Witchy Links for Samhain

plus, enchanting your writing

Happy Samhain to those who celebrate!

Here are some witchy links for you.

• Where did Halloween originate? Some say in [County] Roscommon. Samhain is a cross-quarter day that was first observed by Celtic pagans. This Irish news outlet gets into the ties between the holiday and its historical ties to the county which also hosts sacred sites of the Morrigan.

• If you, like me, are a white person who eyerolls whenever you hear other white women proclaim to be “the granddaughters of the witches they couldn’t burn,” then you will probably enjoy Once Again, the History of the Witch Trials Has Inspired the World’s Most Annoying Merch at Slate. The author is a littleeeee dismissive of spirituality, generally, and isn’t overly keen on diving into the actual historical specifics of the people who were burned as witches (many were midwives and practiced folk traditions that were being slowly eaten away by the church, for example), but hey, can’t have everything. 

• At the NYT, The Lucrative Business of Being a Witch on TikTok and Etsy. A bit of a misleading headline, as anyone who is an everyday occult practitioner knows; the industry is booming, but no one is making it big spelling individual spells for $25 bucks a pop. (I chortled at “Modern witches no longer lurk in dark alleys,” though.) Still, coverage in the paper of record!

• The Queer Witches of Appalachia at Belt Magazine. This one is a great read.

• This old interview with Pat Devin, one of the witchcraft consultants on 1996’s cult-classic The Craft. Absolutely fascinating, for practitioners interested in consulting as well as folks who are just fans of the film. Shoutout to Corinne in the astrology for writers Discord for finding this one. 

And a casual reminder that today is a great day for my fellow authors to sign the Writers Against the War on Gaza statement in solidarity.

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Also. On this day, sacred to so many, let’s remember that your creative practice isn't divorced from your spiritual practice. By integrating these practices — and understanding how both spring from the same place — you'll find that your can trust fall into a deeper and even more generative relationship with Story.

For those:

• Writers who are interested in incorporating more of their spiritual interests in their creative work, but are unsure of where to start

• Writers who are burned out and in need of grounding their practice in something other than a commitment to "productivity"

• Writers who have an active spiritual practice, but are in need of getting back to basics and/or zhuzhing up their routine

I’ve got a brand new workshop coming your way on Sunday, November 12th, from 1-3pm Eastern: Enchanting Your Writing. Now open for registration.

Hope to see you there. xx