Monster Month: Kasa-Obake

Posted on October 12, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

Kasa-Obake

I’ve seen this show up in so many anime that I had to put it on the blog.  Doesn’t matter that there isn’t a lot of info out there.

The kasa-obake/karakasa-obake/kasa-bake/karakasa kozo . . . It has a lot of names, but it’s always an umbrella creature.  Starting to appear during Japan’s Edo period, this is a ghost or yokai, which is a supernatural entity.  Not necessarily a demon from what I can tell, but yokai tend to be used as such in modern fiction.  Anyway, the kasa-obake is some version of what you see above.  They typically have a long tongue, one leg, and are in the form of an umbrella.  Of course, there are some variations:

  • Some have one eye and others have two.
  • Some have two arms.
  • Rarely, they’re depicted with two legs, but the one-leg is the common version.

So, what does a kasa-obake do?  Well, one story talks about them simply sneaking up on people and giving them an oily lick.  They don’t do more than that, so they’re more mischievous than dangerous.  In fact, nobody is really sure how the kasa-obake came about because it’s not connected to folktales.  As I said, it began showing up in small tales and art after the Edo period.  Some even think that they’re basically a creation after the war in an attempt to design newer yokai.  It means there’s a lot of mystery and limited information about its specific origins.

Yet, there is a legend that could explain the logic behind the kasa-obake.  It’s believed that after 100 years, an everyday object can become an apparition.  These are called tsukumogami, which might be the inspiration for this yokai.  It isn’t a possible origin, but there are similarities.  This can also be a lesson on why one should not discard old objects that may still have a use or some sentimental value.

Speaking of similarities, there are other umbrella creatures:

  • One is of a rain-umbrella that appears in valleys during a storm.  Anyone who sees it would be paralyzed on the spot.
  • Another is the yureigasa, which is a one-legged, one-eyed umbrella yokai.  This one blows people into the sky on windy days.

That’s really it.  The kasa-obake shows up in a lot of anime, manga, and video games due to its appearance.  Much of the information I found was from that instead of older lore like I previously stated.  So, there’s still some mystery behind this yokai.  That or there isn’t much beyond someone thought a creepy umbrella didn’t need more of an explanation.

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Guest Post – Lisa Burton Talking About The Midnight Rambler by Craig Boyack #newbook

Posted on October 12, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

I am very pleased to welcome Lisa Burton-Robot Spokesperson back to Fiction Favorites. Craig Boyack her boss, has a hit series featuring Lizzie and …

Guest Post – Lisa Burton Talking About The Midnight Rambler by Craig Boyack #newbook
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Gwen and John Talk about Different Than You Gender Characters – Part I

Posted on October 12, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

John W. Howell's avatarStory Empire

Photo by Christopher Burns on Unsplash

Hi SEers. It is John with you today. If you have been following Story Empire, you know Gwen has been discussing the subject of diversity in her previous posts. If you missed any, you can go to the subjects of religion, race, wealth, physical ability, and gender identity and read them. Today Gwen and I will answer two questions about our feelings about writing other than our own gender characters. Next week will be another session with three questions that we each will answer. Before I get into the questions, I think a little information would be good on how we decided to do this.

No, we weren’t sitting in a bar drinking. We were in discussion with our fellow SE collogues, and a consensus was that such a post would be a good thing. Because Gwen had written the…

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Free PDF: Raven’s Game

Posted on October 11, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

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Part two of the ‘Raven Series’ and I tried to make it more of a serial killer story.  This time with a cop as the main character.  It started the trend of me trying to do a different type of horror for each volume.  First one was creepy paranormal and this was investigating serial killing.  Not sure what you would call that.

Raven’s Game

Detective Gemma Cook is determined to solve the mystery of Heaven’s Nest hotel where many fatal accidents have occurred. For years, she has attempted to pin the incidents on the owner, Dawn Addison.  It has finally reached a point where a forced vacation is in order.  To Gemma’s surprise, she is invited to spend her time off at Dawn’s hotel.  Taking the offer, she steps into a game where the friendly serial killer dares her to prove she is the murderer.  Who will win?

RAVEN’S GAME PDF

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Monster Month: Gogmagog

Posted on October 10, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

Gogmagog

Unlike others I’m showcasing, this monster is a specifically named one.  Similar to Polyphemus from ‘The Odyssey’, Gogmagog is a giant from mythology.  He is found within Welsh and later English mythology.  So, who is he?

