Mythology and Me: E.M. Kkoulla

Hello! I’d like to start by thanking Iseult for hosting me here and giving me the chance to talk about my books. My name is Elene (the Greek version of Helen) and I’m of Scottish, English, Irish and Greek-Cypriot heritage, though I was born and brought up in Northern England. I currently live with my husband and two feline Overlords, Zeus and Hades, in County Durham.

When not vanishing into worlds of my own making, I’m a supply teacher for very small children though I taught full-time for many years. I’ve been writing ever since I could hold a pen and started off with short stories over forty years ago. A couple were published in anthologies, plus I won a competition in the local newspaper, but then life took over and I largely stopped.

I began writing the first of my Ships of Britannia series in 2019. I wasn’t working at the time and thought I would scribble something down on paper as therapy, as I’d been through a rough time personally and professionally over several years. To my surprise the ideas grew and grew, until they turned into a number of books. I’m currently editing the fifth and final book in the series, though a prequel is lurking about in the back of my mind. As well as the books, I’ve written a novella and two short stories set in the same world. I give these away for free to my email newsletter subscribers.

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Q.1: When did your love of mythology start?

When I was very small, I was given a book called Tales of Long Ago, by Enid Blyton, she of The Famous Five fame. In it, she retold various myths, including Pandora’s Box and the Story of Proserpina, or Persephone. I must have read it dozens of times! At about the same time, my mother, who was keen to encourage interest in my Greek heritage, bought me Tales of the Greek Heroes by Roger Lancelyn Green. It immediately became my favourite book, and I soon knew all about Perseus, Theseus and Heracles. I still have it on my bookshelves. It was the start of my fascination with myths and legends from all over the world. Hand in hand with these books were the films, especially my all-time number one, Jason and the Argonauts. I also blame Alan Garner for my interest in British mythology, as I devoured The Weirdstone of Brisingamen, The Moon of Gomrath and Elidor, set in Manchester, where I grew up. It always seemed like there was a hidden world just on the edge of sight, waiting for me to turn the corner and fall into it forever.

Q. 2: “Ships of Britannia” centres on Roman mythology, but there are hints of the myths of other cultures existing in the same universe. Which cultures’ mythology is your favourite?

Now this is a hard one. I love everything about Ancient Egypt, though their mythology is quite complicated, evolving as it did over several millennia. If you’ve read the books, especially Wrath of Olympus, you’ll see the Egyptian influences, especially when Sobek makes an appearance. He was inspired by the huge mummified crocodiles I saw on my trip to Egypt in 2016. Norse mythology interests me too, so I’ve incorporated a little of that as well. There are also the local British myths I grew up with, everything from headless dogs to the spirits of the forest and uncanny creatures that lurk in the depths of ponds and caves.

Q. 3: In “Ships of Britannia”, not only is the Roman Empire still going strong, but their gods and magic are real. What drew you to making Roman mythology the central focus of your alternative history fantasy series?

Having a BA Hons degree in Classical Studies helps! I chose the Roman period of British history because so much of it is still around. I live about thirty minutes from Hadrian’s Wall, and the large Roman town of Binchester is on my doorstep. The Empire left a stamp on our European culture and landscape that lingers on and I just took that one step further by wondering ‘what if the Romans had never left at all?’ Combining it with Arthurian myth seemed a fun thing to do, so I had him save the Empire and his descendants be the rulers of Britannia.

Q. 4: What do you think makes ancient mythology so captivating that it continues to resonate with us?

I think it’s because they’re really good stories that shed light on the human condition. Before science took over, people used them to explain many of the natural processes of the world around them. Take Persephone’s abduction, for example. The grief of her mother Demeter is such that she neglects her duties and the world plunges into winter. It is only when her daughter is restored for six months of the year that spring and summer return. A mother’s grief is reflected in what was happening in real life. Myths and legends, told from one generation to another in the oral tradition gave structure to an uncertain world and bound peoples together in a shared history. Nowadays it’s superhero movies, where powerful beings battle the forces of evil. In these, the gods are re-imagined for a modern audience and you only have to look at their popularity to see that they still speak to something deep within us.

Question 5: Which modern myths and legends interest and inspire you?

I love watching programmes on Bigfoot, sea monsters, ghosts and cryptids! Personally, I think there’s more weirdness in the world than we currently understand. I grew up in a house where something pushed people down the stairs, though they were never hurt, and I used to race a small shadow on the landing. It was only years later that my mother confirmed that the house was haunted, as I’d dismissed it as childhood imagination. I know big cats roam the British countryside, spirits dwell in ancient landscapes and there are places on the borderlands between the seen and unseen. I also think there are probably other hominids, such as the Orang Pendek in Indonesia and Sasquatch in the US. Just don’t ask me to prove most of it! I live in hope that science will come up with some answers soon and expand our knowledge of these strange and mystifying beliefs.

If you’d like to be kept up to date with new releases and other news, you can find the link to my website at emkkoulla.com, or contact me on Twitter/X  @EKkoulla.