Prairie Witch, an anthology of witchy short stories, is going to be released this Halloween! Why does this excite me? Because I am a contributing author, and you’ll be able to read my story “Herbalista.” This is the first time a work of fiction of mine will be published and suffice to say it means a lot to me. And I am still not over how much I love this cover art, both gothic and wild.
Would the contents of your bookshelf get you burned as a witch in the past? Throughout history, women accused of being witches and put to death by burning, stoning, hanging, or drowning were women who were smart, educated, healers, single, widowed, old, overly social, confident, too beautiful, too ugly, sexual, subversive, and deviant. Witches have been most often portrayed as evil, living solitary lives in the forest, eating children, and communing with the devil. But in recent years, women have been reclaiming the word “witch” to symbolize female empowerment. This excites us very much and makes us wonder what stories about witches and the Canadian Prairies could be told!
My story, “Herbalista,” is about Hester Harrison, a woman down on her luck, with a dead-end job and a dead-beat husband, and a child she desperately wants to give the world to but isn’t sure how she can find the means. That is, until she finds a mysterious magazine that seems to speak right to her, with an intriguing collection of recipes that might give her exactly what she needs. Set in small-town Alberta in the 1990s, the story reminds me of small minds and a longing to cut free into the wild.
If you’d like to see this book irl, help us out! The project is looking for Kickstarter backers here. Indie publishers are essentially funded by the people, for the people, which allows for interesting projects to come to life in a market that is saturated by a few gatekeeper publishing houses at the top. If the project surpasses its goal to fund this project, the excess will go towards the next project like it. So support indie projects, because creative work is essential! (Also, you can get some really fun swag!)
I have a bunch of exciting publishing news coming up – if you want to keep up with what’s going on, don’t forget to sign up for my monthly newsletter. Not only are you going to be the first to know what’s going on with me, I also share seasonal recipes, book recommendations and fun ways to waste your time on the internet (something we all need more of in our life, right?) Sign up here:
