has eliminated them like so many other species,” Barnett said.
She said many of the tales Duncan (one of the characters) shares are ones that she heard or experienced growing up.
“Once my aunt, a full blood Cherokee, and I were searching for rocks with holes bored in them along the Illinois River,” Barnett said. “I remember her yanking my hand and pulling me away from the water’s edge, worried that the Little People would pull me in.
“From Creek friends, I learned stories of their ‘staghinis.’ These creatures are wrathful and demand such respect that many won’t speak of them for fear of disrespecting them. I combined the characteristics of them with those of fairies and pixies and hobgoblins, etc. of Europe.”
The name of one of her characters, Blaezi, was borrowed from the name of a “spunky little cousin” and came out of an undergraduate assignment her advanced composition professor made.
“Later, I added Kat, who represented not only mischief, but evil. I had assigned my creative writing students a journal entry: What do you have in your pocket? As so many teenagers have difficulty doing after lunch, a few could not settle down. So, the line ‘She liked to keep their tongues in her pocket’ popped into my head and Kat was born. Rambunctious teenagers have always inspired me.”
Barnett said the environmental aspect of the book is as much a part of her as the stories of the Little People.
“My parents moved our family out in the country when I was in the third grade so that we would be in touch with our roots,” Barnett said. “Our new home had a creek and a pond and enough land for my father to parade a variety of animals through for us. The places I remember as filled with hay bales and wildflowers now bloom with brick walls and stained glass.
“As I wrote “Glamour,” I wondered if the toads that once were so thick that they were always underfoot at night are there anymore. I understand progress, but I’m also concerned with preservation.”
Barnett is currently working on a new novel scheduled to be completed by the end of the year. Although it is not a young adult novel, she says it is still urban fantasy. Her writing has been interrupted by a new addition to the family, her son Max.
“While holding Max, I tell him fanciful stories — and hope I can remember them long enough to write them down. Sleep deprivation hasn’t proven especially wonderful at enhancing my writing.”
Barnett said whether in books or on stage, characters have always fascinated her.
“My mother was an English and creative writing teacher, Barnett said. “She consistently encouraged my writing and acted sufficiently impressed, but she often critiqued it so that I could get better. That’s the teacher in her.”
“So many people have a story to tell — they just need encouragement and a forum in which to do it.
“Writing has always been fun for me. Even though I write full time now, it still feels like a guilty pleasure rather than a job.”
A Book signing for “Glamour” will be held at 7 p.m. on Nov. 18 at Memorial High School. Books may be purchased at Best of Books. Visit Brandi Barnett’s Web site at www.brandibarnett.com.
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