Fireside Stories

The Arcane Storyteller

Fireside Stories journeys through the legends, myths, and folktales that have shaped cultures across the world. From ancient spirits and trickster gods to forgotten heroes and supernatural beings, each episode retells a timeless story before exploring its history, symbolism, and meaning. Thoughtfully researched and beautifully narrated, these are the tales passed down through generations—stories that reveal not only where we came from, but why we continue to tell them around the fire.

Episodes

  1. 6h ago

    The Selkie - A Woman Trapped Between Two Worlds | Scotland & Orkney

    A seal sheds its skin and becomes human. A man steals the skin. She's trapped on land, unable to return to the sea. She marries him. She has children. But one day, she finds her skin. And she leaves everything behind. The Selkie is a tragedy about the impossibility of belonging. FIRESIDE STORIES — SEASON 1 Water Spirits Around the World Ancient folklore retold for the modern world. Creatures, spirits, and legends from cultures across the globe — and the truths hidden in their stories. Every culture has folklore. Every folklore has a reason. These are the stories that survived for centuries because they continued to warn about something real. A river that drowns children. A forest that takes people. A darkness that lives in the spaces between safety and danger. This season: ten water spirits from ten cultures. Ten creatures that live in rivers, oceans, and lakes. Ten stories that reveal what humans fear about water — and what we respect about the beings we imagine within it. Part of Arcane Storyteller. Subscribe to Arcane Storyteller for all series: - The Listening Room (Classic literature retellings) - The Unexplained Archives (Government secrets & mysteries) - Behind the Curtain (Dark pop culture history) - Between Worlds (Psychology & spirituality) - Fireside Stories (World mythology & folklore) - Queer Uncharted (LGBTQ+ history) New episodes every Wednesday. Subscribe for mythology, folklore, and the stories that shaped how humans see the world. FIND US: YouTube: Fireside Stories Spotify: Fireside Stories / Arcane Storyteller Apple Podcasts: Arcane Storyteller - Fireside Stories

    The Selkie - A Woman Trapped Between Two Worlds | Scotland & Orkney

  2. 6d ago

    Kappa - Japan's Polite River Spirit

    Before there were warning signs beside rivers, people told stories about things that lived beneath the surface.In Japan, that creature is the Kappa — a river spirit with a beak like a turtle, webbed hands, and a single vulnerability: the water-filled dish on its head.The Kappa has lived in Japanese folklore for over 1,000 years. It drowns people. It challenges humans to sumo wrestling. And it is too polite to fight back.But the Kappa's real purpose is far stranger than the creature itself.This episode explores what the Kappa actually is, why a thousand-year-old folkloric tradition still appears on water-safety signs in rural Japan today, and why some stories survive — and what that tells us about what we really fear. ABOUT FIRESIDE STORIES:Ancient folklore retold for the modern world. Creatures, spirits, and legends from cultures across the globe — and the truths hidden in their stories.Season 1: Water Spirits & Sea Monsters Part of Arcane Storyteller.New episodes every Wednesday.

    Kappa - Japan's Polite River Spirit
  • 2 Episodes

About

Fireside Stories journeys through the legends, myths, and folktales that have shaped cultures across the world. From ancient spirits and trickster gods to forgotten heroes and supernatural beings, each episode retells a timeless story before exploring its history, symbolism, and meaning. Thoughtfully researched and beautifully narrated, these are the tales passed down through generations—stories that reveal not only where we came from, but why we continue to tell them around the fire.

Information

  • Creator
    The Arcane Storyteller
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    2
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © The Arcane Storyteller
  • Show Website
    Fireside Stories