The Origins of Halloween by Eileen O'Finlan

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In my new historical novel, The Folklorist, main character, Charlotte Lajoie, puts together an exhibit on the history and evolution of Halloween for the New England Folklife Museum where she works. To accurately describe the exhibit, I had to do research on the subject. For this I relied heavily on a wonderful book by Halloween expert Lisa Morton called Trick or Treat: A History of Halloween.

I could not possibly relate all I learned in one blog post, so I will just offer an overview of the origins of the Halloween. 

As many people know, the holiday we celebrate on October 31st had its beginnings in the ancient Celtic festival of Samhain, which means "summer's end." A Druid religious holiday, it was a three-day festival celebrating the reaping of an abundant harvest and the belief that souls journeyed to the other world, which they called Tir na tSamhraidh (Land of Summer) at this time. They believed that the veil between this world and that one was very thin at Samhain, allowing the dead to return to the living, and creatures called sidh (fairies) to cross to our side. On Samhain, a gathering was held that featured feasting, sports, repayment of debts, and legal trials, followed in some cases, by executions. Story-telling featured prominently at the festival, most stories having an eerie, supernatural element to them. Fortune-telling was also a favored element of Samhain.

Interestingly, by the 7th century, when the Celtic lands were Christianized, Samhain didn't totally disappear. It was transformed, yet it remained a religious holiday. By the 8th century, Pope Gregory III moved the feast of All Saints to November 1st, and 100 years later Pope Gregory IV declared it a universal Church holiday. Because "hallow" comes from the Old English word "halga", meaning holy, the night before All Saints Day became All Hallows' Eve, eventually morphing into Hallowe'en and finally Halloween.

Like Samhain, it was a three-day celebration consisting of All Hallows' Eve, All Saints Day, and All Souls Day. Though the Church purposely supplanted Samhain with these three days, the Celts were unwilling to entirely give up their ancient roots. They celebrated with traditional foods reminiscent of those used for the ancient festival and retained the mix of joyful celebration and somber contemplation of death.

By 1350 the Black Death had killed 60% of Europe's population. Popular culture changed along with this calamity bringing about a morbid fascination and obsession with death. The invention of the printing press allowed for the dissemination of artwork. Especially popular was an image known as the Danse Macabre which featured skeletons and Grim Reapers. These images soon became incorporated into the All Hallows' Eve festival especially since the belief that the dead cross over at this time had not left the Celtic lands. 

With the tens of thousands of women executed for witchcraft in the 1480s,  another Halloween icon arose - the witch. Suspected witches were often accused of causing or spreading the Plague and were believed to have a close association and sometimes a sexual relationship with devil. They soon became incorporated into the holiday as well. The traditional  image of the witch with a broom, cauldron, and cat, all symbols of female housekeeping, began to appear at this time.

It was in the mid-19th century that Halloween finally made its way to America along with Irish and Scottish immigrants.  As the newly emerging middle-class tried to imitate the British, they became fascinated with Queen Victoria's 1869 Halloween visit to Balmoral Castle in Scotland reported on in American newspapers. If the queen could celebrate Halloween, so could they!

By the early 20th century, Halloween was becoming established in America, though it was still very much an adult affair. That's not to say kids had no part in it. Children's Halloween parties became popular by the by the 1920s. On the downside, teen boys became so enamored of Halloween pranks that they grew in intensity and became so out of control that by the 1930s Halloween was nearly outlawed.

Civic organizations saved the day by offering parties, parades, costuming, carnivals, and contests to supplant the pranking. Handbooks, popular from 1915 to 1950 were written with instructions on how to celebrate the holiday. In the 1930s, neighbors pooled resources to create "house-to-house parties" in which groups of kids were taken from one house to the next, each house hosting a different theme - the precursor to trick-or-treating.

 

Finally, Halloween in America as we know it today came into its own shortly after World War II with the development of suburban neighborhoods and the ability to safely trick-or-treat for candy.

