Howling Moon
I’m entering 2025 in a strange state that swings between feeling confident and hopeful to full of rage and despondence (mostly rage though), all the feelings fighting from both internal and external reasons. We begin each year with the January full moon commonly referred to as the Wolf Moon which according to the lore is because the early people settled in America would hear the wolves howling in hunger. Wolves don’t howl for hunger though and I question how this description of the Wolf Moon has been passed down, wondering if some things got lost or changed over the years. Was January a time when ancestors were lonely because it was a time for hunkering down and were worried about food stores so listening to the haunting cries of packs made them transfer all the emo over? Was there respect at being reminded of the fierce and familial nature of wolves even in the dead of winter?
Wolves howl to find each other, to communicate dangers but also affection, to mark territory and strengthen social bonds. And in the quiet of January, after the revelry of the holidays, I can understand why listening to that would make one maudlin. January is a quiet time, of giving up vices and making resolutions to be a better person. But we do it in such lonely ways sometimes and I think January is a time when we need each other, without the pressures of celebrations and traditions. So with that, I decided we should absolutely take a page from the wolves and start the year howling to find our pack, to communicate joy and affection in a world that only wants us to see the dangers and to strengthen connection with each other. Each wolf has a howl that is unique to them, that their pack recognizes. Your voice, in song or writing or whatever expressions, is also unique to you. Let January be a time when you howl for what you need: to find your chosen pack, to strengthen your connections those you love and to find your voice!
Writing News
I started writing Pacific North Witch in the midst of the last Trump administration. I had been working on other novels but not having much luck in finishing them. It was valuable work, writing those stories and honing my voice as a writer. But I was meandering and unfocused. I needed a project to throw myself into fully. I asked myself: what kind of book would I like to read and what would I like to write, what would be fully for me and not my idea of what others want? The other works weren’t necessarily at odds with those questions but I hadn’t intentionally asked those questions before of myself. I love reading about strong women characters, worlds of magic bordering on real places and I love the myth of the witch. I wanted to include the real life issues that were pressing in on me, the distrust and persecution of people who live outside of prescriptive cultural guidelines all being amplified by an administration that was most definitely not “for the people”. That was the book I wanted to read and the book I wanted to write. It is disconcerting but wonderful to have the novel released out in the world for others to read while we gear up for a continuation of the issues we were experiencing when I started writing.
Pacific North Witch was my howl for my pack who wanted to read the same kind of book. If that resonates with you or someone you know, share the book with them:
Bookshop.org (which supports your local indie bookstore) in paperback and hardcover HERE.
Amazon in paperback, hardcover, or Kindle edition HERE.
Barnes & Noble in paperback or hardcover editions through HERE.
What I’m Reading
I often think about the scene in the movie About Time when Bill Nighy’s character admits that he’s used his time travel skill to predominantly read books. I can totally relate to that. Every time I buy books or go to the library, I find books I want to read and the pile grows.
The Invocations by Krystal Sutherland: Unsurprisingly, I love books about witches. All too often though, they don’t quite achieve what I want, getting a little too Bewitched. Not the Invocations. This book is the story of three different young women from different means thrown together in a chase for a killer hunting women who have made bargains for magic as a means to survive in a man’s world. It feels like a book to read in October, spooky with a current of grief, but the themes are timely year round. Aren’t women always fighting to maintain our magic and our lives?
This American Ex-Wife by Lyz Lenz: The talented feminist writer, Lyz Lenz, of Men Yell at Me, writes about ending her marriage and how her experience of being a woman in America shaped expectations that kept her from finding her path and happiness. Full of facts and stories from other women in America fighting against the patriarchy, this isn’t a read for the faint of heart. It WILL make you question your own role in perpetuating a system that is dehumanizing but it is worth it.
Goodbye to 2024 and into 2025
I’m trying to spend less time categorizing a single year as “good” or “bad”. Some years are more memorable than others, some have heartbreak, illness, loss or difficulties in them that make it harder to see the good times. But there are always enjoyable moments, good news, connections and sometimes just a bowl of really good soup you made yourself that balances it out. I’m not heading into January with too many resolutions of change. Change is inevitable so I resolve to stay steady in the ways that I can. I hope you do too.