Gogmagog was one of the last giants who lived on the island of Albion.  He led the others against Brutus and the Trojans who were invading.  He was the strongest and most ferocious of his tribe, but was still captured.  A Trojan named Corineus wrestled Gogmagog and threw him off a cliff and into the sea.  The place has been named after the giant.  All of this is similar to Hercules defeating Antaeus, who he lifted off the ground to cut him off from his power source.  Of course, Gogmagog was simply lifted by this man and hurled into the ocean.

There are other versions, including one where Gogmagog isn’t one creature.  Instead, he’s two giants named Gog and Magog, which may be connected to the identically named figures in the Old Testament.  (Quickly, these were either Gog the man who came from Magog or two figures that the Messiah would have to defeat.)  Now, the Roman Emperor Diocletian had thirty-three wicked daughters who murdered their husbands and were sent out to sea.  They washed up on the island of Albion where they mated with demons to give birth a race of giants.  Gog and Magog were two of these descendants and are considered the guardians of London.

Oddly enough, Gogmagog does return after getting thrown into the sea.  William the Conqueror stopped at a hill now called Dinas Bran.  Ruins at the top were called Castle Bran.  In this tale, Gogmagog was struck in the foot and fell into the ocean where he died before being possessed by an evil spirit.  He prevented the Britons from settling the area and destroyed Castle Bran when it was built.  So, what happened next?

Payn Peveral, a knight of William, went to spend the night in the castle along with fifteen of his men.  A storm started and only Payn remained standing while everyone else was cowering.  As he prayed and held his cross, the darkness turned into Gogmagog and attacked with a club.  Payn got out of the way and attacked.  The cross symbol on his shield kept Gogmagog at bay while he was attacked.  Eventually, he told his story to the knight and said how he gave his soul over to Beelzebub.  The giant was defeated and his body was thrown into a pit, but his club was kept as evidence.

So, that’s a general overview of Gogmagog.  There was a lot to sift through, so feel free to add anything you may know in the comments.

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Bad Moon Rising. I’m With Teri Polen Today.

Posted on October 10, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

Teri Polen invited me to participate in her Bad Moon Rising feature. For those who may be new to Teri’s blog, her Bad Moon Rising is a feature she …

Bad Moon Rising. I’m With Teri Polen Today.
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WRITING AND THE WEATHER

Posted on October 10, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

Hi SEers! Denise here to talk about the weather and writing. Do you have a season where you are more productive writing? When fall and winter hit, I …

WRITING AND THE WEATHER
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The Joy of the Common Cold

Posted on October 9, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

So, I ended up catching a cold while fasting for Yom Kippur.  Terrible combo and it’s making it difficult to finish the last two chapters of my book.  So, I didn’t have the mental ability to go researching any animals or come up with anything that interesting.  All I could think about was being sick and still trying to get stuff done.  So, here are some memes found on Google.

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Goal Post: Fasting, Gasping, and Fatigue

Posted on October 8, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

This was a busy and crazy week.  I feel like I always say that, so at least my life is somewhat predictable in its chaos.

A big reason for the chaos was that Yom Kippur was sitting right in the middle.  This is the Jewish holiday where one fasts from sundown until sundown.  I made it through that ordeal somehow.  The problem is that it left me tired and I caught a cold, so I was a mess the next day.  It didn’t help that I spent part of my fasting time dealing with some drama and not being able to take a nap.  Thinking back, I did notice that I felt off from the beginning even though the cold wasn’t as strong as it was the next day. I mistook it for weather-induced migraines in the moment.

It’s still hard to focus and muster energy, especially at the end of a day.  Mornings and evenings are all about being congested.  My throat is a little tickly, but the real mess is my nose and sinuses.  Home test said no covid before you ask.  I still took Thursday off to recover and be safe.  Probably should have slept more, but I took some time to write two sections of the penultimate chapter of Darwin & the Avenging Elf.  Not my wisest moment since I needed the rest, but I thought I could use this 3-day weekend to focus on recovering.

Speaking of writing, I’ll be finishing that book today.  Then, I plan on working on some idea books while I recover.  ‘Phi Beta Files’ have been collecting dust in my satchel since last school year.  Should really finish the characters at least.  That way I can start figuring out how to tell the stories.  I believe it was going to be six books with each one having short stories that connect to a main plotline.  Basically, each ‘short story’ would be a chapter of the overall adventure.  Not sure why I keep thinking of it as short stories, but it’s the same thing I want to try with my superhero stuff.