So, as you celebrate Halloween this year, remember you are taking part in a holiday with a long, varied, and fascinating history! 

 

Coming October 1, 2023 - The Folklorist by Eileen O'Finlan

 

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I am excited to announce that my next historical novel, The Folklorist, will be released on October 1, 2023, by BWL Publishing just in time for Halloween! Charlotte Lajoie, a young professional folklorist, struggling to build her career in 1973, is given the 1839 diary of her ancestor Jerusha Kendall. Reading the diary leads her to believe that Jerusha and her family were involved in what would come to be known as the New England Vampire Panic. And it seems that at least one of Charlotte's ancestors is still angry about it. 

Jerusha Kendall was only nine years old in 1832 when something awful happened in her family, but she has no idea what. She has grown up knowing that not only her family, but the entire village of Birch Falls, Vermont is keeping it a secret from her. By 1839, when she begins keeping a diary, she's determined to learn what happened that caused her mother to stop speaking to her dearest friend, isolate Jerusha from all but her own family, and withdraw from their close-knit community.

As Charlotte studies Jerusha's diary, she starts to believe that she knows what happened even if Jerusha never figured it out. Meanwhile, Charlotte has her hands full trying to juggle work for an insecure, infuriatingly sexist boss at the New England Folklife Museum, decide on the way forward in her own career, and find a way to bring peace to an aggrieved ghost.

If you're interested in finding out what folklore, ghosts, and vampires have in common, check out The Folklorist in October.

The Making of a Trilogy by Eileen O'Finlan

 

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When I wrote my debut novel, Kelegeen, historical fiction set in Ireland during the Great Hunger (aka Potato Famine) I wasn't planning on writing a sequel. I thought all the way through that it would be a stand alone. It wasn't until I completely rewrote the first draft that thoughts about what might happen to the characters after the story's ending started coming to mind. I was nearing the end of the rewrite when I made the decision that a sequel was necessary. I even ended Kelegeen in such a way as to lend itself to a continuation.

Next came Erin's Children. Erin, in this case, is not a character, but refers to Ireland (think erin go bragh), and her children are those who emigrated to escape starvation. 

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My first inclination was to set it in Boston as many Irish settled there at the time. I live in central Massachusetts so Boston is just under two hours from me. I figured I could get out there a few times as part of my reseach. Fortunately for me, I mentioned it to someone at work who told me of a great book about the history of the Irish in Worcester. 

Worcester is the city in which I work and very close to where I live. I changed my mind and, instead, decided to set it here, and I am so glad I did. What a great time I had researching the history of the city in which I've spent the majority of my life! I learned so many fascinating things, many of which I was able to incorporate into the story. After publication, I even had a request from a group of readers to give a walking tour of one of the sections of the city in which a large portion of the book takes place. It was a real joy and a wonderful way to connect with readers.

As with Kelegeen, when I finished Erin's Children I thought I was done with these characters. But, also, as with Kelegeen, they refused to let me go. So now it's on to research for the third in this Irish trilogy. I can hardly wait to dive into more of Worcester's past. This time the focus for the book will be on the next generation, so I'll be looking at the post American Civil War era of the 1870s and 1880s. 

For many writers of historical fiction the research is just as enjoyable as the writing, and I am no exception. Now that I have completed work on my next historical novel, The Folklorist, which will be released by BWL Publishing in October of 2023, I can focus on a deep dive into late Victorian-era Worcester. Yes!

The Witching Hour

 

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In researching our upcoming book, Spectral Evidence, my co-author Jude Pittman and I are coming face-to-face with a subject that has fascinated me since I twice appeared in theater productions of Arthur Miller's play, The Crucible-- the Salem Witch Trials.

How does the infamous American tragedy connect to a mystery set in Newfoundland of the same 1692 period? Well, the waterways..be they ocean, lake, river, or coastal were the highways of commerce then. Did you know there was a healthy trading network between the cod fisheries of Newfoundland and their American cousins in New England? Our story is of literal cousins, whose connected merchant families are from St. John's, Newfoundland, and Salem, Massachusetts.

