The Magical Isles

The small islands in Lumenor’s oceans are often special places to the Order of Lumen. I name them in Welsh to make them stand out, to endow them with an air of mystery, musicality and magical possibility. There is no old Celtic language now, so Welsh provides a modern alternative. I have asked native speakers for translation from English to Welsh wherever possible, or on occasions, used an online translator. I can see two islands from the balcony of my apartment, which sometimes seem to float in mist, especially at twilight or in the early morning. I have always felt drawn to the small islands in the oceans of the British Isles, they are magic in my own imagination.

The idea of a starry species called Lumerin and the Golden Lady Aurora came from a song called ‘Woodstock’ –​ written by Joni Mitchell. She recorded it on an album called Ladies of the Canyon (1969). It got into the charts when it was recorded by a band called Crosby Stills Nash and Young (1970). The chorus goes:

​We are stardust
We are golden
And we’ve got to get ourselves
Back to the garden.

​Because the song was recorded for the 1969 Woodstock Music Festival in the U.S.A. I saw my Lumenor legends into a 1960s setting. The first one around 1960, the second around 1963 and the final one 1969/70.

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The Garden of Possibility

'The Garden of Possibility', the final instalment in the Legends of Lumenor trilogy, is due out soon.