What else was going on?  My son had a lot of work and even two tests, which we struggled to study for.  It really showed how disorganized and chaotic this week was since it felt like everything was coming out of nowhere.  At least that’s all over and we may have a better idea of the scheduling.  My cold definitely didn’t help with focus and figuring out what was going on.  It’s even making it hard to focus on this post.

Oh yeah.  I finished preparing all of the November posts, so I’ve taken some time to work on the December ones.  This includes a post about ‘fixing older franchises where the author is deceased’.  That’s going to be a messy one and I’m sure some people know what prompted it.  Couldn’t avoid it and I was nervous just writing the thing, but I had to get it off my chest.  I’ll spend next week getting through the December posts since I won’t be tackling any book writing for a while.  So, I may even start in on January stuff if I can think of any topics.  Getting really tough to find anything that I haven’t talked about, especially since I don’t know why I’m still here.  Guess it just gives me something to do since the writing career has flopped pretty harshly.

Eating fruit for lunch has been working out rather well.  Mostly, I haven’t given up and started going back to junk food.  Vegetables didn’t make it for very long, but going with apples, grapes, and various berries is still going strong.  Sticking to water as well.  I don’t feel like I’ve lost weight though.  Energy hasn’t changed much either, but that could be due to sleeping trouble.  The cold and weather sensitivity may have had a hand in that issue too.  This is why I’m definitely going to be sleeping in on Sunday and Monday.  Today is all about finishing the book.

Television hasn’t been a thing this week.  I watched both seasons of ‘One Punch Man’ when I had time.  Now, I’m back to figuring out what I should watch.  Maybe I’ll finally watch ‘Locke & Key’ on Netflix.  Been circling that one for a while because I could never figure out if I was interested or not.  I’ll have two days to rest and binge while I work on some future ideas or my jigsaw puzzle.  We’ll play it by ear.  I’m definitely tired of dealing with ads on Hulu, so I need a break from that service.

So, what are the goals of the week?

  1. Recover from this cold.
  2. Finish writing Darwin & the Avenging Elf.
  3. Write the December posts.
  4. Go back to planning ‘Phi Beta Files’.
  5. Work on puzzle.
  6. Time with son beyond schoolwork.
  7. Have a yummy lunch today.
  8. Hydrate.
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Monster Month: Amarok/Amaroq

Posted on October 7, 2022 by Charles Yallowitz

Amarok

Now, we’re getting into the more obscure beasts.  How obscure are we talking?  Well, it’s not as easy to find information on some of these.  So, the posts might be getting a little thinner.

The Amarok (or Amaroq) is from the Inuit religion and is simply a giant wolf.  They are solitary hunters who go after anyone foolish enough to hunt alone at night.  Probably not hard to figure out how this legend came about.  In fact, giant wolves are found in multiple religions and mythologies.  Most times, they aren’t altered beyond being made enormous, which comes with the usual super strength and durability.  The Amarok is not that different and was probably born from the concept of dire wolves.

There are some differences among the Inuit.  Those in Greenland use Amarok solely for this creature while others use it for any wolf.  Even with its ferocious reputation, the Amarok is typically put in a positive light.  The story I ran into the most was the following:

‘A young boy was weak and considered an outcast by his village.  He prayed to the gods for strength, which resulted in an Amarok being sent to him.  He wrestled the Amarok’s tail until small bones fell out of him.  These were stunting his growth.  He went back to wrestle the Amarok every day in order to build up his strength.  Eventually, he was strong enough to earn the respect of his village.’

Others stories have people killing an Amarok as a sign of strength or just because.  There wasn’t much else to these tales, except for one that stood out to me:

‘A mourner and their friend go in search of an Amarok they hear is nearby.  They find the pups and the mourner kills them.  Running away, they hide nearby to see the mother appear with food.  The mother Amarok goes to a lake and drags out a human form.  The mourner drops dead because the Amarok took their soul.’

That’s also the closest I could come to finding any supernatural powers.  Mostly, the Amarok is a giant wolf used in mythology either as a benevolent guardian, dangerous predator, or test of strength.  Some tales talk of them appearing to pick off sick reindeer when the herds get too large.  This helps the herds grow in strength and be better sources of food for the Inuit.

Beyond all of that, it got tricky finding clear information.  I noticed that some people used the term ‘Amarok Wolf’ for general large wolves.  This is regardless of their origins.  So, I saw it getting used for Fenrir and the wolf who raised Remus and Romulus.  I don’t think that’s right though.  Kind of muddies the waters.

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