Today's Salem is seeped in history.  It's now a small, thriving town that has survived the infamy of its early history of puritan-on-puritan violence, pirates, whalers, murders, a great fire and several Hollywood invasions to become a destinations of thousands of tourists during the month of October. As if making amends for the intolerance of its earlier residents, Salem is also a welcoming home for all, including modern witches, historians, artists, writers, and the LGBTQ+ community.

Spending a witching hour in Salem might mean feeling the darkness gather about you as you tour one of the Witch trial judge's home, of feel a tug as your shawl from the ghost of Dorcas, the youngest of the accused, a 4 year old imprisoned girl said to be still searching for her hanged mother. 

The Witch House, home of Judge Corwin,
where the accused were questioned

Visit the world-class Peabody Essex Museum to hear haunting melodies as you sit under beautifully carved sailing ships' mastheads, and the home that inspired Nathaniel Hawthorne to write The House of the Seven Gables.  There are two (count 'em) pirate museums!

 

The Real Pirate Museum, where I learned what "Matelot" is

There's even a tribute to actress Elizabeth Montgomery, who endeared herself to locals when she filmed the seventh season of her TV sitcom "Bewitched" in Salem.

(Almost) everybody loves the "Bewitched" bronze sculpture!

Yes, research is a rewarding part of this writer's life.  I hope you'll enjoy the fruits of our labor when Spectral Evidence is published next year!

Brontë Land

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In May my husband Will and I spent a delightful day in Haworth, West Yorkshire, UK. We visited the home of the famous Brontë writing family, followed in the footsteps of siblings Charlotte, Branwell, Emily, and Anne, and enjoyed lunch and snacks in cafés with views of the picturesque dales.

Curators of the Brontë Parsonage Museum say the village of Haworth and the surrounding countryside would be recognized by the Brontës today. We took the train and bus from Leeds and walked up the steep high street to the centre of Haworth village. 

Our first stop was the Brontë Parsonage Museum, which is full of artifacts and descriptions of the family's history and the sisters' writing. As children, the girls and their brother Branwell loved making up stories for his toy soldiers and creating imaginary worlds and adventures for their characters. Charlotte named her favourite soldier after the Duke of Wellington, who defeated Napoleon at Waterloo in 1815, the year before Charlotte's birth. The siblings would walk around the dining table developing their tales, which speaks well for the value of writing groups and walking as stimulation. As they grew older, they acquired portable writing desks so they could write in different parts of the house. 

                                           Emily's portable writing desk                                                  

The family history was a sad one. Maria Branwell Brontë died the year after her youngest child, Anne, was born. Four years later her two oldest daughters died, probably of tuberculosis contracted at boarding school. Her son Branwell became a painter and struggled with addiction. He died at age thirty-one. Emily died three months later, at age thirty, and Anne died the following year, age twenty-nine. Charlotte married her father's curate and lived to age thirty-eight, when she died of complications from pregnancy. Her husband remained in the house with her father, Patrick, who died at age eighty-four, having survived his wife and six children. All except Anne are buried in the neighbouring church, where Patrick served as rector for forty-one years. Anne died while recuperating from tuberculosis in coastal Scarborough. Charlotte had her buried there to spare her father yet another funeral. 

                              Brontë burial site in St Michael and All Angel's Church, Haworth 

After the museum, we boosted our mood with lunch on a café patio overlooking the Yorkshire dales. Then we walked up to the moor behind the Brontë home and followed a favourite path of the siblings. We didn't mind that it wasn't Brontë-esque rainy, windy, and cold. Actually, one museum display featured an academic's chart that shows sunshine appears in more Brontë novel scenes than readers tend to remember. 

Then it was time for an afternoon snack in another café's garden. 

The Brontë Parsonage Museum hosts talks, children's programs, and other events through the year. I wish I lived in Leeds so I could attend events like Women of the Wild, which will be held this September. I have a slight personal connection to Haworth. My aunt's family came from the village and my aunt inherited Charlotte's umbrella, which she later donated to the museum. Unfortunately for us, the museum keeps it in storage along with other personal items and clothing, which they only bring out for special exhibits. But my aunt would be glad to know the umbrella was home in lovely Haworth. 

 

                Haworth village viewed from the moor. My hair suggests the day was a tad windy.   

   

        

       

The Joy of The End by Eileen O'Finlan

 

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Two of most writers favorite words are "The End." That's not because we don't like writing. Most of us love it. It's because "The End" represents that the first leg of a very long and often arduous process is finally finished. It can take months or even years to be able to type those words. For those of us who write in genres that take a tremendous amount of research before a single word of the story gets written, it may be even longer. 

It is not, however, truly the end for the author. The first draft is just the beginning. Once those glorious words have been typed, the author enters the next phase of the writing process - revisions. The first draft is only that, the first of what could eventually be many drafts before the book is finally done. I completely rewrote Kelegeen at least three times before it was truly finished.

Recently, I typed "The End" on the first draft of my current work in progress, an historical novel to be titled The Folklorist. Upon seeing those words appear on the screen, I felt as though a huge weight had been lifted from me. I would not have been surprised to find myself floating around the room (okay, I would have been surprised, but maybe not that much). 

I knew perfectly well that it was not really the end. I'm now slogging through revisions, fixing problems, looking for any issues with pacing or continuity. Given that The Folklorist has a dual timeline, something I've never written before, it is especially challenging. But I'm up for a challenge, and, honestly, I've been delighted to find that the timelines held together on the first draft much better than I expected. 

So if there's still so much more work to do after the first draft has been completed, why is typing "The End" such a big deal? It's because of what it represents. An entire body of work has been completed. The author who likely had plenty of doubts, writing crises, writer's block, and general hair-pulling moments liberally sprinkled amongst times of pure writing joy, can finally say that a complete story has been written. The obstacles were overcome. "I did it!" may ring through the air.

Yes, there will be things to fix, add, delete, whatever. But a whole story emerged despite the times it threatened to keel over and die. And that is a feeling to which very few things can compare.

                                                        

Creating a Novel Series Cover Brand

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BWL's Art Director didn't set out to create a cover brand for my Paula Savard Mystery Series. The first cover that Michelle Lee designed for me was for book # 2 of my series, Ten Days in Summer, published in 2017. The process began with me filling out a BWL Cover Art Form (CAF). I provided details about the story, its setting in Calgary, and the two main characters and suggested images related to these. At that time, BWL required that most novel covers include at least one image of a person. 

I plugged keywords into the photo image website, searching for ones that suited my protagonist and the story antagonist, a wannabe cowboy. None were exactly right, especially for Paula, my insurance adjuster sleuth. "Female detective" turned up images of young women peering through magnifying glasses. Paula is fifty-two and doesn't use that prop. Keywords "female insurance adjuster" showed women examining cars. The story involves a building fire insurance claim. I tried "businesswomen" and got images of women sitting in meetings, while Paula spends her time out on the case. 

I selected the best images for Paula that I could find along with images for my antagonist, which included a silhouetted cowboy.  I also suggested images of the Calgary skyline, fires, and a boarded-up house for the burned building. I don't think Michelle used any of the exact images I sent, but she meshed my ideas into a cover that was better than one I could have designed (see cover image above). The fire suggests the heat of summer in the title. 

Two years later, BWL republished A Deadly Fall, book # 1 in the series. During that short time period, book cover fashion moved away from portraying people and toward crisp and intriguing images that evoke a sense of the story. Now BWL's CAF stated that most covers would not include a person. I sent people image suggestions anyway, but I found it easier not to have to focus on finding an image that fit the characters in my head. On my CAF, I suggested images for the Calgary skyline and fall -- fall leaves on water, a path in fall, trees with colourful fall leaves, and falling leaves. Again, I doubt Michelle chose my actual suggestions, but they were her starting point to create this golden cover.   

When the third series book, Winter's Rage, was ready for a cover two years later, we were on our way to a series cover brand. My CAF included a few people image suggestions -- a woman texting, a man in a snowstorm, but I focused on images of the Calgary skyline in winter and winter driving, since this story was about a hit-and-run collision.  For the first time I considered colour. While red, orange, and yellow suited the fall and summer seasons of the first two books, I saw winter as white, blue, and black (night). Michelle came up with a cover that continued the brand with snowflakes and a frozen Calgary. Winter's book cover was blue, with yellow lettering that linked it to the colour of the two earlier books in the series.   

 By book # 4 of my Paula Savard Mystery Series, the series brand was established: Calgary skyline, colours to suit the story season, and additional images related to the season or story. Since bicycles feature prominently in Spring Into Danger, I included bicycle images among my CAF suggestions and chose Calgary skyline images that had a place for a bike or cyclist in the foreground. Here's the cover design for Spring Into Danger, which is scheduled for release in September. 

 I like how the cyclist pops into view. Whenever I look at this cover, I don't notice him until he emerges from the shadows. The book's blue cover with yellow lettering matches Winter's Rage and the covers for the four books have come full circle by including a silhouette on the first and last design. I look forward to seeing Spring Into Danger sitting on a bookshelf.   

Writing with Pets by Eileen O'Finlan

 

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As people who share their homes and lives with pets can attest, their furry companions are often involved in everything that goes on at home. For me, that includes writing. My two cats, Smokey (now a Rainbow Bridge Angel Kitty) and Autumn Amelia even inspired my latest book, All the Furs and Feathers. In some ways, they helped me write it since I often took my cues from their personalities.

It's one thing to pay attention to the pets, think about how they might respond given various fictional situations, and put it in a story. It's quite another to have them physically involved while trying to write that (or any other) story.

About a year ago, I became a Rover.com sitter and began boarding small dogs in my home for weekends while their pet parents were away. Two of them, Chewy and Bruce Lee have become regular clients. They are getting used to me spending time on my laptop while they are staying with me, though if a writing session runs too long in their estimation, they make their feelings known and cut it short. However, the last time they were at my house, Bruce Lee decided that rather than trying to drag me away from my writing, he'd help out. Here's how that went:

Does this mean he's now co-author on my next novel?

Not to be outdone by the dogs, Autumn Amelia has been spending more and more time huddle as close as she can get to my laptop whenever I'm working on it, inching ever closer to the keyboard. A strict editor, she keeps a close eye on my writing. I can tell when she thinks her editing skills are needed. Here, let me show you in pictures how that progresses:

Autumn settles in, ready to start assessing my current writing session.

Hmm...this could use some help.

Autumn thinks she can write it better so she takes over

It's well-known that pets bring us many joys and having them in our lives offer a number of benefits. Who knew writing help was one of them!

Awards Season

 

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It's spring and that means awards season! I'm pleased to report that Ursula's Inheritance has achieved a first place status in the Laramie Awards for Americana fiction.

My whole American Civil War Brides series was a finalist, and my YA mystery Missing at Harmony Festival was a finalist in the YA Dante Rossetti Award.

And....bonus news, The #3 Linda Tassel Mystery, will be available soon!  Here's our Art Director Michelle Lee's great cover design...

When Word Collide Grand Finale

 

 

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I've attended Calgary's When Words Collide Festival for Readers and Writers every year since it began in 2011. That was the year I published my first novel, A Deadly Fall, but I didn't attend to promote the book. I went as a fan of one of their special guest authors Robert J. Sawyer and because a friend coaxed me into going and WWC was an inexpensive, local event. When I arrived at the host hotel, I was amazed at the festival's energy. The founders largely came from the science fiction and fantasy community and they know how to party. While WWC included all genres, it helped to understand the numerous Star Trek references. I attended several dynamic panels and presentations and did a shift at the book sale table, where I met some interesting people and sold copies of my new novel. 

The following year, I volunteered to lead a dialogue workshop, which had a huge turnout. Buoyed by this success, the next year I volunteered to sit on a few panels. WWC is entirely volunteer-run and presented, although the special guest authors receive expense money. The relative equality between authors and fans creates a democratic atmosphere. A highlight for me every year is the opening night's two-hour keynote addresses, where the five or six guest authors each introduce themselves and speak on whatever topic they want. Often the speeches are funny and/or thought provoking.  

My involvement increased when I joined the WWC board and helped develop ideas for panels. We aimed for topics that would appeal to readers of all genres and writers at every stage of the process, from learning the craft to finding a publisher to promoting their books. I met BWL publisher Jude Pittman at WWC 2017 when we chatted in the Merchants' Room. After the festival, I sent her a query and soon became part of the BWL family. 

 

                                 BWL's Nancy Bell and Jude Pittman at When Words Collide 

Connections also occur at WWC social gatherings. The Saturday evening banquet has sold out quickly since the festival started encouraging costumes. Here I am (left hand side) with two other ladies in red at the Roaring Twenties theme banquet.  

      

Then COVID-19 hit. WWC went online in August 2020 and continued with virtual conferences the following two years. I still participated in panels and attended some virtual social events, but not as many as I had previously. Staring at a computer screen wasn't the same as meeting in person. I left the board, feeling I didn't have the tech skills to contribute much of value. Other board members dropped off and the festival's main organizers ran out of steam. They decided to return to the in-person festival in 2023, but this will be the final year for When Words Collide. 

Registration for WWC 2023 has reached its cap of 780 attendees, but this is due to 2020 and later registrations being carried forward to 2023. Spots are expected to open up, so it's worth  putting your name on the waitlist if you're interested in attending.

I'm looking forward to the WWC finale on August 4-6 with bittersweet feelings, but this might not be a complete ending. Rumour has it another group is thinking of reviving the festival or creating something similar next year. This hope in the wings is all the more reason to celebrate When Words Collide's wildly successful thirteen year run this summer. Hats off to you, WWC! It's been grand. 

                                               Me with Special Guest Author Will Ferguson

 

                                    

Writing for Me or for Thee? Fun Versus Funds by Vanessa C. Hawkins

 

 

 Vanessa Hawkins Author Page

    So lately a few writing opportunities have sprung up, and though I'm not complaining, it made me think of the differences between writing creatively for one's own enjoyment and writing to make bank. 

Starting out, when I would write, I would do so for my own entertainment. Voices in my head would come alive on paper, and I could get them to do all sorts of things. I could build worlds and construct cheesy dialogue, or kill off whoever I wanted when I wanted and all for the sheer joy of doing so... something that would likely earn you a prison sentence if you tried to act it out in real life.

Like Nancy Brophy who wrote an essay on how to kill your husband then was convicted of killing her husband... 

Don't take her advice. 

Anyway, the point is that things changed when I started wanting to publish my book. Now your talking audience and appealing to readers. This really switched up the game for me because when I started publishing and writing with the hope TO publish, I didn't just have to think about myself. I had to think about what publishers wanted---if I were to go the traditional route---and what other people who enjoy the genre would want to read.

Which shifted the focus a bit, but was still fun. But then came the submission calls, and inquiries to write in a specific genre or about a specific story and things changed. 

Now it was a matter of, do I do this even though it's a bit out of my comfort zone? There is a ton of benefit if I do. Not only will it be lucrative, but it would showcase my work to a broader audience. 

Also money might happen... money... 

Money. It matters...

AND its a challenge! Which I enjoy, because I see it as a chance to develop my writing and explore other themes. And there are so many submission calls to suit your fancy. But that denotes its own set of problems because there's nothing more discouraging than writing up a piece for a submission, submitting it, waiting forever and then being rejected after months of expectation. 

So what do you do? At the moment I have a few projects on the go, and though I'm finding myself so busy that I don't have as much time for my own written entertainment---so to speak---the sense of excitement overpowers the challenge. I suppose it really comes down to whether or not I want to make writing my job. If so, I gotta expect to write outside of my comfort zone and cater to readers. I'd love to be a King or a Rowling someday, but unless I hit the proverbial "author lottery" most likely I'll only make a living---a small one---

---by writing and submitting and repeat. But maybe that's a bit too bleak, now that I think about it. Because I don't really think about it in that way. I like that certain people believe in me enough to ask if I'd be interested in writing a piece for them. That means they read my "mind babies" and enjoyed them enough to ask if I'd be able to create a "mind baby" with them too. So... what's the point of this blog? 

I don't know. Write for yourself, until you feel comfortable writing for others too? And if you never feel that way, then just write for yourself. BUT! Don't write for others and then never release the last two installments of your series! 

GEORGE! 

#stillwaitingforwindsofwinter

Also money...

   

 

 

Creating a Fantastic but Believable Setting by BC Deeks, Paranormal Mystery Fiction Author

 

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SETTING is crucial to a story’s development and the reader’s experience in any fictional work, but never more so, in my humble opinion, than in a fantasy. If an author is working on a contemporary story, you can count on the reader to have enough personal experience to fill in the blanks with minimal prompting. 

In the fantasy genre, all bets are off. It is up to the author to show the reader how far they should suspend their disbelief in every aspect of the world they are entering—from the ground they stand on, to the creatures they will encounter, the language that will be spoken…Indeed, every aspect of the reading experience can be distorted to best tell the story that is about to unfold. The setting where all this distortion will occur must support the changes from what the reader has come to expect in ‘real life.’

It would be jarring for a fur-covered fire breathing dragon to appear on the sunbaked beaches of Florida, for example. Not that it couldn’t be done but the author would sure have to work at developing plausibility for such a scenario.

When I created a family of supernatural beings inspired by witches, I needed to base them in a dimension that could support their use of powerful magic as a daily occurrence. I decided that not everyone should have such powerful magic, so therefore my primary characters would be the Guardians to the ruling Council of Master Witches. Their powers would draw from the elements of nature – air, water, fire, earth, and a fifth universal element known as Aether. The rest of the population would have diluted powers linked to nature but not of the same strength.

Since my characters must be freely able to interact with their elements, I supposed that they would need lush outdoor spaces, with mountains and forests, oceans and open skies. Yes, I thought, a rocky island out in the ocean…much like where I grew up! My magical dimension of The Otherland began to take shape. 

The Island of Newfoundland where I was born is definitely on earth although far enough out in the North Atlantic to forget at times. Its history dates back to the Vikings and leans heavily to Irish, who believe in everything from fairies to leprechauns, four-leaf clovers to banshees, and have all sorts of rituals to ward off evil spirits or bad luck. There were still Gaelic speakers in Newfoundland well into the 20th century and, like the Irish, we love to spin a tale!

Of course, my characters would travel to other dimensions, so I adopted the accepted fantasy principles of portal magic and integrated that into my imaginary world. My supernatural beings would have a gateway on the edge of the granite cliffs that allowed them to pass through to alternate realms, including the mortal world. Since I wanted to write a series, this would allow for a revolving door so they could visit a wider range of story settings like the coastal regions of Seattle or the mountains of Montana when adventure called. And adventure does summon the Egan family members...

Mythics and mortals battle dark forces in my epic paranormal mystery adventure trilogy, BEYOND THE MAGIC. In Book 1: WITCH UNBOUND, Marcus, the powerful eldest brother, is sent to the mortal realm to investigate the murder of two long-lost Guardians of The Otherland. Can he abandon everything he’s ever believed to save the life of an extraordinary witch who knows nothing of her heritage? Together they begin a quest to deflect an ancient prophecy that could destroy his world. Marcus’s brother, Theo, and sister, Elowyn, join that quest in Book 2: MORTAL MAGIC and Book 3: REBEL SPELL, respectively, coming in 2023.